BOB HOPE CHRYSLER CLASSIC

January 22, 2000

Matt Gogel

MATT GOGEL: Okay, well, I started out the 1st hole, not that great of a drive down the right side, and I had to pretty much play out to the fairway, punch out. I left myself with about 100 yards. And for my third shot, hit it about 15, 20 feet and missed it for par; so I bogeyed the 1st hole, which is a pretty good hole out here. One of the longer holes on this golf course. And then No. 2, I came right back with a good drive down the fairway, and I think I hit a 9-iron to about, oh, eight feet or so and made the putt for birdie; so I was right back to even. And parred 3 and 4. No. 5, I hit a shot that got long on me. I thought I hit a pretty good shot in there, but it ended up about 60 feet behind the hole, and made the putt. So that was kind of a big turnaround, really kind of an unexpected birdie. And then I played pretty solid from there on. Made some pars: 7, 8, 9. Went to the back nine, on 10, and hit an 8-iron from 172 yards to about 10 feet; made the putt for birdie. So that was -- I wasn't playing that great. I wasn't really that steady, wasn't really that calm, but now I was at 2-under par and kind of felt like I was moving in the right direction. I think the next birdie I had was 12, par 3. I hit an 8-iron in there to about 7 or 8 feet and made the putt. Really felt like my game was getting much more solid. I had hit several greens in regulation and had birdie putts in the last four or five holes. Missed birdie on 13, the par 5. Missed a fairly makeable birdie on 14 from about 15 feet. And then on 15, I hit it about eight feet from the hole, and made the putt -- well it was about 10 feet from the hole or so, and made the putt for birdie. Then it was kind of a 14, 15, 16, 17 and 18 -- we had, which is what you're going to expect out here, but I was waiting probably 15 minutes on every tee shot. I knew I was doing pretty well in the tournament, and I was kind of anxious, and the wait certainly didn't help, especially a guy that's kind of new to this arena, that I'm standing there having to think about every tee shot or every shot. I don't think it will be that way tomorrow, but it was a different type of -- I wouldn't say pressure, but I was building anxiety. And when I get up to hit the shot, what's generally going to happen, you're not going to hit that great of a shot. You're going to be probably pretty quick with the swing. So I steered it in. You know, 16, I got up-and-down out of a bunker made about a 10-foot par putt. And then 17, hit a 4-iron short of the green, chipped it up to about 15 feet, and missed the putt, made bogey. And then on 18, drove it in the left rough, and really didn't have a whole lot of options, other than kind of punching it through there. And it got caught up in the rough and really wasn't that good of a shot. My third shot on the par 5, most people are reaching in two with ease; I had about 190 to the hole. I hit a 7-iron up, oh, 30 feet, and I'm really looking to make a par. And I hit a really good putt; left it just short of the hole. And, you know, I think other players probably are going through a little bit of what I'm going through, four days with the amateurs. It's a helluva lot of fun, but I think we're all kind of ready to be paired together and go out and play and maybe not have as many distractions. But 68 on this golf course, I think, is a good score. I don't think it's good enough for tomorrow, but I'll work on a few things tonight and get ready for tomorrow; and hopefully, have a chance to come down the stretch and win the golf tournament and do a little bitter than I did today.

MATT GOGEL: You know, I've been playing golf, professional golf, for five years now; so it's not like I'm in awe of everybody I'm playing around. But maybe the second tournament out, I didn't expect to be doing this well. I felt like it would be a growing process out here for a few weeks, and it still will be. But my strength is really not shooting a whole lot under par. I usually play more difficult golf courses, better, and this week, I've just been -- I've been hitting the ball well enough and giving myself chances to make putts and make birdies. I obviously haven't thought that if I shot a 68, I would be one shot off the lead. I can calm myself down and realize that I didn't shoot myself out of the golf tournament. That's what you really don't want to do on Saturday. The tournaments I won on the Nike Tour -- I thought Saturday was the most difficult round of the week because it's the round you can kind of lose a golf tournament if you don't play very well. But I'm right there in it, and I kind of know what to expect of myself tomorrow. It's a long day, and there's going to be a lot of guys shooting some pretty good scores. So I hope I'm one of them.

MATT GOGEL: I think that -- you know, really I just had a chance to look at the scoreboard. I think there's four guys at 21 (-under) and myself at 22 ( -under). You know, anybody from 20-under par, 19-under par really has a chance because if they shoot 7 or 8 ( -under), there's a number to shoot for. I would think that 27 (-under) would be a really good number, 28 ( -under). Hell, I'd like to get to 30 (-under) and not have to worry about it. But I would say 27 (-under) would be a pretty good number to reach for.

MATT GOGEL: Absolutely. You know, the money really hasn't entered my mind. I think more than anything, I want to win so bad that I've got to relax, and if it's my day, it will happen. You know, guys are going to play -- I know guys are going to play well tomorrow. So it's not like I can go out and just kind of slop it around and try to shoot 2- or 3-under and try to win the golf tournament because that is not going to happen. Wining is winning, and there's a lot that goes on with it out here on this Tour. I've just got to be patient and do what I've been doing the best this week, and that's give myself opportunities on the greens for birdie.

MATT GOGEL: You know, you can shoot a good round. I imagine there's been some 6-, 7- , 8-under pars at this golf course, but you have to do a lot of good things. And there is -- you know, the greens are reasonably firm, so it's kind of hard to get the ball close to the hole. I think tomorrow you're going to probably find some pretty good pin placements; so we'll just kind of have to see what the golf course gives you. But this is a golf course, unlike the other three, that you really have to kind of position the ball around the golf course. I mean, there's long holes; there's shot holes. Only three 3 par 5s, and only one of them is reachable, and that's the 18th hole. So you never know. Everybody is kind of going to be having to fight the emotions of trying to win a golf tournament tomorrow. But it's a guy that -- probably someone at 21-under par, 20-under par, 19-under -- is really going to try to post a low score tomorrow.

MATT GOGEL: I think that -- I'll learn tomorrow. I've always felt that you don't have to do so many spectacular things to win a golf tournament. A lot of people get caught up thinking if -- you have to win a tournament, you have to shoot 5- , 6- , 7-under par on Sunday. A lot of times, that's not the case. It's the guy who makes the least amount of mistakes. In a format like this, so many people so close to the lead, there's going to be someone trying to post a low score coming out of the back -- from the back of the pack. So I know that what I need to do to play well tomorrow is worry about myself, and I've done that successfully on the Nike Tour. So hopefully -- we'll see. But I'll do the same things that I've done when I've won before. If it's my day and my turn to win, then that will happen.

MATT GOGEL: Well, a lot more people come out to watch the golf tournament, that's for sure. You know, Hawaii was, I think, a unique event for the Tour, being the fact that it's Hawaii and not a whole lot of veterans go over there; So a lot of rookies get in. And this is -- you know, this is a format that's very unique. Maybe the AT&T has got some resemblance of this type of tournament, and maybe Vegas, but you know, so far, I mean, I've enjoyed it. But it's a long year, and you know, I'm just trying to play my way through and kind of get comfortable.

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