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THE EUROPEAN OPEN

May 28, 2009

Peter Hanson

ASH, ENGLAND

MICHAEL GIBBONS: Been not a bad week so far. Tell us a bit about today, following on from the great hole-in-one at Walton Heath.
PETER HANSON: It has a little bit to do with that. Like I said, I've been struggling through the last two weeks, Irish Open, Wentworth, I haven't been hitting the ball very good, and put in a tremendous amount of work last week, like 10, 12 hours a day, every day.
I had my coach over trying to get the long game back in position, and of course, that ace Monday is an enormous boost, you get a confidence boost, not only doing that, because when you get here, everybody is congratulations and well done, you get so much energy out of it. I think it had a lot to do with that today. It felt really easy, the play today. Striking it a lot better off the tee and iron shots were very nice and made a bunch of putts.
MICHAEL GIBBONS: Just a bit about Monday and the situation.
PETER HANSON: Monday we had qualifying and we were playing for 11 spots. I managed to get in at 5-under par, which was tied for seven or eight, we were seven guys playing for five spots, and playing the first hole, three of us made par and the other ones made birdies. We went up through 17 at Walton Heath, Old Course, and we were three guys now playing for one spot and I managed to make a hole-in-one.

Q. Were you first second or third in that situation?
PETER HANSON: Stephen Gallacher hit a 7-iron to the front half of the green and I walked off the second, and it's a very tough hole, because people that's played Walton Heath, the Old Course, it's small greens and well-bunkered, and you're quite happy just to hit the green.

Q. Is that the one right near the clubhouse?
PETER HANSON: Exactly. If you play the first one on the new, it's a short dogleg leg left. So four out of seven made birdie out of that to get those spots, and we were three guys playing for one spot on the 17 tee, yes.

Q. Is it the feel-good factor from that one shot and congratulations, continue on that quickly for you, do you think?
PETER HANSON: I think in the position that I was now, that I've been just struggling a bit, and you get such a positive boost out of that shot and getting into the U.S. Open, and I think it has a little bit to do with just missed out, qualifying for the Masters. I was around 50 by the end of the year in the world, and 52nd the week before. So I just missed that one, and I was really disappointed, not getting into Augusta.
And so I think I really want to play the majors and, yeah, be a player that's within the Top-50 in the world so, to get that last one was a very key thing.

Q. What was the distance and the club?
PETER HANSON: It was a 6-iron. I think someone said it went 202 yards. I play meters. I think the pin was a little bit short, 202 makes sense.

Q. And you said Bland was 20 yards to the right, is that where he chipped in?
PETER HANSON: No, then he chipped on to the green and 2-putted, and Stephen Gallacher 3-putted, so they ended up making four, both of them. So they played one more hole to get the first hole, whatever it is. I don't really know how that system works.

Q. Apparently he chipped in, is that right?
PETER HANSON: On the next hole.
MICHAEL GIBBONS: From off the bunker, sort of 30- -foot putt, just on the fringe. You should have been there.

Q. Do you know what Stephen and Richard are up to?
PETER HANSON: I think I only have to buy them a drink really. (Laughing.)
No, we talked, and it's one of those surreal things. I don't know if it's ever happened before, but it's just, normally if you make a hole-in-one, if we play normal, everybody is happy, cheerful, but this is like knocking that last penalty in a World Cup or qualifying in a World Cup. It's that kind of moment. I knock it in and everybody knows it's game-over. Normally you play on and try to get it back.

Q. How many holes in one have you had?
PETER HANSON: Seven. This is my seventh.

Q. All in tournaments?
PETER HANSON: No, five of them in tournaments.

Q. Can we get the details?
PETER HANSON: I started on 10, 5-iron to 15 feet.
12, I hit driver, 4-iron and 2-putted for birdie.
The next par 5, 15, I hit driver, 3-wood and up and down from front of the green.
Then I made one on 2, driver, 7-iron to about 20 feet.
Next third, I made a 7-iron to about four feet.
The next par 5 is 5. I hit driver, rescue, and got it up-and-down from just off the green.
Then 8, as well, I hit driver, 3-wood and got it up-and-down.

Q. On Monday, did you see it all the way?
PETER HANSON: I did.

Q. And as soon as you hit it, you could tell it was a sweet shot?
PETER HANSON: Yeah, because I changed from a 5-iron to a 6, because I felt I needed to hit it a little bit higher. I saw a high, cut five first and just felt to change it to six and hit it hard. Pin was on the front. When you see it, the pin was on the line but it was important to get it on the front edge and releasing. When I saw the ball pitch on the green, I was really happy because I knew I was in a great position to get that spot. But when it disappeared --

Q. When you say you changed clubs, were you involved in a long conversation with your caddie?
PETER HANSON: No, it wasn't. It was just one of those feel things. Normally when you get into those situations you have to see what state of mind you are in and normally you hit it a couple of yards more if you're pumped up.

Q. So instinctively you changed clubs?
PETER HANSON: Yeah.

End of FastScripts

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