GREATER GREENSBORO CHRYSLER CLASSIC

April 20, 2000

Sean Murphy

SEAN MURPHY: Actually, I started on the back. Started on 10.

SEAN MURPHY: 13, I drove it all the way down in the bottom of the fairway just short of the water. Hit 3-wood front left bunker, blasted out 6 feet; made my putt for birdie. Next birdie came on 15. Hit driver in the fairway. Laid up on purpose with a 4-iron. Just laid it back. Kind of gets narrow up there, and if you miss your fairway, you can make bogey easy. Hit 6-iron. Pulled it left. Probably had a 40-footer; I made it. Wasn't planning on making it, and it went in. 16, dead into the wind. Hit 4-iron from 190. 3-putted it up over the tier from the first bogey. And then just missed birdie on 1 from 5 feet. Birdied 2. Laid it up; drove it in the left rough. Hit 9-iron in there 15 feet; made it. 3, I made a 51-foot putt up over the tier, which was another godsend. And then on 5, I hit driver, 7-iron about 2 feet. 6, I hit 3-wood, 8-iron 4 feet. And that was it. Parred 8.

SEAN MURPHY: My putter was definitely my best friend, no doubt about it.

SEAN MURPHY: No. No, it wasn't the best putting round ever. But it ranked up there. It was pretty good.

SEAN MURPHY: No. I think it's too early for that. But, you know, you're just trying not to 3-putt. Trying to hit the first putt close so you don't leave yourself a lot of work. And when it goes in, it's like: Wow. Nice.

SEAN MURPHY: No, I don't think it was easier to score. If it wasn't windy, it would have certainly been ideal for scoring. But the wind I think is what kind of hammered some of the lower scores. If there hadn't been any wind, there would have been lower scores, no doubt about it, because the greens were soft.

SEAN MURPHY: For us it was steady from the beginning. Because I had two clubs more on the second shot, 10, my first hole. 12, 15 -- so it's been blowing for us all day.

SEAN MURPHY: It's great in Hawaii. Been consistent. I've been trying to avoid those others. I keep seeming to have one or two bad holes a tournament that kind of cost me from placing a little higher up. I feel like I'm close. Hitting lots of fairways and greens; starting to make birdies. Putting has gotten better since Doral. I feel I'm averaging 4 birdies per round since Doral. I had 20 birdies at Honda. Need to avoid so many bogeys and double bogeys. Only had one bogey on the round today, so I was pretty happy with that.

SEAN MURPHY: Yeah, I do it every week on the putting green. Typically, I mostly putt from 15 feet and in.

SEAN MURPHY: I feel like I've got pretty good pace on my ball. Good control of the speed on my putts. That's probably what helps. I've been known to make a few long ones.

SEAN MURPHY: You know, I saw Lee Porter's day up there, thought they must have an easy go with not much wind. They said it was blowing all morning. He must have had a good round too. I thought it was a little more conducive to lower scores this morning. What I've heard, it probably wasn't.

SEAN MURPHY: I'll be first off. No. 1, whatever that first time is. And hopefully that rain they've been calling for tomorrow morning won't show up. The course really needs to dry out some more. This wind is helping, that's for sure.

SEAN MURPHY: Yeah, I do. I like to get in a quicker pace. In the last of the tee times, it seems to take quite a bit longer to play the round. Rick's playing well and Bill is. When you get three guys not missing many greens and making putts, it seems to get you in a better rhythm.

SEAN MURPHY: Our group?

SEAN MURPHY: I think we were -- let's see. I was 5. And I think Rick was 4-under. I think we were 8-under. Bill shot 1-over.

SEAN MURPHY: I don't think Bill's score indicated as well as he hit it today. But when everybody's going right at the pin, you tend not to -- you get this tunnel vision, and it seems to be addictive to the group.