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BUICK INVITATIONALJanuary 24, 2007John DalyLA JOLLA, CALIFORNIA JOE CHEMYCZ: We welcome John Daly, past champion of the Buick Invitational. You got a chance to play the North Course this morning. Maybe just talk about that and we'll open it up for questions. JOHN DALY: We had a good time this morning. It was early. But the thing is they overseeded the course. Last year the rough was so tough you could just chip out a lot. I think the scores are going to be low if the wind is down. Q. We noticed you were working with Michael Owen and I was wondering about your swing right now, is he helping you out? JOHN DALY: Yeah, I hired Owe at Hawaii. I just needed some eyes. He fixed my putting pretty much instantly. I was going the wrong way. I was flattening the putter instead of going more upright. My backswing -- just hitting some off the toe and then trying to hit them on the heel, and I've been cutting the putts so bad the last couple years, even on the monitors. I get on the putting monitors it looks great, but when I go out and play I feel like I'm cutting everything. So he helped me with the putting a little bit and on my swing a little bit, with the takeaway. Q. There's obviously two discrepancies between the North and South, length and toughness and whatnot. Do you feel like the growing concern is the North is too much easier than the South, or do you think that's a good mix? JOHN DALY: I think it's a good mix. You know, it's just a little shorter than the South, and the South is I think more treacherous -- it's tougher from the front of the greens. The North Course you can roll the ball on the greens. The South Course you can't do that too much. I've always preferred just one golf course, but it doesn't make any difference. But the South Course is so much harder, I think two or three shots harder because the length, and the greens are a lot harder, I think. But yeah, the North is a lot easier, but I've still got to make some putts. Q. You've spoken a lot about hunting out sponsor's exemptions this year. What does it mean to come back here as a former champion? JOHN DALY: It's like any other tournament that you're fortunate enough to win. It just gives you good vibes, gives you confidence, and it's great that I could get in. I mean, the sponsor's exemptions have been going great. But this whole West Coast, I was a little worried, I didn't know what was going to happen. There's so many great players have come out of this, San Diego and LA and all that, that LA was the first one that gave me one. It just makes me feel good. There's so many of them that I don't know if I can play in all of them. But that's a good thing. No, I'm just excited. It's always great to come back to a place that you've won. That means you've had some good success, and you can have maybe just a little bit more confidence on tournaments that you've won at. Q. Speaking of defending champs, Tiger is trying to win this thing for the third year in a row, and seventh PGA TOUR start in a row, and looks like he's kind of getting up to his old tricks. In your mind is it a good thing when the Tour has a very dominant alpha male guy who seemingly reels off all the wins, or does that maybe get stale in the minds of the fans, or is it a mixed bag? I don't know. JOHN DALY: It makes us want to play harder and beat him. Tiger is so hard to beat. It doesn't matter -- if he's a front-runner he's impossible to beat it seems like. So it's very difficult to come from behind against Tiger. But you know, it's great for the game, but it would be great if it was me who knocked him off of that, you know. That's the way I look at it. I love him to death, don't get me wrong, but I would love to be the one to beat him so he wouldn't be able to make seven in a row. That's what we're all out here for is to get better. It's amazing what he does. He's shooting for seven in a row. I think was it Byron Nelson that had 11 in a row? In that day and age, I mean, I don't know if there was that many players that Byron was playing against that Tiger is playing against these days. So 11 in a row or 12 in a row would be definitely a lot harder than probably what Byron did because there's so many more great players now and the TOUR is so big. Every guy that tees it up has a chance to win. But no, I don't think it's stale. It's good for the TOUR. It gets stale for us because he's winning every week (laughter). That's what kind of sucks a little bit is he's winning every week. But I don't think the fans regret it. I think the fans love to see it. I think it's great for the game. Q. There was talk during Tiger's press conference, he's having his first child this summer. What do you think about the effect of children on commitment to golf? There's a lot of talk about once somebody has a child it changes their focus, commitment, a lot of things. What's your whole view on that? JOHN DALY: I wanted to be his child (laughter). If I was a child I wouldn't play golf anymore, I'd be sitting in a boat somewhere spending all dad's money (laughter). I've been trying to get him to adopt me for the last five years, but he wouldn't do it. It will change his life. It definitely does. Anyone who's had kids, it does change your life. Your responsibilities get a little more focused on the children than it does on your game sometimes, but Tiger, the way he manages himself and the good people around him, it's not going to affect his game, I promise you. Q. You obviously played very -- JOHN DALY: Is that the quote of the week (laughter)? Q. You obviously played very well against Tiger at Harding Park in San Francisco and took him to the playoff. Seems like you've struggled since then. Was it hard to get past the disappointment of that and what's changed in your game since that tournament? JOHN DALY: No, like last year injuries and whatnot, nothing went right last year. You're going to have those years. There's been years that Nicklaus didn't win a tournament and didn't play good. It was just a tough year last year. This year I've been staying out on the West Coast this whole time after The Skins Game and been practicing really hard. Between '05 and '06 I went to Arkansas, Memphis and really didn't have a chance to practice because the weather was so bad. I've worked real, real hard on product with the Maxfli, Taylor Made stuff and golf balls and just been practicing harder than I ever have. I think that's something that I need to probably do, to look at more often, is to have a chance to stay out West and have a chance to do stuff I need to do commercial-wise or days I need to do for some of the sponsors before the next year; I think it's a lot easier. It's better to be out here during the wintertime than back in Memphis or Arkansas. The weather is horrible. Q. Talk about Harding Park. Beyond obviously the missed putt, but everything leading up to that was a cool atmosphere? JOHN DALY: The fans, I mean, we should have an event there every year. It's one of the golf courses you can hit driver on. Every player loved it. I just putted bad that week. I mean, I don't think I could have ever hit the ball any better in a tournament, maybe the BC Open in '92. I think I was 18-under or something. I haven't hit the ball that good in a long, long time for 72 holes. I putted horrible. If I would have putted halfway decent, I probably could have won by five or six shots. But that's the thing, you've got to make putts to win. I've been working hard on that, too. Q. It was definitely cool, though, to be battling Tiger? JOHN DALY: If you're battling Tiger you know you're going for either first or second, so it's a nice feeling, you know. Q. They have really struggled with the greens here the last couple years on the South Course ever since the redesign. It's just been a monster struggle to get them right. From your victory until now and what you've played this week, where are they at, how much farther do they need to go? They've grown a lot of poa on them, but how much farther do they need to go from where they are now? JOHN DALY: It's tough. You look at a course like Pebble Beach, I don't know how they get a mower on the fairways because there's so many players that play that golf course and pay to come and play it and it's such a landmark in golf that it's very difficult to get it where they want it. They've got to get lights on the mowers and get out here at 4:00 o'clock in the morning because as soon as the sun comes up there's somebody on the tee. Pebble Beach is the same way. They are never going to get the greens the way they want to get them, there's so much play on them. And the frost has killed the rough, has hurt it a little bit. The USGA is going to love it. Come next year in June, if it stays like this, they'll fry them. You know how they'll do it. Those things will be rolling 15, 20 on the stimp. Trying to think, can you imagine if the U.S. Open played the 6th hole at the North Course and had the greens rolling about 16 or 17? It would be like 7 at Shinnecock. But no, the course is in great shape. The fairways are great. A lot of kikuyu has come in, which this would be a great place if it was all kikuyu fairways. It probably will. You can see it where it's come in a lot. But no, when you have frost and stuff, it doesn't matter where it's at, it really takes a toll on the golf course for growing grass. Q. You've already answered part of the question, but what do you think this place is going to look like next June when the USGA gets done with it? JOHN DALY: I hope I'm here, but I will have to already be qualified because I'm not going to go qualify, but it's going to be -- I think it's going to be one of the toughest -- you know, especially with the way the rough is going to be. 18 is going to be a par 4, I think they might move the tee up, I don't know, but let's just put it this way. I killed a driver and hit a nice 3-wood in there yesterday. That's a tough par 4 if you ask me. They've taken out a ton of trees, which when the wind is blowing, that's going affect a lot. It's going to be brutal like any other U.S. Open. It really is. Q. (Inaudible.) JOHN DALY: The thing about -- yeah, it's going to be kind of like that because with the greens we play on, they're pretty soft. They're like normal TOUR greens that we play. But coming out of the rough on some of these greens, it's death over every green on the South Course. You go over the green on any green on the South Course, it's death. You're going to catch a lot of flyers and the greens aren't going to hold anyway. You're going to be trying to land short and try and roll some up or play out of the bunkers. It's going to be one of the toughest U.S. Opens ever, especially if the wind blows. Q. You've taken a youngster from this area, Pat Perez, under your wing. I wonder, do you think he's ready to win? JOHN DALY: Pat is definitely ready to win. I've been with Pat for three or four years he's been out here, five years he's been out here. I've played a lot of practice rounds with him. I'm telling the truth, this guy is one of the best ball strikers I've ever seen. I don't know why he hasn't won, Owe hasn't figured out why he hasn't won. He wants everything to be just perfect when he hits a golf shot, and you can't. That's something he has to learn. As good as he is around the greens, he should have won already. He's just got to relax on the practice rounds and Pro-Ams and just relax a little bit, but he's got so much talent, but he's one of the best ball strikers I've seen. It reminds me of the way Fuzzy used to hit it when I played with Fuzzy. Fuzzy never used to miss a shot, but Fuzzy didn't care and that's why he won (laughter). I think Pat is to the point where his talent is so good, he expects to win. He's playing really, really good, so he will win, but he just can't force it. Q. You referred to all the stuff you had last year, the injuries and then the Sherrie stuff and so forth and the game suffered. Where is all that, your game, the Sherrie stuff, you guys are trying to work it out, and then also the health? JOHN DALY: Well, hand is good. The finger was broke, it's good now. I had torn ligaments right here in my palm right there, and I had the sciatic nerve that lasted for six to eight weeks. That's what killed me. All my favorite tournaments started around Houston. I had to withdraw from FedEx in Memphis, which is my home course, had to withdraw from Memorial, so all my fun tournaments that I feel like I'm going to play decent in, I lost out on. But the injuries is what really, really hurt the most. It's tough. You know, a football player, you can get two broken hands, they just tape you up and you go play because you can work around them. In golf you need all ten fingers and you need your back and stuff like that. It was just brutal, nothing went right last year. Q. Can you talk about what it was like to get that first exemption or sponsor's exemption letter from Nissan? Can you talk about what that was like, and then of course all the other ones, what that did for you, if you ever had a down moment or if you were lacking about what people thought about you and how did that help you getting all those exemptions? JOHN DALY: It was great. LA called I think before the letter got there, and that's what was neat. That was very nice. I've had wonderful, wonderful times at Riviera at the Nissan, and then it just followed. I think Phoenix was second, then AT & T, the Hope offered me one and then here right around the same time. So I mean, it's a wonderful feeling. To know that they did it quick, and understanding that my schedule is still pretty -- I have a lot of stuff I do, outings and stuff and corporate days, and it was great that they went ahead and gave them to me early so I could set my schedule. So it's a wonderful feeling. Q. When you were a little bit younger you used to talk about winning The Masters a lot. How much is that still on your mind, and are you ever concerned that you're running out of time? JOHN DALY: A few players have won it in their 40s, so yeah, I'd love to win The Masters. I'd love to win all four. I've got the PGA and the British, but yeah, you play to win those majors. The thing is I've got to get in them. I've only been in the last three out of six -- three out of four or five years or whatever. Not knowing if you're in it is tough. You've got to work hard to get in it. Yeah, I definitely want to win The Masters. I've just got to play in it. Q. I just want to follow up on this Masters question. What is it about the tournament that you like so much? It's obvious you have a lot of feelings and care greatly about it. What is it about that tournament and what is your favorite memory probably from playing there? JOHN DALY: My favorite memory is watching Nicklaus win it in '86. Watching it on TV made me want to win it even more. I turned pro in '87 after he won. That was to me the most ultimate victory I've ever seen, watching a 46-year-old man win The Masters. Nothing against what Tiger has done, but to see Jack, who I had been watching since I was a kid, made me say I want to win that one year. Or if I can win as many as I can, it would be great. So it was the most ultimate golf tournament still to this day that I've ever seen on TV, to see him win. It made me want to win Augusta even more. I don't like the changes at Augusta. I think it was such a great golf course when there was no rough. Just the mystique is gone a little bit, but still, it's Augusta. You see all the people who have won it, the people who have walked it, it's kind of like St. Andrews to me. It's amazing. Q. You said you're playing Pebble this year. You've played there in the past? JOHN DALY: Yeah, me and Darius Rucker from Hootie and the Blowfish are going to play. Q. What's the dialogue like at an event like that between you and the celebrities or the amateurs? Do you talk much when you have a memorable encounter with a celebrity during the AT & T? JOHN DALY: Oh, yeah, I played Joe Pesce one year; you think he's not going to talk? Oh, it's everything besides golf, so that made it more fun. But Darius is serious about his game, but he has fun with it. He's got his handicap down. I told him to go out and play some golf and shoot some 82s and 83s real quick and get your handicap up so we have a chance to win because the course is playing so long for the amateurs up there. That's why Pesce doesn't want to go back. He can't reach the par 4s and he gets mad. It makes it tough on some of those amateurs, especially if it rains all the time. But no, everybody that plays has a great time. I had a great time with Tom Driesen one year; we missed the cut by a shot. He's like a 4 handicap, which your lower handicappers, unless they make a ton of birdies and your pro is playing really good, really have a disadvantage to the tournament. You need a handicap around 12 to 18 that basically lies about their handicap (laughter). Q. Any particularly funny printable moment with Pesce? He's so colorful. JOHN DALY: Well, the first tee at Spyglass on No. 10, I think it was four years ago, everybody was quiet, and there's this bird just chirping away, chirping away, and Pesce looks up and says shut the ---- up, and there was a pause there for a minute and everybody just kind of laughed. It was like a movie scene for him. You can use that language when you're a movie star, but if I would have used that language I'd still be banned from the TOUR. Q. I'm wondering can you envision what this TOUR would be like if Tiger Woods had never been born? What would it be, tennis, badminton? How different would it be? JOHN DALY: I'd have a better chance to win some tournaments maybe. I don't know. You could say the same thing with Annika and what she has done the last few years in the LPGA. He's made everybody play a different game, made everybody work harder. The fitness thing I'm not going to get into, which I'm never going to do. Just thinking about that makes me want to throw up (laughter). But I think everybody has elevated their game, practicing harder, working harder on their games. I think it's a good thing. And if you do beat him, that's even more satisfaction because he is to me right now -- I know he hasn't broken Nicklaus' records, but he will. It's just meant to be. End of FastScripts |
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