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THE TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP PRESENTED BY COCA-COLA

September 14, 2007

Woody Austin

ATLANTA, GEORGIA

JOAN v.T. ALEXANDER: Thank you, Woody, for joining us for a few minutes here in the media center at the TOUR Championship presented by Coca-Cola. Another solid round, another 65 out there. What do you think about your position?
WOODY AUSTIN: Played solid two days in a row, hit the ball really good, had a lot of chances, a little bit disappointed with the finish because I felt like I left a couple out there at the end of the round.

Q. With as well as you've played the last several months, do you almost hate that the guts of the season is ending and it's going to be --
WOODY AUSTIN: Not really. I mean, it's been a long -- it's a long year every year, so it's just nice to finally play good. I wouldn't say that I'm disappointed or ecstatic that it's over or what have you. The nice thing is I've got a couple events now that I've dreamed about playing in that I'm going to get to play in. That's the nice thing about it.
Unfortunately, one of them I won't get to rest and prepare too much for, but the other ones I'll be nice and rested and hopefully I can play just as well.

Q. Aside from The Presidents Cup, those would be HSBC World Match Play?
WOODY AUSTIN: Yeah, I got invited to that. I've never been over there, so I'm looking forward to doing that. I've heard nothing but great things about it.
Next year I think I'm in just about every major, so I can't wait to do all that stuff, plus the Mercedes right off the bat.

Q. Were you surprised that you got into the Wentworth one?
WOODY AUSTIN: Yeah, I didn't know anything about it. I didn't know how the points work, and I guess it was just strictly that I finished second at the PGA. I made enough points. I still don't know how it works, all I know is I got invited.

Q. Do you know what it pays?
WOODY AUSTIN: I do (smiling).

Q. It's not deferred, either.
WOODY AUSTIN: Really? It's just four rounds and 36 holes, woo, sounds tough.
JOAN v.T. ALEXANDER: Can we go through your round?
WOODY AUSTIN: No. 2, I hit a 4-iron to 12 feet right below the hole on the right, made a good putt.
3, I hit driver, pitching wedge to about probably 13, 14 feet, pin high to the right of the hole.
No. 9, I hit sand wedge to about two feet.
No. 12, I hit pitching wedge to about eight feet.
13, I hit 7-iron to -- I think the bored said 11 feet, 8 inches.
14, I three-putted from about 15, 18 feet. It's the only bogey of the week. I've been playing really good.
15, I hit 3-iron to about 12, 13 feet for eagle and missed it, two-putted.
JOAN v.T. ALEXANDER: You said you left some out there.
WOODY AUSTIN: Yeah, I three-putted 14 and then I missed a 12-, 13-footer for eagle on 13, and I missed an eight-footer for birdie on 18.

Q. Talk about what it's like when you're playing really well and you're shooting a low score and you're looking up and losing ground to the guy in front.
WOODY AUSTIN: You know, all I kept saying, all you can do is just keep playing your own game, and I kept playing my own game. I kept hitting good shot after good shot. The disappointment of it is you know you can't let it get too far in front. If you don't let it get too far in front, you can play. But if it gets too far in front, he has a cushion so he doesn't have to do anything spectacular like he did on the end of the front nine today. That's the disappointment with not finishing with at least one of those four at the end of the round. I figure he's going to probably make one or two more, so that's just going to give him that big cushion that I didn't want him to have. If I don't three-putt 14 and make one of the other ones, then he's not going to be that far out front.
He's just hard to catch. He's not hard to beat if you're playing as well and you're right there. But if you let him get in front of you, like I said, he's hard to catch.

Q. When is the last time you played with him, and do you look forward to it tomorrow?
WOODY AUSTIN: It's been a long time. I love playing with him. I've enjoyed it every time I've played with him. I've played with him numerous times. I think the last time I played with him was on a Saturday -- on the weekend was on Saturday at the Buick in Flint, and that was a lot of fun. I did get paired with him at San Diego a few years ago when he won. It was me, him and Hank Kuehne, so I was hitting first all the time (laughter).

Q. What do you like about playing with Tiger?
WOODY AUSTIN: I like being in the arena. His arena is very electric. Just like today, I mean, there's plenty of people out there, but it's not like there's a whole bunch of people spread out throughout the golf course or whatever, so you can -- I hit a lot of good shots, and you're waiting for people to clap or hear anything, and you really don't hear much go on. But every time he did something today, you heard it because he's got all the people with him. So that electricity that surrounds him, whether it's for him or not, when you're in that arena you feel it, and I'd like to feed off that, as well. I enjoy being inside that arena because it's so electric.

Q. You mentioned he's not hard to beat but he's hard to catch --
WOODY AUSTIN: I didn't say -- I said he can be beat.

Q. Can be beat when you're playing well, but didn't he have a four- or five-shot lead at Tulsa --
WOODY AUSTIN: He had a four- or five-shot lead, that's why he won. Anybody is hard to catch when they're playing great, especially if you happen to be the best player in the world. But in this game anybody can be beat on any given day. But if he starts five shots in front it doesn't matter. You can't let him get that far out front. It's like he said about the PGA, he had a big enough cushion where he knew what he had to do. So the fact that, as he puts it, he loves being in the last group because he then knows what he has to do, he has the final say. You can make a run at him, but then he still can respond.
Well, if you're not trying to chase him then he doesn't have that chance to respond, because if you're with him and you're making that run you're in front of him, now he has to catch you, so it's entirely different. If he has a four- or five-shot lead going into tomorrow, I've got to do some pretty good playing on the weekend to catch him. It doesn't mean I can't beat him, but can I catch him is the whole thing.

Q. How are the greens rolling and how below TOUR standards do you think they are?
WOODY AUSTIN: Well, they're -- I mean, they do roll (laughter). It's just they're really a lot slower than what we're accustomed to. I think that's it more than anything. I mean, the ball is not really bouncing that much. I think you're having to hit the putts so hard per se that you're actually hitting the ball on top of the grass and on top of the little bumps.
So far for me it's mostly been, especially the uphill putts, trying to hit it hard because they've got to be at least three feet slower than what we're used to.

Q. I think the margin was two shots when you walked in here. I'm curious --
WOODY AUSTIN: Well, he's still got 15.

Q. That's kind of my question. If it goes to three shots, how much tougher is it for you to catch him at two than at three?
WOODY AUSTIN: Well, I think that's the whole thing. I don't care who you are. He happens to be the best. I don't care if you get Phil, if you get Ernie, if you get Zach, if you get any of the good players, if you give him a four-shoot cushion you've got to play really good to make up that four shots.
Now, obviously he could go out and not play great, but when he doesn't play great he seems to figure out a way to shoot under par. So okay, so he shoots under par. Well, that means I've got to shoot a couple more 65s or 64s. So that just makes it that much harder. But if we're dead tied, then it obviously makes it a little bit easier. It's just common sense. You just don't want anybody to get too far out in front.

Q. Do you wish more people had a chance at the whole FedExCup thing this week, or are you okay with the way it all came down?
WOODY AUSTIN: I don't have a problem with the Playoffs. I know they're trying to figure this whole thing out. But as far as how many people should -- how it should be done or whatever is really -- I'm just happy to play. To me, this week especially, since I'm not in the running for it, is about finally making it back to the TOUR Championship, meaning I had a good year.
I remember a lot of the good players, Phil and those guys, have always said in the past, if you don't like the way things are, play better. Well, I'm trying to play better.

Q. What's the easiest course you've played this year?
WOODY AUSTIN: Easiest course? Well, the Bob Hope tournament is always the easiest golf course we play. The problem is it's early in the year after two and a half months off. But those golf courses are the easiest.

Q. I thought there was a big wind out there this year.
WOODY AUSTIN: That was Sunday. But LaQuinta and Palmer, those are always easier golf courses. You go to that tournament, you know in four rounds if you're not 12-under you're going to miss the cut.

Q. Okay, let's skip Bob Hope.
WOODY AUSTIN: You're not going to find anything easier than that.

Q. Besides Bob Hope what would be the easiest course you've played, besides the FedExCup Playoffs, I guess?
WOODY AUSTIN: You've got me. Not one of them pops into my head.

Q. Some of this has been weather-related, but it seems like we've had low numbers, low scoring like crazy from Westchester all the way through.
WOODY AUSTIN: But you're also talking about -- like I said, I've never played this golf course until this week, but you're talking about the other three golf courses are all easy golf courses anyway. I mean, Westchester is a good old golf course but it has no length to it. Last week really had no length to it. And then Boston, Boston is pretty much right in front of you. You couldn't ask for three easier golf courses.
If I changed anything or if I dealt with anything, I'd change the venues. If this is going to be our playoffs, then I'd get three better venues that are a little bit tougher that, as you said, might wean out some stuff. Play some really tough golf courses like Wachovia and stuff like that as opposed to the easier ones.

Q. Would you say the Playoffs have accomplished what they set out to?
WOODY AUSTIN: Absolutely. Why wouldn't you? I mean, look who's won? Tiger won one, Phil won one, look who has a chance to win. The three guys with the best chance to win are the three guys that won. Isn't that what a playoff is supposed to be about? It's not supposed to be about someone like me who had a chance at the start but if I don't win I shouldn't have a chance. I think it did exactly what it was meant to do, other than the fact that it meant to get everybody to play all four, which is pretty hard to do, and those guys aren't used to playing more than two. Every tournament has gone down to the 18th hole. No tournament has been a blowout, and everybody has played great. There's been a lot of good scores, and from that standpoint, I don't see how it could not at least succeed for its first year, absolutely.

Q. Do you think you finished just in time?
WOODY AUSTIN: I hope so. Well, I mean, he's lucky enough, he doesn't need any -- he needs to get wet once in a while (laughter). He didn't even have to hit a shot yesterday. He only played, what, two shots and he got to walk in. Chicago last week he didn't even tee off and I'm out there getting drenched. He needs to get wet once in a while. It's only fair (laughter). That's why he's the golden child.

End of FastScripts

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