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AT&T NATIONAL

July 5, 2007

Corey Pavin

BETHESDA, MARYLAND

NELSON SILVERIO: Welcome, Corey. 3-under today, obviously a good start, tied for the lead at the moment. Just give us some general comments on your round.
COREY PAVIN: Well, Congressional is playing like Congressional. It's in great shape. The greens are receptive, which we usually don't see when we play a U.S. Open out here. But fairways are firm, the rough is long, it's playing beautifully I think. So you know, I like playing here. It's a wonderful, wonderful golf course, and I'm very pleased with 3-under for sure.

Q. Fred was just in here and was talking about how things have -- the way the course was playing right now suited his game, is it sort of the same way for you right now?
COREY PAVIN: Yeah, I was just saying the way the course is set up, the firm fairways and greens that are receptive is my favorite setup. The long rough is fine with me, too. But it's probably the best set up for my game when the course plays like that.

Q. You've talked a little about how the course is different this week because it's not quite a U.S. Open, how about yourself, the difference between you now and you in '97 when you played in the Open, how have you changed do you think in that period?
COREY PAVIN: Well, my hair is shorter and it's grayer. I don't have a mustache. That's all I can think of. Do you want a real answer? (Laughing).
Obviously times have changed a lot since '97, ten years, and guys are hitting a lot further than they used to and I'm further behind in length off the tee than before, but you get on a golf course like this and accuracy is very important off the tee, and you know, if you don't drive the ball in the fairway -- the rough is very tough. It's very much a U.S. Open-type rough. It doesn't look real long. It isn't that long but it's very thick.
So it's -- the setup is probably more like a PGA this week because the greens are a little more receptive. But Congressional has all it's armor up except for the firm greens.

Q. Can you go into what the last year or so has been like for you? I know you won last year in Milwaukee. How much did that help you out and how much did that change things for you out here?
COREY PAVIN: I don't know if it's changed things for me personally but winning had been a goal of mine; it had been ten years. That was a personal thing for me to get out there and win again. I mean, obviously the change for me as far as exemption, I'm exempt this year and next year, which is good because that takes me through 48. But like I said, it was just nice to win again. That was huge, big goal of mine.
When you work on something for a decade it means a lot when you accomplish it.

Q. You mentioned the changes in technology and the game in general, to be able to do that with those changes --
COREY PAVIN: I didn't really say technology. I just said guys are hitting it further than I am.

Q. My apologies.
COREY PAVIN: That's okay. Did you have a question?

Q. Was it important to you to be able to do that, to be able to win again, given all of those changes?
COREY PAVIN: Well, I think the deck is stacked against me more and more as we go along. Not only I'm getting older obviously, just like everybody is, but I'm kind of old. So it's nice to win at the age I won, plus the fact that these young guys out there are hitting it long and they are strong and they are bigger and stronger. You know, it's a different game than it was ten, 15 years ago, for sure it is.

Q. At the start of Opens and other major tournaments, you'll often hear them say that the way the course is set up, only X number of players really have a good chance to win an event like this. It seems like with you, shooting a good score this morning, Fred Funk doing the same, that maybe the course is set up --
COREY PAVIN: Careful. (Laughter).

Q. It's not necessarily a course where you have to be a power player to score low.
COREY PAVIN: Well-worded. Well-worded. (Laughter) I was waiting for you to say, "Anybody can win." (Laughter).
Yeah, you know, I think that's a Mark of a great golf course I think, as well as setup. It's nice when we get to a course and anybody in the field can win. It doesn't get narrowed down.
So that's what's really nice. Like I said with the fairways firm and the greens receptive, I think it really opens the golf course up to everybody. I'd like to see that setup every week, because I think it gives everybody a chance that way.
NELSON SILVERIO: Thank you.

End of FastScripts

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