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U.S. JUNIOR AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP

July 26, 2008

Cameron Peck

SHOAL CREEK, ALABAMA

THE MODERATOR: When you woke up this morning, I didn't think this 10 and 8 was going to be possible, but you got off to a very fast start.
CAMERON PECK: Oh definitely. That's probably what helped me the most was getting off to a fast start and that gave me the momentum that I carried on to the rest of the 36 holes.
THE MODERATOR: What worked for you today? Obviously you put seven, I think, of the first eight balls in the fairway, four birdies on the front nine.
CAMERON PECK: I was just hitting my irons, hitting my drivers really straight and really good. That's what you have to do out here. You hit the driver crooked, and you're out of this rough. And this rough's nasty.
So, definitely, probably drivers going straight today and I was hitting my irons right next to the pin and giving myself a chance just for birdies.
THE MODERATOR: When did you feel comfortable?
CAMERON PECK: I probably felt comfortable when I got done with that first 18 and I was six up. I thought six up going to the last 18, I really would have to do something bad for him to catch up.
THE MODERATOR: You've won some good ones in other junior circles. But put this one in perspective. I've seen Tiger Woods' name on there a few of times.
CAMERON PECK: I already looked at that. That was really cool.
THE MODERATOR: What is this one worth?
CAMERON PECK: This is a tournament that might change my life.

Q. So at what point did it dawn on you that maybe he was struggling a little bit and he wasn't on his game?
CAMERON PECK: I just think when I made that jump up at the very beginning, that kind of, you know, that kind of took him by surprise. Then from there he had to really start trying to do things to get it back. So that's what I thought probably helped me the most.

Q. How would you compare the way you played today to how you played the rest of the week?
CAMERON PECK: I think I played really good today. I hit probably some of the best shots I probably hit all week. Just a couple of holes, I just didn't hit very good shots. But kind of getting tired from all this playing. It's grueling. It's probably one of the most grueling tournaments.

Q. If you, today, on the final match, the biggest round of golf of your career and you said you hit some of the best shots you've hit all week today in that final match when it really counted. What does it say about you as a golfer?
CAMERON PECK: That's great because that means under pressure I can pull it off. That means a lot to me. Because going into other tournaments I can take this and think, oh, I did it here, I can do it again.

Q. The semi-final round was the one that really scared you. You had to win the last two holes to pull square and then went into extra holes. I imagine you didn't want to do that ever again.
CAMERON PECK: No, definitely. That was really stressful, that whole entire match. I was never up in that match. I just had to grind that last couple, and I didn't want to do that again today.

Q. I saw you out there, at one point Evan hit his putt like four feet by and you conceded it. I know you wanted to win. But winning 10 and 8 probably doesn't -- it's almost too big.
CAMERON PECK: Right.

Q. Did you feel a little bit of that? I know he's a better player; he just didn't show it today?
CAMERON PECK: Right. No, it's hard, because it's hard because I was real tired. But I just came out and I just played really, really good today. And he didn't have his best game today. So it would have been a really fun match if he would have been playing like he was the rest of the week. But he still played pretty good.

Q. I think a lot of people, when they hear 10-8, they think wow did he go out and shoot like Jorge that first day, and you're 7 under. You played close to par, I don't remember what it ended up being, but was it mainly about consistency for you?
CAMERON PECK: Definitely, just went and, just, okay, make pars, make him have to make a birdie to win the hole. I just didn't want to give him the hole with the bogey. That was mainly my plan.

Q. Momentum is such a big thing in match play. Got off to a big start. He won 10 and 11. Looked like he was going to get back to 3 down. And you made a big putt on 12. Talk about how big that putt was on 12 in the morning match?
CAMERON PECK: That was a huge putt because you could see after he started winning holes, he started to build some momentum and start hitting better shots. So I was look, okay, I can't lose three in a row or else he's going to start going off and he's probably going to catch back up to me. So that was probably, that was huge.

Q. Does your personality on the course, or does your personality off the course change when you get on to the course, just kind of who you are and what your attitude is?
CAMERON PECK: Sometimes it does. Sometimes I'm -- kind of changes. Kind of weird. Sometimes I'm relaxed like I usually am. But other times like, I think, a lot of time today I was intense and didn't talk very much.

Q. You have to play a lot of golf to win. Can you describe how taxing it is on you mentally and physically?
CAMERON PECK: This is probably the most grueling tournament I've ever played in. Just five days of golf and 36 holes for most of it. Just coming in, I was just, okay, come on, keep your focus; this is the last day, the last tournament. You can't just lose your focus now.
So I'm feeling it right now. I'm tired. I'm going to go in and take a nap after this.

Q. Which is more taxing, the mental or physical?
CAMERON PECK: I'd say the mental is probably the more difficult. Because I'm in pretty good physical shape. Walking 36 holes doesn't bother me. But physically playing that many days and staying focused for that many holes, it's just grueling. Because out here you can't just autopilot. You gotta think, okay, where do I want to hit it now. Try to place your ball on this golf course.

Q. I don't know it's been asked here. Talk about the course and how the course compares to some others you've played and why it may be more difficult.
CAMERON PECK: This golf course is probably one of the best golf courses I've ever played. The greens are nice and smooth. They roll really true, which I really like. And I like it because they make it so you have to hit the fairway here.
When you miss it into the rough, it's really, it can really stick. So you kind of hack it out and try to make up-and-downs and from the fairway you can score. So I think it's just a really good layout.

Q. Are you ever going to get tired lugging the trophy around taking pictures with it?
CAMERON PECK: Never. I don't think I ever want to give this one back.

Q. Your schedule changes, you're now exempt into the U.S. Amateur, which you were not even going to try to qualify for.
CAMERON PECK: I was going to be gone during my U.S. AM qualifier. So that's really nice I get exempt in the U.S. Amateur because that was something I wanted to try to do.

Q. Does winning this tournament change you?
CAMERON PECK: No. Some people might be cockier and whatever, but I'm just the same Cameron, same kid. Played good golf and won the tournament. Everybody here could have played good golf and won this. So I don't like to think, oh, I won the tournament, I'm number one, I'm the best. I don't like to think like that.

Q. You realize how everyone will be looking at you, you've won the Junior. I'm sure next week, they'll be talking about it. How are you going to handle that?
CAMERON PECK: Definitely feels good when people tell you how good of a golfer you are. But I don't like to tell people how good a golfer I am.

Q. Cameron, talk about what it was like coming in. Cory, everybody's like giving him odds that he's going to win this thing. Did you view that at all as like a guy to go up against? I asked him on Monday who he thought he had to go up against and it was you.
CAMERON PECK: Cory, he's played this game for a long time. He's a great player. I was definitely expecting him to go past the first round. I actually thought he was going to make it to the finals. He's been playing -- he's had a great summer, too, this year and he's been playing really, really good golf. So he was definitely probably the person to beat at the tournament.

Q. Were you surprised that he named you, as he saw, his top competitor for the tournament?
CAMERON PECK: Yeah, because there's a whole bunch of great golfers out here. So it's pretty cool.

Q. Craig mentioned Tiger's name on that trophy three times. I understand you did a pretty good Tiger Woods impression at HP, and did you win; it was a contest or something?
CAMERON PECK: Yeah, they had this Golf Week Junior Olympics thing. The won who won the contest did the best Tiger Woods impersonation.
I actually did a pretty good one and actually won that and ended up winning the whole thing. But the thing I thought was cool after I won that, the HP tournament, I did the Tiger hat. That was pretty fun.

Q. Was that part of your imitation, the Tiger hat throw?
CAMERON PECK: No, it was a different one.

Q. You've got several ones?
CAMERON PECK: Yes.

Q. How did you spend your winter?
CAMERON PECK: My winter, just because it rains a lot in Washington, just hitting a lot of balls. And then my coach has an indoor facility. And I go in and I practice putting. Because I'm a pretty good ball striker, but when I play my best is when I can putt. That's probably what I have to work on the hardest. So just set in his putting area and practicing putting all winter, that probably helped me the most.

Q. You may have been kidding. You said I live in Washington so I'm pretty good at playing in the rain. But for the last bit there you didn't go umbrella; just said: Oh, well?
CAMERON PECK: Washington, that's it. That's a pretty nice day. It's not cold. It rains every day. So I'm just used to it. So definitely wear a coat. That would be a nice day in Washington.

Q. Can you talk a little bit about snowboarding?
CAMERON PECK: Snowboarding, I love to snowboard, I've been doing it as long as I've been golfing. Some people might say if you snowboard you might get hurt. I can't give it up. I love it too much. Go out there every winter, just take a break from golf, because it can just get really, really tiring. So I think probably snowboarding helps me a lot.

Q. Can you tell us what else you do for fun, what your interests are?
CAMERON PECK: Just between those, I like to go hang out with my friends. Go to the movies. Go play laser tag, stuff like that.

Q. Who was here with you this week? Just so we have it down, give us names.
CAMERON PECK: My mom, Misun. My mom and dad, they switch off every tournament. This was her turn to come.

Q. How many weeks in a row have you been on the go playing tournaments?
CAMERON PECK: This is my second week. And then I'll be gone next week, so I'll be gone for four weeks in a row.

Q. You are from the Pacific --
CAMERON PECK: That will be my first amateur event.

Q. How well do you think your game will stack up in that one, with that experience?
CAMERON PECK: I have no idea how I'll stack up. I'll just go out there, play my best and have fun. It's an amateur event. It's my first one. I'm not going to come out there with really super expectations, just go out there and play have a lot of fun.
THE MODERATOR: Thank you very much.

End of FastScripts

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