INTERNATIONAL PRESENTED BY QWEST

July 30, 2002

Tom Pernice, Jr.

JOAN vT ALEXANDER: Thank you, Tom, for joining us. You had a chance to play part of the course, even with a little weather delay. Why don't you start with maybe a couple comments about the course.

TOM PERNICE, JR.: The course looks very good. Obviously, the lack of water has not had any affect on it. The course here is in very good shape. They are obviously trying to do some hand-watering out there in the fairways in dry areas, but all in all, it looks like the fairways and greens are pretty good. Some of them are inconsistent in terms of firmness, I thought, but I'm sure they will get that figured out by Thursday.

Q. The greens?

TOM PERNICE, JR.: The greens. In particular, a couple of them are pretty firm and a couple of them are pretty soft. 1 was pretty firm. A new green at 5 was pretty firm. 8 was soft. 9 was pretty firm in the front. So there was some inconsistencies there, but I'm sure they will be working on that.

Q. (Inaudible.)

TOM PERNICE, JR.: If it doesn't rain, but you guys need the rain. So, it will probably get here when we are here.

Q. TELL us about the feeling of being defending champion, returning to a tournament: Extra pressure, a boost in adrenaline?

TOM PERNICE, JR.: I don't think there's any extra pressure. It's nice to come back where you've had some success and played well here. Plus it's a beautiful place. I always enjoyed coming here, even before I won.

No, I feel very relaxed about it. Just looking forward to getting back at it and see what happens.

Q. Last year was a pretty special moment when you won with your daughters here. Do you think about that moment, and it being only your second win, having your daughters, here, with all of the emotions, do you think about that, coming back here?

TOM PERNICE, JR.: Oh, sure. They are back here again this year. They are having fun already. So, you know, as much as we travel and they are in school and don't have the opportunity to come out very much, it was great to have them here and be able to experience that with them. Yeah, it was very special to have them here.

Q. (Inaudible.)

TOM PERNICE, JR.: Yeah, a lot of comments, the telecast. I guess it came over the through telecast, as well.

Any time that you have a special moment in your life and you're able to share it with your family, that makes it special.

Q. Some players have said that this course favors long hitters, other have said it opens it up more because the elevation doesn't necessarily mean you have to be a long hitter. What's your opinion on that?

TOM PERNICE, JR.: Well, I think the changes they made on the par 5s last year, and the year before on No. 8, with a tee in the water on 15, I think the length has a major factor on the par 5s. But with those additions, I don't think the length gas not really helped the longer hitters because less people are able to go for the green at 8. And even the green at 14, the par 4, going for the green is much more narrower and tough.

So I think those changes have maybe brought everybody back into it a little bit more. Those par 5s were more -- much more acceptable before. Now they are more -- not necessarily three-shot holes for even the big hitters, but you can get into trouble where you could not really before. I think those two changes have necessarily made the scoring maybe a little bit lower.

I think a guy that hits the ball high here is definitely going to have an advantage because they will hit shorter irons into some of the greens, and he's going to be able to stop the ball a little better, if the greens get firm. I think eventually though you need to play the par 5s well and you have to have a good putting week. You have to make some putts to make some birdies; there's where you're going to make your points.

I think if you have a good week putting out here, you have a chance. Everybody out here can hit the ball well and hit it good, but I think if you have a good week putting, you're going to have a good shot.

Q. I don't know what the batting average is for champions to successfully defend and win again, but is that just probability that it's just tough to win in any given week, or do you think sometimes defending champions might put a lot of pressure on themselves to do well when they return?

TOM PERNICE, JR.: I think it's more to do with how you are playing when they come back, and the strength of the field, so it's not that particularly easy to win all of the time.

So I think there's been three guys have this won twice this year. Everybody else has been a first-time winner this year -- I think that and itself, I think Tiger and Mattiace and Jerry Kelly. So that in itself says a lot. Not that many guys are going to win twice in one year, and to come back winning it basically twice in a calendar year is difficult.

The thing is, a lot of players play good on certain courses and they like it when they come back, and the opportunity to be here and be in the hunt on Sunday is when you are after. Whether you end up with the trophy or the title or not could be just a matter of a couple of putts here and there.

Q. Two different questions. Do you think those changes you were talking about, was that the reason the scoring went down, 15 points?

TOM PERNICE, JR.: I think it could have. You'd have to look and see what the scoring was on that particular hole, how many points were on them as to the years before.

I think it definitely made a major difference. 14 plays way different. You just hit a drive down will and worse case scenario, you bomb it down there in the front left-hand bunker and you had a good chance for a 4.

Now you have the water go for the green, leave it in the right and that pine tree could get in your way, and it's just a lot narrower going down there.

8 makes it difficult to reach, basically. If you've got any breeze into you at all there, you've got a handful of guys there that are not going to make the green in two. It was difficult to knock it on in two for a lot of players where the other tee was because you are hitting 2- and 3-irons up and around that tree. I think those two definitely made it for difficult, yeah.

Q. What's your evaluation of your year on TOUR?

TOM PERNICE, JR.: This year, not very good. (Laughs).

Nothing particularly great. I mean, I had a decent week in Houston and I had a good chance at Augusta, that middle period of the year I was playing pretty well. I played terrible on the back nine at Augusta. I was 8- or 9-under on the front nine, and 9- or 10-over on the back nine. So I was playing pretty good in that area and I have not played pretty good since, made some cuts. I took two weeks off, and to me, this starts the second half the year and see what happens from here on out.

Q. (Inaudible.)

TOM PERNICE, JR.: I don't know that there's a particular problem. I think my ball-striking could be better, more consistent, and I am continually working on that. I mean, short game is usually pretty good. But that's where I'm focusing on is to be a little more consistent, working on my golf swing a little bit.

Q. How is the difference in strategy here -- inaudible-- to always be patient?

TOM PERNICE, JR.: It's probably a little bit. I don't try to play that hole a lot differently. I think when you get the opportunity to get an uphill putt for birdie, here you just kind of give it a little bit more.

You know, it's important when you have the opportunities to at least give yourself a good chance. And kind of like a green light; you get a putt that's relatively flat and if the greens are picking up the speed, you can go ahead and give it a go. Maybe a little more aggressive putting when you get the opportunities.

Q. (Inaudible.)

TOM PERNICE, JR.: No, I'm not. I'm still out there just playing golf. I think if you went over the years and took away the points and did the scoring, I think probably 90 percent of the time you could come up with the same champion probably. I don't know if anybody has ever done that, but I would say very close. If I go out there and make six birdies and no bogeys, you're going to have a good day and make 12 points. So a 66 around here is going to do just fine. You still need to hit quality golf shots and make some putts and convert.

Q. (Inaudible.).

TOM PERNICE, JR.: No not really. You lick your chops on a par 5 if you have an eagle putt, but not really.

Q. You've played practice rounds with Vijay and you were mentioning you had some problems with consistency and ball-striking. Has Vijay helped you with anything, seen anything?

TOM PERNICE, JR.: Not really. He knows that I work with Jim Hardy down in Houston and he kind of goes with that. If he sees, hey, your shoulders are getting a little open or you're aiming a little right, something basic, he'll say something. Not really. We spend a lot of time in practice together, but pretty much -- unless one of us asks each other for help, we just go about our business. I feel like he knows what he's doing, and his caddie is there all the time and kind of he thinks the same with me. We just enjoy the company together and like to spend the time together while we're practicing and preparing more than anything.

Q. Do you carry anything different in your bag for this tournament where you might somewhere else?

TOM PERNICE, JR.: I haven't. Today I brought a 5-wood out and I hit it on the range, and then when I got on the course, I never did even try it.

I'm not much of a guy to change clubs very much, but I could see possibly taking out my 2-iron out and using my 5-wood but I hit my 2-iron pretty good, too, so it would be hard to change. Not really. I think that's a possibility of maybe going to a 5- or 6-wood, but I have one of those 2 RGRs, so I launch a 2-iron. So I think I'll kind of just stick with that.

Q. How far did you get on the course today? Did you see the changes on No. 5 green and 18?

TOM PERNICE, JR.: 18 we didn't get to. We got through 16 and hit a tee shot. Vijay hit a tee shot on 17 -- he didn't want that tee shot that he hit in the water last year. There's a lightning warning out there, pretty severe.

Q. Where did he hit it?

TOM PERNICE, JR.: Right in the middle. It was downwind -- he hit a good one.

5, I could not tell a lot of difference other than there's a bit more room there, other than the green is a lot firmer. Because it's a new green so you are going to see some balls on the back edge of that green, like you did before, but I think even more so today. I hit a pretty good drive today and hit a 6-iron in there and landed short of the pin and rolled up into the back fringe.

I could see 18 -- it looked fine. I haven't looked at it. I'll see it tomorrow. I'll see it tomorrow morning in the Pro-Am. Other than that, everything look goods. They do a wonderful job here.

Q. Corey Pavin, is he a dying breed in golf? 250 is his average drive, yet he still seems to survive.

TOM PERNICE, JR.: You know, I think it's difficult. I don't know if it's a dying breed. There's definitely courses where he's got a better chance than others. He can go around Colonial and Hilton Head and Milwaukee, places like that are kind of more up his alley, I think than some other ones. He's working hard and he's trying to get stronger and fitter. He's still working on his golf swing, I know, hard, but it's difficult. I think he definitely needs to -- I think power is a nice asset to have here.

A lot of the top players in the world now all hit it pretty high and pretty far. Tiger and Phil and Vijay and Ernie, Duval, there's some guys that can hit it up in the air and hit it out there pretty good, so that tells you a little bit of something.

I think the only thing, they could make -- we need to probably do anything, if we continue to make the courses longer, which I have no problem with, but as you narrow up the fairways and grow some rough, I think it would make some difference. But they did that at Bethpage and then it rained so then the fairways basically became wider. Tiger played great and deserved win, but he would probably admit it would be more difficult for him to have won if the course would have been hard and fast.

I think as it got soft, I think it took a lot of players, really, out of contention, and it helped the longer hitters. The ball was hitting in the fairway and stopping; so basically the fairways came much wider. Tuesday and Wednesday, I thought driving it in the fairway was the key because some of the holes some slight doglegs to them and they were so narrow driving across, them you had to have a perfect angle bringing the ball in to hit it the right distance; you could hit it through the fairway fairly easily when they were so firm and fast.

He's still the greatest player, but I still think he was one of the few guys under par. I think if had not have rained 5-, or 6-under would have won. It played so long and just widened fairways for the longer hitters and really helped him, I think.

Q. (Inaudible.).

TOM PERNICE, JR.: Oh, I don't think any in particular. They are familiar with the place because they spend a lot of time here and glad to come back. They are still young and naive. They are just happy to be out and having fun. Kristen is all excited about going to Six Flags on Thursday or something, so that's all she's talking about. She's roller coaster crazy now. So she can't wait. They are happy knowing they are coming back all year, knowing they are looking forward to it.

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