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NORTHERN TRUST OPEN

February 6, 2010

Steve Stricker

PACIFIC PALISADES, CALIFORNIA

DOUG MILNE: Steve Stricker, thanks for joining us for a few minutes. Good day today, obviously a good day. You really stretched out the lead. Just a few comments on obviously a lot of things going right and just kind of how you're feeling heading into the last 20-ish holes.
STEVE STRICKER: Yeah, it was a good day. I did a lot of good things. My ball-striking was a little bit better today. I think my iron play was definitely a little bit better, and holed a couple of nice putts, made a couple nice saves when I had to. You know, it's going to be a long day tomorrow. We've got to be out here at 7:00 in the morning and got to prepare myself for just a long day, and it's going to be tough. It's going to be -- there's guys up there, and even though I've got whatever -- I don't even know what kind of lead I have, but whatever it is, I still have to come out and play my own game and make sure that I do the things that I've been doing the previous three days.

Q. Talk about that stretch if you would from 5 through say 10. You gave yourself just one chance after another.
STEVE STRICKER: Yeah, that was a good stretch in there. I really played from probably about 4 on. I had a good shot at No. 4, and like you said, that stretch on there, gave myself a lot of opportunities and made some and missed some. But that's what you need to do around here is just drive it in play and knock it on the greens. You know, some of the greens and the pin locations are in tough spots, but if you just get it on there and get yourself a good look at it -- and that's what I've been doing nicely the first three days is giving myself a lot of looks, trying to play smart when I have a decision to make. But you're right, it was a key stretch there where it was pretty -- it wasn't stressless I guess would be the word. Is that a word?

Q. It is now.
STEVE STRICKER: Is that a Boo Weekley word? (Laughter.)
But yeah, that was nice. When you give yourself opportunities, if you don't make it you just go up there and just tap it in and move on.

Q. Where are you on No. 15?
STEVE STRICKER: I'm in the center in that little swale, the pin is on the right, I've probably got about a 30-, 35-footer for birdie.

Q. You took the lead on 3 after Dustin couldn't find his tee shot. Is that one of the few places on the course where you probably couldn't find a ball, no one around?
STEVE STRICKER: Yeah, it was just tall grass there, wet in there. The grass was all gnarly, it's laying every which way. It was all over the place.
I knew that grass was over there, and I thought I had a pretty good line on it. I was surprised we weren't able to find it. Yeah, it's unfortunate. But there's a couple places like that out here where you've got to know where those spots are and stay away from them.

Q. How about the deer over there on 13? I saw you looking at them.
STEVE STRICKER: Yeah, that brings back some good memories, seeing those deer and being up in a deer stand. There was actually a buck in there, too.
Yeah, it was cool to see. We saw a coyote on Tuesday -- we go hunting for those things all the time in Wisconsin, and that things was about 30 yards away from me. We don't have them that dumb up there. But it's nice to see all the wildlife down here. It's pretty cool.

Q. Is there a stretch of holes out here that you feel good with around this course, or how is it you've been able to pull away from the guys a little bit? Is it the course itself that sets up well to your eye? The stretch of holes here that you feel comfortable with the best.
STEVE STRICKER: You know, they're all important. That stretch that I just got through today, like 12, 13, 14, and I'm not quite through 15 yet, but that's always a key stretch of this course. They're good holes, they usually play into the wind.

Q. The holes you guys work hard on?
STEVE STRICKER: Yeah, those holes are tough holes. You know, that little stretch of -- yesterday it was opposite winds, so like 7, 8, 9 played extremely hard. It all depends around here what kind of conditions you get. They're all good holes, but they're all -- if you hit a couple good shots you can give yourself a good birdie opportunity.
But I don't look at any particular stretch and say, I've got to come in here. Obviously No. 1 you've got to make a birdie or otherwise you're losing ground. But I don't really go into any stretch of holes thinking this is where I need to make hay. Except for really 12, 13, 14 and 15 that's a pretty key stretch of holes coming in, and you need to play those well.

Q. Do you remember the last time you had a five-shot lead going into a final round? And also, how much of an advantage is it for guys who did get finished today? Is it much of one?
STEVE STRICKER: It's not a huge advantage just because we're all going to be back out here early tomorrow anyways. I think times are going to be from 8:00 until 10:00 tomorrow, so it's morning tee times anyways. I would have loved to have finished though, don't get me wrong. It's going to be a long day.
And as far as a five-shot lead, I don't know. I had a lead at the Western Open back in '96 and went on to win there, so hopefully draw from that a little bit and hopefully play well again tomorrow.

Q. Did you see the Lakers last night?
STEVE STRICKER: I did.

Q. Good game, enjoy it?
STEVE STRICKER: Yeah, you end up people watching at these Laker games more than anything. It's quite the scene. It's quite the event to go to. I went to a game in December after Tiger's tournament and then went to this one last night, and it's pretty cool. The atmosphere is pretty cool.

Q. Who did you see?
STEVE STRICKER: We were pulling into our place where we were parking and Denzel Washington was in the car ahead of us.

Q. Was that cool?
STEVE STRICKER: Yeah, he didn't get out of his car, though. I don't know where he gets to park and where he gets to go in, but I bet it's pretty easy access for him.
Nicholson obviously is right there, and we saw George Lopez was across the court, one of the Kardashian girls was about --

Q. Which one?
STEVE STRICKER: Khloe. I had to Google(tm) her. (Laughter.)
Actually I was sitting with David Duval and somebody came down and took a picture with her, and I said, "Who's that?" He said, "I think it's one of the Kardashians." I got online and it was Khloe. It might have been her other sister, too, the other girl that was there. It's amazing the people you see going around there.

Q. The big question is did anyone recognize you?
STEVE STRICKER: No. Actually one did. He was sitting behind us.

Q. Given the way the day started out, especially the way Dustin was playing, are you more surprised sitting here now that you're up by a pretty good cushion or that you guys saw so much sunshine today?
STEVE STRICKER: A little bit of both. I really knew I had a lead and whatever, but I was just trying to do my own thing and put the blinders on and hit the shots that I needed to hit and try to do what I've been doing the last couple of days. You know, it was a blessing that we got the great weather, and it felt like 70 degrees and no wind there for a while. It wasn't, but compared to yesterday, it was great.
I've really been out here long enough, and I try not to get ahead of myself. It's only the third round and I still have four holes to finish here. That's what my mindset was trying to finish that off today.
DOUG MILNE: Thanks for coming in.

End of FastScripts

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