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ZURICH CLASSIC OF NEW ORLEANS

April 22, 2007

Ken Duke

AVONDALE, LOUISIANA

JOAN v.T. ALEXANDER: Thank you, Ken, for joining us for a few minutes here in the media center at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans. You ought to be very pleased with your effort this week, finished second, picked up several FedExCup points, which moves you to 34th on the FedExCup standings, and back-to-back Top 10s, so you're heading in the right direction.
KEN DUKE: Yeah, I've been working hard, and at this time of year I played really well last year, and I feel like I've got a lot of good vibes going. My caddie and I are working hard, and we're on the same page, and that makes a big difference.

Q. Did you feel after No. 10 that was a big swing there from when he three-putted from seven feet and you had --
KEN DUKE: It was. I hit a great putt there and it didn't go in, and his went the other way than mine did. That's kind of where the ball was.
But I knew the next hole he was probably going to birdie because he hits it a mile past me. But I hit another great putt there, too, and it just didn't go in. It was a little -- you know, that might have happened down the stretch. I thought it might, either way.

Q. But how much momentum did you feel after 10?
KEN DUKE: Not much. I was wanting the putt to go in on 9. That would have been really -- I had a little momentum going after birdieing 7 and 8, and if I would have made one on 9, that would have been good. It wasn't much at all.

Q. What happened on 14?
KEN DUKE: 14, I just made a bad swing. We might have could have gone one more club, but if I hit the shot where I was supposed to, on the green, if it hits the green it's going to run back 20 feet. If we hit a great shot there it would have ran back there. Just made a bad swing, that's all.

Q. Talk about the course a little bit. Is it a course that you like? Does it set up well for you?
KEN DUKE: Not really because it's -- you've got to draw a lot of shots, and I don't draw it, I fade it. A few holes set up great for me, but there's six or eight of them that you have to take it over the bunkers and fade it back or just hit it in the right rough and take your medicine. Luckily the rough wasn't as bad this year. But it was good. It's a good course, but it didn't really suit me. But I played well.

Q. Do you think it was set up fairly this week?
KEN DUKE: It was. They moved the tees up this week. I think it was set up real good. They couldn't do much better than that.

Q. Can you talk about Nick a little bit? Obviously he held up pretty well.
KEN DUKE: Yeah, he was taking a few breaths out there (laughing). I mean, it's tough when you're playing in the lead. I mean, it's easier coming from behind. When you're in the lead, you're trying not to do something bad, and coming from behind you're just firing at pins.
He hit some great shots coming down the stretch, and he ended up very well. Great champion.

Q. How about two, like Joan said, back-to-back Top 10s?
KEN DUKE: It's great. I feel good about it. I feel like my game is going the right direction, and coming out here for the second time, I felt like that I could win out here or definitely keep my card this year, and I have done that. We've got a long year to go, and hopefully we can sneak up there again and have a chance to win.

Q. You slapped hands with him after his eagle and it kind of gave him a jolt to get back in. Any interaction after that shot?
KEN DUKE: No, that's just the way it goes. When somebody hits a great shot, you just congratulate them or high five them or something. Not much. I mean, I know Nick a little bit and Scott a little bit, and we chatted throughout the day. But it was good, great group to play in.

Q. Going back to the course a little bit, they made some changes going into this year to hopefully make it better. If they came to you, what changes would you like to see made? What recommendations would you have made?
KEN DUKE: I was talking to Kelly Gibson the other day about that. Shortening a few of the holes would be nice. Luckily, I think it's in a great setup right now. I don't know what it was two years ago, but the rough is not as long as we play, but it's a good rough. It makes you think because the golf course is so long, you're going to hit it in the rough.
Now, if you have the rough five or six inches, you won't be able to play out of it. The winning score might be 4- or 5-under maybe. I think it was set up very fair. The rough was good, and the greens were firming up as the week went on, but I think it was set up very fair.

Q. Any particular holes you would like to see shortened?
KEN DUKE: I don't think so. This is a long golf course, it's not a short golf course. They set it up to play long, and some holes we did and some holes we didn't. I think it was great.

Q. Considering, you said, the length that Nick has, and you're not one of the longest hitters, after that two-shot swing on 14, I know you don't want to get down on yourself, but did you know it was going to be a pretty uphill battle after that?
KEN DUKE: Well, I knew it was, but he's never won, either, so he must have felt a little pressure, as well.
I think he hit it 100 past me on that next hole, 15. I knew 16 was a hole that he might could make birdie, but I knew he wasn't going to go at the pin. 17 was hard again. I knew if I could get it to one coming to 18 I thought I had a chance, but he had two on me, and he played smart, and that's what you've got to do.
JOAN v.T. ALEXANDER: Thanks.

End of FastScripts

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