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AMERICAN CENTURY CHAMPIONSHIP

July 16, 2010

Billy Joe Tolliver

STATELINE, NEVADA

THE MODERATOR: Why don't you take us through your round today, my man.
BILLY JOE TOLLIVER: I really don't remember it. I shot 3-under on the front. I played really well on the front and made some mistakes on the back. Hit a couple of fat iron shots that weren't so good and made three bogeys and two birdies. And 70, and then there's your score.
Probably be in the third round. I mean, in the top three by the time the day is over with.

Q. So three birdies on the front, two on the back, and a couple bogeys on the back. 33-37 was your stroke score. So you're right there at 25 points, Stableford-wise. What was the big hole? Any great shots? Any memorable shots?
BILLY JOE TOLLIVER: I did hit the best ball, however long I've been playing golf, 20 years, something like that, this is my 20th year here. So 22 years I've been playing golf. I hit the best ball I've ever hit in my life today. My tee ball on 16. I had a 8-iron in, and in true Tolliver fashion missed the green.

Q. How far was the shot?
BILLY JOE TOLLIVER: I had 173 to the middle. So I hit it about 370 or something.
But it was just pure -- I've hit 370 before, but I've never hit a ball that solid. It was just a very good golf swing. And for a guy that doesn't have a very good golf swing, it felt pretty good.

Q. What hole was that?
BILLY JOE TOLLIVER: On 16. So when you get a chance, just ask Dottie Pepper who is the longest hitter she's ever seen. It's gotta be me.

Q. Can you talk about the atmosphere in the tournament and just coming here to Lake Tahoe and playing?
BILLY JOE TOLLIVER: Well, we've been doing this here a long, long time. And, of course, a lot of thanks and gratitude goes out to American Century for continuing sponsorship and continuing such a great event.
All the guys look forward to it. It doesn't matter if you play in 10 tournaments a year or one tournament a year, this is the tournament you want to play in, because it's just such a great event, set in such a great location.
And they do such a wonderful job here, the staff at Edgewood, the people at Harrah's, American Century. You play enough of these deals, corporate tournaments, and charity events and things like that, and the thing that separates this from the others are the people from American Century, because they're so personable.
You can set down with any one of them you see, you talk to, and they're very friendly. They have the time to do it. Whereas some of these places you go to they're like, hey, see me talking to this guy, press on, we're talking business here.
But it's a customer deal for them as well and they all come out here and have a great time along with us, and it's turning into a family affair. And everybody just loves it.

Q. You played this course a lot. Is there one hole that you would go to and say I'm really looking forward to play this hole today?
BILLY JOE TOLLIVER: Every single day, every single year that I've been here, the hole that I look forward to the most is the 19th hole. And I'm about a plus 10 handicap in there. I'm really good. You know, I just know this, I just hold my breath through 18 because I never hit a good tee ball there. I cannot turn it right-to-left and get it on that left-hand side of the fairway. I've always got an issue.
By the time I'm done with it, I'm ready for the best hole on this golf course, the 19th hole.

Q. And what separates this course from other courses, in your mind?
BILLY JOE TOLLIVER: Well, the fact that you have to go out -- let me tell you something. From the back tees on this golf course, it's as good as any course you'll ever play.
If you back this thing all the way up, go out there and try to shoot par, it is a very difficult test. And then when you get to this tournament and they move it up a couple of tees, couple of holes are moved up and they shorten the golf course a little bit to make scoring, to make after excitement and things like this. You've just got to know that here you have to hit greens.
You gotta go out and hit greens. And the short game is so key. You can't go out and hit seven, eight, nine greens and expect to score very well. You've got to go out and hit 15, 16 greens. Get your stuff done. Because you're not going to make a lot of six-footers, because there's a field of, how many -- how many players have we got? 84? 90. Whatever it is.
Let's call it 90 players. 90 players in the field, and of those 90, probably 75 to 80% of them are guys that are 220 pounds plus on soft greens. And throughout the course of the day, the later you play, the more footprints you go through.
So you just can't make a living on this golf course missing greens and expect to get up and down, making a bunch of four-, five-, six-footers, it's not going to happen.
And that's where the difficulty lies.

Q. Are you going to win this tournament?
BILLY JOE TOLLIVER: Well, that's the plan. I didn't come here to finish second or anything. I'm sure my wife would disagree. She's like, hey, second ain't so bad. But she's a money grubber, though. I like bragging rights. I like to talk some smack on those boys. Not that I talk much noise. Those of you who know me, I'm very reserved.

Q. Where were you when the thunder hit?
BILLY JOE TOLLIVER: We were in the scoring tent. We had just finished up 18. And that lightning struck, and that was it. And, you know, the shame of it was -- and I've been hit by lightning before and I was nervous as I could be from 15 in, which being hit by lightning explains a lot about me, I guess.
But the shame of it is when you get done, we have a great fan base that comes out to this golf tournament. And you're walking off, and I'm scared to death. I'm trying to get indoors, and you have all those kids out there, and I can't stand to turn a kid away signing his autograph or anything.
Although, I'm tired of giving them a buck apiece just to ask me. But that's a different story. But I'm coming off the green and all those kids are there out supporting the tournament and coming out to see the guys. I had to turn them down. I wanted to get inside. I'm trying to tell them you all need to get inside.
But now that it's cleared up, hopefully we can get back out there and get some of them, because we do have a great following here that comes out every single year. I don't know the exact numbers, but I would figure there's at least 30,000 people throughout the week for the weekend and stuff like that. And that's a lot of people coming out, coming in and out of the gates.

Q. When were you hit by lightning?
BILLY JOE TOLLIVER: In high school -- in college. We were playing basketball in a junior high court, it was outside in Lubbock, Texas. And the storms roll in in Lubbock. You can see them 100 miles away because it's as flat as this table. But we thought, oh, we're all right. It's way over there.
It got on us real quick, and it just -- it struck the backboard and knocked about four of us to the ground. So ever since then I'm like hold on a minute. I'm not a big fan of that. I'm a little scared.

Q. You said it knocked you to the ground. Any injury?
BILLY JOE TOLLIVER: No. I mean other than slight mental retardation, I would say. (Laughter) I'm not the sharpest tool in the shed or anything. Pretty quick, though.

Q. Good golfer. Not a bad golfer.
BILLY JOE TOLLIVER: I wouldn't say I'm not a bad golfer. I'm not a good one. But I'm a guy who manages a bad golf swing. Trent Dilfer and I were talking about it today, where you have to get as we get older. And I have a pretty good idea how to get it in the hole.

Q. If you're going to be in the Long Drive Contest today, what are your chances? How many times have you won it?
BILLY JOE TOLLIVER: Do what?

Q. How many times have you won the long drive?
BILLY JOE TOLLIVER: I don't know. Once maybe.

Q. What's your first catch phrase?
BILLY JOE TOLLIVER: Packetize.

Q. What's your second catch phrase?
BILLY JOE TOLLIVER: Jeremy Roenick is coachable.

Q. With or without a crying towel?
BILLY JOE TOLLIVER: I'm just saying I use that, carrying those two phrases with me. Anytime I'm down, I think about those two phrases and it just gets me over the hump.

Q. Jeremy Roenick is coachable?
BILLY JOE TOLLIVER: Jeremy Roenick is coachable. And I'm trying to packetize my game.

Q. Are you going to win the long drive?
BILLY JOE TOLLIVER: Can we go off the record? I told you all to go off the record the other day, you then all printed off the record.

Q. Packetize is a real word. She looked it up.
BILLY JOE TOLLIVER: It's a company.

Q. What's the company?
BILLY JOE TOLLIVER: Packetize.

Q. What's it do?
BILLY JOE TOLLIVER: Hell if I know. What do I look like? (Laughter)

Q. I thought you were schilling for them.
BILLY JOE TOLLIVER: Shipping business stuff all over the country.

Q. I thought you were schilling for them.
BILLY JOE TOLLIVER: No. I told you the story the other day.

Q. Just one more thing. Could you talk a little bit about 17 and 18 and the atmosphere there and whether or not it affects your game or not?
BILLY JOE TOLLIVER: I think 17 and 18 is great. And I wish there were more holes like it, because I'm a little different. I've got a lot of stuff running around already. So it doesn't bother me.
I have five kids. And there's ten kids in my house all the time. I need chaos. And I love 17. I'll never hit any good shots on 17 or 18, but it's not because of noise or anything else. But I think it's great for the game. I think all the noise and everybody screaming and hollering is good.
But it kind of makes you want to do something to make them.

Q. What's the best line you've heard out there, do you remember?
BILLY JOE TOLLIVER: I can't say because it was something concerning Trent Dilfer, and it wasn't a pretty situation. I can't get into it.

Q. Second best line?
BILLY JOE TOLLIVER: No, there was only one.
THE MODERATOR: Thank you.

End of FastScripts

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