	products recent interviews FastScripts archive about ASAP Sports

Our Clients:

Browse by Sport

Find us on

Subscribe to RSS

Click to go to
Asaptext.com

View our
e-Brochure

PUERTO RICO OPEN PRESENTED BY BANCO POPULAR

March 11, 2009

Greg Kraft

RIO GRANDE, PUERTO RICO

NELSON SILVERIO: Greg, why don't you just give us some general thoughts about coming back to Puerto Rico. You're the defending champion and you've had a chance to look at the course. Any changes out there?
GREG KRAFT: There was quite a few changes. It's great to be back. At the media day they treated me like a king. I told Sydney you would've thought I won the Masters as well as they treated me when I came back a couple weeks ago.
NELSON SILVERIO: A win is a win.
GREG KRAFT: Yeah. But I came back and I had a nice reception at the hotel. Sydney's been great. Doing a couple little functions. Met up with some kids Tuesday about on the second hole. It was nice. I always love helping kids.
Then we had the draw party last night, which was a lot fun. A lot of sponsors there and fellow players there. Got know how this community is behind this tournament, which is great.
Today -- I only played nine holes on Tuesday. Just trying to save some strength because it's a long week. Played today and got to see everything. I rode around two weeks ago, but got to actually physically play today. I made the turn and I was talking to Sydney I said, It's kind of remarkable. You made three or four changes on the front, and every one effected me, you know.
I said, I got to No. 4 and you brought the lake in and planted some trees. I had the perfect drive and I was behind the trees you just put in.
No. 5, the par-5, I went for the green and hit that new bunker you put in just short of the green. A lot of changes have made the course a little more demanding and a little more accuracy. There's other changes that have made it a little more easier and forgiving.
There's a lot more collection areas around the greens. For instance, to the right of 16 it's all shaved now. Last year that was very hard to chip from because it was really thick Bermuda and the green was really slopey and fast. I missed over there one day, and I was lucky I made par. Couple guys in my group hit it over there and didn't even have a chance of making par.

Q. 16?
GREG KRAFT: Right of 16. They made that a collection area now. They shaved it. There's a lot of shaved areas around the greens now where you can actually putt it, versus before you had to hit a really good chip.
You know, with the greens with the slope in them, coming out of some thick Bermuda and the wind, I mean, it was tough to chip around some of the greens. The extra ball might tumble further from the pin. If you miss the green just off the edge it'll roll away. But if you hit it over there you've got more options than just hitting just a little flop shot.
It's more demanding off the tee, but there are some things that are a little easier on the green.

Q. When's the most important thing you take from last year's win?
GREG KRAFT: Never give up. I mean, 17 years, one unofficial win, four seconds. You know, you're get to the -- you're coming out with the age of the new young guys, the bombers: The J.B. Holmes and Bubba Watsons. They grew up in a different era. When I grew up it was wooden drives and a lot of balls. It was more you had to control your ball.
You couldn't swing hard. The harder you swing the harder you try to hit it the more the ball curves, and it was a game of accuracy. These guys never probably even hit a wood driver. So they've been swinging as hard as they can. Kind of hard to teach to swing harder.
It was a game of control, just like Nick Faldo's. He is a massive guy, but he had more control of anybody in my ear.
You know, you have the guys that are more accurate now. The complete bombers and putters.

Q. (No microphone.)
GREG KRAFT: He's a big fan of Moe Norman, and just tried to hit it as solid and as straight as he could.
So the thing I took most from it, to go back to your question, was that, you know, you look at all the elements and the way the game has changed, like other games have changed. Football, it's more of an air game than it used to be, and baseball is more long balls and not so pitching as it was. Our game has certainly changed with the equipment, and the players are bigger and stronger.
A long time ago the big guys were the less automatic rate and didn't have as much feel, and now they're just phenomenal.
So time is running out. All of sudden I have to come forth and win.

Q. Where were your second-place finishes?
GREG KRAFT: I finished second at Doral, I finished second at Colonial, second at the Western, and I had a second at Disney. So a couple of them I felt like I had a chance. I had my hand on the trophy on a couple of them, and the other two I just got outplayed. But that happens.

Q. How old are you right now?
GREG KRAFT: 44.

Q. So still six years until the old guy's tour.
GREG KRAFT: Six more years, and I've got a trainer that I hired that travels with me every week. I'm giving it everything I've got these six years.

Q. (No microphone.)
GREG KRAFT: Yeah. Well, they are put in a place where...

Q. Strategic?
GREG KRAFT: Strategic. 10 last year was perfect. You just dump it down short of the that bunker. It was like 313 or 320. Couple trees in to the left to bring those bunker more into play and you're trying to fit it, you know. With the wind left to right, that's where you're going miss it, where that new bunker is.
No. 4 they brought the water in on the right. Last year on Sunday I hit it over the bunker and had a pitching wedge into the pin. So they brought the lake in past the bunker, so you're not going to fly it over the bunker now. You have to play it left, and then over there to the left they put all the new trees in.
So it was done strategically so they're in play. They didn't just go out there and throw some stuff around. They designed the hole to bring that into play. It's very clever. Very well done, actually.

Q. What do you think the score will be this year?
GREG KRAFT: It blew really hard, especially on Sunday. Somebody always hits high, so it doesn't matter what you do. Somebody is hitting fairways and making putts.
So I wouldn't be surprised if it's the same or maybe a little better since guys already have one year of seeing the course and knowing the greens a little bit. As you get to know the course you get more comfortable on it. I imagine it might be even a little less if the wind isn't blowing as much. There are some areas around the greens where you feel like you can go at some pins.
Because if you do miss a green you can putt up the hill. Before, it's thick Bermuda right next to the green. Maybe, Ah, I don't want to miss it over there. I don't have a chance of getting it up and down, where now you might. You have more options.

End of FastScripts

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297