BOB HOPE CHRYSLER CLASSIC

January 21, 2004

Kenny Perry

JOAN vT ALEXANDER: Why don't we just begin with a couple of comments about your round today there at Indian Wells, great round, no bogeys. It looked like you had a good day over there. Why don't you make some comments about that and the conditions and then we'll have some questions.

KENNY PERRY: Well, I was kind of nervous playing at Indian Wells because this is the kind of golf course that it does yield a lot of good scores and if you don't get off to a good start you are behind in this tournament in a hurry. I birdied 5, 6, 7 and, 8 and so it's nice to get off to a good start.

Q. Saying that you want to get off to a good start at Indian Wells, is that the course that you feel like you need to go 64-63 on in this tournament if you're going to have that 30-under finish?

KENNY PERRY: I think so. I think this is a golf course that yields the most scores, this and the Arnold Palmer course are the two courses to really get it going on. When I won here back in '95, I shot a real good round here and that's nice. The last few years I've struggled a little bit. I haven't played this golf course very well.

For somebody to shoot in the high 20s, 28, 29, 30-under, you need to shoot a good round here.

Q. Do you feel any kind of carryover from last year heading into this year?

KENNY PERRY: No, I don't feel any carryover, to tell you the truth. I'm actually exhausted. I've had no time off this winter. I had one week for Christmas and I took all of my family, we all went to Maui a week early. I played the Presidents Cup and Sun City, then I did Tiger's tournament.

Actually, I'm pretty frazzled right now, to tell you the truth. I'm just hoping to get through this week and next week and then I'm going to take three weeks off and go on a little vacation.

As a carryover, I didn't play too well at the end of the year. I had a great Presidents Cup. I played really good that week, but I'm not playing the same kind of golf that I played in the summertime. Hopefully this will be a start of getting it going in the right direction.

Q. You've had a pretty good record here obviously. Are these courses that just fit your game better than other courses?

KENNY PERRY: Well, I wouldn't say these kind of courses fit my game. Normally, I perform well where 12, 15-under wins the golf tournament. Those are my kind of tournaments. I usually don't do well when you have to shoot 30-under. It becomes a putting contest. I like more of a ball-hitter's kind of tournament. I've had success here. I know how to play these places. I've got a lot of experience. Things are to my advantage, because the rookies, these poor guys, I felt sorry for a couple of them I was talking to, they were fighting, trying to get into the golf courses. I talked to Steven Leaney, he played in front of me, he said he played 54 holes on Tuesday just to see the golf courses. I came in, practiced Monday and Tuesday. I didn't play a practice round anywhere. I just wanted to be fresh and try to go out there. I know how to play the courses and was fortunate enough to play a good round.

Q. That said, is that the reason that you're able to do so well, despite the fact that you said, you know, going 30-under doesn't necessarily fit your game? What's the reason for the success here at the Hope over the years?

KENNY PERRY: Well, I just think experience. I enjoy playing these golf courses. I enjoy the weather. There's usually not much wind and it's usually fairly warm.

So, you know, there's a lot of experience there for me. I've played here so many times. Out of my 18 years, I guess I've played this place 17 times, I guess. I know the golf courses, I know the greens and I pretty much know how to play the course management. It's just a matter of me being able to hit the ball where I want it to be and hit some good golf shots.

Especially here at Indian Wells, you have a lot of short irons, and I hit my short irons well which was nice. The birdies I made, I didn't really make anything outside of ten feet. I made one eagle putt. It was probably a 25-footer for eagle, and all of my other birdies were ten feet and in.

You get a lot of opportunities out here. You've just got to be patient and hopefully you can get a string and get it going and get in that rhythm and get out there and make some birdies.

JOAN vT ALEXANDER: Let's go through your birdies and your eagle, please. You started on the front nine and you birdied No. 3.

KENNY PERRY: 3, I hit a 3-wood and a pitching wedge to about four feet under the hole.

Then I birdied 5. I hit a driver to the right and a pitching wedge over the mountain and then a sand wedge to about three feet short of the hole for birdie.

Then I hit a wedge on the little par 3 to about eight feet left of the hole, and made that.

Then I hit a 3-wood and a sand wedge to about ten feet on the next hole and made that.

Then I hit a driver and a 3-wood about 25 feet on 8. Made that for eagle. So I was on a pretty good run there, to shoot 30 on the front nine.

Then I hit both par 5s on the back nine. I hit driver, 5-iron to about six feet and missed it for birdie on 14.

Then 18, I hit a driver and a 7-iron 40 feet left of the hole and 2-putted for birdie there.

JOAN vT ALEXANDER: We really appreciate your time and play well the rest of the week and we'll talk to you later.

End of FastScripts.