An interview with:
TOM WATSON

RAND JERRIS: Tom congratulations on four days of very fine play. Bruce seemed to open a lot of opportunities out there today which never quite panned out. Did you change your strategy along the way or contemplate changing your strategy.

TOM WATSON: As I said yesterday I didn't really -- I didn't change my strategy at all. I didn't really even contemplate playing the golf course much differently. And it was -- actually it was good day for me. I played very well, probably the best I played in the four days. I didn't get the putts to go in.

And I have to give credit to Bruce. Bruce, his nickname was perfect today: "Leaky," because he was leaking oil today. He was leaking oil and blowing that blue smoke out the pipes. The thing is that the engine kept on running today. I think he ended up on two cylinders but I have to give him a hell of a lot of credit. I remember winning golf tournaments like that. It takes a lot of guts when you don't have your swing working during the day to come down the wire and win a major tournament and do what you have to do to win a major tournament. That's what he did.

I can go back to when I won my U.S. Open in 1989; I played absolutely pitiful the first two days. The ball was going sideways. Fortunately I was going so far sideways it was in where the gallary was walking at Pebble Beach I was getting the ball around. I was staying two or three over par. I finished strong those two days, I made a swing change and all of a sudden I'm happy with my swing. I played the last two days like that. But I know what it was like to go on a major tournament and not playing well because those fairways are narrow and the rough is deep.

RAND JERRIS: Take some questions out here, please.

Q. Good playing Tom, Bruce has a reputation of knowing where his golf ball is going to go; he hits it left-to-right always the same trajectory and the same shape. How surprising was it for you to see him missing as many as fairways as he did today?

TOM WATSON: I was very surprised. Usually Bruce, doesn't miss it that badly. And he missed a lot of shots today off the tee. But he took his time -- he took his time and he did what he had to do to get it done.

I don't know what type of shot he had, a 14, he was over there in the trees and all of a sudden here it comes out up here like this just short of the green. I don't know what type of lies he had but every time he got in the rough it seemed like he could advance it with the exception of 17.

And it was -- from my standpoint it was -- I needed to make a couple of birdies early. I had an opportunity early to make some putts and I didn't do it. Just missed them and 3-putted the fourth hole and it was -- but I did make a good par putt at No. 6. Those were the two putts I made. I made a par putt at No. 6 for about 20 feet and a birdie putt about 20 feet at No. 9 and everything else was pretty simple.

Q. Tom, if Bruce was leaking oil were you the well-running machine that just couldn't find another gear?

TOM WATSON: Well, I couldn't -- I guess I was in the -- my machine was in the sand and his was on the downhill. I don't know. I couldn't get mine moving fast enough, I guess.

Q. Tom, how frustrating is it to putt the way you did the last two days, as well as you did but not to see much come of it; was that just simply the greens and how difficult they are; you were pretty comfortable with it?

TOM WATSON: That's exactly right. The greens are very difficult to putt. But today I had a lot of good looks at it, really good looks at it. It was the best I played today. The best of the four rounds, the best I played. I had the looks; just couldn't make it. Just like a guy being a little bit off of his jump shot. Getting open and getting a good shot at it, just not holing it.

Q. Tom, at 9 when you made that putt to take the lead from 6 to 4 as he bogeyed, did you see a little deja vue coming out from last year, a very similar situation?

TOM WATSON: I did, my caddy, Bruce, said, well, you are 6 down, what were you last year? I said, I think I was 5 down after 8 and then I made my run. So I made my run. My one birdie run this year, No. 9. I birdied 9 and then 9 straight pars.

Q. Of all of the shots that he hit out of the rough was the 16th the one that had you shake your head most of all?

TOM WATSON: Yes, that won the tournament right there, No. 16. And up on the green I said, "you're a dog." He laughed. "You're a dog for doing that." Of course his nickname is "Leaky Dog." So we had a little laugh on that and he knocked it two feet from the rough from there.

Q. You got a week off then you got another major; how do you feel about your chances in Dearborn in two weeks?

TOM WATSON: Well, I like my chances, I played Dearborn -- I played some good rounds there. I hope to do it again. I haven't come through there. I feel like I could play that golf course well.

Q. Tom, having lost last year to Don Pooley and then this year very close to both of them, how frustrating is it to not win the tournament that you most want to win beside the Senior PGA?

TOM WATSON: It's disappointing from the standpoint that I just didn't get the job done today with my putter. So what does that tell me to do? Go work on that putter until you feel maybe a little more comfortable with it and make the putts. I mean I felt comfortable with it today. I felt the putter was comfortable in my hands; just nothing went in. So the frustration was not good.

Last year I look back at the wedge shot that I hit at the 16th hole last year; that hurt quite a bit. But then I made a birdie at 17. So it was kind of a turnaround there. If you look back at this week, if you look at stats, first round I made 5 shots over 20 feet. And then I had my opportunities the last three rounds and I used up all of my opportunities the first round. I thought 5-under-par was lock ^ sinch in winning this golf tournament when I first started. I really did. Look at the rest of the field. There were three guys under par and nobody else. Was there anybody at even?

Q. Tom, we didn't get a chance to talk to Bruce Edwards after today; he had to catch a flight?

TOM WATSON: Right, he is heading back home.

Q. But we just wanted to get a feel from you of how he is doing after four days out here?

TOM WATSON: He is struggling. He is struggling.

Q. Okay?

TOM WATSON: His legs hurt him. Yesterday they had some -- they had a forecast for rain. So I put the umbrella and the rain suit in there and that was like putting about 20 pounds in the bag for him yesterday. He was hurting yesterday.

Q. It's not an easy course to walk either?

TOM WATSON: It's not an easy course to walk with those vertical slopes. You got about 8 or 10 of those things that you got to negotiate on this golf course. Just straight uphill for 20 or 30 yards with a bag on your back. I have to give him credit. He could have taken a cart this week. The USGA said by all means. He said, "I will tough it out." The problem is with this ALS, you don't want to get exhausted. Exhaustion will make your muscles deteriorate much faster. Keep your muscles in good tone, a little exercise here and there but don't exhaust them because they won't come back.

Q. With that said do you have a sense for maybe how long he is going to be able to stay out here with you?

TOM WATSON: Well, he said I'm on the cart for the rest of the year. Next week is the cart, the next tournament I play after that is probably going to be The Tradition, maybe a tournament before that, but I'm not sure.

Q. Tom, along those lines would there be a point where you would, for his sake would you say, Bruce, you know, as much as you want to be out here you should take it easy?

TOM WATSON: I think his wife, Marsha, will make that decision for him. I think she is strong enough to say, Bruce, it's time.

Q. Tom, you mentioned scheduling and your schedule going out toward the end of the year, do you find it harder and harder to come back after you have had a couple of weeks off to come out here and try to play as well as you're playing now when you don't have the week-after-week playing?

TOM WATSON: I prepare for it before I come out after a week off or two weeks off. I still do what I used to do in preparing -- trying to get my swing in shape before I get out to the tournament; I just don't come in blind. I don't come in unprepared. So no, I don't have that much problem. In fact, I am really looking forward to going to Dearborn. Today was a good day for me. I really like the way I played today. I hope I could do the same thing at Dearborn. And then the British Open is after that, and the British Open Senior Open at Turnberry. I got three weeks in a row. I hope my game is peaking at the right time and maybe I can get on a roll; that would be nice.

Q. Just to follow up, when you play an event like this and play as well as did you today and feeling that good about it, does the pain or disappointment lessen at all?

TOM WATSON: Well, I look at it, I look at it philosophically from the standpoint that Bruce had a 4-shot lead and he didn't back up and I didn't make the putts. Therefore, he wins the golf tournament. I played well enough to put the pressure on him and he played bad enough to give me the golf tournament. But it wasn't to be. I can't do a darn thing about it now. But I look back on the way I played and I like the way I played. I like the way I played Inverness. And it's disappointing finishing second. But my opportunity was there today. I didn't do my job; Bruce did his job. That's the way I look at it. I'm not going to cry over that. I'm going to go to Dearborn and see if I can make my position finish one shot better, or one place better.

RAND JERRIS: Tom, congratulations on four rounds of fine golf, we will look forward to seeing you next year.

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