HALE IRWIN: I have no idea. We didn't know who was playing whom until we got the pairings after play. I asked Arnie yesterday morning if he had given it any thought, and he said no. So could have been spur of the moment or flip of the coin or whatever direction the tee was facing or just ran off the list till he started checking off names; I don't know how he did it. (Laughing.)
Q. Can you give a recount of what Barry and Sam did on 2, the second shot. He went for the green in two, the ball was hit on the hill, did it end up on that bridge?
HALE IRWIN: He ended up on the bridge, yes.
Q. And then what happened after that?
HALE IRWIN: Once it got on the bridge, it got against one of the -- I know the side board is there and there's a space about like this and it got against, in that crack between the tread way and that board, that 2 X 6. Sam took a swing at it with his putter and he hit the sideboard and whiffed the ball. Then Barry took a fairway medal and turned it toe-over to get something down in there. It was an unfortunate -- fortunate in the sense that they were in the hazard, but not in the water to be able to play it, but unfortunately they were right up in that crack. And then of course the board, if you're in the hole that was pointed over this way, the best they could do was to get it up and maybe have a 50-, 60-foot effort.
FRED FUNK: The second shot, I was thinking if I hit my Sunday punch, I could get there. But Hale said, "No, let's lay up, get me to a wedge, get me to what my strength is and let them force the play on them." It wasn't any gimmee that we knew Barry was going to go for it. You lose anything just short right on that hole or anywhere right, it's going in the creek normally; it's not on the bridge.
That was a great decision on Hale's part because I think in a normal situation, I probably would have gone, and I would have had to hit my best shot to get it there and be safe with all that trouble up there. It was a great play as it turned out.
HALE IRWIN: It's just too early in the day to take that kind of a risk.
FRED FUNK: Again, don't give it away.
HALE IRWIN: What I told Fred was I'm glad they are where they are, because now they feel like they have to go for it; and the target is really small where that flag is. If you miss it at all -- if you catch it and really hit it, he's through the green so now he's got the downhill. Let's play back to where we don't give them anything. If we can make a 4, great. But make them have to make the 4. So we end up making the 4 and they make the X and here we go. Just kind of got to be patient sometimes.
FRED FUNK: What happened to that last match, the first match, Arnie? What happened? They halved?
HALE IRWIN: That's like a win.
FRED FUNK: That was like a win. And what happened with Kite and Floyd? Okay.
Q. Compared to just a regular Tour event, how much more fun is it playing something like this? Do you feel the pressure at all?
HALE IRWIN: Well, I think because there's few opportunities for us Champions Tour players to play against or with, either way, with the guys that are still wearing diapers, it's fun. But you're also at a level in the game, and I say that meaning that perhaps years of experience, to know the difference between sportsmanship and what this game is about, versus what we might see in other events.
FRED FUNK: I tell you, for me, I said to Mark, we were on the sixth hole and they had the big board there. I was waiting for Hale to hit a chip shot, and I just looked at the board and see all the names again. This is my second UBS Cup and I felt the same way before, but still even more today, I look at myself being a part of this field with all of these legends that are playing and guys that are just so good, they can just flat play. Hale, 59 years old, he could win on our tour right now. It's phenomenal.
But to just be part of it with all of these guys that I so look up to growing up and coming out here, I just said, I've still got to pinch myself that I'm still here and I'm here with this company that I have and be part of a team like this and go against the other team with all of those big names they have.
It's a neat experience for me and I just really have never taken anything for granted out here on TOUR. When I have an opportunity to experience what I've experienced, really the last three years, I've had two UBS Cups and a Presidents Cup and a Ryder Cup in three years, and I just feel like, wow, I've gotten to this part of my career where most guys are winding down, and yet it's my best I've ever done and best experiences I've ever had.
So for me, it's huge. I just look so forward -- when I found out I was asked to be on this team and I wanted to be on the team, and when I found out they wanted me on the team, I just was really happy. So it means a lot to me. I think it's a really, really neat tournament for people to come out and watch. It's about the -- it's still competition, but it's about what the game is all about and sportsmanship.
HALE IRWIN: It's still to the point where respect and integrity are still at the forefront of everybody's minds. The pride, we all have our own pride, but I think we certainly respect and try to treat the game as the winner. We want golf to be the winner at the end of the day and not individuals, but present golf in a fashion that people enjoy. So that's my ultimate goal.
Yes, Fred and I won today, but hopefully golf was presented in a way that will make others excited about being a part of it.
PHIL STAMBAUGH: Thank you.
End of FastScripts.
