PB: I had the pleasure
of playing a couple of rounds here last October, and there was a little heavy
mist but that wasn't anything to worry about. Mr. (Keith) Williams welcomed myself
and my assistant Debbie Massy. The head pro and his staff rolled out the red
carpet for our visit and we had a wonderful time. We enjoyed every step of the
way when we played, even in the heavy mist.
I feel this golf course
is going to be one of the finest matchplay courses that the Solheim has ever
been played on, especially coming down the home stretch – from about 14 on in
there's a great variety of golf holes that are very enticing and will grab the
attention of the players as they are unwinding and needing to pick up vital points.
I look forward to coming back – I had goose pimples as we drove in this morning,
just thinking of my time here last October and looking forward to the time we'll
all spend here again soon.
I think it will be a very
exciting tournament with the way these holes are designed. The variety of holes
will force the players to stop and think a minute, and think of their strategy,
how they're going to play the hole. So I think that will be very exciting, not
only for us as players but also to the public and the press. I know that some
tremendous renovations and improvements have been made, and I can't imagine how
they did this because it was such a joy to play last October. I'm looking forward
to it being in tip top shape and both teams having a great time out there.
Q: Have you been told how
long the course will be, especially when you consider the time of year the event
is going to be played?
PB: I'm really not
too sure yet what the final numbers are and what has been set for the length,
but I'm sure the committee will look at what mother nature might do at that time
of the year.
Q:
Dale, in the Seve Ballesteros event at Sunningdale last week we saw some great
play and a lot of birdies. Is this something you wish to see, especially when
you consider how challenging this course is?
DR:
I have to be honest and say that I didn't see one bit of Sunningdale last week,
I was playing an event myself last weekend. But in matchplay golf everybody likes
to see exciting holes. I have to agree with Pat, I think the last four or five
holes on this golf course are terrific matchplay holes, especially in foursomes
and fourball matches which often go down to the 17th or 18th hole.
I
think the set up of the course could play rather long, but remember we're talking
about top class golfers here and whoever comes along is going to see some terrific
golf that week.
I
do like to see lot's of birdies, but I also like to see some scrappy holes. I
think the public like to see that the players are human. It's very hard to say,
I've only played the course once – Pat's been lucky, she's played it twice. I'd
like to play it again and see for myself, especially as the course can change
so much with the weather. Our summers here can actually run into October, and
the course can actually change again but I think basically we'll just have to
wait and see what happens.
Q:
Dale, can you tell us about the change in format and why it's happened?
DR:
I think the change was due to just making sure we get in with the light. The
change is going to be a little more difficult. I think the foursomes format might
be hard on the players if the weather is bad, but once we all realised this was
the format we'll be playing, we knew we were just going to have to get on with
it.
Either
way you're going to have a winner at the end of the week anyway. Foursomes is
always a hard format anyway, and if the weather's cold it's very difficult for
the players as they don't know when they're going to be hitting their next drive.
So I think the first day could be quite tough for players on both sides.
Q:
What would you have preferred to see then?
DR: I'd
prefer to see a little more daylight and a Ryder Cup format. But obviously it's
in the lap of the god's at that time of the year and really I'd just like to
see play finish each day. That's the main goal. We do want a winner at the end
of each week and everybody all finished.
Q:
Were you consulted about the format?
DR: Basically
the change in the format happened at the beginning of last year, before I was
appointed captain. I knew the changes when I was made captain, so I don't think
this was a new idea at all.
Q:
Perhaps Tim could explain why they made the changes? Was it at a time when the
match was going to be at Sunningdale?
TH: There
has been a great deal of debate about the format, and the decision was actually
taken to change it when the event was due to be staged at Sunningdale, when they
were worried about getting a lot of fog at eight or nine in the morning.
Although
we've gained a few hours coming up to Loch Lomond, the changes have been kept
as there has been a bit of pressure from the US television networks who obviously
like to get their timings right. So we really had to make the change. None of
us think it's ideal, but it's a one-off change to accommodate the date – and
that's because of the Olympics; we can't clash with the Olympics because we won't
be able to get a television picture anywhere in the world, and we couldn’t hold
the event any earlier because of scheduling problems on the American side. So
that's really why the change was made. It's a one off and will go back to the
Ryder Cup format next time round.
Q:
Dale, at the Ryder Cup there was considerable controversy, particularly on the
last day, with the behaviour of the players. What will you be telling your players
in relation to this?
DR: Well
to be honest, I don' think I really need to tell my players anything. The American
girls and European girls are all very friendly, they all play together on tour.
I don’t think the men mix as much as the women golfers do. They'll be a lot of
friends playing against friends out there, so I really don’t foresee any problem
with conduct at all.
Q:
Do you agree with that Pat, because there was some controversy last time?
PB: I
agree with Dale. We're all aware of what happened at the Ryder Cup and we don’t
want that to happen with us. This event has been structured for friendly competition
and that's what we're going to maintain. We all know that in this type of competition
there is competitive spirit and fire, there is emotion and spontaneous exuberance,
but it has to be channelled and maintained within the rules of the game. Dale
has mentioned how we travel together and play together day in day out, so we
have a tremendous friendship with all the European players so I really don't
foresee a problem of the Ryder Cup incident.
Q:
With respect, the same thing could have been said before Brookline. And both
captains could have said similar sort of things.
PB: Absolutely,
but I'm not going to stifle my players excitement or enthusiasm of playing these
matches. As I said earlier, we all know with this kind of competition there is
competitive spirit and fire, but we also know that integrity and rules of the
game have to be maintained at all times. We will be aware of it and might even
discuss it over the course of time, but I really don't foresee having a problem
or it being an issue.
Q:
Pat, will you for example want to talk to your players about the way in which
to celebrate, say when the opposition misses a putt for example, some of which
we witnessed at Muirfield?
PB: Well,
I wasn't at Muirfield to witness that, but again the rules of the game will be
maintained and I do not foresee a problem.
Q:
When you have a player like Dottie Pepper, do you have to keep your fingers crossed
she doesn't get too excited?
PB: Not
at all. Dottie bleeds red, white and blue. She's a student of matchplay. Dottie
knows what she can do and what she can't do. Her spontaneous enthusiasm and competitive
fire is what every team would like to have. I'm just very happy she's on my team.
But I don't foresee that as a problem.
Q:
Tim, we saw a very successful event come to an end in Scotland last year – the
McDonald's WPGA Championship. Are there any plans to bring a regular event to
Scotland in the near future.
TH: Yes,
that's one of the things we are hoping to happen as a result of the Solheim Cup.
Over the 18 months building up to it, Gavin (Hastings) and our team have spoken
to a lot of corporate Scotland, and our desire is to hold a tournament here in
Scotland in 2001. I hope the interest that the Solheim Cup generates will help
to stimulate the kind of support that we need.
It
was a great shame to lose McDonald's. Quite a bit was made of it, but McDonald's
is a soccer brand in Europe, and it was purely a decision that they're not a
golf brand. So I would hope the support we get from corporates here would lead
to a ladies Scottish Open being restarted in 2001. But as we all know you can't
do any of these things without money.
PB: Could
I just say something. The Solheim Cup is the pinnacle of women's golf and I'm
just very honoured to be here and represent the United States. And I am honoured
to be in captainship with Dale Reid. It should be a quite incredible competition.
The gentleman who brought this event to us, Karsten Solheim, had the vision and
passion to want us to experience this type of competitive atmosphere and it is
through him that we give great thanks. Both teams will travel here with heavy
hearts knowing that Mr. Solheim won't be with us, but we shall carry his memory
to the first tee and throughout the week of this tournament. This is the crown
jewel in my career, being captain of the US team, and I know that Dale feels
as special as I do. We're looking forward to being back here in a couple of months,
so let the game's begin.
