BUICK CLASSIC

June 20, 2003

Retief Goosen

JOEL SCHUCHMANN: Retief Goosen, second rounds, 66 puts you in great position for the weekend at 9-under par, just one off the lead with several players still on the golf course. If we could start with some opening comments on your outstanding play today.

RETIEF GOOSEN: Yeah, I played pretty nicely today. It's obviously quite difficult to get close to a lot of the flags. I got off to a very slow start, but the eagle on the ninth hole really sort of got my momentum going.

Q. The weather, does it play in your mind at all? We keep hearing reports that it's going to rain, rain, rain. Do you wonder whether you're going to get to play all 72? Does that play into your thoughts at all or not?

RETIEF GOOSEN: Well, they expected rain yesterday and it rained all around us. Of course, the course cannot take much more water, the fairways are pretty much mud as it is. More rain is not really going to make a difference, I think. Just have to take it as it comes.

Q. Can you talk about the position you're in, you're in for the day, so even if the weather gets bad but you're close to the lead now with 36 to go.

RETIEF GOOSEN: Yeah, it's a nice couple of days. I played pretty solid. It's nice to be done. If it doesn't rain this afternoon, I can put my feet up and don't have to hang around and see when I'm going to go out next. So at least it's a comfortable position to be in and I'll just come out when they tell me next to tee off.

Q. This is your second trip here to play in Westchester?

RETIEF GOOSEN: (Nods.)

Q. Do you feel more comfortable on this golf course after the first year, after having learned the course?

RETIEF GOOSEN: Yeah, it's always difficult when you play the course for the first time. I played here last year so I know the course pretty well. It's a great golf course. You know, it has very much a U.S. Open feel to it, U.S. Open type feel to it, more so than what it was last week, funny enough. The up-and-downs, the false fronts and things like that.

It's a great golf course. Obviously I've putted nicely the last few days and I've saved a few pars to get me to where I am now.

Q. Can you talk specifically about the rough this week and compared to the rough last week?

RETIEF GOOSEN: Well, yeah, the rough is -- they can't cut the rough, so it's just getting thicker and thicker. Yesterday on the 15th, just left of the green there and I was only eight yards away from the flag and from where I was standing, I couldn't see my ball. It was -- I had to like just put the club there and hope I hit the ball. I couldn't even see it. The rough was probably ten inches thick there where I was.

Q. Can you talk about the leaderboard, you have a guy who has not won before; you have yourself, Tiger, a lot of veterans at the top. Talk about going into the weekend.

RETIEF GOOSEN: It's going to be pretty bunched up, I think, by the end of two rounds. There's going to have to be a couple of good rounds on the weekend to pull it off. There's a lot golf players out there. The guys that still have to finish off they might get lucky with the weather and it might stay nice and calm this afternoon so the scoring could improve.

Q. How would you assess your year up to this point?

RETIEF GOOSEN: I've played pretty good. I've had a lot of Top-10 finishes. Unfortunately, I just haven't really played as well as I would have liked to on the weekend. I think my putting has let me down a little bit. I seem to drive the ball a lot better this year than I did last year. But just not quite hitting the right shots at the right time to finish it off.

Q. Do you expect more of yourself after having won that Open two years ago?

RETIEF GOOSEN: Not really. It's quite a long time ago now. You know, when I go out there, I expect to play well and we practice hard and try to improve every week. I expect to play good when I go out there and I try my best.

JOEL SCHUCHMANN: If we could go over your score card, your birdies and bogeys.

RETIEF GOOSEN: Bogeyed the third with a 3-putt from about 40 feet.

9, I hit a 3-wood to about three feet.

11 played pretty long into the wind. I hit driver, 6-iron to about five feet.

13, I hit 3-wood, 8-iron to about 15 feet.

14, I hit 9-iron to probably 15 feet.

17, I hit driver, wedge to about three feet, as well.

Q. Are you still pretty comfortable playing both sides of the ocean? Is that working out?

RETIEF GOOSEN: Yeah, at the moment I'm quite comfortable traveling back and forth. London still feels like home to me. I'm going back next week for a week off and then I'm probably going to go and watch a bit of tennis next week, and then fly up to Ireland for the European Open, the Scottish Open and then it's the British Open.

Then a week off and then start all over again, I think coming back out here again. So at the moment, I'm comfortable traveling back and forth.

Q. How different is it, though, just in terms of the way you have to play on either side of the Atlantic?

RETIEF GOOSEN: Same golf course. Still got to hit the same shots, hit them straight and try to make the putts. I really can't find any one difference on the golf course here than over there. Obviously the fields are stronger over here so there's a lot move guys in contention. But the European Tour is catching up fast. Competition is getting really strong and the guys are playing really well.

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