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GREAT AMERICAN INSURANCE ATP CHAMPIONSHIP

August 8, 1996

Chris Woodruff

CINCINNATI, OHIO

GREG SHARKO: First question for Chris.

Q. What was the difference there during crunch time?

CHRIS WOODRUFF: Experience. The more I put myself in positions like that then the more it is going to become easier. So that was only the second time in my career that I have had -- someone on the ropes like that, and the first time I had someone on the ropes, I closed it out. And today I didn't close it out. So the more I go out here and play guys like that and it gets down to crunch time, I am sure I will start feeling much more comfortable.

Q. Were you in any rush there when you saw the clouds forming and you are serving and the wind is blowing, did you think you had to get it right then, is that --

CHRIS WOODRUFF: No. Nothing to do with it. Nothing to do with it. It had been like that probably the whole third set and, you know, started -- it started to pick up -- the wind started to pick up at 3-All in the third so that had nothing to do with it.

Q. Did he pick his game up a notch?

CHRIS WOODRUFF: He started to play pretty well. He played pretty well there when it -- when I served 4-5, 3 in, you know, he made me play which was good. He won a couple of -- two big returns there and he played well.

Q. After you get over the disappointment - I am sure it will be there for a little bit. But can you already take away, you know, next time when I am in that situation then -- you know, I mean, does that experience come right away, do you think that you maybe learned some things that you can do next time?

CHRIS WOODRUFF: Yeah. I mean, sure. If I didn't say I was disappointed, I would be kidding you and myself. I think I can take -- this was a very positive day in my young career, and I can take this and learn from it.

Q. When you were saying 5-3, I think you closed it out (inaudible) did anything have to do with the fact that you were thinking maybe this is the guy that is ranked higher; the guy who won the French Open?

CHRIS WOODRUFF: No, I wasn't sitting there thinking ever about the French Open, anything like that. Bottom line is he is just a good player. When you are playing -- a lot is at stake out there and when you play for it and you are young, like I am, then you are going to make mistakes like that.

Q. How about the call the line call at 15-All?

CHRIS WOODRUFF: 15-All -- I mean, I am not going to really comment on that. I think that there were, you know, he had to deal with a lot of miss-calls out there today. I had to deal with a lot of miss-calls out there, so in the end, I guess, it all evens out. That is just part of it. I can't control that.

Q. Did you get anxious at all (inaudible)?

CHRIS WOODRUFF: I guess I go back to what I said that I am young and you are going to make mistakes like that. Anybody who thinks they can just come out here and play great under pressure for the first time, I'd like to see it. All these mistakes, the balls I was hitting long; balls that went into the net; errors on my forehand and backhand, all that is experience, that is all that is.

Q. The fact that once you cracked through the top 100 this year; now you are getting in main draws, I guess, it all started building after Philadelphia?

CHRIS WOODRUFF: Well, that was, you know -- not really. It was starting to come together long before Philadelphia. Around December I started to find my game. I started out the year winning a pretty big tournament in Germany on indoor carpet; kind of jump started the year for me. I can't go back to a tournament and say this is where I made my breakthrough. I finally started to put all the pieces of the puzzle together. Some help from my coach. We have hung in there together. So there is no one tournament that I can point to and say that did it, but all the pieces of the puzzle are coming together.

Q. Another big match that you referred to--

CHRIS WOODRUFF: Which one? Oh, Agassi at the French Open.

Q. Has it been one part of your game that has come up late this year or is it just everything?

CHRIS WOODRUFF: Right. It is just everything -- I have always had the ability. It is -- my mind is finally starting to get settled out here. This is so different for me than what I was used to in college. It was a tough experience for me. So it is just mainly my mind starting to come together. Not so much my strokes. I haven't really changed technique. Just tried to tune everything up.

Q. You said you can learn from matches like this. What can you learn, how to approach some of the big points at the end?

CHRIS WOODRUFF: Right. Obviously you sit there and put yourself in situations like this, you are just going to be more comfortable in them, and today was a perfect example. I haven't been there enough times yet. Just goes to show that I am only human that we all make mistakes under pressure and that is the way it goes.

Q. When you go back to your hotel, will you play this over and over and beat yourself up over it since it was so close?

CHRIS WOODRUFF: No chance. If I do that, then I haven't learned anything from this match. If you sit around and -- I will think about it a little bit now; then I have got to move on because it is things like this that can, you know, wreck your career, and my example that I thought of on TV watched Scott Hope miss a 16 inch putt at the Masters, sure enough, it made Scott choke but that didn't stop him -- he has won several PGA tournaments since then, so I try to resort back to that thought and he has been a great champion and persevered through the tough times and able to win out on the Tour, so there is no reason why I can't either.

Q. Do you know him?

CHRIS WOODRUFF: No.

GREG SHARKO: Anything else for Chris? Thanks everyone.

End of FastScripts….

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