THE PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP

March 28, 1997

Steve Elkington

STEVE ELKINGTON: Obviously, teeing off early this morning, the conditions of the course were perfect when we teed off. Took advantage of that a little bit. Got off to a decent start. Birdied the 4th hole and 6th hole. 2-under. Played well. Had a couple of loose shots on the back, but other than that, I played real steady. Gotten a little breezy out there now, and the course is starting to dry out a little bit. The greens are still reasonably soft. So, all and all, it was a good score.

STEVE ELKINGTON: No. 1, driver, sand wedge, 10 feet, par. 2: Driver, in the rough, laid up with a 7-iron. 8-iron from 140 to about 15 feet, par. 3: Hit 8-iron to about 8 feet, par. 4: Driver, wedge, 10 feet, birdie. 5: Driver, 7-iron, 30 feet, 2-putt. 6: 3-wood, 7-iron, 10 feet, birdie. 7: Driver, 7-iron, 30 feet, 2-putt par. 8: 3-iron, 10 feet, par. 9: Driver, 3-iron wedge, 15 feet, par. 10: I drove it in the fairway bunker and went left of the green, chipped down to about 10 feet, par. 11: Driver, 2-iron.

STEVE ELKINGTON: Bogey at 10, missed that one. 11: Hit driver, 2-iron, sand wedge to about 6 feet, birdie. 12: Drove it in the left rough and hit a really good wedge shot out of the rough, out of thick rough on the green and made about a 20-footer for birdie. 13: I hit 7-iron on the wrong level, 2-putted it, good 2-putt from about 40 feet. 14: Hit driver, 4-iron, 25 feet, 2-putt, par. 15: I drove to the right of the -- way right of the fairway, had to chip. I was in the long rough, had to chip. I just chipped back into the fairway and hit a wedge on and 2-putted for bogey from about 15 feet. 16: I hit driver, driver, 2-iron, just off the back and chipped down to about 5 feet. 17: Hit 9-iron about 6 feet, par. I am sorry, I made it on 16. I missed it on 17. 18: Drove it in the right rough, hit a 5-iron on the green, 20 feet, 2-putted.

STEVE ELKINGTON: Sometimes it is hard to come back, but playing late yesterday afternoon and then coming out early, it is almost like you are playing one round. Just trying to keep the momentum going. I guess my round could have been better if I holed more putts. All things considered, I think I was -- I am pleased with 69, obviously. It was a good round under the conditions, I thought.

STEVE ELKINGTON: Yeah, I mean, sometimes when you are behind and you have to try to -- you know that the scoring is going to be low, you have to try to sometimes pick a target. Most of the times, I get out there and see what the course is giving up really some of the other player's scores and so on. This tournament, you will need to get as many birdies as you can. You are going to need them later on.

STEVE ELKINGTON: Not really. I am real familiar with the course, obviously; I like it. Seems to suit my game. I know how to play the course for me. I know which clubs, for me, to play off each hole. I am comfortable. Sometimes I play course where I don't feel comfortable with certain clubs on different holes. I had -- I feel I can get myself around here even sometimes when I am not playing quite as good just because I feel comfortable with the clubs.

STEVE ELKINGTON: Maybe the wind. It is drying out a little bit. Few tough pins today, too, on the back 9, particularly. There would be some more scoring, I think, higher just from the pin placements. 15 was a particularly tough pin, and so was 13. 17 is never easy. But, 11, you know, 11 is way back in that back corner which would be -- wouldn't be as many birdies there today.

STEVE ELKINGTON: I would like to win this one again. Well, I'd like to win any tournament, obviously. But, I do like -- I do like to try to play well in the big tournaments. That is really my goal. Whether I win them or not remains to be seen, but I like to play -- I like to tee it up in the big tournaments and try to play good because some of the Majors and some big tournaments -- once you get playing well, it becomes a less of a race, so, it is less people in it. So, if you are playing well, it is good. It is to your advantage.

STEVE ELKINGTON: Yeah. We have got some good young players. Stuart now has really been -- not a surprise. We all knew he could play, but couple of weeks there winning and second, that is big stuff. Craig has been a bit quiet, but I'm glad to see him playing well again. We had a couple of other young kids that won as well this year, won -- Green. Who else?

STEVE ELKINGTON: Peter Lonard.

STEVE ELKINGTON: Green.

STEVE ELKINGTON: Yeah, he won Dubai Classic, so we have got some younger players coming up. And, we have got other guys that aren't playing as well that are great players. Robert Allenby, he has not played well yesterday, but he is a good player. Lucas Parsons was on this TOUR last year, he is a good player. Got lots of Australians around.

STEVE ELKINGTON: I think so. Our team will be -- playing in Melbourne, particularly, our team becomes better because guys like Robert Allenby, that is their home track. And, they become better players in Melbourne and Stuart Appleby is a better player in Melbourne than maybe some other players because they have confidence and we have the home crowd and that is where they grew up. So, Robert, in particular, that is his backyard down at Royal.

STEVE ELKINGTON: It was? (Audience laughter.)

STEVE ELKINGTON: What year?

STEVE ELKINGTON: Oh. Don't know.

STEVE ELKINGTON: Well, I had sinus surgery in 1994.

STEVE ELKINGTON: Yeah, but I won that year as well. I won the Buick that year and I came back and won the Tournament of Champions. I had a slow start, but I had to have surgery. That is probably what you were thinking about.

STEVE ELKINGTON: Hard to play when you are in the hospital. (Laughter)

STEVE ELKINGTON: I am not taking a shot at you. I just --

STEVE ELKINGTON: Yeah.

STEVE ELKINGTON: I usually like it when women talk to me like that. (audience laughter)

STEVE ELKINGTON: It is not perfect, but it works -- it works for me. It is simple. I try to keep it simple. I have always been recognized as having a good swing ever since I was A junior player. So, I like the swing mechanics. I like to look at them. I try to put them in my swing. I don't try to swing, you know, perfect. I just -- I don't feel like it comes -- I don't feel like it is in there all the time. I feel like I have to work on it. I have a certain model that I try to keep my swing within; not too far away from that model. That is usually when I play my best is when I get my swing around some of the things that I, you know, know I can do with it.

STEVE ELKINGTON: Not really. I was a bit more upright, a lot more upright when I was a junior player, more like Colin Montgomerie, his hands were a little -- a lot higher hands on the through swing. I think I just changed that over the years. But, I think my swing has probably gotten better over the last four, five years a little bit - probably can't tell much. I think it is the rhythm that people look at good swings. Like Payne Stewart and some of the guys that have real good rhythm, they like all their swings. I think that is what the people really like more than anything.

STEVE ELKINGTON: You know, I like all sorts of different swings to be honest. I like Nick Price's swing. I like Greg's swing. I like Freddie Couples' swing, Ernie Els' swing. I even like Paul Azinger's swing. I like the way he hits short irons. When he was playing his best, he had probably the best swing of motion. Most of the top players, when they do at other peoples' swings, they more or less look at the trajectory of the balls coming off. Faldo has got a great swing. There are a lot of great swings out there. I think good motion with good rhythm and balance, I think that is when people really look at my swing.

STEVE ELKINGTON: There is no such thing as perfect. I am just saying -- it is -- sometimes you can play on about 80% of what you think your swing is good. I was reading Nick Faldo said last week that he was frustrated with some small little minuscule thing in his swing that could hit such bad shots for him. And, I sort of feel the same way sometimes. Sometimes you feel like you are swinging pretty well, but maybe there is just a little different position you are getting into that starts hitting these wild shots. So it is just sort of a daily thing, you sort of try to get your swing going each day as good as you can; then if I had to tell you -- like today, I felt like my swing was -- maybe it was pretty good last two days, pretty solid. Hit a few loose ones, but nothing serious.

STEVE ELKINGTON: Not, no not like a yip or anything.

STEVE ELKINGTON: It doesn't matter. I have done both. I have won from behind and I have won from the front. I am just pleased to be playing well.

STEVE ELKINGTON: The PGA is-- it feels like, you know, so well recognized from everyone around the world wherever I go now. It is almost like that never really care which major you won, they just congratulate late you for winning a major. I think that is really the whole thing in a nutshell. Everyone talked about this being the fifth major, bla, bla. But the real public out there that follow golf know the four. This will always be a great tournament. I have won both, so I am in a good position to talk about it. When I won here it was great, just as much accolades from the players as I got for both PGA and -- from the media and outside -- people in the rest of the world, PGA probably ten times more recognition to win the PGA than winning here.

STEVE ELKINGTON: Me.