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SENIOR PGA CHAMPIONSHIP

May 26, 2010

Michael Allen

DENVER, COLORADO

KELLY ELBIN: Defending Senior PGA Champion Michael joining us at the 71st Senior PGA Championship at Colorado Golf Club. Last year at Canterbury Golf Club outside of Cleveland Michael finished at 274, 6-under par, to win by two strokes over Larry Mize. Michael, welcome, how does it feel to come into a championship as the defending champion.
MICHAEL ALLEN: Well it certainly is something very different. I've never had that before. So it's a great venue here too. So I think it's going to be a lot of fun so far.

Q. Talk about, you had the Champions Dinner last night that you hosted, what that experience was like and what you have, what your sense is of the golf course so far.
MICHAEL ALLEN: Last night was -- well to me it was nerve wracking. It was -- having to stand up and talk in front of your peers is not an easy thing. But in the end it was fun. It was certainly a lot more fun to be in the club than not. And it was a great evening. I think everybody had fun.
So it was different and I would like to host it again, if I could.
KELLY ELBIN: How about the golf course. Initial impressions.
MICHAEL ALLEN: I think the golf course is nice. It rolls around pretty well. I think you can play it in the wind. It's certainly going to be a challenge. A totally different course from last year which was kind of small and you were kind of hitting little knock downs up the hill, bouncing them up or trying to stop them.
And here it's a big course. The greens are really pretty severe. You get the wind blowing, you can hit putts, you can get in the wrong place on the green, not to mention just off it and it could be very tough. So I think they're going to have to be careful with pin placements. But overall I think it's a very nice challenge and I think that it's going to be a really nice venue. It's going to test a lot of different shots for everybody.
KELLY ELBIN: Open it up for questions.

Q. You were here not a month ago for media day, I think, how much different is the course with all the wind that we have had the last couple days?
MICHAEL ALLEN: Yeah, now the course has got, seems to have a lot more grass on the fairways. It's extremely healthy. There's a lot of, quite a bit of rough now out there too, if you miss the fairways. And the ball seems to kind of sit on top of it. So it sits up about four inches.
But it's, the greens are a lot quicker than when I was out here. When I was here a month ago for media day it was a nice day, the greens weren't as fast, it was very playable. The greens keeper is just doing a wonderful job here getting the whole place perfect.
The wind is going to be a big factor here though. It's going to really make things extremely tough. Or if it's not too much wind, then it will be a lot more birdie opportunities.

Q. Has anything changed for you since your win? Are you recognized more? Anymore opportunities? Anything like that?
MICHAEL ALLEN: Well, yeah, if you buy a ticket this week my face is on it. So that is a good thing.
(Laughter.)
A lot of things have kind of happened. It's been nice. I've got a lot more recognition from finally winning, especially the PGA.
Hopefully -- we're pretty dedicated to our charity, the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation, so hopefully with that we can have a lot more ability to raise money and put on a nice golf tournament. Before my name wasn't really that recognizable, but I've been on the board for about ten years for it. They try to get me to do a tournament, they're like, who is he? So now at least I have some recognition.

Q. You are playing both tours right now pretty actively. You've contended in several tournaments since you won at Canterbury. Both on the Champions Tour and on the PGA TOUR. How do you do that? What's the difference in the game level between the two, it seems to be narrowing.
MICHAEL ALLEN: Especially I've had a few issues with equipment and now they're kind of solved. TaylorMade has done a good job. I had a tough period there where I was hoping that last five weeks I was out from Hilton Head through the Regions tournament that I would kind of like play well at least somewhere and kind of get my foot in the door or kind of get to a point where I would be in pretty good shape on one or the other. And maybe, I mean I've had some good weeks, but it's also been tough.
I haven't really played great either place. I've just kind of found I've just got to really focus on, if I'm here this week, let's see if I can do my best. And obviously I always try to. But it's not been that easy going back and forth.
When I come out and play here I thought, man, I could have played at Byron Nelson or that. And so in my mind I've got to straighten that out in my mind a little bit. It's been a little bit of an argument for me. And so I just kind of realized that I got a great opportunity to play both tours and for the most part really enjoying it.
The thing is on the PGA TOUR I know the tournaments I really enjoy playing, where I don't really know the ones on the Champions Tour yet. So I basically kind of take the PGA TOUR the weeks I like there and then kind of go from there. Hopefully I can get my job in one place or the other at the end of the year.

Q. A lot of the pros who have come through this morning have been talking about the altitude, it's a big question. Now you're a fairly low ball hitter, which I am going to assume means there's a little bit less of an affect on altitude for you. What are you finding about that?
MICHAEL ALLEN: I went to school up in Reno, also it's about 4,000 feet there. I've always kind of figured that that's, really when you're playing altitude, controlling the flight of your ball is extremely important. And controlling your distance. So number one we got the caddies doing a lot of math. Because there's a lot of elevation and altitude.
But exactly, controlling your ball flight here, keeping it down, you control the distance your ball a lot better than -- once the ball starts going up in the air, you can take a 7-iron and control it and hit it down and hit it 180, kind of a solid shot. Or if it gets way up in the air and it goes 190, 195. So I think that's really essential out here this week is to control the trajectory of your ball.

Q. It's obviously a very long golf course. Kind of playing off that altitude question, how much of an impact will that be? It's about 7,500 yards.
MICHAEL ALLEN: I think that the way Kerry Haigh sets the course up. I don't know why I can't remember his name. I love the guy.
(Laughter.)
KELLY ELBIN: Yes, you do.
MICHAEL ALLEN: But yesterday he set the course up nicely. So a lot of those holes that were into the wind we were up two to three tees. So he made it very playable. And I think that's going to be essential. I could play a little further back than a lot of the guys and I don't think he's going to leave it like that. He's going to make it set up so everybody can play it. And it will be a nice, fair test.
Because some of the holes would be extremely long and difficult if they played it all the way back. And really that depends on the wind. Without the wind, I don't think it's that extreme. But you get the wind blowing, some of these holes are -- I wouldn't be able to reach them in two.
KELLY ELBIN: You got a couple of potentially drivable par-4s on the course, you got back to back par-5s on the back nine, do any particular holes stand out to you as favorites or could be pivotal down the stretch.
MICHAEL ALLEN: I certainly think that you got a nice stretch coming in from 14, 15, 16, which are obviously a place you really want to make up some ground. Most of these short drivable holes I have found when I played in the media day it was fun to go ahead and hit a driver, but I don't really think that's the play out here. I think it's a nice hole, you got a nice 60, 70, 80 yard wedge and you should be able to get birdie. And I think that eliminates a lot of trouble. So I think for the most part that's what I'll be doing.
And then the par-5s you really got to pick up your 4s there. However, I mean if the 15th or, yeah, 15 plays into the wind, then that's obviously going to be three shot hole, but you'll still have a nice wedge into it.
But those are definitely pivotal holes as far as really getting your score down a little bit. Hopefully you can make two or three birdies there or better.
KELLY ELBIN: Have you thought about how long you have been trying to balance a PGA TOUR career with a Champions Tour career, how many more years.
MICHAEL ALLEN: I feel like my body's holding up well enough. I think it's going to play out in the cards at the end of the year or two to see whether I can keep my job. I'm trying to get both tours, give both tours a good chance. I look forward to playing the Champions Tour.
I've had a great time out here with these guys that I didn't always know that well when I was competing against them earlier. And now maybe from winning here or whatever I'm accepted a little more. And it's been fun to hang out and hear some of these stories that some of these guys are great storytellers. I've had a great time out here when I've played and I look forward to it. But at the same time I still love playing certain events on the PGA TOUR and would love to keep doing that.
KELLY ELBIN: Defending champion Michael Allen. Thank you very much.
MICHAEL ALLEN: Thank you, guys.

End of FastScripts

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