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CHILDREN'S MIRACLE NETWORK CLASSIC PRESENTED BY WAL-MARTNovember 1, 2007Justin LeonardLAKE BUENA VISTA, FLORIDA JOEL SCHUCHMANN: Justin Leonard, thanks for joining us after a 5 under par 67 on the Magnolia course today. Well, wet conditions, but nice round, 5 under par. What can you tell us? JUSTIN LEONARD: I just drove the ball really well. Hit a few shots close, and greens are soft and they're in good shape. They didn't mark up too much this afternoon. So, you know you can certainly make some putts. JOEL SCHUCHMANN: As far as your strong play, you won the Texas Open a few weeks back, and played pretty well the last three or four months. Maybe just some comments about how things have come together for you this fall? JUSTIN LEONARD: I think all the work that I put in starting from March on has really started to pay off. I hit the ball pretty well through the summer. Didn't get as much out of my short game and my putting as I needed to. I think that's the biggest thing this fall that I've done is start to make putts, and doing that kind of takes pressure off everything else. You know, when you can play out here free and with confidence, it makes a huge difference. And I've been able to do that the last couple months. JOEL SCHUCHMANN: Questions, please. Q. What was your fall schedule plan when the fall started? And did you change anything? Did you always intend to play? JUSTIN LEONARD: I am here. And I haven't changed anything. I probably had this planned in August to play the schedule that I have. You know, I thought after San Antonio maybe about taking a week off one of these last three. But you know, I just decided not to. Decided I'm playing well, and not to take two months off. I'm certainly not fatigued or tired. Now that I'm playing well, let's see if I can do something with it. Q. Good way to get into the Masters? JUSTIN LEONARD: Yeah, that would be nice. That's in the back of my mind. I would love to get in the top 30 to get back to the Masters. But I really won't be too disappointed, because I know I could still play my way in. Though this is probably the best chance I have. But thinking back to March and April, if I had said it will come down to the last tournament I'll have a chance to get in the top 30 on the money list, you know when I think about that, it's hard to be too disappointed. Q. You couldn't skip last week, could you? Isn't your wife sort of down in that vicinity originally? Probably got family and all kinds of stuff hanging over your head? JUSTIN LEONARD: Yeah, yeah. We had some fun with the in-laws last week. No, you're right, you're right. But, well, yeah, I couldn't have skipped it. Q. You would have heard about it. Asking some of the other guys that have been in the league for a while, they sort of blew up the schedule this year. It had been the same for decades and decades. What is your take on how it's all played out? A, FedEx Cup and B, Fall Series, you won one of those events. Has it been what you expected it to be? More, less, what do you think? JUSTIN LEONARD: I think it's been pretty good. I think the Tour and the sponsors of the FedEx Cup and the tournaments and the playoffs I think they got their money's worth. You know, as far as having Tiger winning two of them, Phil winning one of them. Steve Stricker is a great story. I think it was pretty well received. Doesn't mean that some things don't need to be changed or tweaked. I don't think there's any big changes, but the thing I'd like to see most changed is the points distribution through the playoff events. Just didn't think there was enough movement to, you know, to really get to guys to move up or down the list. That's one thing I'd like to see changed. I think it's worked out really well. This time of year it's really only the hard core golf fans that are watching anyways, And all those people have the Golf Channel. So, there's been a good story every week. From the guys who have won. You know, Chad Campbell, and Mike Weir and myself winning this fall, to kind of get back to where we want to be. And George McNeil winning. I mean, you know, Daniel Chopra last week. So there's been some good store stories, and I think the schedule has worked out pretty well. Probably better than I would have hoped or thought it would. Q. Back to the Masters for a second: What was your opinion, what was it, and has it changed any on them going back to the win and you're in thing, except for the Fall Series and a few of the others? JUSTIN LEONARD: I don't have a problem with that. I think it probably makes sense. And if I don't make it this week, then hopefully I'll win a tournament before April and get in that way. That would be great. I think it makes sense. I'm disappointed that I didn't get in because of the win in San Antonio, sure. But I didn't know, but I kind of had a feeling it didn't include the Fall Series, and I don't have a problem with that. Q. I'm just curious, when did you think you could win again? At what point this year? Every week or would that be too naive on your part? JUSTIN LEONARD: No, that would be naive. I played awfully well in Flint at the Buick. And made a couple nice putts on the last three holes. And a nice putt to get in the playoff. I felt like if I got in to that playoff, I was going to win it because of the momentum I had. But you know what, if I'm going to get beat, there's not a whole lot of guys I would be happy for, but Brian Bateman's one of them. So I took nothing but positives from that week. You know, after that it was probably until Turning Stone I felt pretty good about my game. Then San Antonio, that whole week I felt really good. Continues like I've had a whole lot of opportunities this year. But it kind of went away for a little while, then I got that feeling back in September. Q. Do you have much of a track record here? JUSTIN LEONARD: I've played one time, which was last year. And I was -- I got to see each golf course one time and I was done. So, no, not much of a track record at all (laughing). But I might lead in that one for number of rides. No, we have fun. And if I come down here and play, that's a bonus. Q. When kids get big and they find out what Disney World's all about, then dad has to go? JUSTIN LEONARD: Trust me, they've got it figured out now, but it's a lot of fun. Honestly, as hard as they go and as much fun as they have, I don't know how they don't sleep for 16 hours a night. But somehow they don't. They're still up at 7:00, ready to go. My wife, bless her heart, she's there. She's got it a whole lot easier than I have it this week, because she's at the park from 7:00 a.m. until they pass out. Q. You've got it easier? JUSTIN LEONARD: I mean I've got it easier, yeah, sorry. Q. How old is the oldest one? JUSTIN LEONARD: 4. Q. And 3? JUSTIN LEONARD: 4, 2 and a half, and 1 and a half. They're big into it. Q. You'll have three kids in high school at the same time? JUSTIN LEONARD: Oh, yeah. Because of their age, if, they go to school when they're supposed to, they'll be boom, boom, boom. And there's two months out of the year where they're, you know, from like July 22nd to September 13th, they're in age, consecutive. Yeah. Q. That's the way you planned it? JUSTIN LEONARD: Yeah, yeah. We wanted to have them close together. They're all buddies, they look after each other. They have their moments with each other, but they don't last long. So it's fun, definitely. Q. You talk about not playing golf for two months, but are you not used to that? If the Tour Championship ended this week, as it once did, you'd usually have a few months. JUSTIN LEONARD: No, I'm playing the Sharp Shootout, but I don't have to touch a club for three weeks. And at that point I'll be ready to take it up again, and work at it for a couple of weeks and set it down for another couple of weeks. I'm definitely used to it. But just looking forward to the break. Q. If you're sitting at home with nothing to do, what season events would you watch and not watch? JUSTIN LEONARD: First of all, that doesn't happen. I've got three kids. Well. Q. Well, five years ago when you were sitting at home with nothing to do, before you got married? Do you like any of those kind of crazy formats? The Father-Son or Sharp Shootout? JUSTIN LEONARD: I like the Sharp Shootout because I played in it a couple times. I'm trying to think what events there are. Q. Skins. JUSTIN LEONARD: No, it's usually about football that weekend. Q. The Tour Challenge? JUSTIN LEONARD: You know what, I don't -- if there's nothing else -- I don't watch a lot of golf in the off-season. If anything I'll watch the Target World Challenge just because I think it's a cool golf course, and I like to see who is playing well. But I rarely will sit there on the couch and watch a golf tournament. I'll sit and watch other things. Q. Is there anything with the tournaments the way they are now that the players thought worked really well this year FedEx Cup related? JUSTIN LEONARD: I thought the Players worked really well in may. That's a hard stretch of tournaments because there's not really anything you want to skip or even feel like you can skip. So all of a sudden April you have to make some hard choices in there what you don't play. Q. Especially if you're Texan, you don't want to miss Colonial. It's an important tournament in their own field? JUSTIN LEONARD: I actually don't mind those. For me living there, I don't mind those being split up. It actually make it's a little easier for me. Because I usually try to take a week off before or after each one of them so I'm home for four weeks versus just maybe the two and one other. So you know, I don't have any like my dream tournament schedule lineup, it wouldn't be too far from where it is now. I think those are all pretty good. You see how much guys are going to have to play from August to September, but certainly didn't hurt our President's Cup team too much. So I don't think there's too many gripes. Q. Seemed like it kept them sharp this year? JUSTIN LEONARD: Yeah, yeah, which sometimes can be an issue. JOEL SCHUCHMANN: Justin, thank you. End of FastScripts |
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