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JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE SHRINERS HOSPITALS FOR CHILDREN OPEN

October 18, 2008

Michael Allen

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA

JOHN BUSH: We'd like to welcome Michael Allen into the interview room after an 8-under par, 64. Currently tied for the lead at 20-under. Michael, that was quite a start to your round: Birdie, birdie, eagle, birdie. I think you'd take that every day, wouldn't you?
MICHAEL ALLEN: Oh, my God, would I ever. The first hole was kind of key. I had a nice shot in there and made a pretty long putt there, 25 feet. I really wanted that to kind of just get things going, and, God, it went in.
That got me off to a nice start and things just kind of started rolling from there.
JOHN BUSH: Currently six players at 20-under par with a few holes to go. Can you just comment about tomorrow's round. Obviously jsut a shootout, and what your mindset would be.
MICHAEL ALLEN: Yeah, I mean, that's the deal. You're not going to get anything with pars out here this week, especially tomorrow. So, you know, gonna go out and try to get off to another good start. That's the key out here. If you get off to a good start and get things rolling, man, just got to keep it going.
JOHN BUSH: All right. Questions.

Q. I was watching your round, and it was like watching one ever those Ethiopian runners of the Boston Marathon. You know, those guys that sprint out for like a two-mile lead and then they hit the wall.
MICHAEL ALLEN: Yeah. (Laughter.)
Q. You make the turn and you're kicking butt and playing great. What happened? Did your putter just go cold on you for a little while? You left a couple out there that I thought if you played you would have been in good shape.
MICHAEL ALLEN: Yeah, exactly. Really the back nine, 10, 11, 12 are good holes. I played them pretty well all week. I hit a bad tee shot on 12. I should have taken it out of the bunker and I tried to keep it a little right and hit a bad one there into the trees. Still had like a five-footer for par and I missed that.
I really kind of messed up on 13. I was right in front of the green and didn't get it up-and-down. The short par-4 up the hill I was layup anyhow, and kind of left that putt short.
Then I hit a good 4-iron into 16 about four feet and missed that. So I came away with a birdie, which isn't usually bad, but didn't feel good coming off that green.

Q. You kind of hit the wall a little bit in a golf perspective, right?
MICHAEL ALLEN: Yeah, I guess. I hit a good shot into 11. It just got a little past the hole, so it wasn't a bad putt. It's hard if I make a shot like that out there. It's make that many putts out there.
John Mallinger can. But when you're 49, that's why all those Ryder Cupers did so well. They're young and they just kept burying them. It was beautiful.

Q. (No microphone.)
MICHAEL ALLEN: No, I got more experience than they do. I won't hold that against them.

Q. It's all about energy.
MICHAEL ALLEN: I got all the energy in the world.
JOHN BUSH: You're leading the field in fairways hit. You're top ten greens in regulation. Just talk a little bit about your comfort level with your ball striking this week.
MICHAEL ALLEN: Yeah, I mean, that's kind of been my attribute in the last two or three years. Mike Mitchell has helped me a great deal on my swing, so I've gone from being 130 to 140th every year in ball striking to kind of top 30.
This week it is important to hit the fairways, and I have been hitting quite a few 3-woods and laying back a little bit. But you come out here and it's all those little cross bumpers that get you that lead to bogeys. I've been playing short of those for the most part.
You know, you get the ball on the greens, the greens are so nice you can make some putts.

Q. You attend the concert last night, the Justin Timberlake concert?
MICHAEL ALLEN: No, I didn't. I had that going for me. See, that's experience, too.

Q. What will your mindset then be then for tomorrow? You talked about getting off to a good start, but is it just more important that you're playing steady and giving yourself chances rather than worrying about hitting a homerun or something?
MICHAEL ALLEN: Yeah. I mean, to me, I think so. I think I come out here, and if I'm hitting the ball around the course well, I should give myself 10, 12 good looks at birdie. It's a matter of getting them in. You know, the par-5s, if you can get the ball on the fairway you really should be able to pick up three or four birdies every day out there.
For me, it's a matter of just not making mistakes. The second round I played pretty well, but had a double and two bogeys and I shot 4-under. The birdies are out there. So far, knocking on wood, I've been putting pretty well and I get the ball in the hole for the most part.

Q. Are your future plans going to have you play Champions Tour?
MICHAEL ALLEN: In the future, but not next year.

Q. You hope to be back here next year then?
MICHAEL ALLEN: That's my goal. That's what I'd like to be doing. I am playing the best that I've played in my career, and I am enjoying it more now than I ever have in my career. I like to compete against the best players in the world. I don't have any fallacy that I am by any means, but I enjoy the challenge. I will enjoy the challenge tomorrow to win for the first time.

Q. If you're the last guy in this room tomorrow with the trophy, how do you think it'll have changed your life both short- and long-term.
MICHAEL ALLEN: I don't think it's going to do that much. Personally, it'll give me a free run out here for a year or two, which would be great. You know, I love what I do, so whether I win or not it's not going to be the epitome of my life if I don't win.
I mean, it would just be something I want to experience. I want to buy everybody champagne here, so...
JOHN BUSH: Let's go through the beginning and the end of your round, the first four holes, the birdie on No. 1.
MICHAEL ALLEN: Yeah, that was nice. A 3-wood and pitching wedge to about 25 feet behind the hole.
2, I hit 3-wood and a 6-iron to about, I don't know, about 12, 15 feet left of the hole.
JOHN BUSH: Okay. You eagled No. 3 for the second straight day.
MICHAEL ALLEN: Yeah, nice. That was driver and 8-iron eight feet right below the hole.
4 was a 3-wood and just a little 9-iron to about four feet.
JOHN BUSH: And 16 and 18.
MICHAEL ALLEN: 16 I hit a drive and a nice 4-iron to about four feet and missed the putt and made birdie.
18 was a driver and a little 9-iron to about 15, 20 feet.
JOHN BUSH: Good luck tomorrow.

End of FastScripts

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