VALERO TEXAS OPEN

September 26, 2002

Joel Edwards

JOEL SCHUCHMANN: Joel, thank you for joining us. First round 66. You played four under par. We would like some opening comments on how your day went and how it feels to be back in your home state of Texas.

JOEL EDWARDS: It feels great to be home in the state. Sometimes I always feel like an outsider when I'm in another state. It's the only state I've ever known, so I'm glad to be back home. I played extremely well today. I really managed my game well. I hit some wayward shots, but I managed to chip-and-putt pretty well. I left a few out there, but I also, I made a few 4 -, 5-footers for par. I'm extremely pleased with it.

JOEL SCHUCHMANN: You have had a pretty consistent year, 11 straight cuts. What's been particularly working well this season, in general, and I guess the last 11 or 12 tournaments?

JOEL EDWARDS: That's just it, I've been consistent, not trying to overpower the ball, not trying to hit shots I can't, especially into the wind. Any kind of wind at all, I'm generally a pretty good wind player and when I try to overpower things, it doesn't -- it's not a good thing, especially with me. I've been consistent that way, and putting pretty well, too.

Q. The way you've been playing, is this round a surprise to you, or do you feel you've been playing good and this is the way you should be playing?

JOEL EDWARDS: I've been playing really solid. I had a stretch before The Buick and the PGA and Sahalee and Vancouver. I didn't hit it pretty particularly well, but I putted well for that month, and shot some good scores. I also shot my -- I kept shooting myself in the foot, making two or three pars and then a couple of birdies and then a triple. That's the way I was playing for that month and I can't explain it. And last week I did the same thing. I hit it really, really well last week, and I just didn't make any putts.

When I played with K.J. the first few days, I knew I had to take it up a notch to catch him and nobody could do that.

Q. How do you feel about the changes they made to the holes? How does that affect the scoring?

JOEL EDWARDS: I think it could definitely -- I think it's going to be around the same number winning probably, one or two higher, in my opinion. I birdied 10 today, but that was my first hole. 10 -- don't get mad at me, I think the greens are a little severe to be a par four. That's my opinion. It was a great risk/reward par 5. You can look at the stats over the years and I can guarantee there weren't many eagles there. I can understand why they did it, but I think the green -- the front half of that green, you know, is -- you have to be careful not to trip, because you could go down 80 yards. You trip and roll and roll and roll. Your body could do it, much less a ball. It's a little severe, but I think what we play -- 5 now has been a par 4 for a couple years, hasn't it? I think it has.

And then 14, yeah, 14 is a par 5. I think a couple of years ago it was a par 4. So I think that's a good risk/reward par 5, too.

10 is one that's going to catch the most, especially with the north wind. You're going to get guys driving it, but if the wind is out of the south it's going to be harder because the ball is going to go past the hole and you're putting down grain and looking at a downslope there if you hit your putt too hard. Then you're -- it might be a good hole to listen to some guys.

Q. Do you think most are going to be happy with a four on that hole?

JOEL EDWARDS: I would hope so, yes.

Q. You mentioned that sometimes you feel like an outsider. Do you think guys coming back to their home state -- you're still 300 miles from home -- Justin has obviously done well and feels comfortable here. Is that part of it, you feel close to home and you see familiar faces? Is that part of it?

JOEL EDWARDS: It's funny you should say that. The course that's closest to my house that's a Tour event, I'm over 13 there. I don't know if that's having familiar faces. I think it's courses for horses, or whatever you want to call it. I like this one. I have a tendency to play well on it. I wish they would move this to Dallas, I might have a chance there.

JOEL SCHUCHMANN: You started on number 10 with a birdie.

JOEL EDWARDS: I hit a driver and 5-iron about 15 feet and right below the hole. I couldn't ask for anything more than that.

Q. 14 and 16?

JOEL EDWARDS: 14, I hit driver, 7-iron a little long and I putted back up and made a four. I made a one-footer for birdie there.

And then 16 I hit a 2-iron off the tee and sand wedge on the green, made about a 25-footer there, probably.

And then 5, I hit a driver off the tee and a wedge about 15 feet and made it. In between there, I made some really good 3-, 4-, 5-footers for par, at times I really needed them, just because the wind -- it doesn't sound like much, but when you're in that first cut of rough, or just a little bit of rough and the wind is blowing into you, you're thinking, instead of two things, you're thinking three things: This ball could jump, not jump, and all of a sudden you think, "Which club do I hit?" It plays havoc on you.

The rough isn't that bad, but I think with Bermuda rough, especially, if it's any other kind of rough, you can pretty much gauge what it's going to do, but Bermuda you don't know what it's going to do.

JOEL SCHUCHMANN: How often do you hit a 4 and 5-iron on TOUR these days.

JOEL EDWARDS: Me personally, quite a bit. I'm not a short hitter, but I'm not a long hitter. I do that -- I don't know. I kind of know where that question is going. I guess I could just leave it like that. You still have to get the ball in the hole, whether it's a wedge or 2-iron into the green. The same guys that are winning now are going to win again if you're playing a short course or long course. It doesn't matter.

Q. In the PGA Tour media guide it says you still dream of playing short stop for the Yankees.

JOEL EDWARDS: Third base.

Q. Where did that come from?

JOEL EDWARDS: I don't know. Actually I'm kind of living my dream now, a little bit. I don't know. Since I was a little boy, I loved the Yankees and always have and always will. I've been a Yankee nut and I got to meet one of my all time heroes this year and we became friends, Mr. Torre, and we've become friends and I've been invited to a few games and I'm spoiled because I'm going to batting practice and the clubhouse. And the Dr. Pepper is great in the clubhouse. And he makes sure there's always Dr. Pepper in there. It's neat and I'm living my life vicariously through watching all these years and I'm starting now to know the man, and it's pretty bizarre. It's really -- I still pinch myself sometimes when I talk to him that I'm getting to know the guy. I can't believe it. He doesn't like the "Mr. Torre" thing either. It's just respect.

Q. Did you know Torre when he was a player?

JOEL EDWARDS: I knew mostly -- I knew where he managed and I knew he played. I think he played in St. Louis.

JOEL SCHUCHMANN: And the Braves.

JOEL EDWARDS: Started with the Braves and ended up in St. Louis. It was many many years ago when he was -- I think he managed St. Louis for a while, and I just noticed there was something about him. I don't know. He conducted himself just really interesting to me. And then all of a sudden he got the nod at New York and I said, "Well, that's great, a hometown boy going back," and a couple of guys have tried that and they didn't do very well.

I had noticed a lot of things kind of getting there and watching these guys. The thing about that team is that nobody talks unless he does. It's really quite amazing. I mean, when they go off the field, Torre is the only one talking. In the clubhouse, there's nobody mouthing off. There's nobody doing anything. It's all business. And they all -- I find that amazing that he can do that with 20 guys that make all that kind of money and doing what they've done, and they're still a tight group. I don't know any of them. They wouldn't know me from Adam even though I've met them four or five times. They meet everybody. I just know the manager and that's enough for me.

Q. How did you meet Joe?

JOEL EDWARDS: At Kapalua this year. The director of golf there is a good friend of mine and he and Joe are good friends and he knew that I would really enjoy that. And the day I got to meet Joe, it was really really special, because that day I met Joe Torre, he gave me a World Series hat, and I played with Tiger that day. And I got to go see Earth Wind and Fire that night. When you're 40 years old, that's pretty cool. Earth Wind and Fire, you know every lyric.

Q. Was it your 40th birthday?

JOEL EDWARDS: I wish it was. It would make me younger. My wife and I were there. We knew every song and I was laughing. Wow, what a day. You get to meet your hero and play with one of your heroes, and all of a sudden you get to watch guys you grew up listening to. It was a pretty neat day. I can't remember the date, but I know it was a cool day.

Q. Was this roughly a year ago? Two years ago?

JOEL EDWARDS: January of this year.

Q. Did you play high school baseball?

JOEL EDWARDS: I did as a freshman. I didn't play any more than that. I had a good arm, but I had a hard time getting the ball out of the infield when I had a bat in my hand. That doesn't do very good. You don't get people looking at you and stuff like that.

JOEL SCHUCHMANN: Thanks, Joel.

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