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BANK OF AMERICA COLONIAL

May 19, 2004

Justin Leonard

FORT WORTH, TEXAS

JUSTIN LEONARD: Lot of great memories (about shooting 61 last year), it was just a fun day. I got off to a great start and gave myself a chance to break 60. I don't know how many more times I'm gonna get that opportunity. So, it was fun to have it.

Q. About Colonial this year?

JUSTIN LEONARD: The course is playing the way it always plays. It's pretty firm and fast. The fairways are great. The greens are good, good speed. Looks like we're gonna get pretty typical weather, kinda hot and windy. So hopefully I can build on some of those experiences in the past and have a good week.

Q. About this season

JUSTIN LEONARD: This season hasn't been a lot of fun. I've been struggling. I feel like at times I'm pretty close to playing well, but just haven't been getting a lot out of it. There hasn't been one particular aspect of my game that I'm struggling with. I'm not doing anything poorly, I'm just not doing anything really well. I'm just trying to fight through all that and stay positive.

Q. About this week as a run-up to the Open

JUSTIN LEONARD: I try not to put that kind of pressure on myself. I think each week has been a measuring stick. Certainly this week, with the way I've played here in the past, I feel like I've got a better chance of playing well. But I'm not thinking about the U.S. Open right now. It's too far off. Hopefully I can see some signs of improvement this week and see where it goes from there.

Q. Less likely for any 61s out there this week?

JUSTIN LEONARD: If the wind stays up, yes. Even the shorter holes, with windy conditions, it gets difficult to get the ball close to the hole. If we stay pretty dry and the wind stays up, this golf course will be playing pretty difficult.

Q. Fighting through your rounds, what about your confidence?

JUSTIN LEONARD: I'm getting pretty good at it. I've had a lot of practice this year. Just try to take some kind of positive out of the day, try and build on those things. Again, it's not like I'm lost out there on the golf course. I just haven't been able to put everything together. So, just working hard, trying to stay positive, try to find something good about every day.

Q. What's cool about being a dad?

JUSTIN LEONARD: She does not care what I shoot. That may be the single coolest thing. . . . The amount of time I get to spend with her. There's nothing like it. I can't explain it. I watch a lot of PBS, which I didn't think I'd ever do. There's a lot of good stuff on there in the mornings. So I even learn things.

Q. Has starting a family affected your game?

JUSTIN LEONARD: I've won a couple golf tournaments since Amanda and I have been married. I played pretty well last fall after Reese was born, so no, I don't think there's anything to that.

Q. Are you budgeting your time more effectively?

JUSTIN LEONARD: Well, certainly, because I want to get my work in and get out of here so I can go hang out with my family. If anything, that has helped, because I'm a little more focused when I do practice, and I find myself not wasting time.

Q. Any advantage to playing near home?

JUSTIN LEONARD: There's no home course advantage. This is the first round I've played here since last year. I get to sleep in my own bed and do those kinds of things. The hardest part is not trying to do everything that I normally do when I'm at home, because there's not enough hours in the day to be here for six or seven hours and then go home and do my normal things, whatever that is. You have to learn how to balance it, and I seem to have gotten the hang of it, or certainly this week I have.

Q. How much can your 61 last year help you this week?

JUSTIN LEONARD: I don't know. I'll try and draw on it some. Just the fact that I went out and played a good round and hit a lot of good shots. I don't know whether that gives me any huge advantage this year, but it's certainly a good memory. And any time you have a good memory at a golf tournament, it can only be positive.

Q. Any different clubs in your bag this week?

JUSTIN LEONARD: I've got a two-iron, and I used it last week. I probably use it four or five tournaments a year.

Q. What about Colonial being outdated?

JUSTIN LEONARD: I know one person who said that. Has anyone else said that? There have been a few? OK. That surprises me. I think, sure, you can't hit driver every hole, but who says you have to? You look at Olympia Fields, a U.S. Open golf course, where, I bet there were guys who didn't hit four or five drivers on that golf course, and you didn't hear a lot of complaints. There are courses that I don't go play because I don't think they suit my game, but I wouldn't say anything bad about those golf courses. I certainly don't think this golf course is outdated. It's a nice break from a lot of the golf courses that we play, where it you miss a fairway you've got to do something spectacular other than chip the ball out. But you might have a shot. And balls will run through fairways, and the greens are pretty small. Just because you can't come out here and hit driver 12 times around doesn't make it a bad golf course. You go over to 18 and look at the leader board at the guys who have won here, what style of play is he? The only common thread is a guy that is playing well and who can work his golf ball, because you have to hit it both directions out here. I love this golf course. Now, do I think we should play these kind of courses every week? No. But I think we should play more golf courses like this where it's more of a strategy and you do have to work the ball around and do those kind of things.

Q. Do you not work to build up to the U.S. Open?

JUSTIN LEONARD: It's a month away. That's a lot of time. I'm gonna hit a lot of practice balls between now and then, and I'm gonna play, hopefully, 72 holes of tournament golf. Am I trying to play well, so I play well at the U.S. Open? Absolutely, who isn't? But I'm not out here thinking, well, I need to do this well to get ready for the U.S. Open. I need to do things well to play well on this golf course. Next week when I'm off, I'm gonna be thinking about doing things well to play well at the Memorial. And if I do those things well, I'm gonna play well at the U.S. Open. If you want to say it's in the back of my mind, go ahead. But I'm not thinking about it. I'm just trying to get my game going in the right direction, and get to playing well, and that will help me at the U.S. Open.

Q. What about expectations weighing on you?

JUSTIN LEONARD: That has been difficult, because of my own expectations and where I believe my game should be. That's probably been the hardest part. As long as I don't lose sight of those things, about what kind of player I think I am and what kind of player I think I should be. Those are the things that get me to the golf course on Wednesday or Thursday during a week off, and put a little extra time in when I need to. That's certainly the hardest part about not playing well.

Q. Are you going to go over to Troon early?

JUSTIN LEONARD: I'm gonna do pretty much the same thing I did in '97. I'll probably get there on Sunday or Monday and get to know the golf course again.

Q. What is your strategy for a course like this?

JUSTIN LEONARD: I don't know if I'm answering your question, but this golf course, the ball runs out. And because of all the doglegs, it's harder to keep the ball in the fairway. With the wind blowing, with the doglegs, there's always a little bit of contour one way or the other. You have to really work the ball the keep the ball in some of the fairways, and the greens have some little hidden areas around bunkers and what not. So you really have to maneuver the ball.

Q. How does that ring feel when you grip the golf club, what about psychological motivation of your family?

JUSTIN LEONARD: The ring feels good. Psychological motivation? My wife is incredible, she helps me to stay positive when I'm struggling like this, and to stay grounded when I'm playing well. I don't really look to them for motivation on the golf course. I'm not going out there to play well to make my family proud. Hopefully I've already done that. So, I just want to go out and play well and enjoy the game and go home and spend time with them.

Q. Does Troon feel like a long time ago?

JUSTIN LEONARD: It varies. Sometimes it feels like years and years and years, and sometimes it feels pretty recent.

End of FastScripts.

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