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May 9, 2015
PONTE VEDRA BEACH, FLORIDA
Q. Seems like you have the back nine figured out. RORY MCILROY: Yeah, sort of been that way for three years. I don't know, I played really good golf today. I think I hit 13 or 14 fairways, I hit a lot of greens, gave myself a lot of chances, and just being very frustrated on these greens and not seeing a lot of putts drop. So hopefully that will change a little, it can change tomorrow, but tee to green, it's right there and just need to get a few to fall.
Q. What's the most perplexing part of the front nine for you around this place? RORY MCILROY: I think a lot of holes on the front nine are very straight away, where there's a lot of doglegs on the back nine and it sort of, you can visualize shots better, I feel. I feel on the front nine, like even holes like 2 it's, obviously you need to hit a draw there, but even 4 and 5 and 6 and 7, they're all like pretty straight holes and I sort of get up there and I've got about six shots in my head that I can hit. And I just need to try and pick one of them and commit to them and sometimes, of the six shots, I don't hit any of them.
Q. When you look at the leaderboard tonight will you look at how many shots you're behind the lead or how many players are between you and the lead? RORY MCILROY: How many shots I'm behind. I think that's the only way you can look at it, because you can't think about all that. It seems like half of the TOUR have a chance to win this thing. They're just so bunched. Anyone that's sort of five or five maybe six shots behind they can go out and shoot a low one tomorrow and especially during the afternoon, the greens get a little firmer, conditions get a little tougher, so yeah, I'm four back at the minute, we'll see where I am at the end of the day and knowing I need to shoot something in the mid to low 60s to realistically have a chance.
Q. Talk about them being bunched, does that have something to do with the golf course? RORY MCILROY: Yeah, I think everyone sort of plays from the same positions, no style of game really has an advantage out here. So, yeah, it's definitely to do with the golf course and the golf course setup that it is the way it is.
Q. Sergio talked about feeling like he left a few shots out there. That seems to be a common theme among some guys. Do you feel that way and also kind of on the bright side, is that also the golf course? RORY MCILROY: Yeah, I feel like I left a lot of shots out there. I saw Sergio played pretty well today and the wind is down as well, so the course is a little more gettable maybe, but it's firming up. I would like to see the greens a little firmer tomorrow again. I think that firm greens definitely separates the field. I would like to see firm greens. I feel like because it's been quite receptive this week that's what's made everyone so bunched together on the leaderboard.
Q. Where would winning this PLAYERS championship rate for you? RORY MCILROY: It would be right up there. This is, I rank this right along with WGC's and obviously just below the Majors. There's four Majors, they're the four biggest tournaments every year, and then there's a quite a long list of important tournaments just below those. And this is certainly one of them.
Q. It's a bunched up leaderboard like we have now, how much does experience play in the heat of battle tomorrow with some of the guys that have never played with the lead like that. RORY MCILROY: Yeah, I think just being in that position and again, staying patient and not trying to push too much. There's going to be times tomorrow where I'm going to have to push and I'm going to have to be a little bit more aggressive and try to make birdies. But, yeah, just knowing that if you're hanging around the lead and especially over the closing stretch here, anything can happen with 16, 17 and 18. So if I can get into that part of the golf course and only have a couple shots back, anything can happen.
Q. Sergio was pretty down about his putting, you played a lot of golf around him and teammates with him, do you think he holds himself back sometimes? RORY MCILROY: I think Sergio is hard on himself. I think you guys have probably experienced that over the past 15 or 20 years from covering him. But he is, I mean there's a reason that he gets so down on himself, because he is so talented and he knows what he can achieve and he knows how good he can be. So we're all like that at times. I get frustrated with myself, but I feel like I can just sort of let it go maybe a little easier and maybe that Latin blood in there sort of gets him a little fired up.
Q. When you're starting from behind on the last day, what's the more difficult number to overcome the strokes or the players in front of you? RORY MCILROY: The players in front of you, I think. As Jason said there, you're looking at the score, that's really what it is, but even today it's like I dropped a shot there on the 8th hole and I go from, I started the day T-13 and all of a sudden I'm T-42. Then you go back up and I'm right back to where I was at the start of the day. So, with it so bunched, you can jump so many places with a birdie or bogey.
Q. 175 holes since last week, how is your energy level going into tomorrow after all that? RORY MCILROY: Yeah, it's fine. It's okay. Again, just talking about conserving energy and making sure I get enough rest tonight and put all have I into the round tomorrow and then have a couple days off before heading up to Charlotte. So I'm good to go.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports
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