U.S. SENIOR OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP

July 24, 1998

Hale Irwin

HALE IRWIN: I am going to talk about today, not tomorrow or yesterday. I played somewhat better. I didn't make as many mistakes as I did yesterday and I honestly felt like I played about the same today as I did yesterday. Difference was I hit a few more greens. Yesterday, I missed I think one -- or one fairway. Today I missed none. And I missed a few more greens yesterday. And today I missed, I don't know, four, three or four, some of which were just off the fringe. Two days, I have only made four birdies. It is not like I am really knocking the flag down and making a lot of putts. Single birdie at the 1st yesterday and then three birdies today with no bogeys is really where I stand. So I am not on fire, although, looking at my score today might indicate otherwise. It really was just a fairly solid round, and it was not mistake-free. I did have some errors out there that fortunately I was able to salvage the pars. But, not the kind of round that I hope I can put together before this Championship is over.

HALE IRWIN: I think any course is. But the good part about it is I have played myself back into contention. At least I am there. I have got a chance. After yesterday, there was -- I had to have a round like I had today. I just had to have that to get back in there. With the exception of Raymond, who is the only player, I think, under par, is he still?

HALE IRWIN: So, I have put myself in a position where I can see them. That is about all I can ask for after yesterday's round. I am delighted to be where at least -- at least I am here. I have got the weekend ahead of me to try and go out. I have to have another round like I had today, either tomorrow or Sunday, and hope the other round is equally good or at least a good solid score. So I am there. I am happy that I am there because it wasn't easy. I am kind of fighting my game a bit now. I am sort of at the end of an awfully good July and just started to run a little bit low on fuel. And so I am just trying to take it easy and get myself back into a good frame of mind for tomorrow.

HALE IRWIN: Birdies: 1st hole, I hit a 2-iron in the front bunker; from there I knocked it out about seven feet -- a good bunker shot; made that for a birdie. And birdied No. 12, hitting a 6-iron, a very nice 6-iron, probably the best iron the last couple of days, to within a foot and a half of the hole, making that. And at 14, I hit a 4-iron to within six feet of the hole, making that. I must say I did have some great saves. At 9, even though I hit a good shot to the green, it went just over the green, very slick coming down the hill and I hit the lip and it rolled past about seven feet. I made that for a par. Not that far, not seven feet. Probably five feet, made that for par. Then 15, I hit a very poor 4-iron, hit it out to the right, short of the bunker, in the kikuyu and hit a great shot, just laid the blade right open. Took a big swing; hit it up in the air; put it about three feet from the hole making that for a par. And then 16, I hit a 6-iron in the right bunker and hit a bunker shot out about eight feet from the hole making that for a par. My second putt at 18 was probably five feet as well. So I did make some nice short putts there to save some pars but I really didn't -- didn't hit the ball close enough all day to really have more birdie opportunities.

HALE IRWIN: I try not to pay attention to that. If we, the players, get hung up in all the hype, then you might start believing your clippings and I try not -- not to do that. I try to keep it on a firmer footing, if you wish, to -- that I know that I have been playing well. I know that -- I know when I am off just a touch, and I know I am off just a touch. And my score yesterday, for instance, indicated that. But the score today indicates I am not far off, either. And so when you are playing for this Championship -- and honestly, I don't think about Gil. Gil is not the objective. The Championship is the objective. With that in mind, and how badly I have wanted to win this, I am excluding everybody else from my mind and I am just trying to play the kind of golf that I am capable of without trying to hit it too hard, get too anxious. I don't mean literally hit the ball, but I might press it a little bit. I am just trying to take some of that pressure off with not getting absorbed in all that.

HALE IRWIN: What did I say? I didn't want to talk about yesterday. The reason being, that was a round that I am trying to forget. I didn't do anything very well. And I am going to speak to this only one time: That that kind of play is not the kind of play that is memorable to me and I am not going to try to go out there and make it sound like I played terrible because I didn't. I didn't play very well. It was just a ho-hum round; missed some short putts for pars. I am out there. I birdied the first hole and I am 1-under after 2. All of a sudden, I am 6-over after 18. That just shows you I was not in the game. And there is nothing I want to remember -- really talk about. It is not because I am ashamed of it. I hit every shot. It is just that I want to think more positively than that. And 77s, unless you are down here on Sunset Strip, are not what I want to talk about. I'd rather talk about 68s.

HALE IRWIN: It is difficult to change a schedule with the way the schedule is -- they have put out for us. When you are thrown in the majors, as we have them, and those other tournaments that are important, significant prize money and for other reasons. For instance, Baltimore is -- I have a golf course design opportunity there so I needed to go there and should have gone there and I am glad I did. And Americatech is on a good course, good sponsor. So there are reasons why other than -- but I do wish there was some way we could space out our majors to where we had a little bit more of a break, so you could build in some time to do that. But I don't know if the players have a whole lot of say on how the schedule goes anymore. We used to, but not anymore.

HALE IRWIN: Well, a little bit. I think yesterday was probably -- I just never felt like I had the wind in my sails. My feet -- all those cliches -- never had my feet under me, all that stuff. I just never felt comfortable. And today, I sort of felt the same way, but I just was more intent upon -- I just couldn't let myself get lost again. And I hit enough shots to keep me in it, but I hit another -- scruffy shots to really make me work at it. It was not an easy round. So this is the kind of round I could have possibly had yesterday, maybe not 68, but I could have salvaged yesterday into 71, 72, 73; I just let it get away from me. But that was as good as yesterday could have been. Today was about as good as today could have been, so, I am happy to have it. Don't get me wrong, the 77 was a big disappointment. The 68, I am going to be doing cartwheels once we leave here.

HALE IRWIN: Like go down and practice? Heaven forbid, no. I didn't do anything yesterday. I changed shoes and left and went back with my family and forgot all about golf. And, I will do the same today. This time of the year, I know what I need to do. That is why I want to kind of get away and think about what I need to do tomorrow. It is much easier for me to do that away from the golf course then down on the range and going through all the people. It is just easier to get away from it and break the -- like, yesterday, I had to break that reverse-momentum, if you wish. And today, I am going to hopefully have dinner here pretty soon and go to a movie. Any good movies in this town?

HALE IRWIN: Well, I feel much better about it than at this time yesterday, certainly. The course is playing very, very hard. And to go out here and play every round under par is going to be exceedingly difficult if it plays the way it has been, I don't see where it is going to get any easier. I felt yesterday morning, though, it was easier playing conditions than this afternoon. The wind came up. I presume it came up yesterday as well. Seems to kind of come up in the afternoon and those finishing holes, going back that way, start on No. 12, are pretty darn difficult. So I am happy with the results. I feel good about my -- better about my chances, but bear in mind, I am still five shots out and there is still some players between and me and the leader. So I have a lot of work to do this weekend.

HALE IRWIN: Similar. Very similar. A little -- the situations are different, though. I came back from -- I came back from an 80 up there. Between the 80 there and the 77 here, pretty ugly scores, but fortunately, I have the capacity to come back with something. I don't feel like I am ever out of it. But it is a different ballgame. Up there no one was picking me to win the Championship, for instance. Well, somebody might have said offhand: Well, you were one of my favorites. Well, you and who else? Here, it is a little different. This -- not more meaningful, by any means, but it is just a different environment - different golf course; different people that you are playing against, and this is what I am more accustomed to, the senior events, than the regular Tour events. You have to play in them to understand what I am talking about. I am sorry to be kind of lost for words. They are different. There is just no way you can compare the two and make an adequate comparison. But in terms of level of play I probably played my 68 at Olympic Club was better than today's 68. Although the courses, I think, are almost equal in difficulty. This is playing as hard as Riviera can play, I think unless the winds really comes up big time.

HALE IRWIN: Thank you.