WGC ANDERSEN CONSULTING MATCH PLAY CHAMPIONSHIP

February 23, 2000

Jose Maria Olazabal

JOSE MARIA OLAZABAL: Yes, it was a tough match. Craig Parry started playing very well, made a few putts and I was 2-down early in the match. And he made a couple of mistakes on 8 and 11. We were all square again, and all of a sudden I lost 12 and 13 in a row. And I was just struggling, to be honest, because he hit a wonderful tee shot on 14. And I managed to make a birdie. And I think that turned the momentum around, and came back from 2 down after 13. So I'm really pleased, even though I didn't play very well the last three holes, 16, 17, and 18.

JOSE MARIA OLAZABAL: On 16 and 17 I missed the driver, and I put myself in a lot of trouble. I saved a great par on 16 to win the hole. But mainly that. And I overclubbed on 18; hit it over the green in the back bunker. And I had to save par to win the match.

JOSE MARIA OLAZABAL: It has been quite an easy start, to be honest. I just played a couple of tournaments in Australia, that's it. And I'm trying to take it easy at the start of the season, because of the traveling, going to Australia, coming here. So it wears you down a little bit. And I'm trying to take a couple of weeks off in between those trips.

JOSE MARIA OLAZABAL: They were tough. Maybe not on the front because the wind wasn't blowing that much, but especially on the back 9 the wind has started to pick up. It was quite difficult to really adjust the clubs. Apart from that, obviously, the golf course is playing quite wet and long, but at the same time you can really attack the flags. So it evens out a little bit.

JOSE MARIA OLAZABAL: The rough this year is quite severe, to be honest, yes. The rough I think is higher, I think, than it was last year. Also the fact that it's wet at the same time. So driving the ball well I think is very important to be able to score well here, because the golf course is really playing long. As soon as you miss the tee shot, virtually you're not going to have any chance of missing the green. So you will have to up-and-down from 40, 50 yards or whatever.

JOSE MARIA OLAZABAL: I hit quite a few until the very end. On the front 9 I think I only missed one. And on the back 9 I missed -- well, 16 and 17.

JOSE MARIA OLAZABAL: Well, I went to see John Jacobs the week before going to Australia. And he thought that the plane was correct; it was just a matter of making the putter stronger. It's still uncomfortable after all the years I've been using the weaker grip, so it's going to take me a little while to really feel comfortable with it. But hopefully we're working in the right direction now.

JOSE MARIA OLAZABAL: No, no. It's just the grip.

JOSE MARIA OLAZABAL: Well, if you have a weak grip, obviously the club face is going to have a tendency to get open. So my missed shots last year were, most of them were right. If you make the grip stronger, the club should be more square.

JOSE MARIA OLAZABAL: It was just the week before Australia.

JOSE MARIA OLAZABAL: In a sense, yes. Today, for instance, I missed only like three fairways today. The only question mark that is in my mind it was just the last few holes, 16 and 17, under pressure I didn't manage to deliver, to get a couple of good drives, which would have been very important. But hopefully it will come along.

JOSE MARIA OLAZABAL: Well, yes. I'm trying to -- that's something I have to play with, you know. I want to have the same grip, but obviously it's much easier to draw the ball with the irons. And it's just the opposite feeling, with the driver I feel like I need to make it really more stronger -- stronger, to keep it straight. And if I grip the club like that with the irons, I'm fighting not to miss the ball out. So it will take a little time.

JOSE MARIA OLAZABAL: No, I don't feel you have to, like I have to come to play, no. I like the tournament. I think match play -- the only thing about match play is that you can come here, and after 18 holes you're back home. But I think the format is an interesting one. I like playing match play. It's not that you have to play so much against the golf course, but against your opponent. So it makes you play different -- a different game. Your approach to some of the shots is completely different than if you were playing a regular tournament. And I like that.

JOSE MARIA OLAZABAL: Well, I said in Australia that is going to be most probably a no. It's very early in the year. I've always said that December and virtually January I don't want to play golf at all. The season is long enough, and I need -- I feel like I need the rest. So I'm not going to miss those days with my family. So most probably I won't be going there.

JOSE MARIA OLAZABAL: December and January.

JOSE MARIA OLAZABAL: No. The week before going to Australia, I spent two days. And that was the only time I saw him during the whole winter. So I will see him later during the season, obviously. But it was only those two days.

JOSE MARIA OLAZABAL: Not if I feel that -- not if I feel some improvement from this moment up to the week before TPC.

JOSE MARIA OLAZABAL: Well, obviously he's pretty clear, if you compare my grip to the rest of the players that play golf, my grip is a very weak one. But because my iron play was so good he didn't want to mess with it, but it was always something that he had in the back of his mind.