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MERCEDES CHAMPIONSHIPS

January 4, 2005

Retief Goosen

KAPALUA, HAWAII

JOEL SCHUCHMANN: Retief Goosen, welcome back to the Mercedes Championships. Enjoyed a great season last year, you won the U.S. Open and the season-ending TOUR Championship. Just talk about starting your season off here at Kapalua.

RETIEF GOOSEN: Well, it's a great event to start off. It's a wonderful place to come to, especially it feels more like a holiday still this week and also next week. It's a great event and just the winners of last year playing it, it's a great field.

JOEL SCHUCHMANN: We'll go right into questions.

Q. Can you remember a time in the last, you know, six or so years you've been coming over here where you start off a season when it seems like at least half a dozen, maybe more top players, really seem to be on their game coming into the year? It's shaping up to be quite a year it seems like.

RETIEF GOOSEN: At this event?

Q. Well, this event is kind of a springboard for the entire season.

RETIEF GOOSEN: Yeah, this event, a lot of the players here this week, I think it's very important to them to start off well. I think you sort of feel like if you win this event, you're off to a good year, really. It's an event that the guys take very serious, although it feels more like, you know, everyone is coming out of holiday and haven't really done any practicing through Christmas time. So everybody's game is maybe a little bit on the rough side, but this golf course, you can maybe get away with a little bit of an off-game and you know if you get your putting going, you can get a good score going around this course.

Q. I guess from a broader picture, I was looking at using this as a reference point of the 2005 season, it seems like there's a lot of top guys who are on top of their games and it looks like it could create for some interesting dynamics this year.

RETIEF GOOSEN: Yeah, like I said, there's a lot of guys playing well. Every week, with 156 guys teeing it up, everyone can play. Anyone can win. As we know, there's been so many first-time winners as well, last year. Anybody can win.

This year is going to be exciting. There are a lot of players bunched up, Top-10 players and World Rankings are pretty bunched up, so there could be some different moves going on probably in the first half of this year and I think that it will, there will probably be a No. 1 player a few times this year. I think it could jump a little bit between Ernie and Tiger and Vijay at the moment. I'm a little bit far behind at the moment in the World Rankings to really think about getting to No. 1, but if I have a good year and Vijay doesn't have a good year like he's had again, then we've got a chance of catching him.

Q. That day you had putting Sunday at Shinnecock, do you ever lie in bed at night just reliving some of those putts?

RETIEF GOOSEN: Not really. Yeah, I made a few good putts I suppose. (Laughter.)

Phil made his fair share, as well, besides 17 where he 3-putted. It was just that type of course. It was just a hard course. You just have to get it up-and-down from everywhere and make a few good putts. I feel like when I'm putting well, I can putt or make anything on any green. When you see the lines, you stand there and you try and make a putt and if it goes in, it goes.

Q. What are you dreaming about when you lay in bed late at night?

RETIEF GOOSEN: Changing nappies and all that kind of stuff at the moment. I don't sleep that much of late. Leo and the new one is a little bit on the sleepless side, so we don't get a lot of sleep. I don't have time to dream anymore. (Smiling).

Q. What do you see as the possibility for you having a big season, a lot of people talk about you as being a player that maybe you can do something along the lines that Vijay did last year?

RETIEF GOOSEN: Yeah, it can be done. You know, Vijay had an amazing year last year. This last year I had my injury which put me back a little bit. I'm looking forward to this year. I'm ready to play well this year. I'm playing these next two weeks and I'm taking a month break and then start off with the Nissan again and from there on it's a pretty full schedule through the middle of the year.

So I'm looking forward to coming back and playing well and see if I can win a couple of these.

Q. You talked about how any one of five, six players could bump up to the No. 1 or at least contend for the No. 1 spot. How does that compare, just the mindset compare this year compared to a couple of years ago when Tiger was so dominant on the Tour?

RETIEF GOOSEN: Yeah, I think there's a lot of players feeling that they have a bit of a chance now to get up there. They know they are going to probably have a very good year or two good years to catch up like Vijay did with Tiger, or that Tiger didn't play his best golf really to keep his points.

It's going to be an interesting year. You're just going to have to wait and see what happens. It's tough to predict who is going to play well this year. It might be somebody that we are not even thinking about. I feel confident the way my game is that I can be up every week with a chance to win.

Q. What is going to be your schedule as far as how much you are going to play on the PGA TOUR and how much in Europe?

RETIEF GOOSEN: I'm going to play probably close to 20 events again, 20 tournaments on the PGA TOUR this year. I'll play a couple in the Far East and a few up in the U.K. and Ireland. So it's probably going to be somewhere around 25 tournaments.

Q. I think there was a feeling out here after Tiger was so really overwhelming in 2000 of how long he could keep that up. Do you get the same sense of Vijay?

RETIEF GOOSEN: Well, yeah, I mean, Vijay is playing the best golf of his life now. How long he can keep it up we don't know. He's obviously very determined to stay there the way he's working out and the way he's still practicing, but I feel Tiger's going to be a lot better this year than he was last year. I feel he's more set in his game at the moment and he's started showing signs of playing better last year.

Q. Would you like to see that or would you rather see him go the other direction?

RETIEF GOOSEN: No, I think I would like to see Tiger start playing better again, not that his bad is bad, but more towards his standards, should I say, and give Vijay more of a run and Ernie also, like we expect him to do.

Q. Do you think - this is a little off the beaten path here - but with all of the talk about drugs and steroids in other sports, is there anything that you see out there that golf could get wrapped into that?

RETIEF GOOSEN: I don't know. Golf, there is a lot of power involved in golf, but more so feel and touch. I don't know if somebody took steroids how that would affect the game. I don't know, I haven't tried it. I have no problem if they want to do testing on the TOUR. It might be a good thing. We might find out a few things that we don't know about. It could be a bit of an interesting subject to talk about.

I don't think golf is that much of a power sport as it is in other sports like athletics or things like that where there is such a small margin between the athletes.

Q. Do you think if they just all of a sudden did a test after PLAYERS Championship of the top 60 guys, would you be shocked if they found anything?

RETIEF GOOSEN: I think I would be shocked. But, I mean, you know, golfers with all of their back problems and whatever, I don't know, some of the medicines they give us in the truck could have some supplement that's probably banned and we don't know, you know. We don't know if there's anything bad that's in Advil or not; you take Advil for a sore back or something. Probably would be a bit surprised, yeah, if there was something that was a bit more serious.

Q. You talked about along those lines, can you talk about the physical demands of playing and practicing so much; how does that affect your body, what parts of your body feel it when?

RETIEF GOOSEN: For 90 percent of the players, it's back and neck and shoulders. Those parts of the body that's quite tight the whole time through the golf swing with the movements they have got to do. I think a back problem for me now, traveling from London, sore lower back is pretty much what is bothering me the first few days until I start getting loose again, just from sitting on the airplane. A bit of physio stretching and a bit of exercise seems to loosen it up.

Q. Is that something you've done in the last few years or have you always?

RETIEF GOOSEN: I've always worked out a bit and try to stay reasonably fit. I'm not as much into it as Vijay or Tiger is at the moment, but generally the whole tour, everybody is now trying to stay fit to a certain point. We're not trying to get super fit but just extend our careers in a way a little bit more.

Q. There was so much emotion almost bordering on ill will last year after the Ryder Cup. Would you like to see the Presidents Cup get ratcheted up a few notches or would you like to see it stay at the level at which it is?

RETIEF GOOSEN: Well, the Presidents Cup I think is catching up quick with the Ryder Cup. It will be interesting to see this year how it's going to be.

I think probably a lot of players feel it would be nice if the Presidents Cup played against Europe as well, their team, the Rest of the World Team. But I don't know if the guys are sort of keen to play every year in some sort of match, although it is exciting. I enjoy playing it.

Q. Do you think the International Team is better than Europe?

RETIEF GOOSEN: Well, we lose against America, so we must be really bad. (Laughter.)

So, I don't know. It will be interesting. It's like a momentum game, really, as well, the Ryder Cup. This year, the guys, or last year, the guys got on such a good roll early on and then it was tough for the guys to come back.

I would enjoy playing a bit more maybe match-play on TOUR.

Q. Since you make London your home for the most part, why do you think the British press gets so over-the-top when it comes to the Ryder Cup, more so than, say, the Aussie or South African or Japanese press gets about the Presidents Cup?

RETIEF GOOSEN: I don't know. I suppose it's just all the history in the event and whatever goes with it. Presidents Cup being pretty young I think will gradually work it's way up to a bit more of the Ryder Cup level. But I don't know why it is like that. I suppose it's because it's mostly their local boys really that's playing in it and that's what it's all about.

Q. How much sports do you follow here in the U.S.; none, zero, a little bit?

RETIEF GOOSEN: Not a lot. When I'm back home you don't really see much.

Q. But when you're here at Lake Nona do you watch any of the basketball, baseball, football, whatever, here?

RETIEF GOOSEN: No. I could probably watch a bit of basketball, American football. Baseball is not something that's really exciting for me; a bit too slow. (Laughter.)

Q. World Series, did you watch the World Series?

RETIEF GOOSEN: No, I didn't watch the World Series.

Q. Do you know who won the World Series?

RETIEF GOOSEN: No, I don't know who won the World Series. (Laughter.)

Q. Do you go to Magic games, Orlando Magic games?

RETIEF GOOSEN: No, I've only once been to a basketball game. It was a long time ago. I would enjoy I think ice hockey. From what I understand, ice hockey games are quite fun to go to.

Q. They don't play those anymore.

RETIEF GOOSEN: (Shrugs).

Q. NASCAR?

RETIEF GOOSEN: Yeah, I don't mind watching a bit of cars. I'm quite into cars and that kind of stuff. NASCAR can be a little bit boring as well. But it gets exciting when there's a crash or something like that. (Laughter.)

Q. Have you ever seen a baseball game?

RETIEF GOOSEN: Yes, I've been to one.

Q. Which one, do you remember?

RETIEF GOOSEN: I think it was in Canada I went to one. 45 minutes, nothing happened, I went home. (Laughter.)

Q. Todd Hamilton was in here a couple minutes ago and he was talking about all of the opportunities he took advantage of as a result of winning his first major and he was talking about how he was feeling burned out by doing it all. Do you recall what you went through?

RETIEF GOOSEN: It was the same with me. I was just talking here today with Sherry about it, suddenly all of these opportunities are there, and you've just got to grab it and play. It's difficult to find time off when you're traveling all over the world to play in these things that you qualify in. I'm sure this year he'll settle down into a bit more of a different schedule and manage his schedule a bit better to play better.

Q. Did it affect your game coming into the following season where you felt like maybe you didn't have as much in the tank?

RETIEF GOOSEN: Yeah, I remember the end of 2001 I played a lot and it was tiring. Even then going into early 2002 I played a lot, so it was difficult to maintain it throughout the whole year. But the last two years, I've managed my schedule a lot better to give myself the time off when I know I need it off.

Q. So is it a matter of when you first win a major like that that you have all of these opportunities; it's just hard to say no at that point?

RETIEF GOOSEN: Yeah, it's become difficult to say no to certain things. You know, you want to play but you know it's probably the best thing not to play and you try and really work your schedule out to events that you know that you can do well in and you enjoy playing in more than certain ones.

Q. When you come from a country like South Africa with historical talent, like Gary Player or people like Ernie and growing talent like Trevor, and you see the Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup competitiveness exist, do you find it frustrating that maybe in South Africa or in some other countries that maybe they are left out?

RETIEF GOOSEN: Well, we qualify for Presidents Cup if we can, but it's a shame that in South Africa the economy is struggling a little bit and the Tour is not what it used to be ten years, 15 years ago. When I first started playing, South African Tour was one of the best tours in the world at that stage and all the great players that played well after that, John Daly, Tom Lehman and all of those guys played down there.

So it is a bit frustrating that there's not better players coming out of South Africa at the moment. Although, Trevor, he's been in Europe for some time now. But we are trying down in South Africa with academies and things like that to encourage junior golf. Ernie has got a foundation. I've started an academy. There's quite a few going up all over the country now, which is good for golf and hopefully in the future we'll see more Australians and South Africans get involved in these team events.

Q. Despite the fact that the Ryder Cup is more Europe versus the U.S. type of tournament, South Africa on paper is very legitimately competitive and would favor well against anybody; is it frustrating that you guys are not a part of Ryder Cup tradition?

RETIEF GOOSEN: Well, like I said, it's something that was started a very long time ago. It's just Europe against America and that won't change, but that's why the Presidents Cup came in to give the rest of the world that opportunity to play the same format event. Like I say, I think give it time, the Presidents Cup will get more and more popular just like the Ryder Cup.

Q. Of the majors that rotate, of the three, any of them really excite you this year?

RETIEF GOOSEN: I'm looking forward to St. Andrews again. They have made a few changes, a couple of new tees and things like that. So that course could be quite interesting this year.

PGA, I don't even know where the PGA is.

Q. Baltusrol.

RETIEF GOOSEN: Pinehurst I've played when Payne Stewart won. Pinehurst, that's a bit on the edge of the game, all of the run-offs and things like that. I don't really enjoy that much at the time that I played it, but I wasn't playing all that well. Hopefully this time I'll enjoy it more.

Q. Do you think it favors any player, Pinehurst?

RETIEF GOOSEN: Well, I don't know how many more changes they have done this year on it. But I think the key is your iron play to the greens. You can hit a good shot just a yard left of the flag and end up 20 yards away from the green. So from what I remember, your iron play was key into the greens.

Q. Lying around the hotel room at night, you don't particularly care for American sports, what do you watch on TV?

RETIEF GOOSEN: I watch American movies. (Laughter.)

Well, it's not that I don't mind watching American sports, it's just I haven't been following it. I don't know who to root for. I don't have a team that maybe I favor or anything like that.

Maybe if there was a team that I really liked to watch and follow, it might be a different story, but otherwise I just try and watch the sports that I sort of know, like a bit of motor car racing or tennis or Golf Channel or things like that.

But in general, I watch a bit of movies or something like that. I don't really have that much chance to follow the sport in America that much, especially when you go over to Europe that much and you don't keep track of the sport and where everybody is playing. It's difficult to follow.

Q. How about SportsCenter at 11:00?

RETIEF GOOSEN: I don't think you get SportsCenter in France. I enjoy watching SportsCenter because they go through all the sports and the highlights and that kind of stuff. I enjoy watching that, yes.

JOEL SCHUCHMANN: Retief, thank you very much.

End of FastScripts.

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