Cantlay Set to Tee It Up with Tiger in Marquee Threesome


Patrick Cantlay's whirlwind visits onto the national stage this year will take a different turn when he will be paired with Tiger Woods in the first two rounds of the Frys.com Open. The $5 million PGA Tour event gets underway Thursday at CordeValle Golf Club in San Martin, Calif.

Playing on a sponsor's exemption, the UCLA sophomore will also be joined by another luminary, 2010 British Open Champion Louis Oosthuizen. The trio starts play at 12:10 PST.

The No. 1-ranked amateur in the world has enjoyed a season for the ages, becoming the low amateur at the U.S. Open at Congressional, shooting a 60 at the Tour's Travelers Championship, and finishing in the top-25 at the AT&T National and the RBC Canadian Open.

As he has showed in other big-time tournaments this year, the 2011 NCAA Division I Player and Freshman of the Year will not be intimidated by his playing partners. "It'll be a great time out there," the 19-year-old said.

"You know, I'm really looking forward to it. I'm not going to even worry about it because I can only control what I'm going to do, no matter who I'm playing with. So to me it's really not a big deal. You know, I'm just going to stick to my game plan, and nothing I do is going to change because of who I'm playing with."

Here's what else Cantlay had to say during a Q&A with reporters on Wednesday.

MODERATOR: I'd like to welcome Patrick Cantlay here at the interview room at the Frys.com open. Patrick, I know you've got a bit of history here at CordeValle. If you could just talk about that, talk about playing this week and then we'll open it up to some questions.

PATRICK CANTLAY: Yeah. We played a college event out here last year. UCLA hosted it. And I played well. I was fortunate enough to win. I really like the golf course. I think it suits my game and it's a really good place.

MODERATOR: I know you actually had quite the summer. Could you give us just a bit of a recap on what you've been up to since your run this summer, both on the PGA Tour and your different amateur events?

PATRICK CANTLAY: Yeah. I finished up the Walker Cup, and then I went home and relaxed and got all set at school. And this is week two at school, so I'm missing a couple classes, but I'll get right back into it next week.

MODERATOR: Okay. We'll go ahead and open it up to questions.

Q. Yes. Patrick, just your thoughts on your playing partners tomorrow, and will you wear that hat tomorrow in the threesome?

PATRICK CANTLAY: It'll be a great time out there. You know, I'm really looking forward to it. I'm not sure what hat I'm going to wear yet. I haven't decided, but yeah, it's going to be a cool day out there, and I'll really enjoy it.

Q. Patrick, have you met Tiger Woods before?

PATRICK CANTLAY: Yeah. We met yesterday. We did an outing for Frys at the institute, and we played together. So that was nice meeting him before we tee it up.

Q. What did you think of the institute?

PATRICK CANTLAY: It's a pretty spectacular place. There's not really another place like it that I've been to. It's very long and it was in great shape. The greens were really fast. So I enjoyed it.

Q. Patrick, what's the whole year been like for you? Can you just talk about what you've kind of taken away from these four or five tournaments out here?

PATRICK CANTLAY: Just a lot of confidence. And I feel a lot more comfortable out here than I did my first tournament. So it's nice coming out here and not feeling intimidated as much as I did. So I feel comfortable, and I feel ready to have a good week and play as best as I can.

Q. Patrick, can you talk a little bit about the added attention of playing with Tiger, and you know, what you think looking ahead to that?

PATRICK CANTLAY: Yeah. I'm just really -- I'm not going to even worry about it because I can only control what I'm going to do, no matter who I'm playing with. So to me it's really not a big deal. You know, I'm just going to stick to my game plan, and nothing I do is going to change because of who I'm playing with.

Q. Patrick, just wondering yesterday did you play actually in the same group as Tiger yesterday?

PATRICK CANTLAY: Yeah.

Q. Who won, and how did that go interaction wise? Was there Stanford-UCLA talk going on?

PATRICK CANTLAY: A little bit. He was real cordial and real nice, and we joked around a little bit out there and had a good time. I didn't keep my score. I was just an amateur. I picked up when I was out of the hole. So I didn't worry about it too much.

Q. How is Tiger's game? You're one of the few people who has seen him play in the last month and a half.

PATRICK CANTLAY: It looked good to me. He chipped and putted real well, hit it solid and played well out there. So obviously I'm sure he's different in practice rounds than he is in a regular tournament, just like anybody else. But he looked good to me.

Q. Patrick, what does it mean being the top-ranked amateur?

PATRICK CANTLAY: It means a lot. You know, it's obviously a goal that I think every amateur tries to strive for, and it's really cool to, you know, have earned that spot. As far as my golf, it doesn't really change anything. Just because you've had good weeks in the past doesn't mean good weeks are going to be there for sure in the future. So I'm still working hard and trying to get better every week.

Q. Patrick, you talked a lot about having goals to fill as an amateur. I'm just wondering if you've given more thought about turning pro or when that might be or if you're planning still for four years at UCLA.

PATRICK CANTLAY: Yeah. I'm really not thinking about what I'm going to do professionally right now. I'm going to have a great year at UCLA this year and try and win an NCAA championship with my team and really have a good time as an amateur this year. So as far as pro one way or the other, I haven't put much thought into it right now.

Q. Is there much difference in the setup of the golf course for the Frys compared to the tournament UCLA hosts here?

PATRICK CANTLAY: The rough was longer in the college event, for sure, because I think the Frys last week was before the college event, and I don't think they cut the rough last year before the college event. Other than that, the course setup is about the same. The golf course probably looks a little more pristine right now, but as far as setup, I'm sure it'll be close to the same. We played most of the tees all the way back in the college event, and it was actually really, really windy when we played in the college event. So I don't know if it'll be that windy tomorrow or the rest of the week.

Q. Just to lighten up the mood a little bit on the golf. UCLA is one of the top five ranked campuses in terms of food for students.

PATRICK CANTLAY: Yeah.

Q. How do you like that, and have you frequented a place called Diddy Riese? I know it's pretty popular in that area.

PATRICK CANTLAY: Yeah. It's great. Campus food is great. I was in the dorms last year and I ate dorm food almost every night and really didn't get too sick of it. It was good. There was a lot of variety. You can go a bunch of different places for food on campus, and yeah, I've been over to Diddy Riese. I think every UCLA student has. It's a cool spot.

MODERATOR: Anything else? Patrick, thanks for your time. Best of luck this week.

PATRICK CANTLAY: Appreciate it.

The transcript for the above interview is courtesy of ASAP Sports.