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BELL CANADIAN OPEN

September 7, 2004

Stephen Ames

OAKVILLE, ONTARIO

JOEL SCHUCHMANN: Stephen Ames, thank you for joining us on a rainy Tuesday. If you could talk about your season so far, you've had a great year, ten Top-10s, a win at the Cialis Western Open and Top-10s in two majors. Great year for you, maybe just talk about your season so far.

STEPHEN AMES: Like I said, it's been solid up to Cialis and PGA I played well there. But overall, my ball-striking has been very good. My short game has been a little untidy at times and those times, that's the part of the game that's held me back a little bit probably with from winning again at this stage.

Overall, no, very satisfied with the way things have gone this year for me. It's been a big, big step for me from the way I played the last five years on TOUR and it's worked out well.

Q. Just looking ahead, everyone is looking at Ryder Cup right now, but looking ahead to the Presidents Cup, if you could take a look at the international team, you're having a great year, you have guys like Adam Scott coming up and Vijay has taken No. 1, looking pretty good for the international side. If you could talk about that team?

STEPHEN AMES: I think it's looking very good for the international side. Overall I think that's the hardest team to make because of the fact that they have got more international players that are probably Top-10 in the world. Other than the fact that Tiger and Phil, who are the only two Americans, the rest of all foreigners, international. So it's a tough team to get onto, very tough.

Q. So would you say the Ryder Cup is overrated?

STEPHEN AMES: No, it's not overrated. Just it's been around longer than the Presidents Cup has.

Q. Adam Scott, for example, does he really kind of make it stand out for you, an up-and-coming guy like that?

STEPHEN AMES: Yeah, because of his age, his golf swing, his attitude. He's got a very professional attitude in all aspects of life and what it takes to compete out here with the working out and physical part. I'm sure he's got a mental coach that he works with. Yeah, he's a great player.

Q. I'm sure you heard about the passing of Mo Norman, if you had the opportunity, I'm sure you weren't too familiar with him, but did you have the opportunity to watch him on the range during the early part of the Canadian Open and what were your thoughts on his swing?

STEPHEN AMES: Different. I think the only thing that was different about Mo's swing was the fact the setup was unique. He set up exceptionally far from the golf ball. The club head was never set directly behind the ball itself. It was always I think a foot to two feet behind him when he started off. Technically going back down on to the golf ball, it was perfect. You could not find a better position at the feet at the golf ball than his. That's why he hit it as straight as he hit.

Q. You're a new Canadian and you're going after the Canadian Open. From an emotional standpoint, how does that play in and what are your thoughts this week leading into this tournament?

STEPHEN AMES: I haven't sat down and reflected on it that way. Sure, playing the Canadian Open now, as a Canadian, that's different for me in that sense, but maybe in your sense, you look at it that way. But in my sense, I look at it as home; it's been home for ten years since I moved to Calgary and that's the way I've reflected over the last couple of years playing it, it's a big week for me because more media and people want autographs and stuff like that. I have more friends here in Toronto obviously so trying to muster up and get more tickets. It's a more difficult week for me.

In respect of events, yeah every event we play in we want to put 100% effort in to try to win the event and prestige-wise it's always good to win a National Open, and the Canadian is a National Open and it would be a wonderful feat if I did do it.

Q. 100 years of this tournament and 50 years since a Canadian won the tournament, feeling any pressure?

STEPHEN AMES: No, none at all.

Q. You mentioned Calgary is your hometown and next year the tournament is Shaughnessey, closer to home, but are you excited about that next year from a regional standpoint?

STEPHEN AMES: Yeah, it's closer to home. Not close enough but close to yeah, an hour's flight will be nice.

I'm working on trying to get it to Calgary. I think as a National Open I think it should be going around. They are trying to do it but a lot of it is over here on the East Coast.

Q. Are you the type of guy that you when you win a PGA TOUR event the goals become loftier? I'm specifically looking at the Presidents Cup next year and then into 2007, are you the type of guy that's going to set bar higher and start thinking about Presidents Cup, or does that sort of take care of itself?

STEPHEN AMES: I'm not a big fan of team playing. Never have been. I think the reason a lot of people watch the Ryder Cup is because of the rivalry that they have had over the years or maybe other people have perceived it to be. I'm not a big fan of it.

When that time comes for me to play Presidents Cup, then I'll decide if I'm going to play or not. I might be the first not to play, I don't know. I'm not a big fan, to be truthful, at all. So I haven't really sat down and thought about that situation just yet.

Q. Your mechanics have always been great, but since you started to work with Alan Fine, players say that the mechanical side of it is one thing, but the psychological side is equally important. Can you talk about what Al has done with him and how you came to work with him? I know he worked with David Feherty some time ago.

STEPHEN AMES: And David was a hell of a player. I think what killed David was the fact with his wife he didn't feel the need to continue focus and playing and I think he's got a better job what he's doing right now. I think he's enjoying that very much. Alan helped me be the person that I can be or have been this year. For me, it's always been a bit of understanding why I did certain things a certain way. And in this case now, I'm getting over each golf shot not worrying about what the result is going to be and a little bit more focusing on what I want to do with the golf ball beforehand, where before when I didn't do that, there was no -- there was no deliberacy in what I wanted to do with it. So I had to change my focus that way and say, this is the shape I want to hit it, start at this target. My mechanics are good enough to do it but I had to program my mind to let my mechanics do it that way.

The funny thing is that going into the PGA this year, that part of it had slipped from me since the Western Open, and that's the reason I missed those three cuts going in there. I felt good, but just couldn't score and do the things that I wanted to do; and I realized I had gotten away from not programming what I had to do. So one was the PGA and I started doing it again, and obviously I played very well coming into the end, but I had the two weeks off and I've come back out here. Monday, yesterday, was the first day I've played for two weeks, and after that I came back out again. So I know what I have to do to get it there. Just a matter of doing it like I said. Those are the biggest things he's changed for me is that.

Q. Curious about your thoughts about this particular venue, four years ago, after 54 you were probably on the precipice of doing something really great. Just wondering about how you have grown as a player and person in the four years that have brought you to the level where you've been able to accomplish what you have this year?

STEPHEN AMES: I think I've grown a lot over those four years. I think I've got to the stage now where I understand my golf swing, how to hit certain shots, why I don't hit certain shots. I remember that year distinctly because of the fact that after going out, I didn't eat very well. And since that time, it's been almost two years now that I have a heavy regimen in working out, eating properly, making sure I eat every three hours. There's a lot I learned from that particular day.

Pressure, golf-swing-wise, yeah, it was on me, but I didn't know how to control it. I think now is the first time I know how to control it, and if I was in that situation now I would have a lot more confidence going into the last round.

Q. Talking about your balance of family and what you do, you seem to place a high priority on the amount of time you spend during the regular tour with your family. As you just indicated your two-week heights, how important is it for you to spend time with your kids and your wife, and at the same time give the appropriate time to what you do for a living?

STEPHEN AMES: I think it's exceptionally important. I think it's the same with everybody's life; that you should have a balance in everything, you know, ten percent for yourself, ten percent for your family, ten percent for your golf swing, a little bit more. You've got to have a nice big circle of everything equally balanced in that sense, what works for you.

For me, I've noticed that I need to have my downtime and my up time. I need to have family life involved. When they are out on TOUR with me, it's exceptionally difficult. We've come to realize that now even more.

So we have learned from that, which our summer holiday has just gone. I've learned from it, and I think for me, being a dad is being a big priority in my life. I've enjoyed my two boys around me a lot and my wife knows that a lot, so she's put on the sideline at times. I enjoy being a dad; it's a lot of fun watching them grow up.

Q. Could you give us your impressions of the course and did you play here yesterday?

STEPHEN AMES: Yeah, I played yesterday. I played in the Pro-Am yesterday. I think it was the first time I've seen the ball running on these fairways, actually, because it was exceptionally firm. And after today's rain, with this rain falling right now, it's probably going to change it up a bit. I thought it played exceptionally short, but at the same time it was tough because the greens were very firm.

I think it's the first time also, this year, that we are seeing grass in the valley greens, also, 11, 12, 13, considering what they have gone through and what they have always gone through here, I think the condition of the golf course is in very great condition. The best it's probably ever been.

Q. At the final round of the PGA you talked about what might happen Sunday and you were very graceful afterwards in defeat. Wondering a month later, time to reflect on what you learned and what was the greatest lesson on that experience?

STEPHEN AMES: I need to work on my short game more. (Laughing).

That's something I brought up with Dennis when I saw him last week. We've put so much emphasis on last few years on my golf swing and trying to get it tighter, shorter and faster. We've put emphasis on this year and it's reflected somewhat, but I still think I need to put more and more emphasis on that part of it.

In majors, it's just hanging around till Sunday last nine holes and if you have an opportunity of grabbing it, if the flag is in the middle of the green, take it to win a major. And especially there at Whistling Straits, it was a matter of the guy who hung out the most came out in the end; Justin was that, Vijay was that, and so was Chris DiMarco.

Q. Your old pal, Tiger Woods, no longer No. 1. We know what Tiger has brought to the game of golf the last few years. Good thing or bad thing for golf, big picture, that he's no longer the head cheese?

STEPHEN AMES: I don't know. I think we'll know that when he signs the next contract for TV if it's a good thing for now. It's got to be good, and it's not bad if Tiger not playing well, especially for the aspect of youth itself. He was a young Tiger when he was coming up, most successful at a young age. Now when he's not playing well -- you know what, he's still playing well. He's not swinging as well as probably as he was in 2000 or 2001, but still a hell of a player.

He's still competing against us and finishing Top 3 almost every week that he's playing. If he's not winning, he's finishing Top 3. That just shows the character of the guy and the quality of the player that he is. He's not swinging at his best and still able to knock down on the door every time that he goes out and plays.

I put it in another perspective. It's fortunate for us that more people are winning: Vijay winning six times after a phenomenal year, he won five times last year; it's another phenomenal year. I think he should be where he is, No. 1 in the world right now, without a doubt, even though he has not won a major in those two years.

Q. I know you said you don't feel any pressure coming in this week, but the year you've had and the expectations for Mike Weir trying to win this tournament, do you think the expectations for you have been raised and every's focus will be on you this week and do you expect that?

STEPHEN AMES: I don't know if the focus is going on me. I think the focus is probably going to be on Vijay and Phil. Maybe for the Canadian part of it, yeah. I'm going to enjoy the limelight, people accepting me now as a Canadian. I'm going to be playing the best I can for Canada and myself on this stage. I'm looking forward to it. Don't mind it at all.

Q. Don't want to stay hanging on the team golf thing, but you and Robert, you played some team golf when you were growing up. And so specifically, what is it about team golf that you really don't like, and is it one of those things that takes you out of your comfort level on the golf course; is that what it is?

STEPHEN AMES: Yeah, because I'm not in full control. Somebody else is in control also. So if it's alternate-shot, I could be standing up against a tree or in a tree trying to hit the next shot, and I didn't put it there myself; somebody put me there.

ItÃ¢ï¿½ï¿½s just me. I've never been a team sport guy. Never have been. That's the reason why I picked up golf, an individual sport.

You know, the experience of playing in competition, and of course the extra cash just put me over the edge kind of thing. It was a Christmas present every year.

Q. You touched on the World Rankings, among the guys on TOUR, what's the feeling, is it antiquated or ridiculous, was the feeling that Vijay should have been No. 1 before yesterday?

STEPHEN AMES: It's kind of hard. Well, you tell me. Tiger, it's eight years since he's been on TOUR?

JOEL SCHUCHMANN: This is his ninth year.

STEPHEN AMES: This is Tiger's ninth year on TOUR. And in nine years, he's won 40 events and eight of those are majors. Vijay has just crossed 20 and won three majors, am I correct? You tell me.

Those are the figures that they have and that's why it took him a while to get -- surpass him in that sense, yeah. Tiger is by far, you can see the numbers, the numbers are there. That's my feeling. It may be different for everybody else.

Q. You talked about the condition of the golf course before, what are your impressions of the changes that they have made at Glen Abbey, did you think that the changes were necessary to toughen it up?

STEPHEN AMES: Well, they have only made three changes, is it? The 12th tee, the par 3, that's longer through the back now. That was a 5-iron, 6-iron in there; now where we're hitting 3-irons 4-irons, so that's all the way back. So it might be 4-iron for the most. Maybe 5-iron again with the new ball as far as we are all hitting it now.

13 has now become a challenge of a hole, deciding from you're going to go for it. It's a tougher second shot now. Before it was a little easier.

And in making 16 a par 4, that's not my favorite change. The other two I thought were good. They had to change the golf course because of the fact that we are playing it longer, we are hitting longer all together.

I would have loved to have seen maybe the fairways tighten up a bit more, and maybe the rough not be as high, but still give us an opportunity of get it out rather than laying it up. This golf course, over the years -- it's funny, four years ago, I thought it was a long golf course. So when I played it on Monday, I thought, gosh, I don't remember hitting this many wedges in here.

It's changed. The weather is going to change it again and make it softer; it's unfortunate. Hopefully it will dry up and make it firmer and tougher to hit.

But I think as a National Open, I think most Canadians think that way, and I think most media think that way, also. As a National Open it should be moved around Canada. There are some places that can host it and some places that can't. I think here they should be trying to improve that and share the opportunity of seeing the greatest players in Canada by going to different places in Canada and playing.

Q. Given the win and the attention put on you now, you have a tendency to sort of speak your behind mind and always have. Have you had to temper that, given that there's more notoriety on you and the press pays more attention to you than in the past or is it still just Stephen being Stephen?

STEPHEN AMES: Stephen being Stephen more than anything else, yeah. I've always spoken my mind, what's on my mind. It got me in trouble a couple of times but I've dealt with it. Yeah, the things that I'm not saying are not false statements are they? No, okay. But they are statements we are probably all thinking of.

JOEL SCHUCHMANN: Stephen Ames, thank you very much.

End of FastScripts.

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