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JOHN DEERE CLASSIC

July 14, 2006

John Huston

SILVIS, ILLINOIS

JOAN v.T. ALEXANDER: Thank you, John, for joining us for a few minutes here in the media center at the John Deere Classic. First guy we've really had in this afternoon. Maybe talk about the conditions from when you started till when you finished. Obviously you're in great position going into the weekend.

JOHN HUSTON: Yeah, I thought it played fairly tough starting off. The wind was blowing a little bit and then it kind of calmed down. You know, it's still soft, and with the heat I would imagine it will stay soft. I didn't play fantastic, but I hit enough good shots and my short game was good enough that I shot a good score.

Q. Are you surprised that 9 is within one as soft as things are, that somebody didn't go crazy?

JOHN HUSTON: A little. I thought somebody might get to 12 or 13, but there's some hard holes. There's some hard holes coming in on the front, and I really didn't hit too many good shots the last few holes. I felt like if I could get to 12 or 13 you know how that goes.

Q. Talk about the eagle at 2 and just that obviously it was a big catalyst to the round today.

JOHN HUSTON: Yeah, I haven't played the par 5s very well, and I didn't hit a good drive and I had to lay up and I laid up to about 65 yards, and I hit a good shot but I think had it not gone in, it probably would have spun back eight or ten feet from the hole, so I got a good break.

Q. Pin got in the way?

JOHN HUSTON: Yes, it did.

Q. What did you hit?

JOHN HUSTON: Lob wedge.

Q. There's always a lot of talk at a tournament like this when the scores are low about guys making lots of birdies, but you've only made one bogey. Last year Sean won the thing by only making three bogeys. Is that a key as much as anything, just don't make any mistakes?

JOHN HUSTON: That's been the key for me the first few days because I've missed several greens and have been able to get up and down, all except for that second to last hole.

Q. I don't know if you heard about Michelle Wie withdrawing because of heat exhaustion. How much of a problem was the heat out there?

JOHN HUSTON: You know, I think we're all pretty much used to the heat. We know, especially in the summertime, Chicago here, it's going to be hot. You know, I live in Florida, grew up in Florida, so I'm uncomfortable as anybody but really try not to think about it too much.

Q. What was in particular working for you, what part of your game?

JOHN HUSTON: Putting well, but when I have missed the green, most of the time I've chipped it for a gimme or out of the bunker or whatever. That's really been the key to keeping my round going.

Q. Does anything about your position surprise you at this point?

JOHN HUSTON: No, I'm playing better. I haven't played well at all this year, but I am playing better. I like the course. But still, you have to be able to do it for four days, and I haven't been able to do that this year. Hopefully this weekend will turn it around.

Q. What's going to be some of the keys for you this weekend?

JOHN HUSTON: I think I need to drive it better, keep giving myself chances, not at 45 the less pressure you can put on your putting, the better. If I'm putting in the right situation, I feel like I'm still putting pretty well.

Q. This has been a good place for guys to win their first, and 10 of the top 15 or something like that are guys who haven't won before. There's four or five of you guys who have. Do you have a little edge going into the weekend do you think?

JOHN HUSTON: No, not really. I mean, there's still a long ways to go, and it's all about shooting the lowest score. Anything can happen, I just maybe if you get to the last nine the last few holes, that may be a factor, but still, you still have to do it when it counts.

Q. I'll get a different answer tomorrow if I ask you the same question if it's the same spot?

JOHN HUSTON: Maybe late on Sunday.

Q. Because of all the moisture in the greens especially, are they a tad slower?

JOHN HUSTON: Yeah, they are a little bit slower than what we're used to, but they are rolling they're rolling nice and they're holding up, too. Footprints aren't too bad.

JOAN v.T. ALEXANDER: Let's just go through your round today. You started on 10, birdied 14.

JOHN HUSTON: 14, I hit like a Rescue club off the tee and hit a lob wedge to about ten feet.

16, birdie on the par 3, hit a 9 iron about 12 feet behind the hole.

I already talked about 2.

Then 4, hit a 9 iron about 15 feet.

Bogeyed No. 8, missed the fairway in the fairway bunker, had a really good lie with just a pitching wedge and I hit it fat. It kind of rolled down in the bunker again leaving myself a long bunker shot, and I hit it about 15 feet past the hole and missed it.

Q. Much has been made about the presence of a Michelle Wie in this field. Joe Ogilvie said earlier that he thought it was a really good thing that she's playing events on the Tour and he thought she should play more of them. What are your thoughts on having a Michelle Wie type of presence here on the Tour?

JOHN HUSTON: Well, it's kind of hard for me to say, but I think if I was coaching her, I would tell her maybe somewhere down the road, not now. You know, I think the more times she misses the cut, the more it's going to be in her head, the harder it's going to be. Making the cut, to most of it is not really that big of a deal. I would say if she keeps improving, somewhere down the line, I have no problem with her playing out here. But I think maybe she's not quite ready yet.

Q. Is there a process to learning how to play with the lead? A couple guys were in here that were on the board last Joe and Daniel specifically, that were on the board at the Western and said they got a little bit out of their routine.

JOHN HUSTON: Yeah, I think maybe the pace of play. Certainly today was a long round. It can get to you. But you just have to just keep doing what you've been doing. I think that the pressure of the lead, it just magnifies things. I think if you're playing really well, it can make you play better, and if you're getting it around not playing that great, it can expose that and make you play worse.

JOAN v.T. ALEXANDER: Thank you, John. Appreciate your time.

End of FastScripts.

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