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FORD CHAMPIONSHIP AT DORAL

March 6, 2004

Craig Parry

DORAL, FLORIDA

JOHN BUSH: Craig, thanks for coming by for a few minutes. Craig is our leader heading into the final round, and is the winner of this week's CRESTOR Charity Challenge. He has earned $50,000 for the health care charity of his choice, and also as part of the CRESTOR Charity Challenge, the Ford Championship at Doral has awarded $50,000 to the American Heart Association, Miami Dade Chapter. Congratulations on that, Craig.

Great playing today. If we could get to you comment on your round, please.

CRAIG PARRY: Well, there's a lot happened today, isn't there? (Laughter). As I said, I wasn't expecting a check today for the charity but that's fantastic.

About my round, I got off to an ordinary start parring the first hole, making a bogey. But then I got off and birdied the second, third and fourth and I was away. I played really well tee to green, just a couple shots that were a little bit loose. I think hitting into 15, there was a little bit of wind and hit 6 iron that just got up in the wind and came up short in the bunker. I played the bunker shot out and there was a heap of sand that went straight underneath it. The hole dug in the sand and I holed a really good putt for par.

17, I hit driver off the tee into the right bunker. Hit 5 iron to the middle of the green. And I had a practice putt in my practice round and I hit that putt, actually, in my practice round and came up way short. So, I knew it was going to be a slow putt. That's probably why I hit it four or five feet passed.

Q. You and Gene will be in the final group.

CRAIG PARRY: A couple of tour tall guys. (Laughter.)

Q. Neither one of you is very high on the Money List last year, is that a pretty good lesson in what can happen week to week out here, and do you know Gene at all?

CRAIG PARRY: Yeah, I know Gene well. We've been playing I've been a member of the Tour for 12 years, so I have played a lot with him. A great guy to play with. Hopefully we'll have a lot of fun.

As for last year, that was last year. We're getting ready to play tomorrow, fourth round. There's so many guys that have missed cuts and then gone out and won the following week on TOUR, not only in the PGA TOUR, but the European Tour, the Australian tour. It's one of those things. Sometimes a player just gets down and says, look, I'm not going to have that next week and goes out and plays really well.

I felt I was playing all right coming into the tournament. I played in Adelaide at the Jacob's Creek event, which is a Nationwide Tour event and we played in a lot of wind down in Adelaide.

Q. Do you remember who stuck with you Popeye and why? And secondly, I guess this is going to be a track meet tomorrow unless the wind comes up and you've got to jump on the gas right out of the gate.

CRAIG PARRY: Oh, yeah, there's no question.

As far as my nickname, that was the Japanese media in my younger days. They give everyone a nickname over in Japan and I got Popeye.

As far as tomorrow's round anyone within a few shots of the lead has a chance. The way the wind can blow out here, anyone can go out and shoot a good round and bypass a lot of guys on the top of the leaderboard.

But, you know, I'm in a good position. Go out and play well tomorrow, I've got a chance to win it.

Q. Can you talk about just the first two days, you were trying to survive on a lot of holes out here and today you had a completely different mindset and went low. Talk about that and the change in conditions.

CRAIG PARRY: Obviously, it changed a lot. Like the first hole in the first two rounds was driver and a 6 iron. Yesterday I hit it in the fairway bunker but it was only 6 iron to the green. Whereas today it was a lot longer club into the green. I hit it in the bunker again.

The winds were gusting yesterday and making it very difficult. On 9, they actually put the tee forward, and when you play 151 yards, which is quite nice, making a hole short for a change.

It was good. The golf course is in great shape. There's a lot of birdie opportunities. No. 8, they moved the tee forward about 25 yards. I had an opportunity to get it on the green there and I hit it flag high and chipped it down, hitting a poor part of the green and it just stopped on me. I missed about a 12 footer there. That was a chance that went by.

There are plenty of opportunities out there for birdies if you're playing well.

Q. Is it hard to make that adjustment playing defensive and then you've just got to shoot at most pins now?

CRAIG PARRY: I think you have to play aggressive no matter when you play, even if it is in the wind. If you're aggressive and confident when it comes off, you can shoot a low number.

Q. Given the fact that Australians historically play this event well and play in the wind well, would you just assume the wind kick back up tomorrow?

CRAIG PARRY: I would prefer it if the wind kicked back up, yeah.

Q. Do you think you have a little bit of an advantage in experience in that regard?

CRAIG PARRY: I think playing in Australia, you definitely have an advantage playing the guys over here, because we play in the wind all the time. Every tournament we play in Australia, it's always windy. That's why the winning score is always around 8 under par.

Q. Have you ever been today disqualified from a tournament for missing a tee time?

CRAIG PARRY: No. I was awakened last night at midnight and I thought, not again. I couldn't get back to sleep until 2:00 this morning. I thought I'm going to have to set my alarm in case I do sleep through it to about 11:30.

Q. What woke you up?

CRAIG PARRY: Just the time zone.

Q. Like in a panic

CRAIG PARRY: Not panic. Just time to wake up in Australia.

Q. When something like that happens and you almost miss your tee time, but you make it, do you think that this could be kind of a special week? Do you believe in omens like that at all?

CRAIG PARRY: I'd like to think it is a good omen. The first day, I mean, if my brother didn't wake me up, I'm going back to Orlando and having a week off. I played really well the first day and shot 1 under. Obviously I played a lot better yesterday. Today I played all right, as well.

Q. How rushed were you on that first day? Obviously you made the tee time but

CRAIG PARRY: Well, they were different trousers trousers, shirt, belt, socks. I don't want to give away too much, but my brother didn't tell even put any jocks on. Just put them straight on. (Laughter).

Q. How long did it take you to get settled on the golf course?

CRAIG PARRY: I hit a good 3 wood down the 10th hole and I had a yardage. I could have gone for the green, but I didn't have any practice. So I wasn't game enough to grab my 3 wood or my 2 iron and knock it on the green.

So I grabbed my 4 iron and hit it up short of the green. If had I practiced and warmed up ,would I have been okay to go at the green but I was too scared. I didn't know whether I was going to hit it in the water or the tries.

Q. How much time did you have to spare?

CRAIG PARRY: The group was held up a little bit in front which, I was lucky. If I had to get to the first tee, I would have been walking the first 18 hitting no balls.

Q. What is your brother's first name?

CRAIG PARRY: Lynn.

Q. Did your alarm not go off?

CRAIG PARRY: We didn't hear it. We were in that much of a deep sleep.

Q. He woke up, though?

CRAIG PARRY: Well, he woke up and had a shower and comeback and said, well, why didn't you move? He thought we were past 8:00 and I knew it was 7:54. So it was comedy if I tell you everything that happened we just had a shock of the day.

Q. You guys are sharing a suite here at the resort?

CRAIG PARRY: Yeah.

Q. After that, if you were to win this week, you would certainly always remember this tournament for both, I guess?

CRAIG PARRY: Yes, exactly.

Q. What percent does he get of the check?

CRAIG PARRY: Oh, he's working for brotherly love, isn't he? (Laughter.) Double of nothing is nothing. (Laughter.)

JOHN BUSH: Let's go through your card starting with a birdie on No. 2.

CRAIG PARRY: I hit 2 iron off the tee. I hit pitching wedge to about 15 feet.

No. 3, I hit driver over towards that left hand bunker and I was in the rough, but my one foot was in the bunker on the slope there. I hit 7 iron out to about 30 feet and holed it.

Then I think I birdied No. 5. I hit 3 wood off the tee and hit 8 iron into about 12 feet.

Next birdie was No. 10. I hit 3 wood off the tee. I hit 4 iron out of the light rough just short of the green, chipped up to about 15 foot.

And No. 11, I hit driver off the tee, 8 iron to about nine feet.

12, I hit driver, 3 iron and a pitching wedge to about a foot.

JOHN BUSH: Craig, once again being the first CRESTOR Charity Challenge winner and good luck tomorrow trying to win the Ford Championship.

End of FastScripts.

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