THE MEMORIAL TOURNAMENT

May 26, 2002

David Peoples

JOHN BUSH: David, thanks for coming by. You possibly came up just a little bit short but it had to be a lot of fun out there with so many guys in contention.

DAVID PEOPLES: It was a lot of fun. This is such a great golf course. And it really makes you bear down and you really have to hit the shot you have to hit and trust it and the execution means everything. So, but I'm just real happy from the way I played. I can't believe it's over, really. I was kind of in a trance out there. I feel like I'm still on the course right now. Just like I have Andrew with me and he's my oldest, and we kind of watched it this week. We had fun.

Q. How old is Andrew?

DAVID PEOPLES: He'll be 13 in October. We talked to Duval and some of the other players. And all of the good stuff.

JOHN BUSH: Questions.

Q. Winter clothes?

DAVID PEOPLES: Strike that question and answer.

Q. Your one bogey on the back nine came about 10 seconds before Furyk knocked it from the bunker for eagle.

DAVID PEOPLES: Yeah, I was over the tee shot and I backed off the tee shot. And I figured that's what it was. And I made a pretty hesitant swing at that tee ball right there. It got me in a bad place. Even if you're in the fairway on that hole. That hole is pretty darn tough. I just didn't know whether to try to, I had a pretty decent lie in the rough. The play was to go right at the flag and knock it over the green and not go in the water short, or hit it short left. And then it's so hard going over water like that, to hit it easy coming out of the rough. I swung too hard at it and then I really got in a bad place and I was very lucky I didn't bury it there. I was pretty fortunate to make five.

Q. You were tied for the lead in Tucson going into the last day?

DAVID PEOPLES: I might have been tied at one point. But I don't really look early enough in the round to see what's going on. I didn't look. I did look late in the round with about four or five holes to go and I was two back by that point. And I was peeking a little bit here too just to kind of get an idea of what was happening. And nobody was really breaking out and then I saw Jim, he was the one that bugged out. I thought, oh, well.

Q. (Inaudible.)

DAVID PEOPLES: A lot. I thought about it a lot. I was really thinking about that. I'm trying not to, but you're thinking about meeting Jack Nicklaus there, you know, and him handing you the trophy and getting to shake his hand. That's something. That gets in your mind. You can't keep that out of your head when you're here at Jack's tournament. And I definitely will be out here in the future somewhere.

(Laughter.)

Q. (Inaudible.)

DAVID PEOPLES: I was trying to do that. But I was thinking what it would be like. I was thinking, man, you know, you try not to do that, but I was sort of visualizing, you know. Here at Muirfield, I mean that's a dream. To win Jack's tournament. To get that trophy and shaking Jack Nicklaus's hand. That's pretty awesome. It struck me -- it was funny I felt like he was really playing good and the 1:18 tee time, that was great to come to the course this morning. I got up at 8 o'clock and I was wandering and we were watching Sponge Bob, cartoons, all kinds of stuff. It was, you know, I was pretty nervy, I guess could you say. I was really anxious to get out here and play. My game feels really good and it was just a matter of hey, can I hold it together and execute shots. And I did pretty good at it. But, yeah, I thought of all that stuff. I really did.

Q. The reason I ask that Tucson question is I was wondering the last time you were in the lead on the back nine on Sunday.

DAVID PEOPLES: That's been awhile. I don't know. Oh, man, that has been awhile probably. Let's see when was my last win? I had to be leading at some time then.

(Laughter.) Wow, can't recall. There hasn't been a whole lot of them.

Q. (Inaudible.)

DAVID PEOPLES: You know what, there's actually been so many down years really when I was exempt in 1994. But they were I was playing pretty rough. I was struggling pretty bad and lost my card. And it was kind of hard to get a grasp on what I was doing back then. I don't think I had much of a clue about my golf swing or I didn't played well. I just did. And I was, I would look at tapes and not being a technician and not being an analytical guy, I really didn't know what to do. I couldn't tell what I was doing. You see different things happening, but I didn't know how to pick it apart. But when I started, my game started turning around probably in '99, 2000. I didn't get through Q school, I got up there in the real world and tried to deal with a regular job. Made me realize how fortunate I am to be able to play golf and I still have enough talent, I think, to play the game. And I'm happy just doing that. So all that stuff's combined, you know, doing what you love to do and as long as you're healthy enough to do it, that's, those are the things you think about.

Q. (Inaudible.)

DAVID PEOPLES: Yeah, any business I would have gotten into would have probably been a complete flop. Because I mean, I'm pretty quiet. And in business you have to be pretty, you got to go get 'em, you know. And you have to do it here it too. It's a little different way though. I'm a little introverted. And this game suits me. But what it did, those down years really made me realize how fortunate I am and how I really enjoy playing the game. And that's how I started coming back. These guys followed me around and came with me some, my family, and I had a lot of help from my cousin and her husband and in Jacksonville that helped me out financially to get back and get going in the right direction. And at my age, I mean I was about 39 when it, when I, when it was time to put up or shut up. You know, that's kind of a late time to come back. And now I'm 42 and things are looking pretty good.

Q. (Inaudible.)

DAVID PEOPLES: I don't know, I'm not going to get into that. No, you got to ask him. Probably not.

Q. Did you ever have a real job?

DAVID PEOPLES: No. When I was in high school.

Q. So you never left golf totally.

DAVID PEOPLES: No. I've always, since I came out of college I've been playing mini tours and that. I've been hitting the ball around for a long time.

Q. (Inaudible.)

DAVID PEOPLES: 11 or 12 probably. 11 or 12. Something like that. It was quite a few. Pretty, a lot of consecutive years there, starting with like '82, all the way through to about '89, I think.

Q. (Inaudible.)

DAVID PEOPLES: Oh, I worked at a country club. I was a cart boy.

(Laughter.)

Q. (Inaudible.)

DAVID PEOPLES: I was thinking about winning, I really was. I was thinking about winning. I think I can win. I think I definitely have the game to win. And on any given week, I mean if you look at my putting stats, they're not the best. Everybody whines about their putting. But I've been hitting the ball really well and it's a matter of putting it on the green and making the putt. That is what the guys do that win. There's no reason I can't do that. I'm a better player now than I was back then. I really believe that.

Q. Let's go through your card and get a couple more questions before we have to wrap up. Start with your birdie there on No. 2.

DAVID PEOPLES: No. 2 I hit 3-wood off the tee all day. Today I hit a 9-iron just below the hole. Probably seven, eight footer and straight in putt.

And I hit -- the next birdie I think was number five. I drove it right to the corner and went for it in two with a 2-iron and kind of came out of it and missed to the right. And had a good chip up to about five feet and made a little left-to-right curling putt.

Number 8 was the next birdie. I had 187 yards something like that to the pin and hit a 7-iron right at it. Hit in the fringe and rolled about four feet past and made that.

Next birdie was what, No. 11? Hit a really good drive. I was trying to go for the green in two there and I made a real good swing at it and the ball didn't roll where I thought it would. I thought I was going to be able to go to it, but I had 264 to the front edge and that's a lot to try to go for it. It was like 280 to the hole. So I said, no, this is a little too much. So I laid up and hit a good sand wedge in there about eight feet behind the hole and made it.

Then number 12 I hit a great shot there. I had 149 to carry the bunker, 159 to the hole. And the pin is in that back right corner. And I said I'm not bailing this thing out to the left. It wasn't planned that way. And it worked out. I mean I made a really good swing and it went right over the flag and probably had about an eight footer right from behind the hole and made that. That was an 8-iron.

And then a good save on 13.

And then bogey on 14.

15 I hit a driver and a 2-iron to the back fringe and hit a real good putt up there. A tap in for a birdie.

And hit a good shot on 16, but made a good 2-putt.

17, hit a really good drive and had a real good opportunity for birdie there and didn't hit a good wedge shot. I was between a nine and a wedge and I tried to hit the wedge hard. And I swung too hard at it. And then my ball was up against the fringe and I couldn't get a good backstroke on it, so. But whatever.

You know, 18, that's a tough tee shot. I hit a good 3-wood there and then I had 176 yards to the hole and hit a 6-iron right over the flag. I knew if I hit it at it, it would come right down that slope. And I knew the tournament was over now, so I just didn't want to spend any cash, any more cash. I wanted to get it there, but I left it a little short. So no problem.

Q. (Inaudible.)

DAVID PEOPLES: I guess. I thought it was a pretty good shot myself. I mean, I know Andrew was up there clapping. Weren't you clapping? All I could hear were crickets and frogs, man. I mean there was no sound. And that was kind of weird. That's okay.

JOHN BUSH: One more.

Q. (Inaudible.)

DAVID PEOPLES: I think they knew he was two up and you had to basically hole it. That's what it was. You could have stacked it, yeah, for a birdie, the way it was going -- but you still, I would like to have people stand out there in that fairway and hit into that ampitheater. And that's a tough shot, that's tough.

JOHN BUSH: David, congratulations on a great tournament and good luck the rest of the year.

DAVID PEOPLES: I appreciate it.

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