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THE PRESIDENTS CUP

October 6, 2009

SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA

MARK WILLIAMS: Like to welcome four members of the International Team, Tim Clark, Mike Weir, Adam Scott, and Angel Cabrera.
Let's just start with Tim. Just give us some impressions, your thoughts on the golf course and what you thought about it out there today, and what you're looking forward to, as well.
TIM CLARK: Yeah, obviously lucky to have played with the World event that was here a few years ago, so know what to expect coming out here. Traditional-style golf course and there's a premium on hitting it straight here.
Obviously I like the look of the course. Yeah, it looked in good shape today.
MARK WILLIAMS: Mike, another man next to us who has had a victory over Tiger. Just talk about what you're looking forward to here after experiencing Canada a couple of years ago.
MIKE WEIR: Yeah, I look forward to this event every time it comes around. For myself personally, playing an individual sport, and growing up playing team sports, I miss that about -- I love golf, but you miss that team atmosphere, the camaraderie of being on a team.
This is really the only chance that we have as international players to experience that. We have a World Cup and things like that where you have one other partner, but this is 12 guys and I really look forward to that and look forward to spending the week with the guys.
MARK WILLIAMS: Adam, you came back and played last week at Turning Stone, 20-odd birdies, enjoyed the week out there in the rain and cold; must be nice to be in some good weather here this week.
ADAM SCOTT: Yeah, it's very nice. It was pretty solid last week playing at Turning Stone. That was good.
Yeah, I think the course is a little tricky out there. It's fairly firm in places. You know, the greens seem to be releasing, so coming in from the short grass will be important this week. It's a good test. I think there's an opportunity for some birdies out there, so it will be pretty exciting.
MARK WILLIAMS: Angel, some comments on your day and the support that you guys are getting out there. If you can walk us through what your day was like so far.
ANGEL CABRERA: It was a great day. I enjoyed my day out there on the course and the atmosphere. I just hope that people can cheer around and be a lot of a factor here.

Q. PAUL AZINGER: I'm just wondering what your team room looks like and what are you doing for entertainment? The American Team has ping-pong tables going. Kind of curious what you have going there for fun.
ADAM SCOTT: Yeah, we've got ping-pong table going on and we've got a pool table, which got some use. I think Vijay and Angel were busy last night on that. I don't know the end result. It hasn't gotten too serious yet.
PAUL AZINGER: I thought I saw a picture of you driving a car.
ADAM SCOTT: Yeah, a driving game. Ryo was on that today.

Q. What did you have left into 18 for yardage and club?
ANGEL CABRERA: 250 yards and a 3-wood.
ADAM SCOTT: 3-wood from about 250 yards.
TIM CLARK: I couldn't get to the green. I think I had a 3-wood and wedged it up there. Still made birdie though.
MIKE WEIR: Driver, 3-wood on the green.

Q. Just wondering, The Ryder Cup kind of took off years ago when Europe started putting a steady drubbing on the Americans and it's been pretty competitive. Is that what it's going to take in this thing to raise to the next notch as a global phenomena? Do you feel like you maybe need to win this thing this year, at least take it deep into Sunday, and have it be a little more competitive than it's been recently?
MIKE WEIR: Yeah, I would agree with that. I'm not sure what number event this is, the seventh one, the eighth one. I know the Internationals only won the one time, and we had the tie.
So, yeah, to make it more competitive, we need to step up and play a little better than what we have the last few times, but I still think the event seems to be growing, in my mind's eye when I see the coverage of the event and the excitement of the event. I know in South Africa, you cannot get more exciting than South Africa down there. It was incredible.
Even though we got beat pretty soundly in MontrÃ©al, I think the support of the event and everything was outstanding. It would be nice if the Internationals, if we get it done a little bit more and get that rivalry going a little bit.

Q. I was wondering if you guys had noticed the lack of carry versus other events you've been in; it's San Francisco, sea level, do you have to make adjustments for that? Do you notice the ball might not be going as far as usually hit it in?
TIM CLARK: It's definitely not going as far, and I think we picked up on it today. Particularly even with little wedge shots, you know, what you would normally hit a soft wedge would go 120 yards, it's probably only going 110 yards. But that's something you adjust with, and obviously this isn't an overly-long golf course.
So a lot of the courses we play on TOUR are so long that you need the ball to go a long way. But here, that's not the case. I think we are all able to adjust to it pretty easily.

Q. San Francisco I think prides itself as being kind of a multi-cultural city, international city; do you feel like you're getting a lot of support out there in this neck of the woods versus maybe somewhere else?
ADAM SCOTT: I think it's hard to tell on a Tuesday. Obviously a lot of the fans out there today were following the American guys, but there were a few following us.
Hopefully, yeah, some of the international residents come out and support and get behind us. It is helpful. I mean, it's hard going up against the Americans in America. It's a very vocal crowd, and that can work in your favor, for sure.
But it also can get us motivated, as well. You know, we are looking for all of the support that we can get there.

Q. To the four of you, including you, Angel, you have to answer this one; so the first number of teams were very dominated with South Africans and Australians, so there was some level of bonding there. Now it seems like it's the most international of the International teams that we have had so far. Is it difficult, more difficult to bond because you guys are all from different places, or do you find some commonality when you get together, and, I don't know, have a few beers together or whatever you did last night; is it easier or more difficult?
TIM CLARK: Yeah, obviously like you say, when there's a lot of South Africans and Australians and New Zealanders being part of the team, too, we have always had the sort of common ground with the sports we play, rugby, cricket, and the Canadians, it's hockey, and the other countries.
I always feel like this team bonds really well regardless of who is on the team. Obviously this year we have a few new players. Last night we had a nice dinner and everyone seems to be trying to get to know each other for the guys we don't know.
I always felt like in the team room, we have a great spirit and atmosphere and the guys get along. Unfortunately it hasn't been too great of golf. This year I think there's an emphasis on still having fun as a team, but I think now the guys want to play well and put in a good showing this week.
MIKE WEIR: As Tim said, we do have some new players, we have Camilo and Ryo and we have some youth and enthusiasm on the team.
I think as Tim said, we had a great time, great dinner last night. There was a different atmosphere I felt like this year already compared to maybe in years past. There was maybe a little more enthusiasm and just a sense that -- a sense of purpose maybe a little bit.
But overall, all of the years that I've played, everyone has got on well, and to your question, maybe it is a little different. The American Team sees each other every week pretty much. Our team, most guys play on the U.S. Tour, but some guys are coming from different places. That sometimes is difficult, but we always do a good job of including everybody and everybody always seems to get along well.
ADAM SCOTT: It's never really been a problem for us, bonding. Even with the new guys for the first time this year, they are not really that new to us all. We have seen them on TOUR for at least a couple of years.
Even Ryo, I remember playing with him in Japan about four years ago. He was 14 or 15 (laughing). We have seen him around obviously a bit and getting to know him better. As Mike said, he brings that youth and enthusiasm and helps make us all feel a bit younger maybe, too.
TIM CLARK: And our biggest group of crowd is probably going to come out of his media, so it will be good. (Laughter).
ANGEL CABRERA: I think it's a great team and it's great, also, that it is a very International Team because it's all about the International Team, about different countries and the cultural differences and all those kind of things. It's great to put them all together.
I don't think the captain is going to have any hard time making the pairings, because everybody here on the team, they get along very well.

Q. Can we get a group answer: Talk about the greens, we have had nothing but trouble here and prior to getting ready for this tournament. How do you feel about the greens at Harding?
TIM CLARK: Today obviously we noticed shots kind of releasing out a little bit. Funny enough, I noticed actually on pitch shots, the ball stops pretty quickly. So it's just going to be about making adjustments. I certainly felt like playing into the greens, you just play for a little bit of a release, and they seemed to putt fine today, and obviously there's still a few days. I'm sure they have not cut the greens as low as they will the next few days, but I didn't see a problem with them today.
MIKE WEIR: As Tim said, I thought they improved. I played five or six holes yesterday and I thought they improved from yesterday to today.
You know, as you said, they have had a little trouble, but they have done a great job getting them ready, and they are putting fine. So I don't think it's going to be a factor.
ADAM SCOTT: Yeah, they are rolling well. I mean, they are not probably quite as fast as they would have liked, but the ball rolls as good as on any green, so they have done a good job in that sense getting them ready.
ANGEL CABRERA: The greens are in very good condition, and I think as the days go past, it's going to get harder and the greens are going to go faster and probably it's going to be more difficult. But it's going to be for everybody the same.

End of FastScripts

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