Q. Asking you particularly about missing that cut, does the general public realize how difficult it is for Tiger is about to do making so many cuts.
DAN FORSMAN: I read that this morning, 113 today, or this week if he makes it? That's miraculous I must say. That's a .400, .500 hitter in baseball. Yeah, it's unreal and he's playing the best of the best, the toughest events which are just set up to just test every, you know, physical and mental, emotional skill you have. For him to have achieved that or likely will -- I don't know what he's shooting today -- I am sure it's going to be favorable, but it's miraculous to me. I have had a run where I have made probably 14 in a row, thought, gee, I am on a roll here. This looks pretty good. I am looking at that sheet. Most guys make so many cuts. Vijay is like 18, Lehman is 14 and I was like 14. I think someone else was -- Hale Irwin at that time established a number of them. Yeah, what goes along the lines of what he is. You have got to tip your cap to him. He's not only the greatest, No. 1 player in the world, but to keep that level of consistency -- I was saying this to some of the amateurs guys asking about him. I said what makes him great is when he enters the tournament, it's not like if he has a good week he's going to win; it's like you expect him to win. That's says an awful lot. This guy he's going to win. Someone has got to do something really big to beat this guy and knock him off. That seems to be the case most of the time. Some of the other so-called superstars I am not going to name them, but it depends if he putts well, he might win; if he can get it all gelling, he might win, or, but Tiger, he comes in admittedly, I don't have my A-game, you feel like he's going to find his A-game and win the golf tournament. Everyone knows that and is aware of that. That's kind -- that's what his level of performance through the years. Now nothing surprises us. It's just a tremendous another feather in his cap. Maybe he can achieve that goal. Who knows how far it can go. Having said that he might miss the cut. Who knows. But it's tremendous.
Q. Back to the Amateur part of this, do most amateurs get it as far as when to approach or not approach, have you ever had anybody go to the extreme, hey, let me read this putt for you kind of thing?
DAN FORSMAN: I think they do get it. I think they are getting a lot better. There were a few tournaments early on that I played in, like Las Vegas that I'd hate to say it was a joke but there were some things that went on there, amateurs who had lost some money in the casinos, they didn't really care to be playing. They wanted to make the money back. You got indications that they weren't there for golf. That's changed a lot too. It was a lot better this year. This year was really good there. I guess the thing that what makes it difficult from a professional's standpoint when you are out there and in that zone in a focused, highly-aware state, you notice everything. So if you -- for example I was out on the par 5 on the back nine there, 14, and putting for birdie or for eagle on the fringe and my amateur -- the other amateur's partner says, he's chopping it up out of the woods. I told my caddie is he going to drive that cart up to the green or he is going to wait. He looks over because I didn't want to look over. He says he's going to drive it up. I said, okay, fine. So I will wait. Sure enough up comes the cart, you can hear the humming of the wheels and the batteries, all that. So you got to wait for that. Okay, when is he going to stop. Finally you look over he stops the cart now you can go. These are things that you have won't -- on a regular game if all of us were out playing. We would go, no big deal, let me putt, tap it up there. But when you are in the focus of the tournament, same old adage of the 2-by-4 across cinderblocks as opposed to across the World Trade Center. (Sic) you can walk it six feet. Can you walk it when the wind is blowing and people are down there looking at you and the media cameras are going? You are highly aware, it's a whole different world. That's why a lot of people say, oh, I know I can play the Tour. I can do that. It looks easy. It does but until they call you to the tee and they announce you and you stand up there and you got to deliver it, it's a whole different game. That's why when I go home, I might say, I beat him three of the four days I played with him. I can beat that guy. That's fine come on out here, tee it up in a tournament. Let's see what you can do.
I think Brad Faxon made a great statement recently about a young kid that was a prodigy, "He has got a nice swing and nice putting stroke, but I have never seen him play under the gun and I never seen him put under the gun so I can't really say."
Q. The hole locations this week are relatively easy compared to how they are usually set up at most tournaments; I want to know what your thoughts are on that?
DAN FORSMAN: Had some new pins this year we come here, usually it's the same we know it's going to be there, and there. You kind of get that sense of it. You kind of plan your strategy accordingly. A couple of times today the pins were in different spots. I was impressed that -- I kept making the comment to my caddie, the new Tour officials out here are jazzing it up a little bit. There has been a turnover a bit; some of the guys retired and you got some young guys moving in. The Tour officials this year are trying to make it more difficult because the scoring has been exceptionally low. There was a lot of talk about that early in the year.
The key is the greens are holding. It's Bermuda and they hit and they stick, so you are not getting them bouncing, rolling off the way you do in hard, hard, bent-grass greens. So that is the reason you are able to see the low scores and the absence of wind is a big, big factor.
But there are some unique pins, this course where you are coming up the slope, you're into the grain, it goes over the slope and it's down the grain. I mean it's really odd. You pick up on that. You have to hit it hard to get it up through the grain up on the hill and not too hard so that it runs down the back past the pin.
We have been here a lot of years and there's times scoring -- I don't know what last year was six under par cut. That's low. Expect it to be somewhere there this year.
Q. Just made it right now?
DAN FORSMAN: I got to go perform tomorrow -- still got to play, right.
Q. For the guys who are good enough to be the best player in the world and they are in the era of Tiger, is that frustrating to them or do you think it's motivation or how do you approach trying to be the best player in the world when it's probably not going to happen?
DAN FORSMAN: I am sure I have heard a lot about guys who played the Nicklaus era when Jack was you know, preeminent player in the game. I know what Tom Weiskoff, his brother played on a golf team with me in Arizona State. He made a comment that it's unfortunate that guys had to play against Jack because he was that great. He just had a fifth and sixth gear that allowed him to win tournaments. Turn it on and he knew he was going to beat you, he knew that he was going to beat you and he knew that your knew that he was going to beat you. Seems to me there are some parallels with regards to the present day quote, so-called superstars, along with Tiger. I think what Tiger seems to have is that he has got a girlfriend, he's focused on the game. He knows his place in the game, he knows the record books and what he's trying to achieve. Seems like a lot of the other guys have some other interests have families, kids, have sort of what some would argue is a more balanced life, perhaps but it comes at the expense of being runnerup to Tiger, I am sure it's very difficult for those who would like to be able to beat Tiger and compete with him day in day out and beat him, knock him off. It's just -- he's that good and he's proved it. He's able to go out and do it when he does did -- like I say when he doesn't have his great stuff. There never any excuses, my clubs are bad, or my caddie is bad, or the yardage is bad, or the balls are bad. He just overcomes it all. I remember Jack Nicklaus, he played that Jack Nicklaus ball, most guys won't hit it on the driving range, that guy would win with that damn thing. That was like unreal. People using Titelist would be asked, would you use that ball? Hell, no, would never use that ball, are you kidding me, the Nicklaus ball. Before that it was the MacGregor Tourney. What kind of ball is that? Can you imagine that and he'd go out and win with that thing. That says it all, I guess, in terms of how good these guys are. I don't know, I am sure that you know, the guys later would say I'd won a lot more if Tiger hadn't been around. At the same time maybe you can argue that Tiger is going to make them better. Certainly made the Tour better and the rest of the players better because they will realizing what he can do and what he's been able to accomplish; everybody is saying, hey, wait a minute here. That's what happened with the 40-plus guys winning this year they are all saying my gosh, look what he's doing, he's going crazy out there and winning tournaments by tremendous numbers and beating all these guys and guys are saying hey, I need to get with it here. I think it's been helpful for those fellows. As far as whether he can they can believe they can beat him toe to toe, I think there are guys out here that think they can beat him Mike Weir and a Davis Love myself on a given day, I am out here, I have seen the best I have been around the best. I know I can perform. But week in, week out, no, probably not never going to be to his level. I'd like to say I would be, but got to be very realistic at this point.
Q. 40-plus guys that came along at a time when working out and that whole aspect of it Tiger -- is that an oversimplified view of things because --
DAN FORSMAN: Guys working out you mean?
Q. Yes. Has that had much affect on the 40-plus guys saying hey, had I done this when I am 20 or something I'd be better off now; it's not too late to benefit from it at this point as well?
DAN FORSMAN: Yeah, I don't know how much the working out is -- I know guys are touting that as the big equalizer, the thing that's gotten them to the next level. I think that the guys who -- someone told me the other day he wanted to be a musician. He'd say I'd give anything to play the guitar like you do. He said, no you, wouldn't. I said yes, I would. He said, no, you wouldn't. What do you mean? He says you want to play like me. Are you willing to play eight hours a day, six days a week, seven days a week, for eight years in a row. The guy says well, yeah, you are right I don't think I am willing -- I don't want to be as good as you are. The point is that Tiger has worked his golf regimen, his practice regimen, it's kind of secluded -- we don't really get the full Monte of this role that he does. My understanding is it would put anybody else out here -- would be -- they'd pale in comparison. I think that -- I think that's the big difference. He's doing the things that you know, that most guys aren't willing to do. And you know, for whatever reason he's doing it, I mean, it's not about the money. It's about the title and his record book and so forth. You got to just tip your cap to him. It's what you do in the dark as they say. It's that commitment that you really that you give to it. He's given it all. I know he's talented but I can see if someone said given birth to a boy or a girl, but never to a world class champion golfer or heart surgeon or whatever, it's what you do between that time that makes you who you are. I don't know, he seems to have a willpower that he can will the ball in the hole almost. I have watched it in the U.S. Amateur coming down the stretch and beating those guys you know, every one of those matches he would just do what had to be done to win. I was like how do you do that? It's amazing. I don't think I have ever seen anybody in sports do what he did other than Jack Nicklaus. Nicklaus seemed to have that same whatever it took, Grier Jones, when he came down to Doral Grier had the bag and just (inaudible) Jack chipped in twice and that's what he did. It was amazing. Tiger has that too.
End of FastScripts.
