	products recent interviews FastScripts archive about ASAP Sports

Our Clients:

Browse by Sport

Find us on

Subscribe to RSS

Click to go to
Asaptext.com

View our
e-Brochure

BMW CHAMPIONSHIP

September 19, 2015

Jason Day

Lake Forest, Illinois

DOUG MILNE: Jason Day, thanks for joining us for a few minutes, 2-under 69 capped off by another long putt there at 18 gets you to 20-under, six clear of the field after 54 holes. I'll just turn it over to you for some comments.

JASON DAY: It was a good day out there. I thought the pin locations were pretty difficult. I think the northerly wind that we had today was very difficult, as well. I tend to like this southerly, and I think we're going back to the southerly tomorrow, so that's a plus. There was a number of things that I would like to tidy up for tomorrow, but just making soft little mistakes, missing greens with wedges and hitting it out of bounds is obviously not the plan going into today.

To be able to squeak out with a 69 and really feel like I got everything that I possibly could out of today's round, I think that was the best score I could have shot. Obviously the first two rounds were great, and I think this was one of the more important rounds to get through today, and I'm glad it's over and I extended the lead by one more shot. Overall I'm pretty happy with how things are going.

Q. What does it say about your golf now that your poor round of the tournament got you another shot clear of this field?
JASON DAY: Well, I mean, I think you have such a big lead at the start of that, well, five-shot lead, and you play with the guys that were the closest to you. Daniel played pretty solid coming in. I think I just beat him by one shot. But Brendon didn't have such a great day. But those guys were the closest guys, and they kind of fell one shot back. Scott Piercy had a good day.

I felt like this is obviously the most difficult round that we've had this week by far, and I think a lot of players really understood how hard it was. It was very, very difficult to get anything going. All the easy holes were tough. The ones that we have coming in that are all downwind, you're getting normally wedges or drivable par-4s on 15, and the drive down 18, everything is kind of going with you on the back side, but when it's that northerly wind, coming in out of the left, it's very difficult to stand up and commit to swings. That's what I probably struggled with the most today was just really trying to commit to that's kind of the shot that I needed to hit and go with it and try and execute it. I was kind of all out of sorts a little bit today with just trying to get that down.

But you know, overall hitting one out of bounds and ended up shooting 69 is a pretty solid score.

Q. You just kind of mentioned it there, but I believe your lead was eight shots at one point. What did you attribute the kind of soft mistakes to coming down the stretch?
JASON DAY: Well, 13 was just a poor swing. I mean, it was just a bad executed shot, and trying to hit a shot and not really committing to that swing are two different things. You stand over there and you're kind of half committed to it, you're going to hit a poor shot. In and out of the left on that 13th, you're trying to crush it over the bunker to give yourself possibly a 9- or an 8-iron in, which I did on my second drive. I've typically fought with that hole in the past.

But 15 was just horrible. I don't know what I did on 15. I'm just trying to get something down the fairway and give myself a chance at birdie and I ended up walking off with a bogey because I hit it right and expecting it to be in the bunker, it got a little unlucky staying where it was. I hit a good second shot and made a mess of it. To get that birdie on the last hole capped off nicely, good momentum going into last round.

Q. Was that mis-hit on 15?
JASON DAY: Well, I just kind of blocked it. I hit it good, I just blocked it. I was trying to sneak it down there a little bit further than what Daniel and Brendon did. They hit 4-iron, and we were trying to get it down just a little bit further.

Q. What is the biggest lead you've ever had going into a final round, and what will your mindset be when you're six shots clear at the start of the day?
JASON DAY: I can't remember the last time I had a big lead like that, other than maybe junior stuff.

Q. In that World Junior didn't you --
JASON DAY: Yeah, yeah, I think so. I can't remember. What was the second part of your question?

Q. What's your mindset going to be when you're six shots clear?
JASON DAY: Just trying to push forward, trying to push further. Just trying to extend that lead is the mindset. Trying to defend is no good. Extending the lead is much better because if you do falter then you'll have a buffer. But I'm just trying to go out there and I'm going to try and commit better tomorrow. I'm going to try and trust myself a little bit better tomorrow, and I'm hoping it happens.

I think that's the biggest thing for me. But once again, I'm just trying to get to No. 7 and then see -- like I said before, if it happens, it happens. If I do win tomorrow, great; if I don't, then who cares. I mean, things happen. To have a six-shot lead and to lose would definitely suck (laughter), but I'm just -- I know I'm going to have more opportunities at winning. I'm not going to win all of them, but right now I've just got to go out and try and extend that lead.

Q. I asked you yesterday if you felt like you were in the zone and you said like you felt you were. I'm going to ask you again today, do you feel like you're still in the zone?
JASON DAY: Not today, unfortunately. I felt like my mind was clouded, and once again, I think -- I knew from the start of the week that Saturday was going to be my toughest round, just because of the wind. I've never liked that wind, and while I'm saying that, I'm hoping it's going to southerly tomorrow. For some reason I just knew because I know that all of those -- the holes that you can pick up shots are the tougher holes. It was a little clouded today, so I'm hoping that it's a lot more free tomorrow and I can just kind of think to myself and really kind of just push forward and not really worry about who's around me like I did today, and that's kind of how it happened. I just was looking at other people instead of just kind of focusing on myself. To shoot 69 even though I was doing that stuff is great, so I've just got to get back into my own little mind and go out and play golf.

Q. After two days of sort of being in the zone and playing almost perfect golf, is it easier to maybe get a little more frustrated at a few mistakes than you normally would?
JASON DAY: Definitely is, but I'm hoping that the veteran in me doesn't get frustrated and doesn't let myself get frustrated, because it could have easily gone from an eight-shot lead down to a four- or three-shot lead or even a two if I let those frustrations get me. It could have gone from a 69 to a 74 or more. Just having the experience of knowing what I need to do in those situations has definitely helped me shoot the score that I had today.

Q. When you have made bogey this week, it seems like you've been able to rebound pretty quickly with birdies, one birdie or two birdies. How do you refocus in those moments after a bogey?
JASON DAY: For some reason when something like that happens, I go, okay, I'm going to try and improve my bounce-back stat, and I always say something, every time you bogey, you always make a birdie after, in my head. When I say that, it kind of happens.

Making bogey is a terrible -- I hate making bogeys, and making silly mistakes that cause a bogey is even more frustrating. You know, today was just to try and -- after I had a mistake, understanding what I did, like on 9, I'm in the middle of the fairway, make bogey with a wedge in my hand, the play there was to hit something lower with less spin, kind of bounce it up to the pin, instead of hit something hard and get it to the pin, and that was the shot that I tried to play, but I hit it short and it spun off the green and made bogey. I'm sitting there talking to Cole after that hole, I'm like, just don't be stupid; just hit it to the green -- hit it in the middle of the green with that low shot, give yourself 15, 20 feet, maybe more; at least you've got a putt, at least you can hole a putt. With the way that I'm putting right now, I can still hole those putts.

I was trying to do that on the back nine. Didn't really -- I mean, it worked out great on some shots, but some shots I still made some silly errors. But it happens. It's just golf. I'm just happy that I shot 69. It feels like -- it really feels like I shot 80 today compared to the last two days (laughter), but once again, I'm not disappointed by it. A little frustrated by it but I'm not disappointed by the score.

Q. You've done really well at deflecting this question this week, but back in April you had trouble deciding whether you wanted a green jacket or world No. 1 and you're literally 24 hours away from potentially getting that dream of yours of world No. 1. How is that going to change this tournament tomorrow for you given that it's not just winning another event, it's not just staying No. 1 in FedEx, et cetera, but it is a lifelong dream, as well?
JASON DAY: You've put some pressure on me. No, I'm just kidding.

Once again, it's a lifelong dream. I think I'll be the youngest Australian to get to No. 1, which is great. There's so many good things and good perks that come with being No. 1.

Back to the deflecting, it won't happen if I don't win tomorrow, so once again, I have to focus on the stuff that I've done to get to this point, and I think if I can do that, then I'll be able to pull off a win tomorrow and go to No. 1, which would be -- I mean, it's a lifelong dream to get to No. 1. I told everyone when I first came out that I wanted to become No. 1, and no one -- everyone kind of laughed, and that's okay. That's kind of the dream that I've always had and I've got an opportunity.

But like I said before, if it doesn't happen, it doesn't happen. I've got another tournament coming up the next week, and if I don't win this week I'd like to win TOUR Championship. That would be nice, too. I'm just happy. Golf is great right now. I'm feeling good. I'm looking forward to tomorrow's round. It should be a lot of fun and exciting stuff for not only myself and the golfers around me but for the fans, as well.

Q. If it feels like you shot 80 today, what do you think the most important shot that you hit was?
JASON DAY: The putt on 18, definitely. You're expecting to hole those putts, but the way things were going, I'm like okay, I'm going to try and get it on line, I'm going to try and get my speed right, and funny enough, it just kind of surprised me that it went in. You're expecting to hole them, but it really did surprise me that it went in because it's kind of how things were going my way today. So that was kind of a -- not only a good confidence boost going into tomorrow, good momentum boost, but it was a nice little surprise at the end of the day.

DOUG MILNE: Jason, thanks again for your time. Best of luck tomorrow.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297