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WGC DELL TECHNOLOGIES MATCH PLAY

March 23, 2017

Jhonattan Vegas

Austin, Texas

Q. Very good day today, not yesterday. You won today, beat Thomas Pieters. But this typifies how difficult this format is. Because you've got to win, Thomas Pieters has got to win, and you need Bubba to do you a favor tomorrow.
JHONATTAN VEGAS: It's going to be a hard one to figure out if I somehow beats Bubba.

Q. How did you and Thomas match up?
JHONATTAN VEGAS: We're pretty similar. Obviously this course isn't about hitting it far, it's about creating the best angles you can to some of these greens. Some of these greens are so hard, so complicated, you need to be in the right position. I felt like I did that a little better than he did today. So it was actually -- more of a strategy match.

Q. As a young man in South America did you play much match play?
JHONATTAN VEGAS: I did. I actually played a lot. Venezuelan Junior Championship, South American Junior Championship. I felt comfortable playing match play. It's my favorite format. I can be more aggressive and not worry about so much the number, which is sometimes my tendency.

Q. Tomorrow is going to be really fun. If you win and you get through it could be a big playoff situation here?
JHONATTAN VEGAS: Hopefully that happens. I had a good match against Bubba yesterday. So hopefully it works out.

I've been playing a lot here, ever since I stepped on the ground Monday. It's been an awesome, awesome week. Obviously as a UT alumni, getting a lot of support from a lot of people here. So I'm really loving the time here, and obviously the course is great. The weather has been awesome. I love everything about Austin. I love this place to death. Having a great, great time now.

Q. (Inaudible.)
JHONATTAN VEGAS: Well, it was a tough one today, because the course was playing really hard, especially with this wind. I felt the local knowledge a little bit helped me out on creating a good plan and executing. So it was a good match against a tough opponent. So really happy, obviously, and I've got to try to get a big one tomorrow and see what happens at the end.

Q. How much does this weather, the sun and drying out of the course affect things?
JHONATTAN VEGAS: It is actually really hard. It is really hard getting on the greens, getting the ball close to those pins. These greens have a lot of undulation, and when you add 20 to 30 miles an hour of wind, makes it impossible pretty much. You've got to be able to leave it in the right spots, give yourself the best chances, don't make any dumb mistakes, because it's pretty easy to do here.

This course is absolutely perfect for match play because of these conditions.

Q. What do you tell yourself today going into tomorrow?
JHONATTAN VEGAS: Just play the way I've been playing, as simple as that. I feel like I've been playing good golf lately. And I obviously had a tough loss yesterday against Bubba. But I've got to keep my head up and keep playing good golf.

Q. Is the mentality a little bit different in match play than a regular tournament?
JHONATTAN VEGAS: It is. It's about beating one guy. It's about doing anything you can to beat that guy that day, even if you shoot 80. So that's the difference. You cannot get down here because then the match will get really short. You just have to play hard every single shot.

Q. You could have the wind blowing the opposite way by tomorrow afternoon or especially on Saturday, how does that affect you?
JHONATTAN VEGAS: Obviously here it affects a lot because we've been playing in this wind the whole week. If it blows the other way it's going to play really hard. I think this course plays a lot harder blowing the other direction. But it would be a fun challenge. This is what makes this tournament and this course absolutely great, having all kinds of winds. Welcome to Texas, I guess.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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