	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

THE BARCLAYS

August 30, 2009

Steve Stricker

JERSEY CITY, NEW JERSEY

CHRIS REIMER: Steve Stricker, runner-up at the Barclays. First event of the PGA TOUR playoffs for the FedExCup. You have had some success. Not the finish you wanted, but overall a good week.
STEVE STRICKER: Overall it was a good week. It was a lot of fun. Coming down the stretch, getting into contention like that. Even though came out on the short end of the deal, but still that's why we're all out here, to get into the heat of the battle, under the gun like that, to see how you can handle it coming down the stretch.
It was a lot of fun. Hats off to Heath. He made a great putt on that last hole. Came down to a couple of putts to decide it all.
CHRIS REIMER: Take us through the 18th hole, the putts on the green.
STEVE STRICKER: Yeah. Really I had the advantage. We were both in the bunker. I really didn't have that tough a bunker shot. It was uphill quite a bit. I had quite an uphill lie, but a clean lie. Had the right club. Just caught it a hair on the bottom, caught the lip. I really didn't think the lip was in play. Must have caught it pretty low on the club.
Again, we were right back to even again. I figured one of us is going to get it up and down. Like I said, it came down to a couple of putts.
CHRIS REIMER: We'll take some questions for Steve.

Q. This course over four days, was it something unique and different to you or did it remind you of different courses you played? Did you have to change your game every day playing a course like this?
STEVE STRICKER: No, this is a unique course. We haven't seen anything like this, I wouldn't think. I don't know. I don't know if I played anything like this course. It's got a mixture of tough holes, easy holes, some holes that are very hard to access the pins at. The greens are very difficult. And we got thrown different weather every day almost, and a different wind direction today.
It was a challenge out there. As you could tell by the scores, the scoring wasn't that low really. You know, it was a challenge. I thought the course held up nicely.

Q. I think you moved up to first in the points list. That's not a bad prize.
CHRIS REIMER: I wouldn't think so because Tiger tied him. Probably when he was at the top.
STEVE STRICKER: I probably lost a spot.

Q. Sorry about that. Could you talk about the way Heath played. It seems like he's one of those classic slow-and-steady-wins-the-race kind of guys, old-school golfer, works within that comfort range.
STEVE STRICKER: No doubt. I think Heath and I play a fairly similar game. We hit it about the same distance. But he played great today. You know, he got off to a start that he needed to get off to. He birdied the 2nd hole, then holed it from the fairway at 5 for eagle.
When you look back at that, you know it turns out to be his day. When stuff like that happens. Most tournaments, something like that does happen for the winner, to come out on top.
But he's a good driver of the ball, a good iron player. Hats off to him. Like I said, he played great all day today.

Q. "New York Stock Exchange" on your shirt. Did you get there?
STEVE STRICKER: No. I haven't been invited yet.

Q. Have you ever been there?
STEVE STRICKER: No (laughter).

Q. How many shots is a guy just liking the golf course worth and how much does it hurt a guy if he goes into a tournament not liking the golf course?
STEVE STRICKER: You mean, if you have a bad attitude about the golf course, how much does it hurt you?

Q. Yes.
STEVE STRICKER: You know, I would think it would hurt you a lot. I didn't really care for the course coming here. But it's what we have to play this week. Everybody's got to play it. I don't look negatively at the golf course. It's not one of my favorites. That's just my opinion. You know, you have to have a positive attitude about the course in general, I guess. Even though you dislike it. You know, I heard some grumbling this week, I'm sure you all have. You better be going out there with an attitude that you can still play well here. That's what my attitude was.
Even though I didn't care for some of the holes, I still thought I could play well here. I thought this course may lend itself to my type of game. I felt good in that respect. I think as a player, you better find some positive before teeing it up, if that's the case.
That's just me. I can't answer for everybody.
It was a difficult test. You had to drive it well. The rough was up. There was a lot of water, a lot of hazards around. The greens, like I said, were difficult. The course played long because of the wetness. So there were a lot of factors that were going against you. I mean, to make it difficult, I guess is what I meant to say.
I thought it was a great championship here. I thought it had a lot of excitement. A lot of guys had a chance at the end. Ernie, I see, got in there. Didn't Padraig finish at 8, too? Tiger got himself in there. Must have been a good course for those type of players to get up there, I guess.

Q. There were some pretty heavy hitters on the leaderboard. Should we be surprised a guy like Heath Slocum was able to hang with you guys?
STEVE STRICKER: Not at all. Anybody here in this field has the potential to win the tournament. Heath is a very steady player. He's a very good player. I mean, I don't know what else to say. I don't think we should be surprised that he won.
CHRIS REIMER: Let's go through the back nine here, starting with 10.
STEVE STRICKER: Birdied No. 10. Hit a driver and a 6-iron to about probably 12 feet.
Birdied 13. Par 5. Hit driver and a utility club just over the green. Used my putter and putted it down there to about four or five feet and made that.
Bogeyed 15. Flared a utility club to the right of the green, into the rough, chipped it to probably about 30 feet and 2-putted.
Then birdied 16. Hit a 3-iron off the tee and a sand wedge to about a foot.
Everybody knows what happened at 18. Made bogey at 18.
CHRIS REIMER: Five top 10s, nine playoff events. Something about the playoffs that you get geared up for?
STEVE STRICKER: I don't know. I mean, it's the playoffs, I guess (laughter). I mean, it's the time of year. Fortunately I've been playing well since the playoffs started. I got that going for me.
You know, obviously you want to be playing well at this time. Fortunately I have been. There's a lot of incentive there for us at the end of it all. I just want to have a chance going to THE TOUR Championship.

Q. The network didn't show the eagle. Did you watch it? Give us the play-by-play.
STEVE STRICKER: Yeah, sure. I think it was a 7-iron. Don't quote me on that. I'm sure you'll find out when he comes in. If this was the hole, he hit it just past the hole. It jumped right back in. Just like a little gopher going for his hole, it just jumped right in. He didn't see it. I saw it go in. So he was a little shocked at it all. It was a great shot. Probably the toughest hole of the tournament. It probably played to the highest stroke average, I would imagine.
CHRIS REIMER: Thanks for coming in. Good luck next week.

End of FastScripts

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297