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FORD SENIOR PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP

July 13, 2003

Tom Kite

DEARBORN, MICHIGAN

TOM KITE: Yeah that was a tough shot, no question about it. To have a 5 wood into that green going back to that pin was pretty dangerous. Coming way with birdie was a lot of fun. That's an exciting hole. There's a lot of neat things that can happen on that hole. You can make 3, you can make a 7. It's a fun hole to watch.

Q. At six back, did you have a number in mind?

TOM KITE: Actually, I felt like if I went out there, because of the way the leaderboard was, there was three guys that had separated themselves from the field, but there's no guarantee that all three of those guys or any three of those guys are going to play well today. I felt like if I went out and shot a really good score, I was kind of thinking 64, that I would have a real give chance of doing something in the tournament, shoot 63, and right now I'm way back. We just have to wait and see what happens with the last couple of holes.

But Craig is a good player and he's obviously playing very well and got everything on cruise control. So he will probably go onto win it.

Q. (Inaudible.)

TOM KITE: Well, it could be tougher conditions. How long this is going to last, how thick it's going to get, the delay, those are all questions that we'll just have to wait and see. But obviously he played very, very well.

Q. (Inaudible.)

TOM KITE: Well, I think all of us are pulling for Tom. You know, we're competitive, and obviously we are pulling for ourselves first, but I think it's a great story, that everybody's well, I said it's a great story. It's a sad story, it really is because Bruce is such a wonderful person and been a good, good friend of a lot of players for many, many years. To have something like this happen to such a good guy is really a travesty. But you have to admire the way that he has handled it, the way that Tom has handled it, and the way that they have gone about their business. The thing that the way they have conducted themselves throughout this ordeal gives an awful lot of hope to a lot of people, and it does make it a great story. Sooner or later, because of a lot of things like this, they will find a cure for this and beat it.

Q. A lot of the senior players don't know Craig Stadler that well, but you've played with him quite a few tournaments on the PGA TOUR. Would you consider him to be a quirky guy?

TOM KITE: Quirky guy? Oh, Stads is just Stads. I don't know how you do anything but just sit back and watch him. He's a great guy, got a great sense of humor, and got more body language than any 15 people together. He's fun to watch.

Q. Inaudible?

TOM KITE: It did look like a three man race the way the scores were after the third round. The way the golf course is playing, you can get some good scores. And if you come from out of the pack, a lot of times that happens where a guy comes from out of the pack and shoots a very good score. The first year that I played here I had a great chance of winning this golf tournament, but Ray Floyd came from out of the pack and won the tournament. I've always kind of remembered that; that if you really go out and shoot a good score the last day, you can pass people.

Q. Do you think about that on the first tee or do you think about it after the first couple three birdies?

TOM KITE: No, I knew what I had to do, to even have a chance to have a chance at this golf tournament. When I started off and parred the first four holes, you know it's kind of like, all right, got to get something going here pretty soon. Fortunately I birdied five, six, seven in a row and that set the tone for the day.

Q. And a heck of a finish.

TOM KITE: It was a fun nine. Apart from that little 3 putt on 16 where I missed and came up just short of the original, I had two pretty good putts there. But apart from that, it was a very special nine holes of golf. The one on 13 was 15, maybe 18 feet.

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