U.S. OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP

June 16, 2005

Brandt Jobe

RAND JERRIS: It's our pleasure to welcome Brandt Jobe to the interview area. Brandt had a round of 2 under par 68 this afternoon. You had six birdies on your card this afternoon. Did you think when you came out here this afternoon that six birdies would be possible on this golf course.

BRANDT JOBE: No. To be honest with you, I didn't think so. It's kind of one of those deals you don't really think about it, you're just out there and you know you're most likely going to make some bogeys, so you hope you make some birdies to offset those bogeys. I didn't really think about that before today.

Q. Talk about the playing conditions this afternoon. Is it the same golf course as the practice rounds or did the course change throughout the afternoon?

BRANDT JOBE: It really was kind of really what we had played in the practice rounds. Obviously the pin placements were a little more difficult, but pretty much the same. The last five or six holes were to the point where you could barely keep the ball on the green. I mean, you had a full L wedge into a hole and landed it five steps over the false front and barely kept the ball 30 yards in on the green. It was getting firm and very difficult out there.

RAND JERRIS: Take a moment to walk us through the birdies and bogeys on your card.

BRANDT JOBE: I birdied No. 1, 3 wood, sand wedge to about five feet.

No. 2, hit driver, 9 iron just right of the green and chipped it to about ten feet, missed it.

No. 3, I hit driver at the green, hit it just off the edge of the green and chipped it up about 15 feet, made it.

No. 4, the par 5, I hit driver, 3 iron over the green, putted it back to about five feet, made it.

No. 6, I hit a 3 iron to about 25 feet, made that.

No. 10, I hit driver, 3 wood about pin high and probably had a 40 yard chip and knocked that up about five feet, made that.

12, I hit driver in the right rough, chipped out to about 60 yards, hit it about 15 feet and missed it for bogey.

13, I hit driver, sand wedge about ten feet, made that.

17, I hit driver down the fairway, 7 iron right into the bunker and couldn't get it up and down.

18, I hit 8 iron on the middle of the green to about 40 feet and three putted for bogey.

Q. You had a very good tournament two weeks ago right up until about the 70th hole. Is this kind of a carry over, though? You really played well for a while at the Memorial.

BRANDT JOBE: Actually it was Colonial. Yeah, it's been a good so far it's been a good year and a good little stretch. I've been hurt for the last couple years. This has been the first year that I've been able to play 12 events and be healthy and out here swinging out of rough without a broken hand. There's a little excitement just to be out here and be doing this because if you had talked to me a year ago, it was iffy if I was going to be playing again. I couldn't feel half my hand. I'm pretty happy to be here just playing.

Q. You've been kind of on the fringe of playing well for quite a long time. You played well in Asia years back. What's been the catalyst for this great stretch of golf from you? You mentioned your wrist, but there's got to be something more building up to that.

BRANDT JOBE: Maybe some good things came out of this. I decided after I had gotten hurt and had so much time off, I was going to break down what's wrong with my golf game. You know, I really decided I wasn't making a real commitment to the way I was practicing, number one; number two, working enough with my coach, teacher, who actually came out here these days.

So we worked hard started to work hard on our swing, and then also, I went and worked with Stan Utley last August and changed my putting because that's been holding me back, my putting. I said, I'm going to try it, can't putt any worse than I have been.

This year my stats may not reflect overall on Tour. I think I'm 100th or 90th, but it's been good. I'm good enough to about win, good enough to it's been an improvement for me. I notice the improvements. Today I made some solid putts for whether it's par or even bogey, and those were putts I wasn't making before, and that's helped a lot.

I actually saw Stan this week, too, on the putting green. He kind of gave me a little tune up, and I think that's kind of helped me, too.

Q. I was wondering if you could speak to the quality of the guys in your immediate rear view mirror. You've got Tiger, Vijay and Phil all shot 70 or better. I think Ernie and Sergio are sitting on 71 and it looks like the World Rankings are in the not too distant far right behind you.

BRANDT JOBE: Yeah, the best is right there. They all basically put themselves right in position to win the golf tournament. You know, that's all anybody is trying to do the first day, is not shoot yourself out of it but keep yourself in it. Obviously a good round or if you're able to shoot a low one, that's a bonus.

In a U.S. Open, we all know at the end of the day even par is going to be a heck of a good score. That might even win out here. Anything around par or under par is a great start to the week.

Q. You mentioned the greens got firmer as the day went on. You're playing in the morning tomorrow; how much of an advantage will that be?

BRANDT JOBE: They'll sprinkle some water on them, I hope. It's getting a little rough out there. Obviously we were at the end of the wave today through the front nine. I think there was only three or four groups behind us. They're getting brown, crunchy, you could see a lot of the footprints, even kind of see the line of the ball. So they're getting close to where they want them, which is right at the edge. They're accomplishing what they did. If you didn't hit it in the fairway, even out of that first cut it was tough to control the ball. The rough is so deep, very rarely can you even have a chance to go at the green.

It's playing tough. When you're standing in the middle of the fairway with a sand wedge in your hand wondering if you're going to hit the green, they're accomplishing their goal.

Q. Behind the 4th green is probably the worst on the course in terms of the skanky approach area. Do you feel comfortable in terms of the lie and the shot that you had or is it a bit of a guessing game there and those little approach shots?

BRANDT JOBE: Well, I think there's enough of those areas where we've all kind of practiced that. Some guys are going to hit 3 wood, some guys are going to putt it. You figure coming in with a long iron, 2 iron or 3 wood, you're most likely going to be there. I actually used my putter because it's basically kind of a dirt area.

You know, I think we're all kind of aware of what the conditions are. It is what it is, and it's not fair or unfair, just it's unfortunate I guess in a way because I didn't play here in '99. I guess it was perfect around those areas. But it's the same for everyone.

Q. With the degree of difficulty out here, how good did you feel this one? If you're one of the ones that subscribe to the theory that over par is going to win this week?

BRANDT JOBE: You know, if the golf course continues to get more difficult, firmer, I really don't see how anybody is going to shoot under par. You'd have to play perfect golf. I mean, it's just going to be too difficult. The rough is so deep, I mean, if they're saying it's three inches or four inches, I don't know what they're claiming it is, but that ball goes straight to the bottom. You know, you struggle to hit it 100 yards in the air. I was three or four inches off the first cut, 100 yards to the front of the green, 80 yards to carry the bunkers and had to chip out sideways. When you put that extreme amount of rough into the equation, everybody is not going to hit every fairway. That's not going to happen.

And then you put the severity and the firmness of the greens, I'd take under par right now and see what happens, flip the coin right there. I'd feel pretty good.

Q. You're amongst the longest hitters out here and there seems to be a determination amongst the long hitters to hit drivers whenever you can because if you hit an iron in the rough you're completely screwed but if you hit a driver you might be able to get it near the green. Do you have a pre tournament idea like that or are you just trying to hit it in the fairway?

BRANDT JOBE: Yeah, a little bit. I've played a little bit Tom Pernice and I were talking about it. He's standing up there and hitting 2 iron. You miss the fairways by a couple inches you're wedging it out. I might as well take the gamble and get it up there another 50 yards, like you say, get it inside 150 yards so if I do hit it in the rough I've got a chance to get it somewhere around the green and potentially get it up and down. I'm kind of going with that theory a little bit today. I hit a lot of drivers.

Q. It's very premature on Thursday to even bring this up, but if you found yourself in the hunt Saturday, Sunday, with what Todd did last summer at the British help you in any way given your friendship and all the years you played together?

BRANDT JOBE: Well, I think so. Todd proved to the guys that have been over in Japan, Asia, traveling the world other than playing the PGA TOUR that all that hard work that we've done can pay off, and the places we were did prepare us to get out here and have the opportunity to win tournaments.

You know, I think that when you do I look back and I guess maybe your question was because Todd did it, maybe can I do it? Somewhat. Todd went out and did it and won the Honda tournament and then came out and won the British Open. When Todd gets on a roll and gets going, he's tough anywhere. When he gets right in the middle of things and playing, he's a tough competitor.

I'd love to have the opportunity just to see what happens, find out where I'm at. This is still early I'm only 10, 12 tournaments into my year. I'm still pretty excited about the year. It would be pretty fun, I'd love it. It would be a great challenge.

Q. Jason Gore I think was half kidding but not completely kidding when he said probably the best thing that could happen to a guy this week would be to drop your pin sheet and not even have it out there with you. I'm wondering how many flags you truly took dead aim at today, even like you were saying, sand wedge, middle of the fairway, wondering can I get this on the green?

BRANDT JOBE: No, I don't think you could take dead aim at a pin today. I started on the 1st hole and I hit 3 wood off the tee and I think I had about 104 yards, which would be a perfect sand wedge for me with good spin, and I ended up playing a 92 yard shot, bouncing it back there and got it to within five feet. I'm watching the thing saying stay on the green, don't kick right, don't go long. All those thoughts are going through my head. You can't go at a pin. There's no such thing. It's just getting too firm and you can't control you can't get enough spin on these fairways. They're kind of that Bermuda where the ball doesn't sit up and you get that lie, and you dig in and it's tough to control the ball.

Q. What's your California connection? I saw this section on you that says Menlo Park.

BRANDT JOBE: I was wondering the same thing. No, my manager Ralph Cross is from Menlo Park, so he registered me and I guess on line did it all for me, and I was somewhere, and he just put that I guess they needed a mailing address through him.

Q. You live in Texas?

BRANDT JOBE: I live in Southlake, Texas, yes.

RAND JERRIS: Brandt, thanks for your time and congratulations on your play today.

BRANDT JOBE: Thank you.

End of FastScripts.