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BOB HOPE CHRYSLER CLASSIC

January 20, 2006

Scott Verplank

LA QUINTA, CALIFORNIA

JOHN BUSH: Scott, thanks for coming by for a few minutes. Great round today, 7 under par 65, if you can comment on it for us, please.

SCOTT VERPLANK: Well, I actually started off a little choppy. When you play a new golf course, coming out here, we're used to playing the same golf courses for so many years, we got a new track, so you don't know that much about it. And I didn't I wasn't too comfortable starting out.

But I finally hit a close shot, I hit it about a foot on 15, I believe a little short dog leg par 4.

I had made a bogey on 13, I hit a bad wedge shot and bunker shot about five feet and missed it. So like I said, I was a little shaky, just going, wow, I don't really know what I'm doing out here.

But then I kind of got going, I made a nice birdie on 17. Made about a 12 foot putt.

Then I chipped it about two inches on 18. So all of a sudden I was a couple under par and I started feeling a little bit better. That's just kind of the way it goes out here. The weather is so nice today, I feel sorry for those guys who had play here yesterday, but not that sorry. (Laughter). Sounds good, anyway, that you feel sorry for them.

Yeah, we got really lucky with the weather today as far as rotation that I'm in, getting to play over here with really no wind.

JOHN BUSH: Go ahead and finish up your card for us. On the front you birdied No. 3.

SCOTT VERPLANK: On 3 I hit a 9 iron about eight feet.

4, I hit laid up and hit a sand wedge about two feet.

6, I hit a nice shot about ten feet there with a 4 iron, a little bit back into the wind.

8, I hit a wedge about six or seven feet and made that.

Then 9, I actually made a pretty good putt. Made about a 15 footer. I hit my sand wedge a little too hard and greens were very firm out here, so that's another thing about getting to know the golf course. When you take a big bounce, almost every shot takes a big first shop. So you have to kind of start figuring out where to land it. I just hit it a little bit hard, but I guess it ended up in a good spot. I made that and it ended up being a pretty good day.

JOHN BUSH: You finished up the season pretty strong so you're picking up right where you left off. Do you feel pretty good about your game right now?

SCOTT VERPLANK: Yeah, I feel good about the way I'm scoring. My golf swing still feels like I took two months off. But obviously it's okay, but it's not so far, I haven't been hitting on all cylinders, but it's been good enough, and like you said, I've scored pretty well.

Q. When you think about your goals for this year, just curious where the Ryder Cup would rank in that, and is that something you're pointing yourself towards this year?

SCOTT VERPLANK: Oh, yeah, absolutely. Yeah, that would be huge goal for the year is to be on that team. But the only way to do that is just to play good and try to win golf tournaments. I think if I play like I'm capable of, then that kind of stuff will take care of itself. But I would like to be in position to try to win more golf tournaments and hopefully pull one off. It's been a few years.

Q. What about the idea of playing in Ireland and trying to win a Ryder Cup in Ireland?

SCOTT VERPLANK: The last time it was over there at The Belfry, I was on the team, and I loved it. I like going to somebody else's house and beating them. I enjoy that more than although, I really had a great time at the Presidents Cup this year, we had a great crowd and great fans. We really had a great time. But I also enjoy going over to somebody else's somebody else's house and trying to get the trophy away from them, because then it gets real quiet; I like that. (Laughter).

Q. Did the change of format, change your approach to this year in terms of obviously the points are doubled this year?

SCOTT VERPLANK: I may add one tournament. But no, I'm pretty much playing the same schedule.

Q. Did you get a practice round here?

SCOTT VERPLANK: I did. I played it took two days.

Q. Were here Sunday, weren't you?

SCOTT VERPLANK: No, Monday. I played nine holes Monday and it was blowing so hard, I just quit and actually came back Tuesday morning and played the front nine just so I could see it.

Q. This might be a little unfair, having seen it twice fully now, but do you have an impression of the golf course, does it feel like it belongs in this tournament or is it so different that it's kind of a weird feel?

SCOTT VERPLANK: Well, it's definitely different. I've been playing this golf tournament, gosh, since the late 80s, mid to late 80s. I think '87 is the first time I played in it. .

I don't know, I think if I had played out here yesterday, I probably would be kicking dirt and wanting to get the heck out of here. I think that's part of the I think that's going to be a challenge to be honest with you, because the weather can be it was windy everywhere yesterday. But it wasn't as windy at like PGA West or La Quinta, and I don't know what it was like at Bermuda Dunes. We used to think Bermuda Dunes was the windy spot because it was closer to the highway. Now we're out here totally exposed.

So I think it's going to I think it's going to make a difference. I don't know what will ultimately happen.

Q. You talk about kind of feeling like you didn't know where everything was or what the holes were. Obviously you go to another golf tournament, you're going to play that same golf course five or six times that week. Here, you're going to get maybe two rounds here, three if you get to Sunday. How long do you think it would take you to learn this golf course, just maybe two years?

SCOTT VERPLANK: Well, I hope I got it figured out. (Laughter). I hope I got it. I think what I did today would probably be a nice blueprint for what you do every day out here.

Oh, it will take a couple of years. Most of the tournaments I've played in, I've played for a number 15 years. I know almost all of the golf courses, I don't even need a yardage book and I don't need to play a practice round on most of them because I've played them in every condition. I've played, say, Phoenix is the next tournament I'll play in, I've played it when it was 85 and no wind and I've played it when it was 38 and raining and snowing and sleeting and terrible, so I've played it in every condition. So I've kind of been there, done that.

That's why I said today I was out here and wasn't hitting it all that good the first three or four holes and going, oh, I don't like this at all, just because it was uncomfortable.

Q. Do you think that the players might adjust their schedule if they are intimidated by the wind and just say, I don't want to do this?

SCOTT VERPLANK: I don't know, I always enjoy coming out here. I have a lot of friends out here and like I said, I've played the tournament a number of times. So really, I'm just going to hope that the weather stays great the week we're here.

JOHN BUSH: Thank you, Scott. Keep it going this weekend.

End of FastScripts.

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