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THE SENIOR OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP PRESENTED BY MASTERCARD

July 22, 2010

Carl Mason

CARNOUSTIE, SCOTLAND

STEVE TODD: We'll make a start. Carl, thanks for joining us. 67 there today is a great start for you.
CARL MASON: Yeah, it was great. I was thrilled to bits the way I played. I played great. Best I've played for a good few weeks, so that was good. And I felt good, and you know, I started rolling in the putts and hit some great shots and four sort of birdies in a row really got me moving. And actually horseshoed out of the hole on the third for a birdie -- second, sorry, from 12 feet, horseshoed out of the hole and then I made those four on the spin, so that was great.
STEVE TODD: Seems like you're breaking records every week on The Seniors Tour at the moment; could have been another one apart from the 10th there.
CARL MASON: Yeah, that was a pity. Not such a bad shot, brought a 3-iron into that hole, and just went in the left trap but it plugged straight up in the face of the trap. So I couldn't even get it out so that was a little disappointing, but, you know, it didn't affect me too much because I was happy with the way I was playing. I felt good, and just keep going, doing nothing wrong.
STEVE TODD: You've contended before here and lost in a playoff, how nice is it to be at the top of the leaderboard once again?
CARL MASON: Yeah, it's good to be back up there among them. The last few years I haven't played so well in this event and last year my back went and I had to pull out. It's nice to come here and perform like I know I can do.

Q. The conditions, you had that run of birdies when that wind was probably at its toughest.
CARL MASON: At its strongest, it was, yes.

Q. You haven't done anything wrong coming in, but perhaps a little opportunity missed?
CARL MASON: Well, you know, those holes are tough. And it's difficult -- it's actually difficult on that back nine to get the ball close to the hole. You know, you're hitting in big clubs and to actually get the ball close, I didn't think it was that easy.
But you know, even so, I was pleased I just kept it in the fairway and hitting the greens and you know, it was good play.

Q. So it was never a struggle to keep your card together; you were actually playing consistently well together?
CARL MASON: The 10th hole was the only real, what I call a blemish, any problems at all and the rest of it was pretty steady and good.

Q. How have you done in Carnoustie in the past?
CARL MASON: The last time, The Scottish Open I think was the last time I played here in '95, I think it was. I had won at Gleneagles in Spanish, in '94, and then we had one here --

Q. 1996 you were near the lead. You won in '94 at Gleneagles; is that right?
CARL MASON: Yes.

Q. The following year here --
CARL MASON: That was the last one at Gleneagles, and then the following year was here. So that would be the last time, and the last open I played in, I don't know.

Q. Had you shot 67 around here before?
CARL MASON: I doubt it. Maybe close, but I doubt it.

Q. When you look back on what happened at Turnberry when you had a real chance to win at Turnberry, a few years on how do you sort of reflect on that now?
CARL MASON: I think that actually was -- I took it thankfully as a massive positive in the end, for the first few hours it was very disappointing. But when we looked at it, if we had said at the beginning of the week, you're going to lose in a playoff to Tom Watson at Turnberry, well, wouldn't be too bad, would it.
But it was a bad loss. I should have won that, no doubt, but I didn't, and we just thankfully took the positives from it and went on from there with great guns; my confidence was so much better than it had ever been, and you know, I just told myself, well, you can compete with these guys, so why not.

Q. I remember being in the interview room at Gleneagles in '94 when you won, it was a very special feeling that day for you, wasn't it, to win.
CARL MASON: That was superb, never forget it. Never forget it. That was a wonderful win. It was one of my favourite events and it was such a big event, wasn't it, in those days. The crowds we had there, it was fantastic. It was just my favourite hotel, and then just to win there, it was fabulous.

Q. Just remind me of Turnberry, was it the 72nd hole you drove into a bunker?
CARL MASON: Yeah, I hit a 2-iron off the tee and just pulled it a fraction and it ran like an Aborigine's nose, (laughter) and it went in -- someone before had obviously pitched the ball in there and it left an explosion, like that, and my ball finished right in the middle of that.
When I was walking up there, even though I had gone in the bunker I wasn't too worried, I thought, well, two wedges I can get it in the green and par and that will be good. When I saw the lie, my whole feelings changed, all of a sudden my mind went into panic mode, I couldn't go forward; I had to go sideways. I had felt so good for 71 1/2 holes, and just that moment, it all just -- the mind went completely haywire for a while.
It was bad luck. It was rotten luck I thought but these things happen.

Q. Recently you caught Tommy's Horton's record for Seniors Tour wins, which is a great achievement, but what would it mean to win an event like this in comparison?
CARL MASON: If this was the 24th, that would be something special, wouldn't it. That would be something special. There's a long way to go; and so if I can keep playing as good as I have done today.

Q. You mentioned your bad back. What do you have to do these days to get yourself fit for 72 holes of championship golf?
CARL MASON: Well, I stretched quite a bit on my own, and when I'm off not playing golf, I go to the gym five days a week and I try and, you know, help myself. And I swim quite a lot. But we just played six weeks in a row before this, and it held up pretty good. I was pleased with that. I thought I might be in trouble playing six in a row, but thankfully, we survived. And touch wood, it's feeling pretty good at the minute. So that's good.

Q. How close to the event last year was it when you pulled out, or was it during the event?
CARL MASON: After the first round. I was in trouble in the first round. I had to have a guy sort of crack my back in the sausage hut. I was in a terrible mess.
STEVE TODD: Thank you.

End of FastScripts

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