Michael Campbell:
"It's been great reminiscing about what happened five years ago - leading
after three rounds. That bunker shot at 17, that 65 in the third round and
walking down the last with Rocca in the last group on Sunday. All the
memories are flooding back and I remember all the birdie putts I had on the
Saturday, so it's all positive stuff.
"I attempted to play that bunker shot on 17 yesterday, and it took me about
15 goes to get it out. They've changed the face of the bunker though and it's
a bit more at right angles.
"I'm a lot more mature as a player now. On the whole I feel more at ease if
I'm leading a tournament. Five years ago, I was a bit jumpy as it was only my
second year as a pro, so shooting a 76 in the last round wasn't surprising at
all. If I can get in the same position as I was five years ago, I might
handle things a bit differently. I think also that my knowledge of St Andrews
is a huge advantage - I've played the course about 12 times. I know the
places where not to go and the aiming points off the tee are most important.
Most of the guys here for the first time have no idea because if the wind
changes even 10 degrees evey bunker on this course comes into play."
Nick Price:
"It's always magical to be back at the Old Course for the Open. I'm really
impressed with what the R&A have done, but there are a couple of bunkers out
there that are a little too severe and we're going to see some really funny
things happen ing on those holes. The big thing is you have to treat them
like water hazards, just stay away from them.
"The way the course is set up, if the wind doesn't blow, is going to let a
lot of people into this championship. So I'm kind of hoping it does blow -
not extremely hard but 15 to 20 miles an hour.
Having experience and knowledge on this golf course is always so important, I
just hope I play well
enough to have a chance at the end on Sunday.
"There are going to be a lot of one-irons played of the tee because the ball
is releasing so much on
the fairways that downwind your one-iron will probably go further than the
diver would in calm conditions. There are going to be holes where you even
need to hit three-iron off the tee.
"The hard fairways and the windbeing up are going to increase Tiger's
chances. If he plays his best game and putts well, it will be very hard for
anyone to catch him."
Jesper Parnevik:
"I just love this place. It's a fun golf course with tricky greens and pot
bunkers but it's playable. Sometimes when we play the Dunhill Cup it's almost
freezing and the wind is blowing at 50mph but it is always playable. Last
year at Carnoustie it was almost unplayable.
"If my hip is alright I should be okay. I feel a lot better than last week
when I couldn't swing at all. I'd say I'm about 80 per cent fit but I've
always loved the Open and just coming here is enough to lift anyone's spirits.
"Tige is favourite every week because he's world number one but every week is
a new week. I've done very well in the British Open and of course Tiger
wantshis last leg of the majors, but I'm just as determined to stop him and
I'm sure a lot of other guys are too. Perhaps I can be three times lucky this
year."
Craig Parry:
"To me the Open Championship is the ultimate in professional golf. To get so
close last year was frustrating in a way, but I finished fourth a shot out of
the playoff and you can't complain about that.
"I didn't playmuch early in the year in the States but I'm playing more now
and I had a seventh place finish a couple of weeks ago and my game is really
good now."
Jose Maria Olazabal:
"The bunkers are extremely tough, some of them are going to be virtually
impossible to get out of, not just towards the flag but sideways. I've played
here many times, but I haven't seen the course like this ever in my life.
Whatever the wind is doing, you're going to have nine holes downwind and nine
into the wind, so sooner or later you're going to have to hit the driver. I'm
missing it right and that's the worst way to miss it on this course, so I'm
struggling. The rest of my game is not bad but to be honest I do not putt all
that well on this course."
Hal Sutton:
"There are a couple of things I've observed since arriving here. A lot of the
American players have a lob wedge in their bags and we tend to rely heavily
on yardage books. But the lob wedge does you very little good on this course
and yardage books don't do you much good either. So I've discarded the lob
wedge but I'm going to carry the yardage book just for a little security
factor, but I probably won't use it much.
"I went out today without my clubs just to walk the whole course and try to
find the line that I want to hit on. You know the line is going to change if
the wind is blowing and you have to figure out where the boundaries are and
how far left you want to be.
"Every time I get the chance I say Tiger lives up to his number one billing
every time he plays. I respect a young man who can get up every day with his
determination to win regardless of what he's being paid. I wonder sometimes
how in the world a 24-year-old young man who has signed $100 million worth of
contracts can come out as dedicated as he is to his job and still be a pretty
likable young man. But I think it would be a real mistake on everybody's part
to throw the towel in."
