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DEUTSCHE BANK CHAMPIONSHIP

August 29, 2008

Eric Axley

NORTON, MASSACHUSETTS

JOHN BUSH: We'd like to welcome Eric Axley into the interview room here at the Deutsche Bank Championship. Eric, 6-under par 65. That was great playing. If we can just get some comments on your opening day.
ERIC AXLEY: I got off to a good start. I birdied on 10, and then I think I actually missed the next three greens and made three really good pars, and it kind of kept me going.
After that I just played really solid the rest of the day.

Q. Talk about your year, just in broad brushstrokes, whether you've been happy with it, whether it's been average, above average, and where you think you'd like to see it perk up.
ERIC AXLEY: I can say I've been fairly happy since the U.S. Open. Before the U.S. Open I wasn't very happy at all. I started playing better then, and played well at John Deere, had a chance to win there, and just didn't quite put it together on Sunday. I think I shot even par on Sunday and missed the playoff by one. I could have made it a lot better year by playing a little better on Sunday. But overall it's been okay, like I say, since the U.S. Open.

Q. What's been the key to the improvement?
ERIC AXLEY: Just some things I've been working on with my coaches have just finally sunk in a little bit. Sometimes it's just a long process to trust it on the golf course, and I just kind of started trusting it a little more.

Q. Is there anything you would want -- anything in particular you want to share on that?
ERIC AXLEY: Well, I mean, I could go into great detail, but it's just the same things I've been working on the past year and a half and kept creeping into old habits and just kind of finally have put those behind me a little more.

Q. So far behind you that you can't remember what they are?
ERIC AXLEY: I hope so. I hope so.

Q. Are you a natural lefty or one of these guys that switched?
ERIC AXLEY: Yeah, I'm right-handed.

Q. Another one?
ERIC AXLEY: Yeah, just swing a club and a bat left-handed.

Q. So you're like a left-handed hitting first baseman, throws right, bats left kind of thing?
ERIC AXLEY: Yeah, throws right.

Q. You've got to make up a couple of spots to advance obviously, but there's so many permutations and combinations of things that can happen, so volatile. What is the best way to approach this? Is it just to play golf and forget the numbers as much as you can?
ERIC AXLEY: Yeah, I think if you go out and just play your best, the points and the money and the -- what it for you takes care of itself. It can get in the back of your mind a little bit, but it seems like in my position being at 72 on the FedExCup points, if I were just to make the cut, I mean, it seems like I would advance.
But there's more to it than that. You can kind of play your way into the Top 30 and do a lot more than just make the cut and advance. So there's a lot more going on than just advancing.

Q. Do you get a lot of feedback from the other side of the ropes on the attire on occasion? Do you hear some funny stuff? Obviously you're trying to be noticed.
ERIC AXLEY: Well, I mean, it's a clothing company that I'm interested in. I like fashion. I don't know if it's necessarily trying to be noticed, but it's the clothes they make and it's what I'm interested in.
But to answer your question, yes. How many times per hole, I don't know.

Q. Per hole? Any memorable ones?
ERIC AXLEY: Not this week yet.

Q. There's some good scores out there this morning. How did you in particular take advantage to get your score? What was working?
ERIC AXLEY: I really particularly didn't drive it that well, but I made a couple of key putts, a couple par saves early, and I actually missed a couple of really short putts, as well. I think I missed about a three-and-a-half-footer on 16, and I had 4-iron into 18 and just hit it in the greenside bunker and didn't make birdie. Then there was another one somewhere that I really felt like I should have made and didn't. But overall I putted pretty well and hit my irons well and just feel like I need to hit a few more fairways throughout the week.
JOHN BUSH: Let's go ahead and go through the card starting with the birdie on No. 10.
ERIC AXLEY: I hit 3-wood off the tee, and I don't remember my yardage, but I hit 8-iron to about eight feet and made it.
Birdie on 15, driver and kind of in between pitching wedge and 9-iron. It was still early in the morning so I hit a little 9-iron to about 15 feet, made it.
17, 5-wood, pitching wedge to about six feet probably.
No. 2, drove it in the bunker, laid up, hit sand wedge to six inches.
Bogey, No. 3, hit 7-iron and it plugged right under the lip, chopped it out and missed an eight-footer for par.
4, drove the green and two-putted.
And then 6, I hit driver, 7-iron to about eight feet.
And 7, I hit two good shots short of the green and chipped it to two feet.

Q. How long was the eagle putt on 4?
ERIC AXLEY: I was on the first tier. It had to be 35 feet, probably 40 feet, it was back left today.

Q. 3-wood to there?
ERIC AXLEY: No, I hit a cut driver. It was 282 to the front or something, and I landed it just right on the front and it stopped pretty quick.
JOHN BUSH: Eric, that's a great start. Keep it going this week.

End of FastScripts

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