BUICK OPEN

August 9, 2002

Kent Jones

JOAN V.T. ALEXANDER: Thank you for joining us, not what you totally expected coming out today, but great round and great position going into the weekend. You should be very happy with that. Why don't you make a couple of comments about your round.

KENT JONES: Yeah, I am happy to be 9-under. Looks like it's obviously bunched up. That's not too bad a position. I feel like I played pretty well today; got off to a pretty good start. Had a lot of chances early; just didn't hole the putts that I did yesterday. Then the middle of the round I sort of scrambled a little bit; made some really good lag-2-putt-pars. And then let's see number -- my 14th hole today No. 5, I 3-putted there, had a putt spin out on me; that was my first bogey. Then kind of stole one on the last hole, just to finish off with a good feeling to make birdie on the last hole where I was just really hoping to make par.

JOAN V.T. ALEXANDER: Questions.

Q. Would you replay that birdie on 9.

KENT JONES: Hit 3-wood off the tee, hit it a little left into the left rough. It was a little bit behind the tree, I had a swing though, that was pretty probably a little lucky; had to hit a little punch, hook around the tree and hopefully run it on the green somewhere where I could make par. Hit it really nice, just short of the green, rolled all the way to the back edge, probably about 30 feet away. Just happened to drain it from there. To kind of steal one.

Q. What club?

KENT JONES: 7-iron.

Q. You are in good position after two rounds again like '98, but maybe not as good as you thought you should be?

KENT JONES: Well, that's hard to say. It would have been nice to make some more birdies or make a few more putts out there. I had a few chances. But I am not too unhappy with 70 for today. Who knows someone may shoot really low this afternoon. But I can't imagine I am in too bad a shape being at 9-under.

Q. Seems like there has been a lot of first-time winners on the Tour this year. Is it kind of a transition phase for the Tour? We have seen lot of guys emerging this year?

KENT JONES: Yeah, seems to be. I know I have had a lot of my close friends that have won this here year - first-time winners; maybe that's a little encouraging. A lot of young, very good young players coming out so maybe it is a little bit of that where some of the younger players are playing well, a little bit of a transition, that could be true.

Q. I know you mentioned it was a quick turnaround from yesterday, but how did you sleep on the lead last night?

KENT JONES: I slept okay, I guess, I was coming from the mountain time zone, it seemed like I have been up late every night. Then I didn't get to bed real early last night, but I slept okay.

Q. You said some of your friends had won this year?

KENT JONES: Ian Leggatt, Chris Smith, Spike McRoy, for first-time winners. Then the last two weeks Rich Beem and J.P. Hayes.

Q. (Inaudible)?

KENT JONES: Just practicing and then went for dinner and got back to the room, it was 9-ish and just coming off the mountain time zone and being up late -- I would have liked to have gone to sleep at 9:30 or so, but I just couldn't -- I wasn't tired enough I guess to go to sleep. So I was up watching TV for a while.

Q. Did you see either Leggatt or McRoy any time from the time you finished yesterday to -- they noticed your leading --

KENT JONES: Yeah, I saw --

Q. Did they say anything to you?

KENT JONES: I saw Ian on the putting green after I finished. He just said: Nice playing. That was about it.

JOAN V.T. ALEXANDER: Thank you for joining us.

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