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WGC DELL MATCH PLAY

March 24, 2016

Jordan Spieth

Austin, Texas

Q. You talked about Alex for so long. If you look talk about the progression from back in the day until now, and how those guys remain close to you for so long?
JORDAN SPIETH: Yeah, even the guys I grew up playing at Brookhaven Country Club with I still keep in touch with and want to know where they're at. They're all in the Dallas area -- quite a few of them are in the Dallas area.

It's crazy, I remember going in and watching kind of videos of Peter Uihlein back in the day was No. 3, maybe, ranked amateur in high school. Watching videos of these guys, saying, man, watch how cool this shot is or how good is his swing. And then now to kind of be someone that we used to talk about when we were kids, and maybe kids are looking up to now, yeah, it's crazy that it's happened all so fast. It doesn't seem like it was that long ago.

Q. (Inaudible.)
JORDAN SPIETH: I can't be all the way through anymore, they changed the format. Even if you own tie-breakers, you still play it off.

Q. (Inaudible.)
JORDAN SPIETH: Patience? I'm talking about all that dissecting of every situation that goes into my head that I voice to Michael, not doing it, or doing much less of it. Like after the fact. It's less hindsight thinking is my version of patience, being able to -- when I'm walking through I'm like man, I can't believe that we're -- it feels like we're 5-up, Mike, and we're 3-up because Victor just made two long putts. Less dissecting, okay? It's all right. That kind of mentality that -- because it just doesn't do you any good, especially in match play, because the more you talk the more advantage they have.

Michael was telling me today it seemed like -- I didn't hear much. But Victor was really mumbling under his breath in the second, third and fourth hole on. And we said we have him on tilt, keep him on tilt. You don't want to show that tilt. And so that's kind of patience.

Q. (Inaudible.)
JORDAN SPIETH: I think he thinks he taught everything.

Q. (Inaudible.)
JORDAN SPIETH: When there's an opportunity that he was going to make bogey then I surely sweat them. But, yeah, you sweat them less. They don't affect you as much. Instead of two strokes from par, it's only 1-down in the hole. So it certainly makes a difference.

Q. (Inaudible.)
JORDAN SPIETH: Right now I'd rather have the old format. But Justin could very well end up -- I think they're tied. If he won his match and won tomorrow, I still have a chance.

I don't know, I like if you beat somebody you go through. I like the head-to-head. But I understand that last year there was three or four scenarios where guys were already through without playing their last match and it's not necessarily as exciting. But I still think if you beat somebody heads up you should have the advantage to go through over them.

Q. Is it tough to get your game face on against Justin?
JORDAN SPIETH: No, I don't think. I know how bad he wants to beat me when we stand on the tee. And that makes me -- we've been on the same team plenty of times in matches. I think it will be fun tomorrow. Hopefully we can both start making some birdies and it's a good match with some good golf being displayed.

Q. Will you talk to him at all, since you're friends?
JORDAN SPIETH: Yeah, I'm sure, I'm sure we will. Yeah, I mean I didn't talk much with Victor today. Yesterday I talked quite a bit with Jamie. Just kind of depends on the day and where you are in matches. Match play you probably talk less than you would in stroke play, but we'll see. If he's 4-up through four, I'm probably not going to be happy to talk to him.

Q. Did you talk to him yesterday after your match?
JORDAN SPIETH: Yes, we've had dinner a couple of times this week. He's a good friend of mine.

Q. (Inaudible.)
JORDAN SPIETH: Yeah, it's definitely much easier when you're up three because then, especially on a tougher golf course where greens are in different contours and you can just fire to the middle of the green, you don't feel like you have to go at it, you can make aggressive swings to more conservative targets, that's the idea. And you don't have to force anything. Even when I had wedges in my hands today, holes like No. 13, I know Victor is in trouble with the angle he has coming down, he has to hit a miraculous shot to be within ten feet. I'm 70 yards away but it drops off behind the hole, I'm going to go ahead leave this 15 feet short is a perfect shot, if I hit it too far it's right next to the hole, if not it's going to funnel down there. It takes quite a bit of stress off the iron play.

Q. (Inaudible.)
JORDAN SPIETH: Oh, yeah, so I had -- yeah, he hit a great shot. I thought there wasn't a chance he was within ten feet from coming out of the rough. And my drive ended up going some 305, 310 yards into the wind, which we didn't expect. I thought I'd be 65, 70 yards to get a full shot. I only had about 40 to the hole. There was no way to bank it given it was into the breeze and it's too steep of a slope. You'd have to hit a 9-iron for it to actually -- the physics of it for it to bounce up and judge it. With that wind I was able to float something that felt like a 50 yard shot in the air. If it gusts, it's going to be where it went, and if it doesn't, it's going to be about that far behind the hole. And I struck it the way I wanted to.

Q. (Inaudible.)
JORDAN SPIETH: At the time he and I were No. 1 and 2 ranked in the country in college golf and he had edged me out for Player of the Year in college by something like a tenth of a stroke or a couple hundredth of a stroke or something bizarre. He edged me out that week. For that reason I wanted him. We were one and two, it was a good matchup. I thought it would be a pretty deciding match for the national championship. Anyone that likes to compete would want that match.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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