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BOB HOPE CHRYSLER CLASSIC

January 25, 2005

George Lopez

Mike Weir

LA QUINTA, CALIFORNIA

JOAN v.T. ALEXANDER: Thank you for joining us for a few minutes, Mike, and also we appreciate you stopping by, also, Mr. Lopez.

Anyway, we'd like to start with Mike, who started out the year at the Mercedes. Why don't you just talk about the last couple of weeks, and also being home here at a place that you're very comfortable with.

MIKE WEIR: Mercedes is the first tournament I'd played in about eight weeks. I was pretty excited about the second round that I played there, and the rest of the week was a little bit shaky, but the last couple of weeks I wanted to get back and spend a little time with my coach and get ready for the rest of the West Coast and play the next five or six weeks in a row. I'm pretty excited about hopefully getting a little momentum going.

Obviously I love the desert here, played well and won here, and it's just been -- I've always been comfortable playing here, so hopefully I can get off to a good start.

GEORGE LOPEZ: My question for Mike is, how can a guy who spends the whole week in Kapalua still be as white as the day he left. That's some master sun block. Also you rolled it very nice on Saturday. Or was it Friday?

MIKE WEIR: Friday.

GEORGE LOPEZ: Where's the Toronto star? Sitting by himself. It's Toronto. You know, he won here but yet still can't get in the clubhouse. I thought my people had trouble, but when Mike Weir is not allowed -- excuse me, sir, I need to see your badge. Just go to the wall where they have the past champions, and see if there's one, two years removed.

Q. Is there anything unusual about Mike's game?

GEORGE LOPEZ: I met Mike here last year and we've stayed in touch the whole year. This is one of the sweetest guys, and he's married to a Latino, so she asked me to keep an eye on him, so that's really bonded our friendship.

He's a great guy. He's got a great game and I don't think there's anybody with a club in their hand that's any better.

Q. George, you've done some charitable work with Mike's foundation. Is that true?

GEORGE LOPEZ: We did. We did Mike's event in Canada and had a great time. Feherty and I have become the ghetto version of Hope and Crosby, so from that, from Mike's event, David and I are doing an event the week before the Colonial, and I think Mike is going to plan on being there in May.

Q. A couple of years ago you won this tournament. I don't think you were in the celebrity field, were you?

MIKE WEIR: Two years ago I was not.

Q. Last year you were and this year you are?

MIKE WEIR: That's right, we're playing tomorrow.

GEORGE LOPEZ: What are you trying to say, man, that we affected the dude's game? You know, you open really nice with a nice breathy hi and then I didn't like anything you said after that.

Q. That's always one of the questions here is, are the distractions around here that tough for you or for the other players or does it just depend on the individual?

MIKE WEIR: I don't think so, because being out here a long time, we're used to playing in front of big crowds, and I think when the golf course -- you're spread out over four different golf courses. If you're not in the celebrity field it's like you're playing on your own. In some regards it doesn't feel like a tournament. When we play in a celebrity group there's a buzz just like a normal Tour event.

GEORGE LOPEZ: To watch all the white dudes hit it good is boring, and to hit it well and watch us hit it reminds him of how great he is.

Q. How much of a distraction is it for you playing with him?

GEORGE LOPEZ: Well, he hits and then we take a bus ride down to our tees and then we hit. There isn't a lot -- I understand the concern between professional golfers and having celebrities or amateurs in the field. And these guys, there's a lot of tournaments and a lot of ways to make money. A lot of the guys are respectful. They are out there trying to earn money. That's how they work. There's really only two left, and you know, I'm a fan of the two, so I think that's a healthy attitude to have. You'd like to see more players have the attitude. You have to look at it like the rounds are going to be long and it is what it is, but it is kind of tradition and you hate to see it go away?

MIKE WEIR: Absolutely. I have a good caddie, that if these guys get out of line, he has no problem yelling at George.

GEORGE LOPEZ: Canadians.

Q. Mike, other than George, who would you say is one of the favorite people that you've played with in these things, and are there any particularly funny moments that you can recall?

MIKE WEIR: Well, last year, you know, just playing with George was just hilarious. He had a big Latino following him and he was just cutting jokes one after the other, and we just had a ball.

Like I said, that was the first time I was in the celebrity draw, was last year. I played with Roger Clements last year, too. I got to hear a lot of baseball stories, a lot of stories about the Jays. He played for the Jays for a while, so I heard a lot of stories about that. That's pretty cool.

Also this week I'm playing with Drew Brees so I'll get some football stories. It's great.

Q. They didn't put you with Mario LeMieux? What's up with that?

MIKE WEIR: George and I talked and we wanted to play together this week. I was hoping for the connection there, they'd put us together. The way it rotates down, I'm just one group removed from Mario.

GEORGE LOPEZ: I'll bet you I'm thrown under the bus for LeMieux. There's been a slight change. Please hold onto your tickets.

Q. How does playing well on the West Coast set up the rest of the year?

MIKE WEIR: I think it's very important to get off to a good start. I played a lot of my college golf in the west so I feel comfortable here, and you want to get off to a good start. Nowadays with the money that we're playing for, to get a $2 million head start on you if you don't play well, it's tough to play catch-up, so it is important to play well out here and get some momentum, especially leading into the first major, Augusta, you want to play well. Leading into The Players Championship, Augusta, it kinds of builds your year. I've always felt like that.

GEORGE LOPEZ: You're playing practically every week between now and the World Championships?

MIKE WEIR: Right now I'm playing all the way through World Golf Championships.

Q. Have you ever done that before?

MIKE WEIR: No, I've played a lot of the West Coast, but I've always had a bit of a break. This year I'm playing five weeks in a row, maybe even six. I might play Doral.

Q. We've talked about the work you've done with Mike Wilson down here. At Mercedes you talked about the swing was getting a little long, I guess. Do you feel like the work is coming around? Was Friday at Mercedes the proof of that?

MIKE WEIR: Yeah, that was a good start. The other day I had a day with some Taylor Made guys. I had a nice stretch where I was 9-under par for eight holes, made eight birdies and an eagle in eight holes in a stretch. That showed me even on a casual round that my ball-striking was really coming along, putting was good, and hopefully I can just do it at a tournament on a more consistent level, but it's coming along.

Q. I wanted to ask you about you're playing with --

GEORGE LOPEZ: You've got to try to make it up to me. We didn't connect the first time?

Q. You're playing with Samuel L. Jackson and Cheech Marin this week?

GEORGE LOPEZ: Yeah, I've known Sam for about ten years and Cheech even longer. We played yesterday. I think we're going to win. But to start with Mike, it's going to be great, and we've got some good pros. I've got Mike and Justin Leonard on Thursday and Daly on Friday, although we will wear ankle monitors with John on Friday. And Saturday we have Peter Jacobson. He's going to do his impersonation of Lee Trevino practically the whole day for me. Good guys, and a great way to start. Last year I played with Mike on Saturday, and to have him tomorrow and to get off to a good start will be nice.

Q. I have to ask you this question: Why are these courses left-handed?

MIKE WEIR: Yeah, the last few years. It's been three straight. Yeah, Phil won the year before. That's a tough one. I think it's just coincidence. The Masters the last two years, as well. It's just coincidental, I think. I don't think anything more than that. I think maybe the coincidence is both Phil and I played our college golf on the West Coast. We've played a lot of golf in the desert. Phil, obviously living in Phoenix for a long time, a lot of desert golf, and myself, too. I spent a lot of time down here. My coach is here in the desert so I spent a lot of time playing desert golf, so I think maybe that's more of the coincidence.

GEORGE LOPEZ: I just saw Robert Gamez on the range practicing left-handed.

JOAN v.T. ALEXANDER: Thanks, guys.

End of FastScripts.

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