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BMW PGA CHAMPIONSHIP

May 22, 2009

John Daly

VIRGINIA WATER, ENGLAND

Q. John, that was quite a back nine. Tell us about the 3 at 17.
JOHN DALY: I just hit a horrible 1-iron off the tee and I had to hook a 3-iron and I just caught it really good. It just rolled and rolled and rolled I guess. I chipped in on 15 out of the bunker. Holed out on 13 on a chip shot.
I chipped really good today. I had good looks at the chips that I had. I had an easy bunker shot on 15. It's just one of those rounds that, you know, if I hit a bad shot, it turned out really bad, and I just recovered really well today.

Q. Is that short game just natural to you, or have you had to work really hard to establish it?
JOHN DALY: Well, it's something I've always done. I've worked harder on chipping and putting than anything in my game ever, and that's all I ever really try and stress to myself. We are going to miss shots, we are going to miss greens, and it's nice when you can get them up-and-down. It keeps the momentum going.
The last two days I've done that, because I have not made one putt, I think outside of seven feet, I don't think I've made one putt. But I'm hitting the putts good, and I'm just not real comfortable off the tees yet. But still, it's just one of those two days that you hang in there and hopefully something good will happen.

Q. Was it just the lines off the tee? When we spoke the other day, you said you were getting a little bit quick.
JOHN DALY: Yeah, I am, I'm still a little bit quick, but Ernie did a great job. He's really made you think made it to where you have to think off of these tees with some of the bunkers. 250, okay, I can't hit 3-iron, I can't hit 4, it's 270, too hard to hit. So he makes you really think.
What I try and do, if I'm cutting the ball okay, then the left bunkers are out of play and if I'm drawing it that day, the right bunker; I just can't get comfortable, and that's a good test of what Ernie did with where he placed the bunkers. Almost makes it harder.

Q. Almost 24 hours before you play again, how will you spend that time?
JOHN DALY: I'm going to go work on hitting my irons a little bit. They weren't too good today. I think I'm going to pull the driver and hit 3-wood the rest of the weekend.

Q. The eagle at 17 certainly helps and assures you'll be here for the weekend. What are your thoughts on the round overall today?
JOHN DALY: Just hung in there, didn't hit a lot of greens, didn't hit a lot of fairways. I holed a bunker shot out on 15. I holed the chip on 13. I holed the chip on 17.
So I can honestly say I don't think I've chipped in three times in one full year before, much less one day. So just practicing and I felt comfortable with the chip shots that I had. Just executed them real well.

Q. Is the game close then?
JOHN DALY: I don't know. I'm not hitting my irons that good, and I just can't get a good feel off the tee boxes, so today I just kind of said, I'm going to lay up as short as I can most of them. A couple bad, errant 1-irons today got me in a little trouble, but other than that, it's just a tough golf course, because there's trouble everywhere you are landing the ball.
It makes it tough. You've got to stripe it. You've got to hit the fairways out here.

Q. Generally speaking, you are enjoying this European swing?
JOHN DALY: Oh, I am. I always love coming over here. I've always said it, and that's why I've come over for so many years. I have always liked to play kind of both tours, and I think I have averaged seven or eight European events each year, even not counting The Open sometimes. I've always enjoyed coming to Europe.

Q. Knowing your suspension is up now, are you looking forward to getting back and playing events on the U.S. Tour? Or do you almost feel more comfortable over here?
JOHN DALY: I feel comfortable on both tours. I don't really have any goals at home now because I'm so far behind. I'm kind of a little far behind here, but I feel like I could maybe make a move and maybe get in The Race to Dubai here.
So I definitely will try and get some tournaments in in the States, but there's no way I'm going to get 15 in.
All I know is there's two or three exemptions I know I'm getting right now. The Fall Series, you never know. So I want to go. If I get into Memphis, I would like to play Memphis but after that I don't know what I'm going to do.

Q. Knowing you'll be here for the weekend, do you have something special trouser-wise for the weekend?
JOHN DALY: They are a little more flowery. I've got a solid pair for Sunday, bright pink pair Sunday. They always say it takes a man to wear pink.
And tomorrow will be kind of a little flowery-type. I don't even know if it's flowers, just a lot of different designs.

Q. Very important, otherwise this would have been two in a row.
JOHN DALY: Last week was survival, we got the bad end of the draw. Nothing just kind of went right. The chip-ins is the only thing it I did good today.
I hit a lot of good putts. I've had probably 12 lip-outs this week in two days. So I'm not stroking it bad, I just can't get anything to go in.

Q. You said yesterday the driver was the problem.
JOHN DALY: I'm going to take that out and hit 3-wood the rest of the week. I just can't get comfortable off the tees hitting driver on any hole.

Q. Is that because of the feel that you have for the course?
JOHN DALY: Yeah, nothing really sets up. The only hole I really, really need it the most on is probably the third hole, but you know, I'm hitting my 1-iron good and I'm hitting the 3-wood decent. Hopefully that would be the only one. Well, if the wind changes it could get ugly.

Q. With so many fans coming here to see you over the weekend, that must mean quite a lot to you.
JOHN DALY: Yeah, still, I know it's the fourth week, but there's still a lot of rust on my game. The confidence level is not really but it's getting better.
The short game, I always felt I could chip, but I've all been one of those average, not even above average putters, maybe even a little below, because I'm all feel. It was great to chip-in a few times today.

Q. Were people pulling for you on the course?
JOHN DALY: Oh, yeah, yesterday it was phenomenal, all of the people following me and today they got up early and followed me. I keep them on their toes. They just never know where I'm going to go or what I'm going to do; hell, I don't even know what I'm going to do sometimes. I hung in there really well the last two days; I didn't hit the ball good at all.

Q. Nobody is beating this course this week, really. It's really tough out there.
JOHN DALY: Well, yesterday the pins were tough and today they were twice as tough.
So you get a lot of fall-out, especially poa annua. You can look at it and say that looks a little downhill, I don't know, might be uphill and next thing you know, you knock it eight feet by. So there's a lot of subtle undulations on these greens that we can't really see, and the pins were difficult today.

Q. You showed a lot of patience, as well; is that a consequence of the fact that you feel better in yourself and having got the second place, as well in Italy, that you are feeling pretty good about things at the moment?
JOHN DALY: You just kind of hope that the practice pays off a little bit when things aren't going good. Okay, I was hitting that 36-yard shot at Bel Air a month ago, I should have that done. I think about where I was practicing and working with Rick on certain shots, and you think about that, if you hit enough shots, put myself back in the place where I was practicing where I can hopefully execute a little better.

Q. You seem to have found The European Tour quite a welcoming place. Are there any particular friendships that you've found in the last few weeks?
JOHN DALY: I'm like Jesus, I love all of you. (Laughter).

Q. A year down the line and you're no longer suspended from the U.S. Tour and you have to choose between playing there and coming over and doing this again, would you do it again?
JOHN DALY: I hate missing our West Coast, but I hated to miss the three in Dubai, Qatar and Abu Dhabi. That's kind of far away. I just want to play this one, play next week, hopefully play well and see how Memphis goes.
Definitely during the FedEx tournaments, I'd have to probably win to even have a chance to get in one of those. So I'm just going to play it by ear, but I definitely a.m. going to come back over here, no doubt.

Q. How different do you feel with the weight loss? Do you feel strong?
JOHN DALY: Yeah, I have a lot more stamina. I actually can keep up with the guys that I'm playing with now and not kind of way back walking slow. I've got a lot more stamina.

Q. Do you have a start date on when you can play on the U.S. Tour?
JOHN DALY: I'm hoping Memphis. That's all I know. I haven't heard anything. I'm hoping it's going to be Memphis. Supposed to know something Monday maybe. I'm hoping it's Memphis. But if it's not, I'll stay here, go to Wales.

End of FastScripts

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