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U.S. SENIOR OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPJuly 28, 2010Fred FunkSEATTLE, WASHINGTON PETE KOWALSKI: We'd like to welcome our defending champion from Crooked Stick, Mr. Fred Funk. Thanks for joining us, Fred. I guess we can start the question of how has the year been, as the Senior Open champion? FRED FUNK: It's a hard question to answer, there, really. I've not played that good early. I'm starting to play pretty good now. It's obviously a big battle with my knee. I've been saying that for three years. It's getting old. I finally had it replaced last year, and trying to come back from that was a little slower than I thought it would be, but I'm getting ahead of it now and the game is starting to show up again, and I'm looking forward to playing. I've been really eager because the knee has gotten better as the weeks have gone by, and as my knee has gotten better my game has gotten better. I'm starting to play real well. I'm excited about it. I love this golf course. If I can hit the ball the way I normally hit it off the tee with ball control, which is what you need this week, then I expect to have a good week here. But you never know. But I am excited about playing. PETE KOWALSKI: You saw some glimpses of what you expect of yourself at the Senior British last week, with the way you played. You got some low scores in, but obviously not the consistency you wanted. FRED FUNK: Yeah, I unfortunately started really bad on the first round, and I battled back and played really well on Friday, Saturday. And then I got myself in position where I could have made a run. But I didn't. It was a little bit of a struggle on Sunday with a certain hole. I made four bad mistakes, and those were four mistakes that I couldn't make. And just took a little bit to be off there. And you've got to play really good. I think the low round last week was 67, and nobody got lower than that. It was very difficult to shoot that, and that's what I would have needed on Sunday. It wasn't there. But overall it was a good week. It was fun. It's been fun getting in contention a little bit every now and then recently. But I expect to be in contention a lot more often. And I think the game is coming back where I can do that. Q. When we had you on video conference back in May you said this place is a little claustrophobic. Did you have that feeling when you walked up on 1 yesterday? FRED FUNK: Yeah, yeah. There's -- you know, I played here in the WGC event in 2002 and I remember how much I liked the golf course. And I know that trees are really big and really narrow holes. I just forget how narrow it is, especially after coming back from a links-style golf course where there's no trees. And you can't have two different venues as they are between coming last week to this week, so it's a little shock to the system. But I love the golf course like this and I love playing four-round tournaments versus three. And I love playing courses that really are going to expose the guys that are playing really well and expose the guys that aren't. And we'll get some separation this week for sure right out of the gate with the guys that are controlling their golf ball and if they're not. It's not even the tee shots that are as difficult as they are. The approach shots this week, you have to get your tee shot in position, because the greens are so firm. So it's going to play very difficult. Q. Are they firmer than they were at Pebble? FRED FUNK: No, Pebble was harder than this, but -- or firmer than this, I should say, in that terminology. But it's still a different animal. Pebble was ridiculous how hard it was this year. It was unbelievable. Here, they could let them, with the weather they have, they can control what they want. They could get them out of control, I think. I think Pebble was a little like "goofy golf" on certain holes, 14 and 17 at Pebble. They could do that here if they wanted, but they don't need to. The golf course is difficult enough. You've got enough back to front slope, the old traditional style greens here, that if you get behind the hole or to the side of the hole you have big breaks, a lot of speed, very difficult to make your birdies, very difficult to make your 2-putts. I don't think there's that many birdies out there. And as a par-70, it's all relative, but as a par-70. I think it's really difficult. I think even par wins this tournament. I don't see anybody going under par. I just think it's so difficult. Unless they soften up the greens. If they soften up the greens a little bit the scores will come down. As they are, if they get a little firmer, if somebody shoots under par here, my hat's off to them, for four days when you have a par-72, and you have four par-5s versus two. And you have the two par-5s here that are turned into par-4s that I think are difficult holes. 18 is an awkward hole off the tee, and a difficult second shot. And 6 is really tough second shot into that green, really tough green. So you're walking off with pars on those two holes, it is still like a birdie, I think. But it keeps the par a relative number down. And you won't see that -- it's just a way of protecting par, I think. If you want to protect par, move the course to a par-70, and take the holes that were designed as par-5s, into par-4s, and watch the pros get all pissed off. Q. You tied for second at the NEC here in '02. Besides obviously the short-string drives people talk about, you having an advantage at a course like this, what else do you bring to a course with such precision as needed? And what is your game plan? Any different this time than it was when you last played here? FRED FUNK: The game plan is pretty obvious. You've just got to -- you've got to keep the ball in the fairway. The rough is not extremely deep, but it's extremely thick. And it's very hard to control your golf ball out of it. I think they got the rough where they wanted it. You can advance it, you just can't control it. And that's what they want, when they have these firm conditions. So then you're shooting up there at the green and you go over the greens or to the side of the greens and you just get yourself in all sorts of predicaments in trying to get up and down. So the strategy is the same for everybody, just try to figure out what you're comfortable with off certain holes, whether you want to take it home with a driver or back off a little bit. Some holes give you that choice, other ones are just obvious choices. But I just think it's a beautiful venue and one that's really good to -- the guy that's playing the best at the end of four days here is going to be the winner. You can't fake it around this place. It's just that kind of golf course. Q. With the knee replacement you said not coming back as quickly as you thought. What part of the game did it affect for you most, was it the long game or the short game? FRED FUNK: Well, every part. Probably the biggest issue I had over the last two years, part of that is I could not hit it on a level line. Anything that was downhill or extreme uphill, and bunker shots were impossible. I used to be a really -- my bunker game is back now, but I was always a good bunker player. And I was terrible the last few years because I couldn't dig in and I couldn't turn off that instability the sand created. So that part of my game was really bad. And as the strength comes back, the game is getting back. And they say it takes a good, solid year. We all, when we get hurt, want it quicker than what it is going to be. I don't think as athletes or as golfers in general we push it too much, trying to come back, and that's what I've done. Q. I wanted to follow up on one other thing. You mentioned even par is going to win, obviously that's a far cry from shooting 20-under last year. But I wondering if there are many courses better for you than a place like this where straight is good? FRED FUNK: Well, yeah, I think it's a great golf course for me, if I'm playing my game. Again, I've got to be playing my "A" game. I can't be missing -- I don't have the power to come out of this rough, either, that's the thing. Once I get in this rough I don't have the club head speed and the angle attack to get it out and control it like a guy like Freddie Couples or Eduardo or his swing angle or the angle of attack that a Fred Funk would have or somebody like that. It would be very difficult in the rough for me to get it -- or put it where I'm trying to put it. So I've got to hit fairways. And you're going to miss fairways out here. There's no way you're not -- you just can't hit every fairway out here. If I do that would be a miracle -- or anyone does, that would be pretty much a miracle. That's why I think it's just very difficult to -- I don't think there's that many birdies out there, with the greens as firm as they are. It's just so much easier to make a bogey than it is a birdie out here. And you can get yourself in situations you're going to hope you make bogey. It's just a very unique golf course, with the tightness of it and the thickness of these trees and how big they are. You can't go over them. You can't go through them. Sometimes you just can't go around them, they're just so big. And you're trying to avoid one tree, like 12, you hit -- I hit a really good drive down the left center today and I was trying to avoid that tree on the right and I'm almost blocked by the tree on the left. It's kind of like a Hilton Head but -- on steroids, I guess. Hilton Head on steroids, that's what it is (laughter). Q. We had Corey Pavin earlier saying he's going to try to hit the ball low. And Fred Funk just a moment ago said he's going to try to hit the ball high? FRED FUNK: I'll answer that one. Tom Watson hits it high anyway, and Corey Pavin can't hit it high (laughter) actually, he can, but he always plays it down. He's a lot more comfortable hitting it down on the ground. He makes snails jump. Q. Is that overly distracting for players in Fred Couples place this week, coming back to his hometown. Can that impact his play being torn all over the place? FRED FUNK: No, I don't think so. I think once the tournament starts, once he gets started it will be a motivation for him, and something he can ride that wave of emotion, if he gets off to a good start. And why not? In his hometown I'm sure on a golf course he loves. I don't know what his quotes are, I haven't talked to him personally about it, but how can you not like the beauty of this and the uniqueness of this golf course. I've never seen any course like it, that's this tight. I've seen holes like this, but not 18 of them like this, it's incredible. Q. You were talking about Corey Pavin a little bit. You obviously don't hit the ball exactly like he does, but you're clearly birds of a feather in terms of surviving and thriving even for many years. Are you an endangered species or will there be room for guys like you and Corey? FRED FUNK: No, I think there's always room in the game. And with all the way all sports are turning into power sports, and this game is definitely heading that direction, and has gone that direction, for sure, there's still certain venues that can negate that power and bring everybody back in. And I think when you see -- I've said this before, but when you see at the end of a tournament and you look at the top-20 or 25 guys that finished and it's sprinkled with long, medium, all different types of games, I think you have a really good set up, a really good designed golf course, one that's -- rewards people that are playing really well. It's not just a one dimensional type golf course. This is a golf course that's like that. It's great, the long hitters that can still control their golf ball, hitting less club off the tee are taking it on. And I think you'll see across the board type games at the end of the week, just the guys that are playing the best will be up top. Then you'll have the venues with the big golf courses where it's not that big a penalty to miss fairways. That's pure power. You just can't beat a guy that can hit it like these kids hit it now or Freddie or Eduardo or guys like that. There's no substitute for power. But at the same time 68 and 69 is still a great number. If you average that you're a veteran trophy winner. The average score hasn't really come down, even in the highest of the game. So I think there's always room for that. I hope there is. I was up -- it's up to the USGA to control all that, you know (laughter). Q. Bernhard was in here earlier talking about the challenge of going all the way from England to here. And obviously you handled that pretty well last year. But just wondering how difficult that is even now coming farther to the west? FRED FUNK: I don't know what the difference is. Last year I got to Crooked Stick and I was dog tired on Tuesday and played nine holes. Wednesday I was as tired or even more so and played nine holes, and didn't hit balls, didn't putt. I was just so whipped and thinking there's no way I'm prepared for this tournament, and ended up having an unbelievable week. This year I come back with an eight-hour time change and I don't feel it. I mean, I'm going to bed at 9 or 10 at night, but I'm waking up at 3 or 4 in the morning and I'm not as tired. I seem to make it until 9:00. Where last year I was getting to 5:00 and I was just ready to go to bed. I don't know whether it was the different time that I flew, flying across, or what happened. But I'm handling it a lot better this year than last year. But it is very difficult to have two huge tournaments on the Champions Tour at the senior level, I should say, that are back-to-back like that, that far away. But I also understand why it happened. Back in the Broadmoor year, I guess, when it happened with Castle Pines and it created that TV contract I guess that they couldn't get out of for four years. So I think the big goal of the Champions Tour is once that's up, that contract is up, we're going to get some separation and spread out our Majors across the year. And I think when we get to that, it will be a lot better, for everybody, for you guys, for us. And it just makes common sense to spread them out as much as you can. It's perfect the way they've got -- I'm going to throw the players in on the regular TOUR. You've got the players, and it starts one every month, and that's the way it should be. I hope to see a lot of you guys, like last year. PETE KOWALSKI: We do, too. FRED FUNK: Thank you. End of FastScripts |
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