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BOOZ ALLEN CLASSIC

June 8, 2005

Chris DiMarco

BETHESDA, MARYLAND

THE MODERATOR: We welcome Chris DiMarco to the 2005 Booz Allen Classic. Chris, first off, you just finished a round here at Congressional. I don't remember if you played '97.

CHRIS DiMARCO: I didn't.

THE MODERATOR: So your first impressions of the course here?

CHRIS DiMARCO: Very good. Long. Playing really long with the wet fairways. Poa annua greens, so they're a little bumpy. I'm sure when The Open was here, they were probably cut a little tighter and a lot probably a lot smoother. They're going to be a little bumpy this week.

THE MODERATOR: You have four Top 10s this year, a couple seconds. Much like a couple of the other guys, you've been knocking on the door but just not able to bust through it this year. Assess your season.

CHRIS DiMARCO: Well, I put myself in position to win a couple tournaments. I played very well at the match play, ran into David Toms playing phenomenal. I obviously played very good at the Masters, and Tiger played just as good. I played really good at New Orleans. That's probably one I felt like I probably let get away more than the other ones. The other ones I played good golf, I just got beat, where at New Orleans I might have beat myself a little bit.

THE MODERATOR: We'll open the floor for questions.

Q. I'm sure a lot of guys are here just because of the timing, the week before The Open. Would there ever be a time when you play a particular tournament just because of the course it was going on played on?

CHRIS DiMARCO: I think this is a perfect example this week. I think that's why you're seeing everybody here. There's probably a lot of guys, probably half a dozen to a dozen guys that normally don't play before a major that are playing this week because of where the venue is.

It's a great test for next week. Hitting long irons in. The only thing is the greens are soft and the fairways are soft, and you're not going to see that at Pinehurst next week. That's the only downside. Hopefully we get no more rain and it gets hard and firm by the weekend.

Q. Are you one of those?

CHRIS DiMARCO: No, I always like to play the week before majors. I usually play with the exception of the British Open, I pretty much play last year I did play the week before the British Open. But for the most part I always play the week before a major. Unfortunately, this year we had Atlanta with all those rain delays. I withdrew because I didn't want to go over till Monday, so.

Q. This isn't a major, but does it mean more or would it mean more winning on a course like this?

CHRIS DiMARCO: If you win on a course like this, you played good golf, period. There's no gimmicks out there. It's straight ahead of you. You hit in the fairway, you got a chance for birdie. If you miss fairways, you're going to be struggling.

Like I said, this is not a course you want to short side yourself on either. You can hit it on the wrong side of the hole here and you can be out there for a long time. It really runs into a major type golf course because it's one of those courses where you really have to think yourself around.

Q. With the way you played the last two majors coming into this next one now, is it a different feeling? I'm not saying you change anything, but is it a different vibe in your head?

CHRIS DiMARCO: Well, I mean, obviously losing in two playoffs the last two majors, I really feel like I'm putting myself in position to win them. You know, I played exceptionally good golf both those weeks. You know, if my golf game is there and I'm playing exceptionally good golf again then, you know, I expect to be right up there.

You know, if you're not hitting the ball good at the US Open, it's going to show. So I have to I'm starting to get it back, I'm starting to drive it a little better. My iron play is pretty solid. It's just a matter of making a few putts.

Q. Your feeling going into this major as opposed to a major two years ago?

CHRIS DiMARCO: Well, I mean, you know, obviously you want to get your feet wet and try to win try to win a major. That's what we're all trying to do. Obviously, putting myself in position to win two majors lets me know that I can do it. So it's just a matter of getting myself in that position again.

Q. Chris, in light of going back to Pinehurst, either at home or out here, when does Payne Stewart pop into your head?

CHRIS DiMARCO: You know, I think that Payne has been in more conversations in the last probably two or three weeks than I would say, you know, after a couple years that he's passed. In that time zone till now, I think the last month more people have brought up stories about Payne. So I think you're going to see it a lot.

He was one of the good guys. It was unfortunate. And we all still think about him quite a bit.

Q. Is it more at home out here? When does he pop into your head?

CHRIS DiMARCO: Just, you know, obviously with The Open at Pinehurst, every time anybody mentions it, you just think about Payne. You just think about he just wins The Open. He goes over to Phil Mickelson and he tells him he's got the greatest gift coming, to be a dad. Just totally explains what he was all about.

Q. Last week at the Memorial, Jack Nicklaus pretty much bid farewell to competitive golf. He's going to play The Open this summer. He says it's pretty much it for competitive golf. What was it like being there last weekend?

CHRIS DiMARCO: You know, obviously any time you see him maybe hang them up, it's a sad time. You know, he's arguably the greatest player to ever play the game. I think I don't know what he's thinking but, I mean, as far as I know, here is a guy who was so competitive his whole career and he doesn't feel like he's competitive any more. I don't think he wants to go out and end like that. I think he wants to end on good stuff. He is going out on his terms. What a great way to go. I don't think anybody can argue his career. He had a pretty good one. I'd like to be in that position.

He's certainly one of the main pioneers if not the main pioneer of our sport.

Q. You mentioned you like to play the week before a major. Is there a reason for that in terms of being in a competitive situation?

CHRIS DiMARCO: One, the competitiveness. Two, obviously hitting golf shots under pressure the week before the major for me is better than me being home and not doing that. You know, the range I have at home is nothing like the ranges we see here. The balls at home I'm not hitting like that.

You know, the competitive part of it's the key. You know, I can work on some things this week, you know, to try to get myself ready for next week. We're going to be hitting a lot of long irons into the holes out here. So I'm going to get used that. I'm going to try to be real precise with my irons and kind of work myself. You're just trying to build yourself up. Obviously, I'd like to win this week. That's certainly the main goal this week right now, is to win, but it's also to get myself ready for next week.

Q. Hard to think of too many similarities between Augusta National and New Orleans and The Open type courses like Congressional and Pinehurst. Do you consider yourself a guy who can play well just about anywhere?

CHRIS DiMARCO: If I'm hitting the ball good, it really doesn't matter. There's not a course that suits me. You know, I know the courses I play well out here, and I know the courses that I don't play particularly well. Augusta suits my eye perfect. Every tee ball, I feel totally comfortable on every tee shot. The greens, I feel totally comfortable on.

You know, unlike here, at Augusta, if you have a five foot putt and you miss it, you missed it. I mean, here you can hit five putts the same way and they can go five different ways. With poa annua greens, that's just the way they are. Where at Augusta, they are so pure, the only way to miss this putt is if I miss this putt. That's sometimes, too, just to let yourself go ahead and stroke it.

For me faster perfect greens the faster and the more undulating are better for me, to use the imagination. But really there are no courses that if I'm playing well, I feel like I can compete on any course.

Q. Thoughts on Retief Goosen, his personality, his game. He wins two Opens. What is it about the guy? Shows up and takes the check.

CHRIS DiMARCO: He's just really good and he's very people underestimate him. I don't think he gets enough credit for how good he really is. He just has the perfect game for The Open. There's no change in emotion. He hits it really long, really straight. He putts great. He's a very good iron player and he's very patient. That's the key. I mean, you just see it.

He just kind of goes around, I mean, under the radar. Nobody's talking about him. You know, he's defending US Open champion and nobody really even brought him up. Here is the guy that has the trophy in his grasp and nobody's really talked about him. I can promise you he doesn't want to relinquish it. He's got potential to win it again. He's got that kind of game.

Q. Why doesn't he get enough credit?

CHRIS DiMARCO: I don't know.

Q. Players talk about him.

CHRIS DiMARCO: Sure. He's just kind of there. He's not jumping around, he's not fist pumping, he's not doing all that. He's just kind of Retief. And, you know, I mean, in a lack of better words, I don't want to say he's a boring guy, but he just plays boring golf. But he's really good and he doesn't get enough credit for how good he is.

Q. (No microphone)?

CHRIS DiMARCO: Yeah, he does. He is just quiet and goes about his business. I tell you what, he's one of the toughest competitors we have out here for sure.

Q. You were a very sympathetic figure with the Augusta gallery. Takes a lot to wean them away from Tiger Woods. Was there an incident with a fan, after that was over, that made you feel better about what happened? It seemed to me that your attitude brightened up by the hour.

CHRIS DiMARCO: You know, obviously, like I said, I was very disappointed I didn't win. Obviously, I felt like I played well enough to have that green jacket on my around me. But I went back and I looked and I thought about how I played. And I played just very good golf. I mean, me and him beat the field by seven shots.

So it's better to handle it like last year when Phil won, not being in it and just basically playing myself out of it, I was a lot more disappointed. Where this year, I played myself into it and I gave myself a chance to win it. I did just about everything I could to win and I just got beat. You can tend to handle that a little bit better than if you beat yourself. I was more upset after New Orleans than I was after Augusta.

THE MODERATOR: All right. Thanks for your time, Chris.

CHRIS DiMARCO: Very good.

End of FastScripts.

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