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FRYS.COM OPEN

October 7, 2011

Paul Casey

SAN MARTIN, CALIFORNIA

Q. After the victory in Korea last weekend, I talked to you yesterday after your round. You weren't quite sure what planet you were on and what day it was. What day is it, and what planet are you on?
PAUL CASEY: Wednesday? Yeah, the 16-hour time change was -- it's been kicking my ass this week. Yeah, waking up in the middle of the night, which is probably the middle of the day.
But yeah, yesterday I think I played -- actually played great golf, and the mistakes you saw and the bogeys I made really were myself, maybe a lack of concentration, a bit of fatigue. And today was maybe an example of another day to get over that jet lag, and I eliminated those mistakes.

Q. Putter was on fire today. Yesterday your wedge game was spectacular.
PAUL CASEY: It was, yeah. The back nine, my front nine this morning, the greens were perfect. You're not going to get greens any better than that. They are soft, and they do -- they do get a little bumpy in the afternoon because of how soft they are and how many guys are out there. You can get going. It was nice. My putter hasn't done anything for me lately. I was threatening it with the sack, but it's going to stay in.

Q. Your last Top 40 on this side of the pond was Augusta. Are you 100 percent ready to go now?
PAUL CASEY: I'm probably about 70 percent, but I had a big breakthrough after I missed out on the FedExCup, went out to see some guys, Gary Gray, Dave Tiberio. I've actually done a lot of work with Nike on some golf fitness stuff, but these guys are legends in the fitness and physio world, and helped my trainer sort of get the toe going in the right direction. It's not perfect, but now I can walk without limping and I feel like I'm -- to be honest it's probably the best I've hit the golf ball all year, and even though the toe isn't 100 percent, it's great news.

Q. This tournament probably wasn't the most convenient to play, especially considering the flight you had to take.
PAUL CASEY: I know, but I haven't played my 15 yet this year. Where I am in the Money List is not my primary concern. My primary concern is getting healthy, but I have to play my 15, as well, and I'll be playing next week, as well, to make sure I fulfill that obligation.
I also had a little bit of bending of the ear from Dick Butler and Mr. Fry, and I heard a lot of good things from the players. I'm a fan of Trent Jones designed courses, and I'm glad I came.

Q. How is your health?
PAUL CASEY: Probably 70 percent. But going back a few weeks ago, I don't know where I would have put it. And it's getting better, which is really good. If I could rest it, I think I'd be 100 percent in three, four weeks. I mean, that's still not an option right now. Basically the breakthrough was, all through the sort of summertime on, I was playing with a plate in the shoe, the toes were taped up to try and help with that pain I had. And I saw Gary Gray and Dave Tiberio from the Gray Institute, and through a hookup through Nike, without getting too technical about it because I'm not that knowledgeable on this stuff, there's a joint in the ankle, I think it's the subtalar bone or joint, which didn't allow my foot to move directly, and we had to unlock that, and until we unlocked that, I was never going to get any better. So now we've unlocked that and I can actually start to roll my foot correctly. That then takes the pressure off the toe. So that's the breakthrough.

Q. Did you pick up any bad habits during that time?
PAUL CASEY: Still fighting it. You know, my foot work in the golf swing is still not where I want it, and until I get that -- it's been so long, it's been months of swinging it poorly, but I've got to try and -- not unlearn that but go back to the way I used to swing it before I injured myself. Yeah, weight has been on the heels, taking the weight off the toes to take the pain away. That throws off everything else. The spine angle goes, the rest of the swing isn't where I want it. But it's going in the right direction.

Q. When did it start? You played well at Tucson.
PAUL CASEY: It started in sort of late May, actually probably -- yeah, certainly May. I felt it -- it was really -- Quail Hollow it was really bad, and it went through sort of stages of good and bad.

Q. Which foot is it?
PAUL CASEY: The right foot.

Q. Did you see this coming at all today? Obviously the weather is much different from yesterday.
PAUL CASEY: Yesterday I was jet lagged.

Q. When did you get here?
PAUL CASEY: Sunday night, which is no excuse, but it's a 16-hour time difference and 20 hours of traveling. It's nice. I mean, I won in Korea last week. I know it's not a -- it wasn't really on the radar, but I started to -- it's the first time I've been on the golf course since making progress with the foot and the toes, and it was night and day. Suddenly a little bit of confidence, the ball-striking is coming back, and by no means is it perfect, but it's nice to look up and know that the golf ball is actually going in the direction that I wanted it to go in, which hasn't happened in a really long time.

Q. (Inaudible.)
PAUL CASEY: I've been invited to Korea a few times, and it just so happened that this year I decided to go. I'm glad I did. Yeah, it's a huge boost in confidence. I got to see, got to meet a lot of great people and great golfers over there, and as you know, I enjoy playing all around the world, so it's somewhere I hadn't played before, and it's probably somewhere I'll go back to and certainly play.

Q. You said you're more conscious of reaching the minimum 15. The Top 125 must matter in some regard.
PAUL CASEY: It does matter, yeah, but that's not -- I have to be -- I'm a long way out of that right now, and most important thing is to be healthy, to be healthy for -- maybe not -- maybe I can't get 100 percent by the end of the year, but for the start of next season it's very important that I'm 100 percent, and whatever happens with where I am on the Money List at the end of the PGA TOUR season will happen, but already I'm kind of looking forward to next year and putting myself in position where I can get back to playing the golf I know I'm capable of and start winning golf tournaments again.

Q. What do you like about this course?
PAUL CASEY: Wednesday was the first time I saw it. I remember a Trent Jones, Jr. course in the UK, The Wizard. It's similar to that. But I've always liked his style, and I feel very comfortable on it. I don't know. There's plenty of room off the tee with the driver. Compared to the greens I played last week, as well, these are flat. It was a Nicklaus course last week.

Q. Worse than Tucson?
PAUL CASEY: (Laughs). I did play The Institute on Tuesday, and again, The Institute, it's short, I think we played -- it can be 8,100 yards. The greens were someone mentioned 15 on the stimp. Maybe that was perfect preparation, go play The Institute.

Q. You know if you win this week you get a two-year exemption, but you still have to play next week to fulfill your requirement this year?
PAUL CASEY: I believe so, yes, and I'm entered, so I would fulfill that. I'm not going to -- even if it didn't, I would still go. It's only right as I've entered now. I'll be there. I've never been to Sea Island.

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