Castle Pines

The International:
Third Round Notebook

By David R. Holland, Regional Staff Writer

CASTLE ROCK, CO - One thing you can count on -- the players love coming to The International. They love the golf course, they love the 18th-hole milkshakes (not available to the general public), they love dinner on the veranda with the view of Pike’s Peak and they love the hospitality.

Shoot, even the shuttle drivers snow you with a briefing and good thoughts for the day. Margo Vick of Blanding, UT, challenges the occupants of her shuttle to: “Walk up to someone you don’t know every day and give them a compliment.”

THE NEW RIVALRY

	David Duval

David Duval was asked if he was getting a kick out of the so-called new rivalry between Sergio Garcia and Tiger Woods.

“I don’t know if I want to say I get a kick out of it, but it is great,” Duval said. “I mean, I think like everyone else that what endeared Sergio was what he did on 16 (at the PGA Championship) to the whole golfing world.”

What he was referring to was Garcia’s shot at the base of a tree, slicing it on to the green and running like a sprinter to see the results.

“You know, what people are saying is probably right,” Duval continued. “Most people would have just pitched out on that shot, but I don’t know what I would have done. After seeing the shot it looked like the roots weren’t as much in play as they could have been. But it still has to be one of the best shots this year, if not in a long, long time.

“For him (Garcia) to come up like that, and for them to get so close, seeing Tiger fall back a little bit -- well, I think that was good stuff. Whether I am knocked out of that rivalry, you know, whatever. That is fine,” Duval said.

David Sutherland said: “I was on my couch at home getting nervous for both of them (Woods and Garcia). I thought it was great. I loved it.”

CONDITIONING FOR THE COLORADO ALTITUDE

	David Toms

David Toms said he might consider “portable oxygen” for The International in the future. “You see a wide receiver catch an 80-yard touchdown pass and then go to the sidelines for oxygen,” Toms said. “So why can’t a golfer do it too, if he is struggling with these hills? I’ve heard that some of the players have done that. So it might help.”

He also watches what he eats when he is at The International. “While I am here I try not to stuff myself. Because, you know, if you go eat a huge lunch, then you might just faint walking up that hill to the first tee,” Toms said. “So I just try to have one milkshake early in the week and the rest of the week I stay away from them.”

THE BALL IS SMALLER IN THIS SPORT

	Chris Perry

Purist golf fans know that Chris Perry grew up in a baseball family. His father is Jim Perry, former pitcher for Cleveland, Minnesota, Detroit and Oakland, and his uncle is Hall of Famer Gaylord Perry, famous for a “spit ball” and a traveler who played for many a major league franchise, including the Texas Rangers.

So how did he get into golf? “I grew up in Minnesota and we lived close to a par-3 course,” Perry said. “I used to ride my bike over there and dig for balls in the woods and we would take a couple of clubs over and would sneak out on the par-3 course and play.

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“Then when we moved from that house we had a big backyard and I took my dad’s 9-iron and played around. When we moved to the other side of town we went down to the schoolyard and my buddies and I would go there with one club and hit balls for four or five hours. I used to hit at fire hydrants and swing set,” Perry said.

Perry played baseball through the ninth grade, but his dad said he had to chose between baseball and golf. “Actually I played hockey in the winter, but the springtime sports were baseball and golf and I chose golf.”

ELS: CASTLE PINES ONE OF TOP 3 COURSES ON TOUR

	Ernie Els

“I think this is one of the top three courses on tour condition-wise,” said Ernie Els. “I love playing Jack Nicklaus golf courses, so I love this course and I think he is a great designer. Even at this altitude, the 7,500 yards are playing kind of short this week. But it ranks with Muirfield and Augusta as the courses in top condition on the tour. Last year they got unlucky with their greens. They tried a new mixture and some chemicals weren’t right, but this year the greens are great.”