BELL CANADIAN OPEN

September 4, 2002

Gene Sauers

JOHN BUSH: Congratulations once again on the win. I'm sure you're hearing that a lot right now. If we could just get some comments on how your life has changed in the last few days.

GENE SAUERS: A lot of the players have come up to me and sia congratulations. It's nice to feel at home again. A lot of good players, Vijay Singh, Fred Funk, it's nice to know that they care about me and are glad to see me back out here again.

JOHN BUSH: I saw you a couple weeks ago at the BUY.COM tournament at Midland and playing really well there, and I think I heard you say that your game was betting back to the point you wanted it, and obviously everything clicked for I.

GENE SAUERS: I finished fourth at Midland and the week prior, I finished seventh at Chicago. The next week was something special. I knew I had the opportunity to get out there and play, finishing if the Top-10 to try to get back into the -- 125 to 150 category, back into the 125.

The opportunity came and I just said, well, let's just play smart and try to eliminate the stupid mistakes like I have early in the year and everything fell right into place.

Q. At any point did you wonder if it was going to happen for you again in your career?

GENE SAUERS: In my career, deep down, I knew I could do it. Whether I wanted to put that hard work back into it and all of the discipline that comes with it, back into -- four or five, six years ago, I was trying to debate what was I going to do with my life because I can't sit here and live off the interest the rest of my life.

I began to wonder. My wife, she's always been a big supporter of what I do. Of course, she's going to be up and gone five or six weeks at one time. I have two little ones at home and she has a tough job, going through grade school all over again with the kids.

I've wondered about that, whether it's going to happen or not. I just told myself, just focus on what's at hand, focus on each shot, one shot at a time and see what happens, and it worked out perfect.

Q. Have you played the course?

GENE SAUERS: Yes, I have yesterday. What a good golf course. That rough is brutal out there. I played yesterday and it was kind of windy, and was kind of windy today, I don't know what the rest of the week is going to be like if it stays like this, it will be an interesting test of golf.

Q. Some players have thought it as a little too easy, fairways a little too generous?

GENE SAUERS: That's the only thing I see about it is the fairways are a little too generous. But if you miss the fairway, you're chipping out -- one shot on the par 5 over here, I guess it was No. 6 or 7, when I played yesterday, I hit a 7-iron out of that that almost broke my dog-gone wrist. I said I'm not going to hit anymore out of the rough today because I want to play on Thursday. It's a pretty interesting golf course. The greens have got some undulations in them and they can this could be fun.

Q. There is many people who suggest that golf course is a little too easy for the Tour, your assessment of it?

GENE SAUERS: The only thing I see is the fairways being too wide. But, you know, the way the rough it right now, it's pretty brutal. If you have to chip out sometime, just hit your 9-iron, just try to get close to the green, just to have a chip to get up-and-down.

It's a great golf course. The greens are nice. They have got some speed to them. It's going to be fun to see -- getting into double-digits is going to be pretty tough, especially if the wind blows.

Q. How does it compare to Glen Abbey?

GENE SAUERS: How does it compare to Glen Abbey -- well, I've played it a good bit and it's a wonderful golf course, but the fairways are tighter and the greens -- if I remember correctly, they are a little firmer. I enjoy playing there. I haven't had a chance to play up in Montreal, but I've always enjoyed playing Glen Abbey.

Q. Do you think your win last week can act as an inspiration to guys who maybe haven't won in a while?

GENE SAUERS: Oh, I think so. A lot of the players that have won last few years have inspired me, if they can do it, too, I think that helped me. I know a lot of people are out there saying, if Sauers can win, I can win, too. So I know that inspired a lot of people.

JOHN BUSH: Thanks for coming by and good luck in making it two in a row this week.

End of FastScripts....