U.S. AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP

August 19, 1999

James Oh

JAMES OH: Sure. Long day for me.

JAMES OH: 5:30.

JAMES OH: Actually, I only went 13.

JAMES OH: Yes.

JAMES OH: The last hole, par-3, No. 5, I was up first to hit, and I was hitting it pretty well. I hit a 7-iron up there a little bit left to bounce up about ten feet. And Bryce pulled it a little bit; went to the left; hit a great chip up there, a little closer than I am. And I made a 10-footer. I saw a lot of those putts, and I remember what it did; so I did the same thing.

JAMES OH: I was pretty confident over that putt. I've been putting real well. I haven't been real nervous yet. So it went in. So I'm sitting here: That's good.

JAMES OH: All day. I mean it was back and forth all day. I started with -- I was 1-up -- I think I was 1-up after 2, all square around 7, and then I was 2-down after 15. I won 16 -- I won 18.

JAMES OH: 15?

JAMES OH: Oh, did we? Okay. Thanks.

JAMES OH: It's been a while.

JAMES OH: All square. I can't remember.

JAMES OH: On 18, I was watching TV. I was on television before I started my second round today, and everyone who was 2-down, or 1-down going into the last hole, hit their drive left; so I didn't want to do that. I went right at the second tree on the left, hit a drive, hit a perfect drive. And Bryce kind of pushed it, and he didn't hit too good of a -- he kind of hit the tree on the second shot. But knowing Bryce, he's an excellent player. It shows when he hit that third shot about ten feet on the 18th; so I figured he was going to do that. The layup is not that easy, either, it's 2- or 3-iron, and there's trap left, and there's all the rough to the right. Why not just go at it; I needed to win the hole. So I pulled out a 3-wood. It's kind of gutsy, I guess.

JAMES OH: I had 250 to the front, and it was just blowing straight into the wind, stiff wind. I hit a real good shot. It went up right to the front. I'm lucky it didn't go in the deep rough. I was trying to hit it in the front trap. The sand traps are pretty easy out here. And my third chip, I had a perfect chip. I thought it was going in, just missed the cup to the right. And Bryce hit his putt, and kind of hopped and came up short. And I had a two-footer to win and tie the match.

JAMES OH: Yeah, definitely.

JAMES OH: Actually it's easier -- well, I'm comparing it to Spyglass. Spyglass is pretty tough. But I practiced a lot of bunker shots there. And come here, it didn't seem that hard; get better lies out of the trap. If you look at it, it's a lot easier than the rough. The rough is the hard part. Out of the sand trap, it's not that bad.

JAMES OH: Well, to beat Bryce, that's -- he's a great player, and he's one of the top amateurs in the country. I was just trying to push it to 18. If I lose, I lose. Just give it my best, don't lose early. And I guess I am surprised, but I've been working hard this summer. I kind of expected to play well at this tournament.

JAMES OH: I thought if I hit it up there -- he's got a real long shot. I just tried to hack it out into the fairway. And I looked at his second shot, the one in the rough, and I figured that's not an easy shot. But if I make par here, that will put the pressure on him, and it will be hard for him to make par. So I think that was the turning point. That's where if I didn't win that hole, I wouldn't be sitting here.

JAMES OH: I wasn't too nervous, but I was giving it my best, and we were both grinding. And we played pretty good golf. Made a couple of mistakes, but other than that, it was -- it was fun.

JAMES OH: That just shows --

JAMES OH: Yeah, that just shows what kind of player he is. He's awesome. That's why he's one of the top amateurs in the country. I kind of expected that, because he's hitting his wedge shots pretty good. And if he punches out, it's not going to be an easy win. But I thought I had it on 1, but I guess not.

JAMES OH: I don't really feel much pressure out here, because I'm here to learn, and it's still a new experience for me. I'm still young; so I have a few more years for the U.S. Am. But U.S. Junior, it's over. At U.S. Junior it's -- the competition is just not quite as tough as out here.

JAMES OH: Definitely, I've played the Pub Links. Finished in the quarterfinals; lost in the quarterfinals there. That was pretty good. I played well. And that was one of my biggest -- I learned a lot at that tournament. Just got back from the U.S. Junior. Lost the quarterfinals there and learned a lot out there. Every time you play another match play event -- every big event I play in, it helps me.

JAMES OH: Yes.

JAMES OH: Mike.

JAMES OH: Yes.

JAMES OH: We're pretty good friends. He used to live in California when we were real young, about 10, 11, and he moved to Texas. I haven't seen him in about four years, and he's like the best golfer in the country now.

JAMES OH: Lakewood is by Long Beach, Los Angeles.

JAMES OH: Lakewood Country Club.

JAMES OH: I don't have a brother.

JAMES OH: Yes. No brother. No sister.

JAMES OH: I think Jason Harwick may caddy. He's from Sacramento. He's real good, good friends.

JAMES OH: That will be great.

JAMES OH: I think so, I know what he's going to tell me. I know exactly what he's going to say, so -- but he does help a lot. He does. He keeps me in it. I was 3-down after four holes -- no -- yes, 3-down after four; and I got it all square after 9; and 2-down after 11. And when you're 2-down after 11, you almost lost, because going back and forth. And then I came back and won it; so I guess he helped me there.

JAMES OH: Yeah. He's just like -- I don't know, real good -- he helps me a lot. He kind of caddied for me at my last tournament. It was East versus West, and we were on the same team. If you're not playing, you have to caddy. He caddied for someone in my group, but helped me a lot. I figured he could help out here. And he's great.

JAMES OH: Long Cove on Hilton Head Island.

JAMES OH: Yes.

JAMES OH: He teaches little kids.

JAMES OH: A little bit. A little too much.

JAMES OH: Yes, Michael Kirk, another top amateur.

JAMES OH: Tomorrow morning?

JAMES OH: I don't know. Kim, yeah. I usually never look ahead. I'm one match at a time, always. In match play, whether you're a good player or bad player, anything can happen; it can go any which way. So I really concentrate on tomorrow morning's match.