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DEUTSCHE BANK CHAMPIONSHIP

September 4, 2015

Luke Donald

Norton, Massachusetts

Q. 4-under par, how pleased are you with today?
LUKE DONALD: Very pleased with that score. Usually here you can go pretty low, but with the windy conditions and maybe a few tucked pins today, tough to make a lot of birdies. So I was happy with that score. It's a great start for me.

Q. Everyone is talking about the conditions. How surprised were you to see what Mother Nature threw at you today?
LUKE DONALD: I kind of always keep track of the weather, and I saw there was a cold front coming through, and that usually brings a little bit of wind. I wasn't too surprised. But wind is a good equalizer on a golf course, it always makes things a little tougher.

Q. Good finish at the Barclays to get you into this week. How much do you think about continuing to extend your season?
LUKE DONALD: Oh, I'd love to continue, obviously. It's been a little bit frustrating year, getting outside the top 50. Struggling to try and qualify for some majors. Obviously you get in the FedExCup, the last tournament of the year at East Lake, that kind of takes care of it for next year. I don't want to think that way, but obviously first things first, I've got to get to Conway, which is obviously a place I'm very familiar with, my kind of home course up in Chicago. So keep playing some solid golf I'll get there.

Q. 4-under par, 67, just a good start to this event.
LUKE DONALD: Good solid start. Obviously scoring was a little tougher today than we've seen in previous years. We don't usually play with this much wind. But it was a good, solid round. And I'll take it. It's a good start.

Q. You seemed to get it going at the turn, birdie at 10, backed it up with one at 12 and kept that momentum building?
LUKE DONALD: Yeah, I got very fortunate at 13, I pulled my tee shot, hit one of those rocks and rebounded into the 12th fairway, actually. Hit a gap and somehow had a 3-iron to about three feet. Those kind of things are really good for momentum. Other than that I had a lot of good swings today and made some putts when I needed to.

Q. That's lovely. I know you have one focus this week, and that's to advance to the third week of the playoffs, Conway Farms, tell how important it is to you to be there?
LUKE DONALD: A very familiar place for me. Obviously it's a place I practiced and played a lot over the last 15 years. Actually talked to the Tour a little bit before they decided to go there. And I thought it was a good venue for the event. I'd love to get there. I obviously know the place well and feel like I have a slight advantage over the field.

Q. Talk about what was going well today?
LUKE DONALD: Well, it was just a consistent round. Didn't get myself into too much trouble. I got very fortunate at 13. I pulled my tee shot, hit some rocks, and it rebounded and landed in the gap and hit a 3-iron to two feet. But other than that kept it pretty much in play, made some putts when I needed to. Just a good, solid round, obviously, in tricky conditions, with the amount of wind that was out there today.

Q. You had a pretty good run. It really started at Wyndham. What do you think about the playoffs? I know you want to get to Conway Farms.
LUKE DONALD: Yeah, I'd like to get to Conway. And I'd like to get to East Lake. Obviously this year it's been a struggle for me. I had to qualify for the U.S. Open. I get to East Lake, that kind of takes care of it for next year. It's a lot easier to set your schedule knowing that you're in the majors and world events and what comes with that. First steps first, obviously trying to get to Conway, a place I'm very familiar with and would feel comfortable around. That's obviously first on the roster.

Q. Do you recall what your best finish is here at Deutsche Bank and what your best finish is here on the course?
LUKE DONALD: I had a chance to win around here, I can't remember if I finished second or third. But best score? I'm not sure.

Q. Are you surprised that 4-under is leading right now?
LUKE DONALD: A little bit, even though it is breezy, the greens are holding. I think maybe there's a couple -- there's some difficult pins out here, and I think there's a few of those today given to us. And we probably haven't played in wind for a bit. It's been reasonably calm the last few events and I think that just takes a little bit of getting used to.

Q. There's been a lot of talk this week about who is the No. 1 golfer in the world. How hard is it to stay No. 1?
LUKE DONALD: It's not easy. The depth of talent is pretty deep. It is, there's always someone trying to get there. Jason obviously playing great the last few weeks in three out of the last four events. And that's his goal, he wants to get to No. 1. And Rory is obviously there at the moment. Jordan is right on his heels. It's a good battle right now. I think it's fun to see that back and forth going on.

Q. How has your game changed in the last few years?
LUKE DONALD: My game? Well, after I got to No. 1 I probably tried to concentrate too much on my weaknesses instead of maintaining my strengths and went through some changes. It didn't quite work out. Now up I'm kind of back on a good path. Hopefully I'm starting to see that with the consistency in my golf, starting to make some more putts and do the things that I know that brings success for me.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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