	products recent interviews FastScripts archive about ASAP Sports

Our Clients:

Browse by Sport

Find us on

Subscribe to RSS

Click to go to
Asaptext.com

View our
e-Brochure

PGA CHAMPIONSHIP

August 11, 2011

David Toms

JOHNS CREEK, GEORGIA

Q. Different animal than you played years ago?
DAVID TOMS: Yeah, it's a different golf course. A lot longer, different greens, a lot of fairway bunkers, a lot of fairways are kind of awkward tee shots that we didn't have last time. It's a tougher golf course, much tougher.

Q. Is it playing a lot longer with the zoysia fairways? The ball is chasing a little bit, but the yardage is definitely longer, but are you hitting longer shots into the greens?
DAVID TOMS: I am. Maybe some of these guys aren't. We're lucky that they moved up some of the tees for us today, so it wasn't too bad. But still, a lot of long holes out there, just one after another, and I have to drive the ball in the fairway, and every bogey I made today, I had five bogeys, every one of them came after a bad drive, so I'll have to improve on that.

Q. Tell me about the stretch today, you started on the back nine. Tell me about 15, 16, 17, 18, 1, 2, 3 and 4. Is that the hardest two hours of golf that you're going to face ever in your life?
DAVID TOMS: Absolutely. I didn't play them too bad. I birdied 17 and 18 today, which was a bonus. But then played 2, 3, bogeys on those holes and gave it back pretty quickly. So it's a tough stretch, you know, especially -- I mean, it just doesn't let up. The whole golf course really doesn't. If you don't take advantage of those scoring opportunities out there, you're going to have a tough day.

Q. What do you think the final number is going to be? How hard is -- I mean, I'm guessing that there's some guys that might play pretty good like Steve Stricker is right now and get some good rounds, but 7-under par, 6-under par, 2-under par?
DAVID TOMS: I think if you shot under par every day you would take it for sure, even if it's only 1-under. I think at the end you're going to be right there.

Q. Talk about 17.
DAVID TOMS: 17, I hit 6-iron, and 18 I hit a 4-iron with the tee up on 18. I hit a really good drive. You'll see a lot of guys probably lay back there today because it's a very tough drive to get that ball in the fairway there. But I hit a 4-iron in and obviously made a long putt.

Q. (Inaudible.)
DAVID TOMS: Well, it's just -- I picked bad holes to do that on. 2 and 3 are really tough holes. I need to drive the ball in the fairway to even have a chance because I've got a long shot regardless. I drove it in the rough both holes and made bogey there.
Bogeying 13 is not good. I mean, that's a short hole. I drove it through the fairway there. Obviously I hit the green, but I was a long way away, and it was a three-putt bogey. And then drove it in a fairway bunker on 8. I can't carry the edge of the water there, so it's a pretty tough little tee shot. Left it out a little right and made bogey there. So every bad drive I hit it seemed like I made a bogey.

Q. The second shot on 12, was that club or just mis-hit?
DAVID TOMS: Well, I had 225 to the front, but I had about 239 to the front right, and I tried to hit 2-hybrid kind of towards the middle of the green, left side of the green, and I pushed it just a little. I hit it perfect, just wasn't enough to carry towards the pin. Just a few more yards I had an eagle putt and here I was struggling to try to make par.

Q. How different is this course from 2001?
DAVID TOMS: Very different. I said something to one of the guys about playing 18 as a par-5, using that back tee, and one of the guys said, well, there's too much history on that hole. I said, well, you've changed the golf course, there's really no history here, so why not do that. It's a different golf course, it certainly is. It's a tougher driving course, a lot narrower in places, a lot more bad things can happen out there, water closer to some of the holes, and a long golf course. So for me I really have to drive it well, and I didn't do that today.

Q. Where do you see opportunities to pick up some shots tomorrow?
DAVID TOMS: Well, obviously the par-5s, there's only a couple of them, so if you hit a good drive there -- I probably still have to lay up on both, but still, it's a wedge shot in, so I need to take advantage of that. 13, where I made bogey today, that's a birdie opportunity if you're in the fairway. So I have to play the shorter holes well.

Q. What did you hit on 15, and do you think that's a fair hole?
DAVID TOMS: Oh, yeah. What did I hit, 2-hybrid. So basically the same club, if I still had a 5-wood, it would have been a 5-wood shot today. I guess it's fair. It's a tough, long par-3, you know. They give you a little bail-out over there to the left, short and left if you want to play it that way. But certainly if the pin is anywhere right it's an awful tough birdie. Just another one of those long par-4s out here really is what it is. It's that first shot you've got to hit so good. It's a tough hole.

Q. Talk about the closing holes. Do you feel pressure kind of before getting to those holes to kind of get some birdies in?
DAVID TOMS: Well, sure, as far as your score goes. It would be nice to be under par trying to finish up on the tough holes. But for me I've got to play every shot the best I can to have any chance at all. So that's the way I have to play golf.

Q. Is there more sand in the fairway bunkers this year than in 2001?
DAVID TOMS: I don't know what it is, but they're really, really tough to hit out of. I haven't seen any good shots out of them, I mean, not in practice, not today, and you see some really bad ones. You see guys kind of thinning them out of there because they're trying not to hit it heavy. I hit one -- I thought I hit a good shot on 8 and 9 out of the fairway bunker, posing on both of them, thinking they're in the middle of the green and I came up short both times. I don't know what it is, I just think you can't get a good, clean hit.

Q. Are they fluffy?
DAVID TOMS: I don't know, it's just not sitting up. I mean, I don't really know what it is. I don't know if it's the way -- it's the sand or the way they're preparing it or what. It's a half stroke penalty for sure.

Q. But you don't recall that being the case in '01?
DAVID TOMS: Well, first of all, there weren't as many of them, and so guys weren't in them as often as they are now. And now they're -- with the way they've pinched the fairways in and the fairway bunkers, you're going to be in some, and it's tough to hit it solid out of it.

Q. What was it like to walk by your plaque for the first time in a tournament round?
DAVID TOMS: Well, obviously brought back some memories. It was there when we walked by and everything. It's cool to have part of the history there. It was a great shot at that time. I'm not sure I've hit one that straight since, but obviously a timely shot.

Q. How long was your putt on 18?
DAVID TOMS: I don't know. You'd have to ask whatever. They probably don't have ShotLink here this week. I don't know, it was long, 80 feet, all the way across the green. If I had my yardage book out I could tell you, but I don't know exactly. It was a long way. I was trying to get it close and one of those that went in perfect speed right in the middle. That was a bonus.

Q. Any different plan of attack for tomorrow?
DAVID TOMS: No, I just have to drive it better. I feel like if I can get it in the fairway more often -- I hit my irons really good today, hit a lot of shots right at it. You can't be scrambling for pars out here because the greens are so fast that you're not going to make them all and you're kind of defensive on those first putts, so it's hard to get the ball up-and-down around the greens. I have to give myself a lot of birdie opportunities and make a few and hang in there on those tough holes.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297