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AT&T NATIONALJune 29, 2012Tiger WoodsBETHESDA, MARYLAND Q. 72‑68. Why were you four shots better today? TIGER WOODS: I don't know. It was one of those days. I was consistent most of the day. I made a couple good par saves at 13 and 14, and I made a big putt there at 16. Just one of those days. Q. You talked yesterday about this being like a U.S. Open even though it's a regular PGA TOUR event. How much of a grind is it? TIGER WOODS: It's playing like an Open, it really is. It's quick, it's dry. At least the TOUR moved up a couple tees if the pins were in the corners or they were out in front. They did a good job of getting it so that we can get aggressive and get down there to‑‑ put the ball in the fairway, we could have a shot at pins. It was scorable, but definitely not easy. Q. We talk about rain a lot on the PGA TOUR, wind on the PGA TOUR. We don't get this kind of heat very often. What's the most challenging part of that? TIGER WOODS: Just trying to stay patient the whole day. That's why I train, that's why I run all those miles. If you're carrying a little bit of body fat, it's going to be a little insulation out there. This is when fitness does help, and I figured that's one of the reasons why I've had the success I've had in the elements. Q. Is this more of a mental test or a physical test? TIGER WOODS: Well, both, absolutely both. You have to hit the golf ball well, but then also there's the mental test. You're going to be out here for probably six hours, seven hours, and it's a long day, and it's going to be tough. Q. Talk about 27 putts in the second round. TIGER WOODS: I felt comfortable. I felt very good about what I'm doing. Notah Begay and I were working on a few things the other day and liked what I was doing. Today I felt very comfortable. Q. We know you felt comfortable with that 48‑footer. TIGER WOODS: That was actually a tricky putt because it was a double‑breaking putt up that hill. It's hard left and then just want to feed back a couple balls to the right, and I was waiting for it to feed back because it was hanging, hanging, hanging, and then it just fell right in. Q. It's hard to build momentum out here because you have so few birdie opportunities. TIGER WOODS: J and I were saying that coming down the last hole. It's like an Open, you have probably maybe one or two flags you can fire at all day, and most of the day you're firing away from it and giving yourself 15, 20 feet all day. Q. It looked like the course was softer in morning, but I saw some big bounces. TIGER WOODS: They were bigger, but then again, it was softer than yesterday. We were talking about that on the course the whole day. We both landed it just short of flag high, and this afternoon those two shots are in the back bunker. Q. (Inaudible.) TIGER WOODS: The pars at 14 and 15 were something I needed to have happen. I hit two good wedge shots in there after two poor drives and gave myself a couple good looks, made those, and then I rewarded all that hard work at the next hole with an eagle. Q. Talk about the shot at 14. TIGER WOODS: I've probably gotten two or three lies where I've felt really good about it so far. I tried to figure do I either lay up or try and take a chance and get the ball near the green but I know I can't get to the green, and a couple times I've had to lay up, and that's just the way it is. Q. (Inaudible.) TIGER WOODS: I'm hitting it as hard as I can, trying to steepen the attack angle as much as I can, and the weight comes off the right leg. Q. On the back nine (indiscernible). TIGER WOODS: No, it's just one of those days where you just stay patient. You shoot something in the 60s, and I think that would have been a good score. I shot 68 today, which was‑‑ I thought was a very good score. I'm only three back and I'm right there. Q. (Inaudible.) TIGER WOODS: If it stays like this, it's not going to go anywhere. Today was good, though, because I think the TOUR staff did a good job of moving some of the tees up when we had corner pins or front pins. They didn't leave the tees all the way back on these corner pins and some of these front ones, and it was fair. We could get it down there where we could have short irons and control the spin. Yesterday every tee that was back, pin was back, so yeah, you had a lot more club, but at least you had all the room in the world to work it. I think they did a great job setting it up, so today I thought you could be a little more aggressive than yesterday. Q. What did you hit on the second shot on 9? TIGER WOODS: I hit a 4‑iron. I had 230‑‑ 244 front, but I had 234 to carry the fairway. Over on 6 I hit a 5‑iron that flew 230, so I figured, well, 4‑iron off this steep lie, I know I can't get it in the air but I know I can get 4‑iron to land on the front fairway and maybe scoot up, and it just didn't quite work out. Q. What was it like playing in the humidity for four and a half hours? TIGER WOODS: I live in it. I live in Florida, so it's not quite this hot, but it's definitely more humid than this every day. Q. Is that why you train, two more days of this? TIGER WOODS: Absolutely. I think it's one of the reasons why I had success at Southern Hills, because I felt physically fit, didn't have a problem with it. I've played some of my‑‑ some good tournaments over the years in Malaysia and other places where it's hot, and certainly fitness, running all those miles and lifting all those weights, it comes into play when you get days like this, and consecutive days like this. Q. (Inaudible.) TIGER WOODS: Well, I thought that today I got more out of my round, and that was‑‑ on a golf course like this, you're not going to hit it perfect all day, it's just too difficult. You're going to have to make some saves. Today I did. I made two key saves there at 14 and 15. Q. What was the lie on the second shot like? TIGER WOODS: Not very good. Not very good at all. Again, I only had 150 yards to the front, but I was thinking maybe I should just wedge it, pitch it with a sand wedge and put it back in play, give myself 40 or 50 yards to the flag, but I thought if I really hit it and came down steep enough that I could possibly get it to the front up that little gap, and if not put the ball in the left bunker. I didn't quite get to the left bunker. I didn't hit it far enough. Q. Was there a camera on the tee shot? TIGER WOODS: No, there was a guy sneezing the first time, but then the second time I just hit a bad shot. Q. (Inaudible.) TIGER WOODS: Well, personally I don't like them this way. I like how Australia has them, hard packed faces and the ball comes down to the bottom every time. You can have it fluffy in the bottom, fine. If it lands in the air into the wind with spin, it's going to bury in the bottom. But if it lands on the faces, it's not. Here we can get balls up on the side of the slopes. K.J. had a couple brutal up‑and‑downs out of bunkers on the slopes, and I just think it would be better if they could roll back down towards the middle. Q. (Inaudible.) TIGER WOODS: Well, yeah, I understand your point, but I also see it that we also have five‑ and six‑inch rough out there, too. Q. Do you think the guys in the afternoon are going to have it more difficult? TIGER WOODS: Well, it's hotter certainly, but the wind is not blowing like it did yesterday, and I think there are going to be some better scores out there than what we had yesterday. Q. Talk about your putt on 16. TIGER WOODS: It was a double‑breaking putt, right to left early and hard, and then cut back to the right at the end. I hit it good, and it was just taking a while for it to sneak back to the right, and eventually it broke back towards the back part of the green. Q. Last time you made one that long? TIGER WOODS: I think it was Memorial the last time I made one. Q. (Inaudible.) TIGER WOODS: Well, I had the perfect lie. I had 225 front, and with the pin on the right, I thought I could put the ball in the left bunker and have an angle. Pin was front left or just over the bunker, then whatever, I would put it in the back short of the bunker and give myself a wedge in. But I thought I could get it either on the green or left of the green and have an angle to play from. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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