How far do you drive it? I probably average 280 yards. I can get it over 300 every once in a while. But the best part of my game is my putting and I would like to give a shout-out to the Nike Victory Reds I use. •••


Who comprises your dream foursome? Vijay Singh, Fred Couples, Sergio Garcia and me. •••


Is there anything you can draw from basketball that helps you in golf? For me when there’s a lot of pressure on a putt I treat it like a free throw. When I have an eight-footer for par that I really need to win a hole, especially when I’m playing with my dad, it’s almost like shooting a free throw in front of 18,000 people in the fourth quarter. That’s probably the only thing I can compare between the two sports. ••• You come from a family of athletes, who is the best golfer in the family? Me. My


Curry and Monta Ellis


dad would probably argue that he is but in the last two years I’ve taken over the number one ranking in the house. ••• Your mother and siblings are also good athletes, who is the most com- petitive? My mom. You can tell when she comes to some of my games she’s always one of the loudest ones, yelling, getting mad at me if I make a mistake because she has that competitive spirit about her. •••


What are your predictions for your brother and his Duke University team this season? He’s going to be a great addition to that team. They have a lot of different weapons and a lot of talent on that team, any guy can pretty much take over a game so he’ll be able to step right in to that kind of role. Coach K says he wants him to be a finisher. This being his first year that’s a pretty big ac- complishment for Coach K to put that kind of trust in him before he steps on the floor. •••


What was it like to play for Team USA this summer? It was an amazing experience. I played on the U-19 national team three years ago but to play at the highest interna- tional level represent- ing your country in a tournament we hadn’t won in 16 years with the pressure of the Olympic team win- ning the gold was fun. For us to go over there and get it done, beat Turkey in the champi- onship game in their home country in front of their home fans was a great experience. I’ll always remember that. •••


How was the transition moving out to Califor- nia for you last year? It was pretty smooth. I’d never been out here before I played my last college game against


42 / NCGA.ORG / WINTER 2011


St. Mary’s. And then three months later I got drafted so my only idea of what to expect was that one trip. I got to know San Francisco a little bit last year. I stay in Oakland, it’s a little different from Charlotte, a lot faster, a lot more spread out, but the people are nice. •••


Instead of hitting the rookie wall you got better as the season progressed. What do you attribute that to? My conditioning preparation over last sum- mer. I spent the last part of July all the way through September focusing on getting in shape and getting stronger for the season. Once I got into my routine during the course of the regular season nothing changed and I was comfortable the whole time and I didn’t wear myself out. I got some great advice from my dad on how to maintain my body. •••


Have you picked up any California loyalties? Did you cheer for the Giants? I’ve been a Red Sox fan since I was 6 so it’s kind of hard for me to cheer for any other baseball team. I’m also a Carolina Panther fan being from Charlotte. I like to go to the games and cheer for the home team but if they ever play the Red Sox or if the Raiders or Niners play the Panthers I’ve got to cheer for my home team. ••• Talk about the importance of your Dad’s influence and growing up around the NBA. I got to meet all of his team- mates, I got to experience being in the practice facilities while he was train- ing and as I grew up I understood that basketball was something I wanted to pursue. Just watching the games I could pick up things here and there, build my basketball IQ. It wasn’t as much of him one-on-one coaching me, but being around the game all my life gave me a head start on learning. •••


Describe your relationship with Monta Ellis in the backcourt. We started off shaky last year in training camp but ever since that blew over, our chemistry has been solid on the floor and off. I think any backcourt has to have com- munication and comfort with each other if you’re going to produce. He’s such a great talent who I learned a lot from in the last year. We were the most produc-


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