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WGC DELL MATCH PLAY

March 24, 2016

Rory McIlroy

Austin, Texas

JOEL SCHUCHMANN: Thanks for joining us here after day two of the Dell Match Play. Two wins this week, seven last year. You've got nine straight wins in this event. Obviously in good form. Opening comments about your start to the week, obviously a very good one.

RORY McILROY: Yeah, it's been good. I guess anytime you come into the match play, you go out there with not no expectations, but you go and you play one match and you try to get through and hopefully you move on to the next and you try to do the same thing.

It's a little bit different tomorrow, knowing that I'm playing Kevin, and you win or you're heading home. So probably be a little bit more intensity tomorrow.

But I felt like I've played well for the most part. I got through yesterday, which was the most important thing but felt like the quality of my game today went up a level which was nice to see. And hopefully I can continue to do that as the week goes on.

Q. Very different start. Today you didn't get ahead until the 18th. Birdie, birdie start. Was it something you particularly targeted?
RORY McILROY: No, not particularly. I think you probably saw a lot of guys make good starts because the wind direction was completely different. You're flicking a wedge into the first, you're hitting wedge into the second, short shot into the third. I think I birdied four of my first six, which was a nice way to start. I wanted to make a few more birdies today, and I think I made six or seven overall. So I played much better.

There was still a couple of mistakes in there that I wouldn't have minded not having. But as I said, the quality of my game was much better today and I'm going to need to keep playing like that, if not better, to go all the way to the weekend here.

Q. Were you surprised by Smylie's decision not to hit that chip shot on 17?
RORY McILROY: Yeah, little bit. I had a fairly routine bunker shot. But he drops it and chips in, and I don't get up and down, we're heading to the 18th tee. So it was a little bit of a strange decision. But at the same time, I mean, I wasn't going to say, are you sure? I shook his hand and walked on. I wasn't going to give him any time to question his decision (laughter).

Q. What were the adjustments with the wind today when it was coming into your face? Obviously you said how it could help you, at the beginning it was at your back. But when it's blowing in you face, how did you adjust with that today?
RORY McILROY: Yeah, it was hard because all the shots that you warm up -- the shots that you hit on the range today were all downwind, as well. So you don't really have an into the wind shot until the 5th tee, I guess. So, yeah, it's different.

You're used to -- it's hard to hit a knock-down shot when you're practicing downwind, so you're used to hitting these things up in the air and all of a sudden you have to hit one a little bit lower. You just really have to concentrate on it. I hadn't played the golf course in this wind direction, either in the practice round on Tuesday. It blew like it did yesterday, so it was a completely different test today. But I feel like everyone is in the same position.

If it was a stroke play tournament, it's a little bit different, but because it's match play, everyone is just trying to beat the guy in front of them. There was a few adjustments out there, a couple of different clubs off tees, but I felt like I handled it pretty well.

Q. What's the biggest difference this week with your game from last week, maybe the inconsistencies?
RORY McILROY: Yeah, I mean, I think I might have been even or 1-under par for yesterday's round and I might have been maybe 3- or 4-under today. But there was plenty of birdies. There was a few mistakes in there.

Not really much difference, to be fair. I feel like I played coming off the 65 on Sunday, there was a few mistakes in there. I'm really trying to, as I said at the end of last week, not be hard on myself and not get down on myself if I do make a mistake, especially in match play because any sort of negative body language that you show your opponent, he can feed off that and he can get some confidence from that. So I just tried to stay positive the entire week is what I'm going to try to do.

Q. The different scenarios for other groups out there for playoff, tie-breakers, and halves, is there anything appealing about a winner take all match which you've now had for the second straight year?
RORY McILROY: Yeah, definitely. There's no doubt in your mind, you win your match and you're playing on Saturday morning or you're not, you're going home. And in that way it's nice because you can go out on the golf course and not have to look at the other match in your group and see how you're doing. Oh, if he does this, maybe I don't have to win. So there's clarity in your mind. You go out and you try to win and that's it.

And that's why even the putt on 16 today, no matter if I was to win the match or not, I knew that once I held it, if Smylie was able to hold on and beat me the last two holes at least -- and I halved the match, I knew going into tomorrow I'm in the same position, I just need to beat Kevin and I go through. So it is nice to have that clarity. You just go out there and the mindset is like a normal sort of round.

Q. With the two rounds previously, how high is your confidence going into tomorrow's Round 3?
RORY McILROY: I'd say my confidence is higher today than it was yesterday. As I said, my play definitely moved up another level today. I hit some better shots and I made some more birdies. I feel good.

I've played Kevin once before in this tournament and was able to get the better of him. I think he was 4-up through 6 on me and I was able to overcome that deficit. I don't know if he remembers it too well, but at least I can draw on that memory going into tomorrow and see if I can beat him again.

Q. You've had a couple of times around the course now, what's your assessment of Austin Country Club?
RORY McILROY: It's good for match play (laughter).

I think you'd see a lot of guys get frustrated if this was a stroke play tournament. The green complexes -- it's much better, like seeing a tournament hole location the last couple of days compared to where they were in the practice day, I mean, I played a nine hole match with Andy Sullivan on the back nine, and there were some pins you couldn't get it within 20 feet of the hole, just because it was like a crown.

You look at this golf course and it sets up great if for guys like Zach Johnson or Matt Kuchar, the guys that have done good already this week. But it's sort of grown on me.

When I first looked at it, it was a little bit like a shorter, tighter version of Dove Mountain, which a lot of the guys didn't like too much because of how much undulation the greens had. But as you play it and you start to play it more in competition, it grows on you and you start to appreciate some of the different nuances of some of the greens.

But I didn't know that it was a Pete Dye course until someone pointed it out to me. And you can see that it is. There's some Pete Dye courses I'm a big fan of and there are some Pete Dye courses that I'm not. And I think that's what he tries to do. You're either in one camp or the other. And I think this course is very much like that.

Q. Back on the format for a minute. Do you like the fact that if there is a tie, it goes to a stroke play playoff type situation or would you -- if it's head-to-head and you'd beaten someone, they could beat you on that first hole?
RORY McILROY: I definitely like this format where it's a round robin and there's four guys in a group. At least it keeps guys here for three days and they can get some matches. There's going to be guys tomorrow that know that they can't go through, but they'll still be trying just as hard because it could be some guy's last competitive round before Augusta. So in that way I think it's good.

And it's tough. If you're part of the playoff to get through into the weekend, that's the situation you find yourself in, I don't think there's any better way to settle it.

I think last year we had to play extra holes and this year they're not allowing us to -- not that they're not allowing us to, but they're not making us. But it's going to be tough to get out of your group. It means you have to play well, if it means you have to play a few extra holes at the end, so be it.

Q. You mentioned the negative body language. And Smylie hadn't been on the Tour that long. Do you feel like you have an advantage over some of these young golfers that haven't been the Tour that much as far as handling stress and nerves?
RORY McILROY: I think so. I alluded to right there that I feel the longer the match goes on, this week no matter who it's against, I feel like I have a better chance just from different experiences and having a good record in match play and being quite confident. And there is -- there's subtle little things you can do in match play to try to assert your presence a little bit. Not so much gamesmanship, I don't think that stuff works, but definitely things if you do make a mistake, don't let them see that you're frustrated or angry and just move on to the next hole.

Q. You decided to take a pay cut and be commissioner for the day and you had a case where two guys were 0-2, had no chance of advancing and did not play the next match, should they? Like in your group.
RORY McILROY: I think they should, yeah. If I find myself in that position, I'm not sure I'd want to go ahead and play. But the fans come out and they pay money to come here and see 64 players play the first three days, and I think they deserve to see that. So, yeah, as much as some guys are probably in that position and don't want to play, I think it's the right thing to do to go out there and play and try to win at least one match and head home with maybe a little bit of confidence going into next week.

Q. (Inaudible.)
RORY McILROY: We were doing another jigsaw puzzle a couple of nights ago, and I think the highlights of the finals this last year were on. I was watching it a little bit and Jim Furyk and Danny Willett were playing the consolation match. And I was saying, God, I'm glad I haven't had to play one of those. I've been in two finals, thankfully.

Again, you go out there and you have to be professional and try your hardest and play your best. And finishing third is better than finishing fourth for World Ranking points, for money, for FedExCup points. You have to be professional and go out and do your job.

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