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RBC CANADIAN OPEN

July 22, 2009

Jamie Lovemark

OAKVILLE, ONTARIO

DOUG MILNE: Okay. We'd like to welcome Jamie Lovemark here in the interview room at the RBC Canadian Open. This is the site of your professional debut. Just a few comments on your excitement as you head into the week as such and kind of assessing the state of your game.
JAMIE LOVEMARK: I'm very excited. It's been a long time coming. My first pro event was almost two years ago, and it's been a dream to come out here and start playing professional.
Played a lot of amateur golf and stuff and want to thank Bill Paul and those guys for giving me an opportunity to come out and play. Very special, and I'm very fortunate to be a part of this tournament.

Q. And how about the state of your game as you're heading into the week?
JAMIE LOVEMARK: It's not too bad. I'm coming off of a rib injury. It's been a lot better than I thought it was going to be, so looking forward to see how I play and I've been practicing my stroking quite a lot.
DOUG MILNE: We'll take a few questions.

Q. How familiar are you, if any, with Matt Hill and Nick Taylor?
JAMIE LOVEMARK: Quite a lot. I played with Matt once. Played with him at U.S. Amateur. He's a great player. To have a season like that there's no doubt he's one of the best around, and Nick Taylor has been playing perfect golf over the last year as well. No wonder they are one and two in the amateur.
So I think those two guys have a great chance to make the cut and make a name for themselves on the weekend. There's no reason they can't win, to be honest with you.

Q. (Inaudible).
JAMIE LOVEMARK: First time. I'll check went across the border and came back. Quick trip.

Q. What are your expectations this week in terms of how to play, like it's kind of tough, I guess, when you're just coming from making your professional debut. Realistically what do you expect to do, especially when you factor in the injury?
JAMIE LOVEMARK: I expect to play well. I haven't hit a lot of balls as of lately, but there's no reason I can't.
I believe in myself, and I believe in the work I've done the last couple years has been good, and whatever happens happens, but I'm going to try my best and whatever it leaves me I'm fine. But I want to win. I want to get Top 10, Top 5 and try to keep playing.

Q. Is that the goal, to try and get as many sponsor exemptions?
JAMIE LOVEMARK: Yeah. It's kind of -- this is, what, July 22nd, so it's kind of late in the season. It'll be tough for me to get a lot of starts out here, so I gotta make the most of my opportunities and try to make a lot of money quickly.

Q. I think Ryan Moore was one and maybe one or two other people, names escape me now. But Ryan Moore was one. That crazy dollar figure that, in fact, Ryan Moore actually clinched the spot in Canada. Do you chase that mythical dollar figure where it's whatever special membership, temporary membership or whatever?
JAMIE LOVEMARK: Great. You gotta get Top 150 to receive exemptions the rest of the year, and 125 to keep your card. That's obviously the goal. I can only play so well and I can only play as many tournaments as I can, so like I said, you gotta play as best you can.

Q. Just one last point to that. Because you don't have to worry necessarily about, you know, you've gotta play for the moment, do you just play as aggressively as possible, whereas maybe a regular member --
JAMIE LOVEMARK: No. I mean, me and another member, like a more experienced player we're all trying to do the same thing. We're trying to score well and whatever the situation calls for, that's what you're going to do. It's not going to be based on like make a bunch of birdies real quick and put yourself in a bad position and make a bogey. So just trying to play every hole at a time.

Q. (Inaudible).
JAMIE LOVEMARK: At least this week and next week, and then after that, we'll see where I fall. I'll do some Monday qualifiers for Nationwide events, and I'll try to take Monday qualifying, get Top-25 and keep playing and try to build some money and experience out there.

Q. Jamie, was the rib injury before or after the NCAA?
JAMIE LOVEMARK: Before. It was during -- it was right before NCAA regional. So May 5th, I think I cracked it. I played around the regionals and pulled out.

Q. What did you do?
JAMIE LOVEMARK: I don't know. It was a stress fracture. So I think it kind of happened while I was changing my swing, put a little more torque and pressure into the rib cage, and I think it just snapped. I don't know.

Q. Is it difficult to make the decision to turn pro in a Walker Cup here, to turn pro at this time of year?
JAMIE LOVEMARK: A little bit. It was hard. Luckily I played in 2007, that was a great experience. It seemed like it would be so hard to top that experience of going undefeated, winning on foreign soil, being the first team since '92 or whatever. It was a crazy stat. Seemed like a fairytale-kind-of ending, and you know, it would be great to play, but if I was to turn pro after September, I'd be wasting quite a lot of opportunities to earn some money and try to get out here. So there's two ways to do it.
DOUG MILNE: Okay. Jamie, thanks for your time. We appreciate it. Best of luck this week.

End of FastScripts

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