	products recent interviews FastScripts archive about ASAP Sports

Our Clients:

Browse by Sport

Find us on

Subscribe to RSS

Click to go to
Asaptext.com

View our
e-Brochure

THE HERITAGE

April 23, 2011

Scott Verplank

HILTON HEAD, SOUTH CAROLINA

MARK STEVENS: We'd like to welcome Scott Verplank. Scott, got to 9-under, birdie at the end. You've got six starts this year and a T-2 in Houston a couple of weeks ago. Want to talk about your round today and then take some questions.
SCOTT VERPLANK: All right. You know, I was actually a little sloppy the first three or four holes. I think I only hit one green out of the first four. And then after that I don't think I missed a green until 17. Yet I got on a roll and hit my irons pretty good. And just hitting it real solid. I felt like an old man yesterday and today I felt like a young man. That's the way it goes.
I enjoy playing here. It's such a great golf course. I've never won here, but I've always enjoyed playing here. It's amazing. It's just a short little golf course that anybody can play it, but the scores aren't all that good. That's one reason I enjoy playing here.

Q. Do you enjoy it more as you become an older guy? Maybe you feel like you can compete with the younger guys?
SCOTT VERPLANK: Yeah, I think anybody -- just the past winners of this golf tournament, there's all kinds. Obviously Davis kind of dominated this place for a while, and he was hitting it longer than anybody at the time. Other guys, another different style of player, maybe shorter, straighter guys won here, too.
This golf course kind of holds up to the test of time. I'd wish when they're building new golf courses, they'd look at something like this rather than some of monstrosities we play on now.

Q. Conditions different today than Thursday and Friday?
SCOTT VERPLANK: Yes, Thursday and Friday were as calm as I've ever seen it here for a couple of rounds. And not that this place was ever easy, but the first two days were relatively easy, and today is back to the normal Harbour Town, Hilton Head stuff. It seems like there's 20 guys every year who have a chance to win going into tomorrow because the golf course is not very yielding.

Q. Just talk about your season. You've had a few ailments and stuff. Are you feeling healthy now?
SCOTT VERPLANK: Today I was. You know, I've got -- looking at the room, here, most of you guys probably have the same stuff I have (laughter). Got gray hair, for one.

Q. Why did you look at me?
SCOTT VERPLANK: Well, I really looked at everybody, I'm not singling anybody out. I mean, I have literally been day to day. I've had good luck in the last month, six weeks of maintaining strength, doing a few different things that I wasn't doing before, and, you know, kind of like I said in Houston, I'm really pretty lucky or feel pretty pleased to be here, really. Eight weeks ago I couldn't have played. I tried to play a couple of tournaments, actually this is four out of five weeks; that's a lot. I'm going to have a lot less golf here in the next month or three weeks. But pretty good today. I hope I wake up tomorrow and I'm not having to work too hard to feel like I have some confidence in my grip.

Q. Because of what you said, the course, the guys don't really shoot super low scores here. Did you think, well, if I can put up a number, I can get in this thing, too?
SCOTT VERPLANK: Yeah, unless one guy really runs away, which happens occasionally here, but not that often. It's always been the same. To me it just seems like this tournament, everything kind of backs up starting Saturday afternoon. There's always a lot of guys that have a real chance to finish it off. So I think that's one of the things that makes it a great tournament and a great golf course.

Q. Not to get ahead of the curve, but would a win change the way you think about your injury and what you might do or what you might want to try and do?
SCOTT VERPLANK: I don't know. Yeah, I probably -- I don't know what I would do, honestly. I do not want to have to do anything different than what I've done for -- I do not want to have to have surgery. I don't want to get old, either (laughter).
You know what, it would probably make me feel better for not playing as much. I haven't played as much this year, and I'm not going to play as much the rest of the year as I have done in the past. I'm okay with that.

Q. I'm wondering if there was extra motivation to say, if I could get this one in. Not that you need extra motivation.
SCOTT VERPLANK: You know, I've never been able to look that far ahead. Just, like I said, I'm hoping I'll be ready to go tomorrow.

Q. So all that being said, Scott, what is your game plan for tomorrow?
SCOTT VERPLANK: Oh, I'll probably get in about two hours before my tee time. Play the same. You've got to hit the ball straight and solid off the tee and the greens are small and hard to hit. The golf course, it's playing hard. The greens are as fast as they've ever been here. They're better than I've ever seen here than in 20-some years. So that's why I think the scores are not spread out as much, because you have to be in the right spot. And that starts off the tee box on every hole. So that's what makes it a little different here than a lot of other places.

Q. Just curious, are there two courses at the different end of the spectrum, like TPC, Redstone, and here, and you've contended in both?
SCOTT VERPLANK: Well, at TPC, you know, it didn't rain, which was huge. I've only played it there one time before, two years ago, and it rained. The golf course was just a beast, long. And it didn't rain this year, and the weather was good, and the ball was running out and I hit my wedges really good. When I got birdie chances or good yardages I got it in there close, and then obviously played good. And the fact that I hadn't hardly been able to play any probably helped my excitement level, too.

Q. Will the wind or can the wind be an equalizer for you? If it keeps blowing, is that what you would like to see, being a Texas guy?
SCOTT VERPLANK: That's fine. I've played it so many times here, I've played it in almost every condition. The only variable this year is the greens are a lot faster than I've ever seen them, which is a plus for me. It's good. I think it will be the same tomorrow. The wind forecast was like five to ten miles a hour, and I got out on the range and it's blowing about 20. And I said it's not really five to ten. Anything under par today is a pretty good score.
MARK STEVENS: Thanks a lot. Good luck.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297