RHONDA GLENN: Ladies and gentlemen, this is the United States Golf Association Press Conference, from your left to your right, David B. Fay, the Executive Director of the USGA; Jeanne Myers, the Chairman of the USGA Women's Committee; and Tom Meeks, who is the Senior Director of U.S. Rules and Competition. Jeanne, how did the Women's Open come to Orchards?

JEANNE MYERS: Our site for 2003, we had a problem there, and we had to withdraw their offer to play, and Gay Davis at Pumpkin Ridge agreed to move the Open to the '03 spot which left us a spot in the '04 Open, and David knew about the Orchards and we came out and visited it and decided it would make a wonderful site for the Women's Open, and here we are.

RHONDA GLENN: Tom, I'd like to ask you if you're satisfied with the course preparations this week?

TOM MEEKS: Very much so. The golf course superintendent, Matt Manzi and his staff have done a remarkable job, and this golf course last fall had a lot of work to be done on it and had a horrible winter to begin with, and when I got here last Thursday, I called him a magician, because he's done magic to get this golf course in the condition it's in right now.

Q. Tom, we're not going to see anything like Shinnecock here this week, are we?

DAVID FAY: I think we can all answer with one word, no (laughter).

Q. Could you describe some of the things that needed to be done to the course. You said that miracles were performed. Could you tell us some of the things that needed to be done.

TOM MEEKS: The main thing was they had a lot of drainage problems, so there was a lot of work that was put in on the drainage. Some new tees were added, but just because they were needed, not so much because we needed any additional length, but the primary was just getting enough funding and the equipment and manpower to get in here and do the job, because they were weak in all three of those areas, but I will say that the Arnold Palmer Company has come around and Matt and his crew have done a remarkable job. I'm very impressed with the condition of this golf course?

Q. In retrospect, back to Shinnecock Hills, was some of the criticism justified by the players or should players just shut up and play the golf course, as some people have suggested?

DAVID FAY: The golf course didn't play the way we wanted it to play on Sunday. In hindsight we would have put water down on the golf course before play began.

Q. Tom?

TOM MEEKS: I ditto David's remarks.

Q. What is your prediction for the winning score?

TOM MEEKS: I've had the question asked to me. I think the winning score on Sunday could very well be two or three under par. I think this golf course has a lot of unique challenges to it. The greens are very, very good, and very difficult, I might add, and yet the green speed this week will probably be in the mid to high 10's. We've had that speed for the last four or five days and we've been very comfortable with it. And yet there are some greens that if the players miss them on the wrong side, i.e., the short side, they're going to have a very difficult opportunity to get the ball up-and-down. It's going to be very challenging.

Q. Are there any specific holes that you've seen, now that you've seen the condition the course is in for the tournament that jump out at you that are more difficult than the rest, or that might be the most difficult challenge for the players?

TOM MEEKS: Well, we spent a lot of time discussing the setup that was originally made by Kendra Graham two years ago, and we actually went back and forth on 13 and 16, decided to play 13 as a par-5 up the hill, and we've actually decided just in the last 24 hours to play 16 as a 4.5 hole (laughter) -- just kidding. The 16th hole is definitely going to be the biggest challenge coming down the stretch. But I think 18 is also a very good golf hole, as -- 12 -- 11 is a little bit of a breather, because it's short and pretty flat. 10 and 16 greens are the two difficult greens here. And we will be very careful with the way we set the hole on those two greens because of how sharply it falls off on basically all sides.

Q. We have an awful lot of young women here, teenagers, and obviously Michelle Wie at 14, is that a trend that concerns you at the USGA that concerns you as far as kids coming out too soon and having hopes dashed or fulfilled or whatever? And then going on to the LPGA at young ages. How does the LPGA look at that, David?

DAVID FAY: They have the game, that's what it comes down to. This is the Women's Open. They have the game. We're not going to practice age discrimination. We had this great exhibit at Golf House, Babe Zaharias, coming back from the disease, "Let me play again". This is, "Let me play." And what they're doing is extraordinary. This is a great time for women's golf. You have the commissioner of the LPGA back there, Ty Votaw, and I expect he's salivating over what's going to be happening the next few years.

Q. Maybe you can both address this, the idea that par is a good score, with the advancements of -- in technology and improvement in just play, has that forced you guys to push the envelope more and create situations like Shinnecock, I don't know what happened there, but push the envelope where it's borderline, is it more difficult to make par a good score?

DAVID FAY: Well, with respect to Shinnecock, I've already said that with respect to Sunday, it was not what we wanted and we would have, in hindsight, put water on the golf course.

Clearly the equipment is better. The players have different skills, improved skills.

We do think that par should remain a good score, but I would disagree that with the exception of what happened at Sunday at Shinnecock Hills that in terms of the way we set up our championships for the Open or the Women's Open that we're tricking it up. We were delighted to see what Tiger Woods did at Pebble Beach in 2000 when he lapped the field. He was the only one that did that, but we were delighted. Great golf was rewarded.

Q. I know there was some problems with a couple of the greens with winter damage, how have you been able to handle that? Are you going to able to have all the pin placements or did you pick and choose there?

TOM MEEKS: The greens that did have more difficulty than others -- 17 was one of them. 12 was one -- it's because they're in the shade most of the day. Even those greens we've been working very carefully with them. We've tried to fill in some top dressing where there were some weak areas. And it's amazing how the greens are looking better every day when I go around in the mornings and do my check. Even the greens that we thought coming into this championship might be a little difficult to get the hole locations that we wanted, we pretty much have whatever we want to use on the greens. They've made a remarkable recovery.

Q. David, could you explain procedurally how you come about dealing with exemptions and specifically what the reason for an exemption is, is it because the player for the tournament, what is the reason that you come up with exemptions?

DAVID FAY: Well, I'll speak to it, certainly Jeanne as Chairman of the Women's Committee can also speak to it, because all of the exemption categories are ultimately approved by the Women's Committee. If you look on the entry form you'll see a long list of exemption categories. It changes from year to year. Two years ago, for example, we exempted the entire Curtis Cup team and the most recent World Amateur Team into the Women's Open. It has fluctuated over time. There is a category called "Special Exemption." There's no one definition of why a player is given a special exemption. There were a total of three this year: One to a two time Women's Open Champion, Betsy King; and Dottie Pepper, recognizing the health issues, of course she won't be playing this week; and the third one to Michelle Wie. The Michelle Wie exemption has generated a lot of attention. It seems as if a number of people are fixated on the numbers on her birth certificate rather than the numbers that she's put up in competition. I've said it before, but the fact is had she been a professional she would be exempt by virtue of her performance in the three professional events. And also this is not a bad precedent, because if any amateur in the future were to amass the type of record she did and find her way in by basis of current performance we'd be delighted to give those players an exemption, too.

Q. The second part of the question, at least with the Special Exemptions, is it for the player or is it for enhance the event?

DAVID FAY: Well, it's a recognition of the player. It's a recognition of the player, and there are different reasons for giving players -- sometimes it's an acknowledgment of a great history. The best example of that, not a great history, a great performance, best example of that would be Arnold Palmer in '94 at Oakmont. Others are based on current performance. Others are -- might be based, as I said, about Dottie Pepper on extenuating circumstances. The fact that we -- obviously Michelle Wie is going to generate a lot of attention. And I think that is a wonderful by-product. But the reason that she was given this exemption was based on her performance. Just look at the numbers.

JEANNE MYERS: Before he says that, may I add something? We try to have the best 156 women golfers in the world here for the Women's Open. And if for some reason one or two or three of those aren't exempt, because of our printed exemptions, that's when we give the Special Exemptions. It's hard for an amateur to become exempt into an Open, and that's why we considered this for Michelle. They may increase in future years.

Q. David, have you seen enough at The Orchards to give serious consideration for a future site or is it still dependent on the success of the championship. Tom, the challenge of the hole locations at 10 and 16, are they as tough as any that you see at any green at a U.S. championship?

TOM MEEKS: No, we spent a lot of time putting on these greens for the last four or five days, and I'm very comfortable with all the hole locations that we want to use. And 10 and 16 present no problem, because on 16 we will use everything on that right back that you've seen, the three practice holes have been in the same general area. There's no way we can go on the left side, it's too slopey. There are not a lot of balls that will roll back down to the chipping area, but we're comfortable with our locations, and we're not going to get extremely close to any of those edges.

As far as 10 is concerned the game plan right now is to use three on the right, where the three have been for the practice rounds, very flat, I might add. And there's one on the left side we're going to use. It's a little tougher. Right now the game plan is to use it Saturday. But when I go around Friday with a hole cutter setting Friday's hole, I will be actually practicing on Saturday's location at that time to see if it works. And today it would work. Now, when we get to Saturday and if I feel like it's dicey or not working out like I want it to we'll scratch it and go back to the right side. Right now we plan on three on the right and one on the left right now.

DAVID FAY: For the Women's Open and for our other championships, but particularly the Women's Open and the U.S. Open, we would never go to a site with the idea that this might be a one act play. But there's so many factors that go into what happens after this. Let's wait and see how the week plays out. It's not just the decision of the USGA, it's also the decision of the club. But we feel, as Tom has said and Jeanne has said, we feel comfortable with what we see at The Orchards, and I think we're all in for a very exciting week.

Q. David, when you have a junior as exceptional as Michelle, and she offers so much to future endorsers, what concerns do you have for protecting her as an amateur, do you discuss that with the family?

DAVID FAY: You've hit on the amateur status issue. I'm confident that Michelle is an amateur, that she is abiding by the code of amateur status. I also know firsthand that when her parents have questions they have contacted the USGA. And clearly there are going to be opportunities for this player, but in terms of is she an amateur or is she not, is there a question, it seems like every time we have a high profile player, particularly a young player, there are going to be some questions. And I felt that with Tiger Woods that he and his father certainly abided by the language of the Amateur Status Rule. I'm convinced of that to this day. I feel the same way about Michelle Wie. I commend her parents for asking the right questions. And believe me, they have asked quite a few in the last few months.

Q. Have you been happy with the number of spectators to come through for the first three days of the practice rounds, what you've seen in the groups?

JEANNE MYERS: Yes, I have been, and I'm assured that this may be an all time record in attendance for the Women's Open, which would be very exciting.

RHONDA GLENN: Thank you very much, ladies and gentlemen.

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