    [Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 35, Number 37 (Monday, September 20, 1999)]
    [Pages 1741-1742]
    [Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

    <R04>
    Exchange With Reporters Following a Round of Golf in Queenstown, New
    Zealand

    September 14, 1999

        Q. How's your golf game today, Mr. President? Did it improve as you
    went along?
        The President. It got a lot better. It had nowhere to go but up when
    I started. No, we did better, and we won the match, thanks mostly to my
    partner here. But we did okay. We played the way partners should play.
    When I had a good score, he didn't; when he had a good score, I didn't
    play good. We wasted no shots.
        Burton Shipley. The President suggested at one stage that we were
    playing very good brother-in-law golf. I thought the line was very good.
        Q. [Inaudible]
        The President. We did, we actually played the pro and his partner,
    and we won, and they bought me a Diet Coke. It was a big stake here; it
    was great.
        Q. [Inaudible]--the last hole?
        The President. No, we won that, too. All four of us parred all four
    holes the second time we played.
        Mr. Shipley. But we got a couple more strokes.

    Situation in East Timor

        Q. Are you satisfied with how the talks went in New York today?
        The President. What?
        Q. It seemed to be positive. It seemed that the Indonesians signed
    on to what the United States wants.
        The President. It appears so. You know, the initial report I got was
    quite good, but I want to get a detailed briefing about exactly where we
    are. I think the important thing is to get the force mobilized, get it
    in in a hurry, and also get the humanitarian aid out there. There are a
    lot of people still actually in East Timor who need food and supplies,
    so we've got a lot of work to do.

    Hurricane Floyd

        Q. What have you heard about the hurricane?
        Q. Are you monitoring Hurricane Floyd?
        The President. Yes. I talked to Mr. Witt this morning, and he told
    me he would call me back in about 12, 14 hours and let me know where it
    was. I've not talked to him since I got up this morning.
        Q. It sounds like a monster storm, sir.
        The President. Yes, he said it's going to be huge. And we didn't
    know at the time how many States would be hit for sure. But all the
    experts think it's going to be a very, very large storm. We'll just have
    to hope for the best.

    President's Visit

        Q. [Inaudible]
        The President. It's fabulous; it's really quite a wonderful course.
    It's an honest

    [[Page 1742]]

    course. It's a good course. It plays hard, but it's an honest course.
        Q. What do you think of Queenstown?
        The President. I wish I had weeks to spend here. You know, when we
    were coming in the airplane, landing, everybody on our plane was just
    gasping when we saw the landscape. It's just so beautiful. You're all
    very fortunate.
        Q. When are you coming back, Mr. President?
        The President. How about next week? [Laughter]

    Round of Golf

        Q. [Inaudible]
        The President. This guy hits the ball further than any person his
    age I've ever played with, including a lot of the pros I've played--
    water treatment.
        Mr. Shipley. Just not as straight as the pros.
        The President. And it's only because his public service has kept him
    from playing every day that he's not a scratch golfer.

    Chelsea Clinton

        Q. What did Chelsea do today?
        The President. I think she looked around here and went running. I
    don't think she went caving or anything as great as yesterday.

    Note: The exchange began at 6:41 p.m. at the Millbrook Resort. In his
    remarks, the President referred to his golf opponents, club pro John
    Griffin and publisher Mike Robson. Burton Shipley is the husband of
    Prime Minister Jennifer Shipley of New Zealand. A tape was not available
    for verification of the content of this exchange.