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MICHELOB ULTRA OPEN AT KINGSMILL

May 5, 2005

Cristie Kerr

WILLIAMSBURG, VIRGINIA

CRISTIE KERR: We'll do the scorecard first.

PAUL ROVNAK: Take us over that, please.

CRISTIE KERR: The first hole and conditions were really tough, I hit a 7 iron, which, you know, I thought was pretty good, which I thought it was a pretty good shot into the green. The wind hampered it to the front of the green. I proceeded to leave it way short from about 50 something feet, and I didn't make the second one. But I thought the first green was a little slower than the rest for some reason.

PAUL ROVNAK: How far was the putt on 1?

CRISTIE KERR: For par? It must have been over ten feet.

Then on 7, it was kind of in the front of the green. Kind of pitched it up there to 15 feet made that for birdie.

9, I hit wedge to 22 feet, made that.

I almost chipped under on 10, so I made par on 10.

11, I hit a sand wedge to about probably over 15 feet, made that.

12, almost made it from the fairway. I it hit well short of the pin, kind of hopped and released. I think it caught part of the hole, got by the hole 20 feet, 18 feet, made that with a 7 iron. I don't remember how far I was from the fairway.

14, hit a little pitching wedge to about 18 feet, made that, so I had a good day with the putter.

18, they moved us up on the tees. Nobody really hit they didn't have a line saying they were going to use that tee box. It was a little bit unfamiliar. Last year it was about where we teed off from. It looked different. I wasn't prepared that they were going to move the tees up. I guess they saw the forecast of wind.

I kind of pulled my drive off the tee. The wind came up and gusted and hammered it. It flew short of the bunker and kicked way down the hill almost in the water. There was a duck down there that tried to bite my ball. And I was forced to I didn't have a shot, forced to pitch it back in the fairway, and then I had hundred yards to the hole. I hit a good shot, kind of released down the hill a little bit too far. It probably had about 15, 18 feet for par. Made bogey.

So that was my round.

Q. What did you hit for your third shot there?

CRISTIE KERR: Like a medium sized wedge.

Q. You mentioned tough conditions, can you talk about that. Was the wind picking up?

CRISTIE KERR: You know, the wind was really, it was pretty steady. It was gusting probably ten to 12 miles per hour. It got colder towards the end.

You know, I played really, really well today. I guess in these conditions you kind of have to forgive an errant shot. The ball is all over the place out there. It kind of sucked that it had to be the last hole for me. I have to look at the overall round. I made a lot of good putts today. Conditions were tough. Anything under par today I think is a good score.

PAUL ROVNAK: We'll take some questions.

Q. Is there something you like about this course? You did well last year

CRISTIE KERR: And the year before. I don't know, I just like this style of golf course. I can tell you with the changes hasn't made it easier. There are some tough up and downs out here. In some cases it is, what's the lesser of two evils, where you will miss the green.

I still think it has a tremendous amount of character, and my housing is awesome. They have a wine cellar and they are gourmet cooks. I am really happy here.

Q. Can you compare the greens this year as opposed to last year?

CRISTIE KERR: I think the greens last year had poa annua in them. I played with the head course superintendant yesterday. He told me that the greens were newly redone. They put the grasses from Augusta. He saw the poa annua on the 18th green, he took his knife out immediately and cut it out. He said I have to go talk to the golf course superintendant for that course. I think the greens are rolling really, really well. They picked up a tremendous amount of speed since Monday. They were slow on Monday. The greens in Nashville were very, very quick. They are probably rolling over on 11.

Q. Cristie, Annika came out and shot 75 today. Everybody knows she is going for six in a row. Does she get in your head at all? Are you paying attention to her?

CRISTIE KERR: Honestly, I really had no idea what she shot. She is a good enough player to be in contention every week obviously. I am kind of at the point in my career now where I have got to focus on how I go forward. I see getting in contention and playing head to head with her, I see that as an opportunity now instead of most people would be scared to play her or, you know, I just want to play well or whatever.

I look at it as an opportunity to go forward as another level in my career. I think I have just got to keep knocking.

Q. You have a late tee time tomorrow, anything special you might watch on TV tonight?

CRISTIE KERR: I'm Eating too much food and drinking too much wine.

Q. Wouldn't want to watch "The Donald"?

CRISTIE KERR: I watch that occasionally. I watch probably more movies than I do television shows. It is a pretty busy schedule out here. I will probably practice for an hour and a half. I have got laundry to do. I am staying with really, really great people. If we watch it we do, if not we don't.

Q. (Inaudible)?

CRISTIE KERR: I am actually good friends with Donald, I don't know if you are aware of that. He started our championship 34 years ago. We have become closer. You know, I wouldn't say we are great friends, but decent golf acquaintances. I have played golf with him several times. I am member at Trump International. That place is amazing. I am actually representing Trump Golf to some degree now. It was kind of natural that I go on "The Apprentice".

Q. Do you see it kind of playing out as 2 or 3 under each day is going to be a good score with the weather, aside from how difficult the course is?

CRISTIE KERR: Absolutely. There are a lot of tough pins they set on this golf course. I think every day there will be eight to ten really tough pins. So it fits my style of play, if you will.

I like to be aggressive when I can be. If not I like to try to knock the putts in, that is my style of game. I think the weather is supposed to be better on the weekend. If we have to play out there tomorrow, I think I will just try to survive and do the best I can.

Q. Is this a case where you can make up ground or try not to lose ground?

CRISTIE KERR: Well, I don't know if you can look at it that way. I don't. I think you just have to being a player, you have to go out there during the conditions and just say in your head, this is where I would like to be today. I'd like to shoot under par. Then if you shoot 8 or 10 under. That was a joke, you know. That is a bonus.

If you shoot 1 under, that is your goal to shoot under par in tough conditions, if you shoot 3 or 4 under, it is a bonus. 8 or 10 under, where does that come from?

PAUL ROVNAK: You have done it before.

CRISTIE KERR: In a monsoon?

Q. Expecting a monsoon tomorrow?

CRISTIE KERR: It is not supposed to be good. I have heard it will 20 and rainy. I don't know what the weather will be like. You have to assume it will not be as good as it is today.

It was good to be in the morning. The wind is getting tougher. It is getting colder. The greens are drying out and getting firmer, which is what they say they will try to do with the course.

I am pleased with my score. I am not happy I bogeyed the first and last hole, but that is golf.

Q. Annika, winning five in a row, going for six in a row, is there any sense that reflects on the rest of you guys and for that reason you want to end it?

CRISTIE KERR: We want all you guys to think about us, too, if you ask them the same thing. We can't control what she does. We are all trying to win the tournament. We are here to do that. And you know, that is all I really have to say.

She has won a ton of tournaments. We are not focusing on her. She is not focusing on us, I can tell you that.

Q. I think I can chart it, there were nine players last year who were leading after the first round. Not all of them were wire to wire (inaudible). It is a good place to be on Thursday. Some people think it might be somewhere you don't want to be on Thursday.

CRISTIE KERR: Anytime you're leading the golf tournament it is a good place to be, whether it is in the beginning or obviously at the end it is better to hold the lead. If you are going out there and playing better than everybody every day, that is kind of your goal. I know I am being vague, but it is kind of the truth.

PAUL ROVNAK: Thank you, Cristie.

End of FastScripts.

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