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SHELL HOUSTON OPEN

March 28, 2017

Jim Herman

Humble, Texas

JOHN BUSH: We'd like to welcome our defending champion here at the Shell Houston Open, Jim Herman.

Jim, first of all, thanks for coming by and spending a few minutes with us. If we can get you to take us back to last year when you got that first PGA TOUR victory.

JIM HERMAN: Sure. Thank you. Great to be back.

It's nice to see the City of Houston again, a few weeks ago during media today and talk about last year. It's been quite a year and you never know -- no one really knows when you're going to break through.

Little unexpected last year to get in contention and pull it off and -- but, yeah, just looking back, played the back-9 this morning and just thought of good memories from last year and recreating a few shots, just how it felt and -- but just happy to be back and it's been an interesting year.

Played in all four Majors after the win last year and pretty exciting for that. Been a good year so far. Playing pretty well. Third a couple weeks ago in Tampa and lot of confidence coming in here to Houston.

But, yeah, just looking forward to getting started.

JOHN BUSH: You mentioned solid play this year. Coming into the week, No. 34 in the FedExCup standings.

What has been the key so far this year for you?

JIM HERMAN: I feel like driving the ball pretty well but my iron game is usually my strength. So, giving myself a lot of opportunities for birdies and the weeks that I'm putting pretty decent or putting well, I'm in contention.

Few weeks ago at Tampa played at the Valspar, putted really well Round 1 and Round 4. I putted really well last year here in Houston. I think my strokes game was in the Top-10. My ball-striking is really well. If I can roll the ball, then I'm in pretty good shape.

JOHN BUSH: We'll open it up to questions.

Q. Jim, this time last year on Tuesday, you're out here practicing, warming up. What were you thinking then?
JIM HERMAN: Yeah. Just trying to put together a good week. I had played at Bay Hill -- I did not play Puerto Rico last week so I played at Bay Hill, finished 67th, maybe. I had a better week than the results showed. Didn't have much of a Florida swing. Coming in, just looking to put two good rounds together, make the cut and go on from there.

No real high expectations, just trying to, you know, build upon -- I was playing okay. My Fed Ex rank last year coming in was not too bad. I was in the middle 70s maybe or so, I think, I could be wrong, but that's where I thought I might be.

Obviously, you know, you never know when things like this is -- things like this was going to happen. I did not expect it.

Q. You say that. That's always the mindset when you don't have that win yet, you never know.
JIM HERMAN: You never know when it's going to happen. Obviously we're all capable out here. But, when things -- you make a couple putts early or, you know, your driver feels really well, be able to put the ball in play.

It usually comes down to putting out here on the Tour. Anytime you're rolling it really well you feel like you've got a chance.

Q. Jim, you described the past 12 months as interesting. After you've won here, I don't think you Top-10 the rest of the year, now you're playing better this season and a couple of Top-10s.
What do you think happened? Was it something like after you win it's really tough to kind of, you know, stay in that mode I guess?

JIM HERMAN: Well, expectations change and, you know, unfortunately I didn't handle that very well. Just feel like you're going to put yourself in contention and, you know, it's hard to get in contention here on the Tour, let alone win.

So, I think just after this week going to Augusta, you know, I played pretty well but I wasn't able to make the cut.

You know, then you just feel like trying to get back into that mode where you're -- because it was a great feeling, don't get me wrong, I loved being around the lead and I was very proud of myself how I handled myself.

Early on on Thursday and Friday you're pressing a little bit just to get around the lead so you have that feeling again. Doesn't always translate. When you try harder in golf it usually results in worse results.

So, it just took awhile to get over, just kind of get back to normal, you know, forget about the win and I was in a good position with ranking, World ranking and FedEx and I knew I'd be playing pretty far into the FedEx Playoffs. Just trying to reset.

A few weeks -- three weeks off leading into the Playoffs. So, just trying to get ready for the FedEx Playoffs last year and sit back, regroup, you know, a great year and then just want to get off to a good start this year.

Played really I'd say okay in the fall, couple decent finishes and then wanted to get after it in Hawaii. T-3 in a bunch and three Top 15s. Been pretty solid and consistent. Just looking forward to getting out here this week and see what we can do.

Q. Jim, did you hear from Jack Welch in the days following Tampa and has he suggested you play any future events coming up this summer?
JIM HERMAN: I haven't heard from him personally but through my friend, Jim Tullis, we had a great game at Seminole this past week and he passed along his congratulations from Tampa and not gloating or anything but he was very, very pleased with the results. He was happy.

He had a few other words passed along and, you know, just pretty much saying the same thing, go do it, you're the best player out there.

He's a very confident man and he passed that along to me and obviously with him and Mr. Trump and just that little shot in the arm, those compliments boost, those little things they say really help.

Q. Jim, some guys athletes, particularly, believe in superstitions and will you stay at the same hotel this week as you stayed last year, same room, eat at the same restaurants and then sort of the other so I had of that question is, what's the biggest difference between this year and last year?
JIM HERMAN: Well, I try not to be superstition but every time I talk it seems like I do the same thing. It does end up that I am very superstition.

Yeah, I'm in the same hotel and I don't have the same parking spot so that's a nice thing, I'm right up-front. That was a big bonus obviously from last year to this year.

Yeah, I do find myself falling into superstition things and I need to get out of it as much as I can. It just doesn't work.

Q. Like what?
JIM HERMAN: Eat at the Pappasito's last night. I did it last year. Probably have a little Chipolte. It was a normal spot for me. Kind of frustrating being that way but I don't know. No other way to be, I guess it's me.

Last year to this year, just like I said, you know, little -- way under the radar last year. You know, no expectations of winning and then obviously coming in with defending champion and getting -- called D.C. everywhere you go is pretty nice, pretty nice feeling and love to replicate that this year.

Q. You made some putting adjustments at Valspar. You're sticking with that for awhile now?
A Yeah. You know, obviously you look at the stats over my 6 years, putting has never been the top stat for me. It's always been ball-striking. If I can ever get my putting in line, you know, just have average weeks and really successful tournaments.

Just have the claw, the claw grip in the last few years and always felt like it was a Band-Aid but I felt really good and confident on short putts but on distance putts it was always a speed thing.

I just never made enough, my fair share because they were always short or whatever and I always thought it was the grip.

So, experimented with some cross-handed this off-season and, you know, decent finishes. Started at Sea Island, 13th and I think I was 12th and 10th in the two events in Hawaii cross-handed.

So it wasn't that bad but just at Honda I felt I played really well and didn't make a thing cross-handed and I missed some short putts and that was -- I feel with the claw method I make all the shorter range putts.

That was just a switch I made out at Valspar and probably just going to stick with that. If you look at my strokes gained at Valspar, it was really, really good that week.

Q. Did you change your equipment, too? Did you change putters?
JIM HERMAN: Different model. Using the same model, the Bettinardi putter I used in the past years, the different look that matched up with the cross-handed method so back to the claw and more of a mallet Bettinardi putter.

Q. Are you a big stats guy?
JIM HERMAN: My coach does all the analyzing, Bill Davis. He does read the numbers. He gets all the numbers and puts together a plan where we need to practice and where we need to focus so I saw them.

I just like seeing my ball-striking numbers. I should probably analyze my putting stats more but I like seeing my ball-striking numbers up in the Top 10. When I feel like -- if I feel good with my putter I'm going to be in good shape that week.

Q. I was looking up your approach to greens, stroked gains, you're in the Top 20 this year, last year you were 151st, the year before you were 48th.
You have some fluctuation.

JIM HERMAN: Little fluctuation, yeah. Well, I think the year before I was going through some short game issues, I wanted to hit more greens to avoid pitching and chipping and I was fixing that and I got more aggressive with my iron game because my short game felt better and then you end up missing more greens.

I don't know -- this game is crazy. The more you read into some stats, I don't know, I don't know what that says about us but it's there, it's information and I let my coach do all that and put together a plan in our off weeks to tackle those deficiencies.

Q. I have one more. I'm sorry.
Obviously lot of people talk about this as the tune-up to Augusta. What do you think the closest replication of this tournament or this course is to Augusta now that you've had a chance to play the Masters?

Is there one single thing, this is exactly how it is at Augusta National?

JIM HERMAN: I'd say on -- obviously with the greens, there's some bowls, the bowl effect with some of the hole locations I think I would think is the closest thing because Augusta obviously has pretty severe greens but if you can be on with your approaches, you can get them close at Augusta and the same thing here.

They do funnel to the greens or funnel away. So if you're off a little bit the ball does repel away but I would say that is the closest thing I would think and they get the greens pretty darn quick here.

Obviously they're bermuda and overseed versus Augusta National but I would say just that -- the green shapes and the bowl feature.

JOHN BUSH: Jim Herman. Best of luck this week. Thank you.

JIM HERMAN: Thank you.

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