U.S. AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP

August 22, 1997

Brad Elder

BRAD ELDER: Oh, right now, I feel very lucky. You know, you've got to play great golf to get there, but you also have to have some luck on your side. I feel like I have a lot of luck right now. Especially today, I drove it in some ugly spots and had some wide-open shots, which was amazing. You know, so I feel like I'm pretty lucky right now.

BRAD ELDER: Oh, definitely my short game. My chipping and my bunker play was unbelievable today. It was amazing. You know, Barry even back there, he didn't know what to say on a few holes. But it was a tough day. It was a grind for me.

BRAD ELDER: Well, I went one up on 2 with a par. I hit a pretty good shot in there, and he had a difficult bunker shot, so he -- unfortunately he made bogey. But I gave one back to him on 4. I drove it left. I hit it fat in that front bunker, and I had no shot basically, because it was such a long bunker shot. But on 5, went 5 with the birdie, hit two good shots, a driver and a 3-wood, left part of the green on 5, 2-putted for 4. 7, that's one of those phenomenal bunker shots, snap hooked it way left and hooked it in the bunker and hit a great bunker shot to about 2 feet and won that hole with a par. Gave one back to him on 10. He birdied it, which was good, because I was going to make bogey for sure. But then I won 12 with a par, hit another great bunker shot to about 4 or 5 feet, made that for -- made that for a win, and he 3-putted which was, you know, which was tough. Then another key hole, which I did not win, but I halved was the bunker shot I hit on 13. I hooked it left of the green, and I was on that down slope, into a down slope -- the green was sloping away from me, as well. And I got that to about 3 or 4 feet, which was, you know, I don't know how. I still don't. But it was a great shot. Then I lost 15. I hit a terrible chip shot. I hit it over the green, but the greens are so firm right now, and it's so difficult to judge it out of the high grass, how it's going to come out and how soft it's going to land, and I just chipped it over. And Ian, he made a good 20-footer for birdie, so he won that hole. Then on 16, hit a terrible drive and hit a 3-iron in the green, and I left -- I hooked it a little bit, and it was on an up slope which was good. That was the only way I could pretty much stop it just left of the pin, and I hit a great chip shot to about a foot, and he conceded, and of course, he made bogey. Then I birdied 17, hit a driver and a sand wedge down there to about 5 feet, 6 feet, made that for the win.

BRAD ELDER: I was in the bunker after my second shot. Then I hit my third shot down there.

BRAD ELDER: Well, I guess the selections this year were pretty much correct, but, you know, it's just so hard. There's so many great players out there, and not including the Walker Cup, it's just an honor and a privilege to play at Walker Cup. But, you know, there's other players out there that could be in our shoes or could do what we've done, but, you know, I'm proud of the other two that are in the semifinals with me, and I wish them the best of luck.

BRAD ELDER: Well, the way I hit it today, it's going to be -- if I hit it like I did on the back 9, it's going to be over. He thought he killed a guy today at six and five. It could be over after 11 if I don't get something going.

BRAD ELDER: I'm getting a little tired, but I'm going to go out there and grind it out. You know, we played 36 holes every day when we got to the Walker Cup, which is the Sunday before until we played 36 holes, you know, the next Sunday. But I got some rest in there, and it's starting to show a little bit that I'm tired. But I just have to find a second wind and go out there and enjoy it and just enjoy being in the semifinals. And, you know, whatever happens tomorrow, I'm just going to be happy with what I've done and accomplished this summer. I've had such a great summer, and, you know, I'm just happy to be in the semifinals.

BRAD ELDER: It was -- you know, it was a bad round, but in -- after all that, I shot even par, I think. You know, if you keep hitting it like that and getting some spots where I was at, you know, you're not going to save par every hole like I did today. So, you know, I just have to go out there and just work on some things and find something for tomorrow.

BRAD ELDER: Well, here this week, you know, the course kind of fits me well. You've got to hit it pretty long, and I'm definitely not as long as half the field out here, but I've got some pretty good length, and I usually hit it pretty straight and hit my irons pretty straight. But, you know, you just have to make a lot of pars. And, you know, hopefully, you know, they make some bogeys, but, you know, there's so many great players they're not going to make bogeys, especially right now.

BRAD ELDER: Yeah, I think I'm very successful. You know, every night, I think of a game plan to play each round, and tonight I'm going to have to really, you know, grind and find a game plan to play tomorrow.

BRAD ELDER: The front side didn't go too bad. The front side, I hit them pretty good, but I can't tell you how many fairways and how many greens I hit because I haven't figured them up yet. But the back side was just a nightmare. I hit three greens, I think, maybe four, and I hit very, very few fairways. And, you know, if you can keep it in the fairway and hit some greens, you know you're going to do some good because the greens are pretty much perfect right now. I mean, they're smooth, and they're getting real fast.

BRAD ELDER: It's going to be hard tomorrow, because, you know, last -- last week or two weeks, whenever the Walker Cup was, we were teammates. And, you know, we were teammates, too, in the foursome matches. It's going to be hard because, you know, we've got a good friendship, and you just have to put that aside and go out there and play your own game. And whatever the outcome is, you know, that's what it's going to be.

BRAD ELDER: Oh, yeah, it's playing a lot different. The greens are really drying out right now, and, you know, some of those shots -- an example, like 17, I mean, that green is just rock hard. I mean, you can land it just over the bunker, and it's going to roll -- it could roll over, depending what club you've got in the green. But, you know, at the beginning of the week, the greens were so wet, you could fire at all the pins, and the greens were a little slower. So, yeah, I'm going to say the course is playing a lot different, a lot faster.

BRAD ELDER: We play pretty similar. I mean, Joel hits the ball well, and he putts the ball especially well. But, you know, there's not much -- I mean, it's just going to be a good, fun match tomorrow.

BRAD ELDER: I never have.

BRAD ELDER: No. I'm going to bring my yellow one out. I know he wore his, so we don't look alike out there. I guess we could have our bags flown in and use those. I don't think it's really going to matter.