MORE INTERVIEWS: SBS Championship transcript archive
MARK WILLIAMS: John Rollins, thanks for joining us in the interview room at is SBS Championship. 66, 7-under today to be 12-under, I guess. Bogey-free. It looks like it was good day all around for you, just take us through it.
JOHN ROLLINS: Yes, good day. I drove the ball well. I hit a lot of good iron shots, had some good opportunities. Just kind of, you know, got them in sporadic spots, just played pretty steady. I didn't do anything real bad, never was in any danger of making bogeys or anything. So I kept the ball in play. I think I may have even hit almost every green, but I'm just real satisfied the way I'm hitting it and the way I'm playing may.
Q. What was the best part of your round, do you think?
JOHN ROLLINS: Well, I think I drove the ball really well. I think I am hitting it -- I don't know how far they are hitting it. I feel like I'm hitting the ball pretty far, so it's setting up a lot of short looks into some of greens which is putting me in attack mode. And then I feel like I'm putting pretty decent from some of that midrange 8 feet and in, something like that. I feel like I'm rolling the ball well and my speed has been pretty good so far. So those two things, when they're working pretty well, it's a lot of fun.
Q. Is it strange to be on this golf course and see the flags not moving?
JOHN ROLLINS: A little bit, yes. You kind of come over here with the mindset that the winds are going to howl, and you always watch it, when you are not in the field, if you watch it on TV, you arealways watching the guys pants just whipping in the wind and theguys are hitting crazy clubs from short yardages. It seems likes it's defensive on every shot when the wind blows like it can. To get two rounds like we've had so far with theweather, it's been fantastic. I think that's part of the reason why the scores have been as low as they are. The greens are softand the wind are down, so guys are attacking.
Q. The fairways are soft, too, you don't get as much roll as you normally get?
JOHN ROLLINS: Yes, not as much as you would expect, or as we had in years passed. 18, I hit a good one today. Normally can you sling it off that hill on the right and it would run forever. Stewart Cink, I played with him today, he hit that shot that you would expect to be way down the fairway and it was 40 yards behind where mine was. I hit mine just more up the left side of the fairway. They are definitely not running like they have in years past.
Q. Troy Matteson had it backed up on him?
JOHN ROLLINS: The second shot, if you don't fly it to the green, you used to have to bounce it there into the green. Now the ball lands short right and it might actually hit and bounce backwards. It's something I'm accustomed of seeing.
Q. John, I saw on TV you are a Cowboy season ticket holder. It looks like you are going to be in the last group tomorrow. Local kickoff is 3 o'clock here, are you bumbed out?
JOHN ROLLINS: You know, I'm here to win a golf tournament. The Cowboys, they don't affect my life one way for other. I am pulling for them, I hope they win. I don't get anything out of a victory. I get more out of a victory here than those guys going to the next round. I wish the best for them. I will be rooting for them. It's a shame I won't be able to see any of the game. Maybe I can talk the guys on the scoreboard to flash a score to keep us in the know of what's going on. I am definitely pulling for them.
Q. Who is going to be using your tickets?
JOHN ROLLINS: We didn't buy the playoffs because we weren't going to be there. We figure why waste the money for something that we weren't going to be able to see. We'll just wait for next year.
Q. When did you buy your tickets?
JOHN ROLLINS: We got them kind of near the end of the year last year when they still had limited seats available. We got pretty lucky with some good seats.
Q. Are you going to try to catch the end if you're done?
JOHN ROLLINS: If it's still on, I may hurry in the clubhouse and see if I can catch it. Or maybe if I'm here we can bring a TV in here and bring it in here.
Q. Do you like to be 12-under after two rounds and four shots back?
JOHN ROLLINS: You know, you see the leaderboard, and you watch Lucas. I made the turn, and I got to 8-under whatever at 9. I thought I was going to be tied for the lead. And then you get to 13, and I saw the leader was 12-under par. I'm like what happened. Did he make some eagles? Where did the birdies come from? Then you see he is 15, which I am finishing up on 18. He is obviously playing well. To shoot 7-under, and now he is 8-under through 16, or whatever he is today. Chances are he will probably birdie 18. To be four back going into Saturday, I mean it's still a lot of golf left, low scores if the wind doesn't blow. Low scores are out there. If the wind blows, it can be pretty defensive, then we will just have to see what the course gives us.
Q. Did you have a long birdie eagle?
JOHN ROLLINS: Yes, long eagle on 15 today.
Q. How long?
JOHN ROLLINS: I would guess 45 feet or something. It was pretty much across the green. I was on the left side of the green, the pin was kind of front right, tried to get it close and it went in.
Q. How much break?
JOHN ROLLINS: It was probably a good two, three feet or more, three and a half feet of break. Kind of up and down the hill and breaking to the right. Like I said, it was one of those that you feed down there close and it just happened to go in.
Q. What's the biggest benefit from the fitness regimen you have been doing?
JOHN ROLLINS: I think it's everything, walking this course isn't the easiest. We did get some shuttles on the extreme walks. Just to have the stamina to walk up and down the hills and kind of, you know, when your body is fatigued to feel like you still have that stamina to play through it and keep your legs in the game and everything else is where that really pays off. Obviously, being strong and everything you can hit -- it's going to help you hit it further. But that's all really a matter of timing and hitting the ball solid. But the biggest part is just keeping your stamina up.
Transcript courtesy of sportstranscripts.com.