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U.S. AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP

August 23, 2008

Drew Kittleson

PINEHURST, NORTH CAROLINA

DAVE FANNUCHI: We are here with Drew Kittleson, a winner and is advancing to the final round and the final match of the U.S. Amateur Championship with a 4 & 2 victory. Drew Kittleson of Scottsdale, Arizona. Drew, tell us about your feelings having advanced to the championship round in the match tomorrow, and clinching a berth in the U.S. Open in 2009, with today's victory and a possibly Masters invitation.
DREW KITTLESON: It's pretty exciting.
DAVE FANNUCHI: Has is it sunk in yet?
DREW KITTLESON: Not really at all. It's just kind of, you said it, that's really, I mean I thought about it, don't get me wrong, but the match is done and I guess that's it. I can't believe it. I'm at a loss for words and I'm excited.
DAVE FANNUCHI: Well, considering you were in a playoff in your qualifier to just get into the field here in Pinehurst, I would say that you've come pretty far since the playoff. What did you do to get, to win the playoff, just to get here?
DREW KITTLESON: Well, the last hole of regulation I hit it to about six inches from a fairway bunker from like 180 yards to get into the playoff.
And then in the playoff I birdied like the third hole or something. It was like three for two playoff.
DAVE FANNUCHI: Three guys for two spots and the third hole you birdied it just to get here?
DREW KITTLESON: Yeah, I was the first player in. The first player to qualify out of the three.
DAVE FANNUCHI: Okay. Talk about your match today. You were 2-down after five to Adam, what were your thoughts at that point.
DREW KITTLESON: Well, on four, the par-5, I hit the green in two, had probably about a 30, no, probably about a 45-footer for eagle. And then he holed out from like 100 -- I don't know how far he was, probably a hundred yards. And he holed out twice yesterday, somebody told me, so I was like, well, here we go, and then you can't really do anything.
And then 6 I was in the trees and hit it over and ended up halving that hole and then the match started turning my way a little bit, I made some birdies.
DAVE FANNUCHI: Right. I think Adam mentioned that the critical point was the early part of the back nine, you were all square after nine, you birdied the 10th a par-5, and then he said a critical 3-putt on 11 gave you a 2-up lead. Was that the turning point and you felt like in control of the match?
DREW KITTLESON: Yeah, it was definitely a turning point, he was in the weed, sand area, whatever you want to call it and had a really tough, there was a bush right by his ball.
And I was in the middle of the fairway and I went first and hit it in there about six feet. And then he hit it about 10 feet is all and then he missed and I missed. So I figured we would tie the hole, but he rammed it a good four or five feet by. And he ended up missing that.
DAVE FANNUCHI: Yeah, I guess that one was a little outside of your comfort range for giving a putt, what was it, about two or three feet?
DREW KITTLESON: No, it was a good five and a half feet. He kind of rammed it.
DAVE FANNUCHI: And then coming down the stretch there how you clenched the match on 16.
DREW KITTLESON: It was not a good hole for either of us. He was in the bunker fescue, I don't even really see his ball on the right and I was in the left rough, he pitched out into the rough about 50 yards, maybe like 80 yards short of the green and then I had to hit this hook from the trees in the rough and caught a flier, it landed about middle of the green, hopped about 10 fat in the air and went about a good 15 yards past the back edge in the rough. Not the shot I wanted to have, being dormie.
But then he hit it up about 30, 40 feet, so I knew that five was probably good and I hit a good chip and ended up making the putt anyway.
DAVE FANNUCHI: Question from the media members?

Q. Was there a point where you felt settled in the match today because I'm sure obviously going through your head like you said all the stuff that's going on and what could happen if you win, but is there a point where that finally goes away and you are feeling like you're getting involved in the match?
DREW KITTLESON: Yeah, I mean you get down early, you better start thinking about something else. And I was 2-down, that was, I was, I had only been 1-down through one all week and so I was 2-down or I was 1-down to Eddie through about four, and so when I was 2-down through five it was kind of a new territory for me this week and I had to flip the switch and turn it around and get something positive going. And ended up doing it.
DAVE FANNUCHI: Compare your nerves today with maybe any of the nerves earlier in the week, were they higher or the same?
DREW KITTLESON: Pretty well the same. I mean I was playing well coming in, but still, you know, you don't know exactly how you're going to show up for an event. And so stroke play I was probably a little bit more nervous than any of the matches really. But now that I've been hitting it well for awhile you can be a little bit at ease because you got some confidence going.

Q. I'm not a historian, but I would like to address the other medium people here, whose been around this game a lot longer, as far as doing media work, winning an -- if you're going through the first so many holes and then you went five holes out of nine, has anybody ever done that before? In making a Major comeback like that in a semi-final? Anybody know anything about that?
DREW KITTLESON: I have no idea. I know Tiger was like seven down or six down.
DAVE FANNUCHI: I think as far as the history goes we can look that up and find that answer for you, but I'm not sure -- is there any other questions for Drew? Ken?

Q. I'm sorry to bring this up, but could you talk about your adversity growing up and losing your mother at such a young age?
DREW KITTLESON: To be honest I probably would like to keep it short, but just she died of colon cancer when I was 13. And I was playing an event, I was playing Doral, the junior tournament, and it was probably three or four days before Christmas and she died when I was at the event.

Q. Have you been following Danny Lee, how much do you know about him, and have you been seeing what he's been doing this week as far as his game has been pretty flawless?
DREW KITTLESON: I never even seen him hit a golf ball. Every event we never get paired together or all throughout the whole summer. I mean, we always have opposite times, I haven't even seen him this week anyway. He was like the group behind me and I don't know it's -- I guess our routines are opposite or something because I never, really never even seen him hit a golf shot and obviously.
DAVE FANNUCHI: You guys have never even met?

Q. I guess you will tomorrow.
DREW KITTLESON: I never met him, no.
DAVE FANNUCHI: Never met him.
DREW KITTLESON: No. And but I mean, he's won the Western Amateur and he's no slouch, that's for sure.
DAVE FANNUCHI: Go ahead.

Q. I was out there with you on day-to-day and the group, it seemed like the greens got a little crispy near the middle, did it seem like the greens got a little faster?
DREW KITTLESON: They have gotten firmer and faster every round, definitely, which I like. I think that's the conditions that we all expected coming in, because of it's Pinehurst and we only see it on the U.S. Open and that's what we were expecting.
And, yeah, they were definitely getting firmer, except for 15 was really firm during the week and today it was kind of soft. I think they watered it right before I got there.
DAVE FANNUCHI: Have you thought about -- I know you haven't had a lot of time, but tomorrow's 36 hole final compared to a 18 hole match, is there any different strategy you might take into that?
DREW KITTLESON: I mean, not really. It's just double. I just try to play every hole, it's really, I don't know who said it, but it's 18, you know, individual matches, so tomorrow it's just 36. And I guess if you're down a lot you can use certain strategies off the tees and things like that but that's about it.

Q. You're obviously a great talent with the stuff you've done, but would you say, would it be fair to say you surprised yourself this week?
DREW KITTLESON: I mean, yeah, yeah, a little bit, but I'm pretty self confident, I guess you could say, so I don't think anybody should go to an event thinking they can't win. But in the back of your mind there's always your awful rounds that you played and I hope that doesn't show up.

Q. And where I wanted to follow that up. Where does your focus come from? Because I seen you a few times this week and you're just really, I don't want to say intense, but you're dialed in on the course.
DREW KITTLESON: I've really I found that I can't perform my best any other way. Like if I'm chit chatting with anybody, I'm having a good time, but I don't play as well. So I just have developed my own or I recognize my own way of I guess performing my best.

Q. You have 20 birdie in match play this week, and when you, this golf course doesn't usually lend itself to birdies, especially to guys that have not seen it very much, can you attribute that to anything?
DREW KITTLESON: I think my driver. I hit that really well and I've hit it pretty far, so that's given me some even these long holes, I don't have more than, I don't think I hit more than a 6-iron into any hole this week except for par-3s, but I mean that allows you to be a little more aggressive and I really just have taken pretty conservative lines. If I'm right, I don't think I made a double all week.
And so you know I've taken pretty conservative lines going into the greens and which has given me those middle distance birdie try tries, 20 feet, somewhere around there and if you have enough of those you're bound to make them.

Q. The other thing is, since it's stroke play, you haven't seen 17 and 18. Does that concern at all? You obviously have to see it tomorrow.
DREW KITTLESON: Yeah, I mean it doesn't really concern me too much, it's just, I'm excited that I haven't seen it. That's in my favor.
But just play, 17 is just a par-3, you got to get the wind right, because it's kind of elevated and I have good notes from the practice rounds and 18 is just a wedge in, so it should be shouldn't be too difficult. I got a local caddie on the bag, so.

Q. You're long off the tee, how close did you come to driving the green on number 7 this week?
DREW KITTLESON: I haven't hit it far enough right yet. I've had plenty of distance, yesterday against Derek I was, I think there's two bunkers there, I was dead center of the green. Probably a little past the center of the green.

Q. What is the carry? What do you have to hit it to get there? You go across the trees?
DREW KITTLESON: I have no idea. I mean, yeah, just a big high, I got to get myself to hit it, I can't hit it far enough right yet. Every time I keep taking more and more off and it's just not enough.

Q. Large galleries, the TV cameras over there, can you tell me what effect that has on your game, if any?
DREW KITTLESON: I mean, I just saw a little clip on the camera there and/or on the TV and I didn't, I mean I knew they were out there, but I didn't realize that they were that big. And then I saw them on TV and there's a lot of people out there.
And just trying to be focused as much as I can, but also a bunch of friends of mine came in last night all the way from Arizona, so they were hooting and hollering for me, which was nice.
DAVE FANNUCHI: Congratulations again, Drew, we'll see you tomorrow.
DREW KITTLESON: Thank you. Appreciate it.

End of FastScripts

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