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RBC CANADIAN OPEN

July 24, 2016

Jhonattan Vegas

Oakville, Ontario, Canada

MARK WILLIAMS: We'd like to welcome Jhonattan Vegas, 2016 RBC Canadian Open Champion. How does that sound, pretty good?

JHONATTAN VEGAS: That sounds phenomenal.

MARK WILLIAMS: That's your second victory on the PGA TOUR, following the then Bob Hope Classic. You also win 500 FedExCup points and move to 24th on the FedExCup standings, and a nice little cherry on top is a start in the PGA Championship next week for the victory here.

When you finished and you were 12-under, you said to us that you were a little unsure about whether it would stand up. Now that it's all said and done, are you pretty surprised with the way it is?

JHONATTAN VEGAS: Surprised, yes. 12-under and at the time, I think there were a bunch of guys around 11 or 10. We had I think Dustin Johnson, Brandt Snedeker, a bunch of guys, really close. Great players that I mean, I knew if I got lucky, it was going to be a playoff. Super surprised when I saw that, you know, nobody got to 12.

That's the fortunate breaks that sometimes you need to be a champion on the PGA TOUR. It's a great feeling. I mean, last week, I had a six-shot lead going into the weekend and lost by three. I was five back starting today and won by one. It's a crazy sport. You've just got to keep your head down and play hard at every shot.

MARK WILLIAMS: You did shoot 60 last week at the Barbasol, and had a round of 64, so obviously there's a lot of good stuff happening in your game right now.

JHONATTAN VEGAS: It's good. But the biggest thing, I think it's the belief; the belief that you can do it; the belief that you can go shoot low numbers competing against the best players in the world. That's just the difference. I mean, because from where I was last year to where I am right now, obviously a couple of things have improved.

But just the belief has gone up tremendously, especially for putting myself in the position of winning a few times. At the end of last year, I was close to winning twice, and this year was close to winning three times. You put yourself enough in that position, and sometimes you get breaks like this one and win.

Q. How quickly were you able to shake off that disappointment from last week? Obviously you played well but you weren't able to win. Were you able to get rid of that quickly to come in here this week?
JHONATTAN VEGAS: I was, to be honest. I had a long talk with my parents. I had a long talk with my golf teachers about what was missing, what was the missing component of the formula to win. And you know, obviously we had a long talk, a lot of things came out. Came this week with a completely different approach about things, and obviously it worked out.

Q. You jumped on to the TOUR, you won your first tournament fairly early on. Did you think it would take you this long to get the second one? I know you've some injuries, but did you think it would take you this long after you won that first one?
JHONATTAN VEGAS: To be honest, no. Why? Because obviously I win my second start on the PGA TOUR as a rookie, and then the following week, I almost won in Torrey Pines. So I mean, things came a little bit easier at that point. I played well the rest of the year, too. Played solid.

So I thought that I could have kept it going, winning a few times right after that. Obviously putting aside the injuries, it's just hard to win here. You have to play well from the beginning all the way to the end, and obviously like today, I mean, you have to have things work out your way to win.

But as I said, you just have to believe. That's the biggest key. That's kind of where I feel like I've made the biggest change this year: Believe that I can win again and that I can put myself in that position and not shy away when those moments get closer.

Q. Were you watching the scoreboards today? Did you know where you were as you were coming down the stretch? I know you were really taking your time with that last putt on 18.
JHONATTAN VEGAS: I knew where I was, definitely. Especially after I missed like an 8-footer or a 10-footer for eagle on 13. I knew that I was close, but I knew that I had to play great coming in.

To be honest, I didn't really watch the leaderboard that much. Probably until 17, 18, to know exactly what I need to do those last few holes. I just kept really with the pedal down the whole time.

That's exactly what I was talking to my golf teachers last week, especially coming from the disappointment last week, where you're playing well, you know you're playing well, and you lose a tournament that easy. You just can't take anything for granted. You've got to play hard every single shot, because these guys are too good.

So I just decided to keep playing, keep making birdies, not back down and I was fortunate to win by one.

Q. Is this one more special now that you're a parent?
JHONATTAN VEGAS: It definitely feels bigger. Feels more exciting because I have a family to share this with. Just to see my wife and my baby so excited, from watching me on TV, just the whole -- it makes me happier and makes me definitely more excited and definitely gives me more energy obviously to keep playing hard to give it my best every single time.

Q. What will you do differently to guard against having that same response after the first one to make sure you don't have that lull?
JHONATTAN VEGAS: It's hard to tell to be honest. If I knew, I would have won before. No, I think the secret is you've just got to play hard every single time and realize how hard it is to win out here.

So every chance you get, you just have to give your best. There are times where you feel you're close to win, and then maybe don't play as aggressive as you should have played and lose by one or two. So there are a couple of things that you learn from being in that position and losing a few times.

Q. As we head to Rio for the Olympics, how does this one feel to get under your belt and for the people of Venezuela before the Rio Olympics?
JHONATTAN VEGAS: I think it's going to make people more excited about golf. Venezuela is definitely not a country that follows golf that much.

So I think it's going to make, especially with the Olympics being just a few -- a couple of weeks away, it's going to make people more excited to watch and stay tuned a little bit more. Which I think is going to be fun for me, because I mean, I'm going to have the support of my country which is always in the back of my mind.

Q. When you walked in, you were Facetiming with somebody. Who were you talking to and who was that baby in the background?
JHONATTAN VEGAS: Definitely my wife and my baby at home. I didn't have a chance to talk to them after I know that I won, and like I said, it's special seeing them that happy, enjoying that moment as much as I am enjoying it right now. It's just an incredible moment. Especially like I said earlier, just to share it with the family, with the wife, with the people you love and care about, is great.

Q. When you were 5-under through your first six holes, did you kind of have a number that you thought you maybe needed to score to win the tournament going forward?
JHONATTAN VEGAS: I knew starting the round, I knew that if I could get to 12-under, literally that's the number I had in my mind. I didn't know that it was going to be enough, obviously, to win by one, but I knew it was going to give me a good chance.

So pretty much last night, all the way to today, I knew I was five back, on a really tough golf course. I didn't know the wind was going to change completely, too, either, which obviously made the course I think a little bit easier because you can stop some shots into to the green. Being a little cooler, too, makes things softer.

So when I saw that, too, I knew, well, maybe these guys are going to make more birdies, too. But just like I said, kept my mind on making birdies and it worked out.

Q. Aside from your family, who is this one dedicated to the most?
JHONATTAN VEGAS: I would say my country, Venezuela. Venezuela is a country that is suffering right now, a lot of issues, politically, economically, socially. It's just a tough place right now, a lot of people hurting.

So definitely I want to dedicate it to the country because of all the tremendous support that I've had from them, even through the rough time they are having right now.

MARK WILLIAMS: Here is your 2016 RBC Canadian Open Champion, Jhonattan Vegas, thank you very much.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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