U.S. SENIOR OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP

July 24, 1998

Roy Vucinich

ROY VUCINICH: Thank you, Les. I was real pleased with my finish today. Highlights of the day was I birdied No. 1. I started out with a decent drive and put a 3-wood up there in front of the green, pitched up, made about a three-foot birdie putt. No. 2, I hit the ball, good tee shot, knocked a 5-iron just short of the green and pitched up there about six feet past the hole and I 2-putted for bogey. No. 3 I hit -- made par, hit driver, 6-iron on the green and 2-putted. No. 4, the par 3 hole I hit a nice wood 3-wood up there, right off the edge of the green and 2-putted. No. 5, I hit a poor tee shot. Hit it pretty far left. Hit the tree went way left, and I hit a 4-iron shot just down off the cart path, had to get a drop because I was in some casual water. Wedge up there about nine feet from the hole and 2-putted for a bogey. Then on the 6th hole I made par. I hit my tee shot left again. I was kind of aiming on the left side and I hit it straight-a-way in the left rough, knocked it into the front right bunker with a 5-iron, knocked that about 12, 15 feet, 2-putted for bogey which at that time put me at 2-over. Then I hit -- 8, hit pretty good drive, 3-wood off the tree, knocked a wedge on the green, 2-putted for par. 9, I pulled a tee shot into that left-hand bunker about 165 yards short of the green, hit a 7-iron out in front and made a great chip up over -- about a 45-yard to 50-yard chip where the pin was right in the front that, hit right by the pin, spun back down the hill. I made that three and a half four-footer for par. That kind of really turned it around right there. I was still 2-over on the front 9. Then on the back 9 I hit driver and a 60-degree wedge, made 11-foot birdie putt. No. 12, that is where all the fun begins on No. 12. Hit a great shot. Hit my second shot way out to the right rough, and I didn't have a hard shot and the ball was probably in the best lie. It wasn't in any kikuyu grass. I was in just some real heavy bent grass and I just didn't hit it far enough and came up about six yards short of the green and it was absolutely totally buried. I just didn't know if I could hit this ball out entirely. I had to even identify my ball, wasn't even sure if it was my ball. It was. Hit 60-degree wedge absolutely as hard as I can hit the hopefully to get it out of the lie, front of the green and rolled to the absolute back of the green. I had 15 steps which is 45 feet. Knocked it in for par. It all kind of started there. Then on No. 12, I hit it way right, whacked a tree, came back. Hit a nice wedge, full wedge down the fairway, hit another wedge about twelve feet from the hole. And knocked that in for another par. Next hole, 13, going around the bend I whacked it again, hit the tree. Came way back this time. I was way back. Fortunately I can get a 6-iron on this one and I run it down there about 115 yards to the front edge about 137 yards to the hole and I just almost holed the pitching wedge, absolutely hit it right at the hole and I don't know how it didn't go in, but rolled down about three feet from the hole and I made that for par. I am just -- I am trying not to think about it. So 14, hit a 6-iron on the green, 2-putted. 15, I hit it way left again. I just hit it really bad, whacked it away down by 7th tee somewhere. I had a real bad lie. Hit a nice wedge out on the fairway, hit a full pitching wedge again and I hit it about 16, 17 feet left and 2-putted. That bogeyed that hole. Then on No. 16 I hit a 7-iron about, oh, maybe two feet from the hole and made birdie. 17, I hit a tee shot a little left, still wasn't as good. I hit a nice 5-wood about 162 yards from the pin and I hit a 7-iron that came up a little short, just on the collar only about four inches off. That was about twelve feet. Knocked that in for birdie. Could have been -- 18, I was debating. I asked my brother, Dave, I said, "Should I even hit the driver? I am not sure I could hit it up the hill." I pulled the driver out; hit the best tee shot of the day. Hit a great 4-iron into the green, not knowing where the pin was. I was just happy to hit the green. I am about 15 feet above left and I did everything I could just to 2-putt it because it was that fast. I made par. Yesterday was consistent. I hit the ball in play. Knocked it on the green. Today, I just hit it everywhere and I won't realize the 71 until sometime tonight or tomorrow. I mean -- it was could have been anything.

ROY VUCINICH: Well, I enjoyed playing early. That wasn't the problem. It was wet. As a matter of fact it was misty probably as late as maybe the 4th or 5th hole, still misty. Everything was very wet. Golf course played much, much longer today than it did yesterday.

ROY VUCINICH: Well, my tournament golf since I turned professional. I am at Allegheny Country Club now, 26 years this August. Before that I was at St. Clair Country Club for two years as well as before that, seven years at Lincoln Hills Country Club. So when I turned professional right out of high school and started playing, I probably -- I played local events. Fortunately, I was able to win when I was in my early 20s and fortunate enough to win all the tournaments in the Tri-State area, the Pennsylvania Open and things of that nature. Turning -- playing fairly decent and okay golf all the way through 30s and 40s. But at 50, I don't know, I just -- I played three tournaments last year on -- in some of the Senior events and played decently. It is just kind of fun doing it.

ROY VUCINICH: Well, yesterday the uncanny thing about it was I felt very comfortable both yesterday and today. I was really, you know, apprehension on the first tee, I am shaking all the time for sure, but after I hit it and started walking, I'm feeling better. I felt good today. Yesterday was very -- a very consistent round of golf. I hit a lot -- except for No. 1 yesterday, I played the next 17 holes really well. Consistent, no trouble, in play. Today, was just different. I just -- I felt comfortable but I just couldn't hit the driver where I was looking and -- but fortunately, I got some decent iron shots out there and I putted real well. The putter obviously saved my round today.

ROY VUCINICH: Well, first and foremost I am a club professional, so it is hard to say what I am expecting. It will be nice to play well - playing well, you know, who knows, be nice to shoot two nice scores. However it finishes, I am going to be happy.

ROY VUCINICH: Over the last two years since I turned 50, I have played with David Graham. I played at the PGA Senior Championship with Walt Morgan. Played with Jim Albus and played with Jose Maria Canizares in the Senior Open last year Horton Smith, David Eichelberger. They have been great, they have been very nice to me.

ROY VUCINICH: I know, by far, they are the better player than I without a doubt. They are the epitome of golf. They are the touring professionals. I kind of know where my expectations and my levels are and I am just trying to do what I can do best, and if it should happen to be another 2 more 71s, well, I am going to be delighted. And if it happens to be a couple of scores higher, I am still going to be satisfied and cherish these two rounds that I have shot.

ROY VUCINICH: No.

ROY VUCINICH: About winning it?

ROY VUCINICH: No, not at all. I won't do that until I come down the stretch the last few holes of the tournament. And if I was in contention, because there is a lot of golf to be played, we have 36 more holes to play and Riviera is such a great golf course, anything can happen. We know that.

ROY VUCINICH: Well, in the Senior British I was in the third group from the end, also in the fourth group from the end, third and fourth rounds. So the crowds were there. Particularly when I played with Tommy Horton the third round, he is an icon over there, and they were all there, all the spectators were following him. And it was a thrill. I repeat this story as I walked down the 18th fairway at Royal Port Rush both the third day and the fourth day, the crowds are 6, 7, 8,000, 12,000. It is not like the U.S. Open, but when you were walking down that fairway, they were applauding from the moment that you walk down the tee to the end of the green, I will tell you, it is exciting.

ROY VUCINICH: Well, when I called back to the shop to see how everything was going - and I know things are going well with my staff, they are just great - it was too late. It was near 8 o'clock, so the shop closed up at 8 o'clock and if everybody is in -- the rack room closes up. When I got back to the hotel, I had four messages from radio stations. Jerry Dulack (phonetic) has a sports show in Pittsburgh, he was calling. Again it was 11 o'clock his show was over. I got a message from my son, Brian who goes to Florida State, and he went to work last night and he said: I will call maybe when I get back at 2 in the morning his time and I am thinking to myself: Gee, don't call too late because I have got to get up early. So I called and left a message and I tried to put it to him. I says, you know, we are going to be getting up really early so I will call you as soon as I come in off the golf course. He called me early. 10 o'clock, I was dosing. I was about to go, but was happy to talk to him.

ROY VUCINICH: I am not sure it would no matter what would happen. I am still the golf professional at Allegheny and I know I will be there and hopefully retire from there.

ROY VUCINICH: Well, first the pin placements, yesterday I thought they were much harder because at the time of day that I played, the greens were just really hard yesterday and I couldn't holed the green. I played everything to the front of the green, tried to bounce the ball to the hole, get it around the hole. I had a lot of long putts yesterday that I 2-putted. Today, playing early, I saw them rolling the greens in the dark when I went to the practice tee this morning to hit balls, and the greens held a little better. Pin placements were both days equally very good, very challenging. On what I think it is going to take to win the tournament, I still think that probably even par to 4-under par will probably win. And depends on what they do with the rough, depends if we get any rain. I understand there is no forecast of rain, but I do know that if that rough stays as it is, scores are not going to be low. I think maybe Raymond Floyd was 1-under or so today or 2-under, which is great, it will be probably somewhere around that score for four days.

ROY VUCINICH: Well, I think I saw yesterday's round as dry as I probably I think they can let it go because if they did, they'd probably start losing some of the green area and I don't think they want to do that. They have gotten the golf course back to just magnificant shape. The greens are superb. I don't think they are going to or I would hope that they won't do anything to hamper that. So I would say it is going to be still difficult.

ROY VUCINICH: The winds -- I have heard about the winds. I haven't seen much of it. I understand the winds blow later on this the day, so I haven't seen a whole lot of the winds.

ROY VUCINICH: Well, there weren't many besides my wife and I know Tom's wife and my two playing partners, not a whole lot of people there. There is no question that, you know, we are talking 12, 15 people each hole; as the day went on it grew a little more. Of course as the crowds were going out NO. 3, 4, what have you, they were stepping and watching us tee off maybe on 15, 16, 17 but the crowds were not that big.

ROY VUCINICH: I am very sure that I was embarrassed. I know they had to be embarrassed where I hit it a number of times with the few people watching, but it just happens that way sometimes. We don't know how the results are going to turn out and just have to find it, hit it and chase it again.

ROY VUCINICH: Well, that is true because I drove the ball so poorly on -- starting with No. 12 I hit it right, 13 I hit it left. 14 -- 12 I hit it left. 13 I hit it left. 14 -- 15 I hit it left. 16 I hit it left. And they weren't very high off the ground. My concern was -- I even said to Dave, I said standing -- first thing I said after I made the birdie on 17: I think you think -- maybe I would hit 3-wood off of 18 to get it on top the hill. And I said -- he said well: Maybe. I said: Well, I hate to hit another 3-wood to the green, though. I said: Well, let's think about it. I just kind of slowed myself down a little bit and hit a good tee shot.

ROY VUCINICH: I hit a driver and 4-iron.

ROY VUCINICH: That was my best.

ROY VUCINICH: That would be nice. No matter what Saturday and Sunday brings along, I am looking forward to it. It will be exciting and just have a nice time. I appreciate all that you have done. Thank you.