Perry in good frame of mind despite May disappointment
By Melanie Hauser, PGATOUR.COM Correspondent
FORT WORTH, Texas -- He could hit the same shot a thousand more times and never hit the tree. Not even come close.
Heck, he figures he could aim straight for that dang tree trunk all day and never hit it. Kenny Perry guarantees it. But with wry smile, we must add.
You don't even have to look at his face to know he's replaying that approach to the playoff hole at Sunday's AT&T Classic. The hook from 245 yards that veered just enough to catch the only tree for, well, forever, and send his ball ricocheting off the bark and onto the green where it caroomed straight for the water.
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Bad luck. Cruddy luck. #%&*^&@!! Those were just a few of the terms players tossed out as they passed him on the range Wednesday, offering condolences on another opportunity wasted; a chance that turned Perry's dream into a nightmare for him and a win for Ryuji Imada.
"It was a bad deal, but shoot, if that's the worst thing that ever happens to me,'' Perry said, "everything's ok with me.''
Yes, but it still stings. It should. For the second time in as many weeks, Perry was in the final group of a PGA TOUR event and came up empty. Second in Atlanta; tied for 15th at THE PLAYERS Championship. Not what a guy like Perry wants to hear.
"I've had it in my hands the last two weeks and all I had to do was finish it off and I couldn't do that,'' he said, shaking his head. "I have to keep pushing.''
No one is hotter right now than the 47-year-old from Franklin, Ky. He hasn't missed a cut since the first tournament of the year. He tied for third at the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic. He put himself in contention the last two weeks and earlier at the EDS Byron Nelson Championship. He couldn't handle the wind at THE PLAYERS or in Dallas, though, shooting 81 and 79, respectively.
He didn't concentrate. The wind and crummy weather got to him and, well, when you're trying to make a Ryder Cup team, when you're trying to fly up the world rankings and FedExCup and money lists, Perry said, you can't do that. You have to keep your focus.
Which brings him to the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial. You know, Hogan's Alley, Texas-style. Hogan won here five times and Perry -- along with eight others -- has won here twice. Another good week and he could be the only other player in history to win more than twice here. He's already the leading money winner in Colonial history with $2,626,589.
And next week? He's won twice at The Memorial and could three-peat there too.
Can you say pressure? Two courses he loves. Two courses he could own like Tiger or Phil Mickelson. Two great weeks -- and maybe a win? Well, that would mean a spot on the Ryder Cup team that's being played just down from the road from his hometown. That would mean the world.
"I've been doubly focused trying to get on that Ryder Cup team, I've been doubly motivated, grinding it out through all the crappy weather,'' said Perry, who is currently 16th on the Ryder Cup points list. "Just trying to make every shot count. Every shot means something to me this year where in the past, if I had something going poorly, I'd kind of throw that tournament out and not worry too much about it. And I try to get going the next week. Here, I'm grinding it out for every point I can get.''
The good news? This is Perry's time of the year. He loves the hot weather -- we're talking mid-90s here this week -- and the courses. And when he finds the groove with his putter ... well, he just puts it on cruise control.
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The bad news? That pressure -- self-inflicted, granted. He feels like Valhalla owes him one from 1996 when he lost a playoff to Mark Brooks. Everyone at home agrees, and therein lies the problem.
"I have put a lot of pressure on myself,'' Perry said. "That's why I've been unhappy, I've been ill out on the golf course. I've probably treated my wife bad. and I've kicked the dog and probably handled my caddie (Fred Sanders) poorly.
"I've really been on edge, irritable. I'm trying so hard to get to my goal. ... My wife's always told me you play better when your back's against the wall. And that's true.''
It took Perry every bit of 36 hours to get rid of the bad taste from Atlanta. His daughter, his son and daughter-in-law and his son's best friend and his girlfriend had driven to Atlanta for the final round and, at the end of the day, they all caravanned home, stopping 40 minutes down the road to eat dinner at a Cracker Barrel.
"It was good for me to have them around me,'' Perry said. "We had a good dinner. Talked about the day; what went on. They were all very positive and they tried to pump me up. For me, it was just good to talk about it and just get it out of me.''
Monday, he played in The Vinny, Vince Gill's pro-am in Nashville, but still had Atlanta on his mind. He drove home, packed and flew to Fort Worth on Tuesday where everyone, it seems, is reminding him he's playing well enough to win his third at Colonial.
"It's great to hear,'' he said. "You need to have positive thoughts in your head. Hope I don't over-do it. If things doing get going the way I want, I hope I don't start pressing. When I play my best, I'm very relaxed. I'm not looking ahead. I'm not looking into the future. I'm not looking past the hole I'm playing. I'm very relaxed and the golf game comes to me. Whenever I try to force the holes and force the birdies, it blows up on me.''
Here, Perry's in his comfort zone. He's made the cut 16 of 18 times, has two wins, four top-10s and seven top-25s. His Wednesday pro-am round mirrored what he'll face in Thursday's opening round -- same starting time, same place (the 10th tee). That he hit the ball as well as he did last week is a good omen. All he has to do is get the putter working.
"That's always been make or break for me,'' said Perry, who put a new driver in his bag last week. "The last few weeks I've made so many six- to eight-foot clutch par putts to keep my rounds doing.''
And keep piling up those Ryder Cup points.
Perry's lone focus is in making Paul Azinger's team. And if other great things come along with it, so be it. After all, he's defied the odds out here for a while. They said he'd never make the TOUR and if he did, he wouldn't last long. He did and he has.
So how he makes this team doesn't matter -- on points or as a Captain's Pick. Just that he does.
"I hope Zinger's looking and I've opened his eyes a little bit," Perry said. "I hope he thinks I'd be a good fit for that team. I'm playing well enough I could help this team. I don't want to be a pity pick. I want to make it because he thinks I can make the team.
"I want to rise to the top that week. That's going to be the pinnacle to my career. I thought I had it in '96 when I lost the PGA. I want to get back there and I want to see everyone again. I want to feel the cheers and the roars and have the goosebumps I had going up my arms and the back of my neck.''
He paused. "I've been out here 23 years. ... My time's coming to an end and I want to go out thataway.''
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