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JOHN DEERE CLASSIC

July 6, 2004

Zach Johnson

SILVIS, ILLINOIS

ZACH JOHNSON: I played nine yesterday and then 18 today.

Q. (Inaudible).

ZACH JOHNSON: It's just like every other week. The course is in phenomenal shape. It's probably the best I've seen it. It's really, really good right now. It's just going to be weather-based. If we get more rain -- it's pretty soft now because of last night, but it started to firm up even the last nine holes for us. If we get a little more rain, it's going to maintain this type of moisture, but I don't think there's much rain in the forecast, so it'll dry up pretty quick and make it more difficult.

Q. Talk about the level of confidence in your game.

ZACH JOHNSON: The game is a game of momentum, so when you get some confidence and you get some momentum going, you've got to ride it. I had about a month there where I was playing really, really well, putting really, really well. I was hitting it decent.

Then the month after that went pretty good, I had some good finishes, but I need to get back into that form. I'm hitting it pretty good now. I feel pretty good about that. I've just got to make some putts. It's nice to be back on bent grass, something I'm used to putting on.

Q. (Inaudible).

ZACH JOHNSON: That's a good question. I mean, I think they're both difficult, especially at this level. If you can win out here, you can obviously win anywhere. You're playing with the best players in the world. That's a huge feat in itself. Then you've got a guy like Jay Haas, for example. I don't think he's won recently. 93, but yeah, he's top -- definitely top 20 on the Money List, top 10 -- was he top 10 last year? Top 10 and he did not win. They're both very, very difficult.

Thinking about it now, I think maybe sustaining it is harder. Consistency is a vital, vital part of the game, I think, and maybe Jay is just one example. Both are very difficult.

Q. Sunday in Atlanta, you didn't play your best that week but you held on and held it together. Last year you played with Tiger -- (inaudible).

ZACH JOHNSON: Yeah, I think so. My focus is pretty good. Every now and then I get pretty lethargic for whatever reason. We're trying to figure that out. My head just kind of goes a little -- I don't know what the word is. It's like dead. I'm probably actually overthinking.

It looks like I'm just out there walking around and I'm trying to get rid of that.

For the most part, I think I remain pretty focused. I think one of the reasons why I get like this is when I haven't seen the golf course before. Bell South I had seen. I had seen that two years in a row, so that's a huge, huge thing, to go to different courses week in and week out. I think it's easier once you know the golf courses to maintain the focus and maintain that sort of zone, where I'm coming in and I don't know which way is the first tee and which way to go, so I'm asking my caddie what to do here, what to do there, and I find myself worried too much about the golf course rather than my game.

For the most part, though, I think my focus has been pretty good.

Q. (Inaudible).

ZACH JOHNSON: Here, absolutely. Even though I missed the cut, I enjoy the golf course, the greens are great, the people, the fans. Playing with friends and all the fans that come in here, it's awesome. I was here yesterday and there really weren't many fans, but there was a few out there.

Q. (Inaudible).

ZACH JOHNSON: This course plays its best when it's firm and fast. The fairway is pretty hard, the greens are pretty firm and I tend to hit the ball fairly high, so I think it works in my best -- at the same time the wind can blow here and I hit it pretty high, so trajectory is probably one of the most vital parts of the game this week, consistently hitting it a certain trajectory and understanding the difference, based on the type of golf this course makes you play. Yeah, I think my game is suited for this course, especially because the greens are hard and fast. The harder and faster, the better they are for me to putt.

Q. (Inaudible).

ZACH JOHNSON: Yeah, absolutely. I think they're probably about 10 and a half now, not very fast. I'd say 11, 12 is very feasible.

Q. (Inaudible).

ZACH JOHNSON: I honestly didn't hit it there that much. Part of the reason is the course is so moist that wherever you pretty much hit it, it's going to stay off the tee. It's spotty. There's some really thick stuff, medium stuff. It's healthy, there's no doubt about that. I mean, they can make it really, really hard if they just don't cut it anymore.

Q. Do you have any feeling halfway through the year -- (inaudible).

ZACH JOHNSON: Every now and then something new hits us, but for the most part, my wife and I have gotten back on the Tour life and are transitioning pretty smooth overall. We enjoy ourselves and nothing has really been blindsided, smacked us in the face, anything like that. It's pretty much right out in front of us, and what you see is what you get. It's been nice.

Q. Did you play Westchester?

ZACH JOHNSON: I did.

Q. How did you think -- (inaudible).

ZACH JOHNSON: For me I think it's good only because I think I tend to start out pretty slow early in the week, so it was nice -- I played more than two, but it's nicest to get the feel and get the -- how do you explain that? I just like to play the week before a big tournament, mainly a major -- granted that was my first major, but just because you're in that mode. You don't want to treat any tournament differently than the next. I try to treat the U.S. Open the same as playing any other PGA TOUR event, any Nationwide event, any Hooters event for that matter. Granted, it is the U.S. Open. I'm not going to speak on behalf of the USGA, but I'm not sure that was golf on Sunday.

But at the same time, I mean, I think playing the week before -- I know Tiger doesn't particularly care to, or doesn't anymore, I don't know for whatever reason, I'm not going to speak on his behalf, but they feel like -- they're don't really think that's a good way to go about it. It just keeps you in that routine, in that mode.

Q. (Inaudible).

ZACH JOHNSON: From here to the British? For me, it's like a fifth major. The Tour has been so good to me. They've given me two sponsor exemptions the past years. I tried to qualify for this I think at least twice, and just being from the area, I know the people. This is a strong event. For the most part, I obviously want to win those four majors, but this one would be right up there as far as my priorities go in golf tournaments. I hold this tournament in high regard and I always look forward to coming back.

I mean, I don't care what the previous week or the week after was going to be, I was going to play this week. It's not going to be that bad. I'll hop on a plane in Chicago on Sunday night and sleep through the night and wake up there. It's only seven hours' difference from here.

End of FastScripts.

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