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AT&T BYRON NELSON

May 18, 2017

James Hahn

Irving, Texas

Q. James, tough out there today but that closing birdie is really going to make lunch taste good.
JAMES HAHN: Absolutely. I hit best drive that I hit all day, wind hard off the left, difficult tee shot because everyone goes out to the right. Hit a really good shot down the middle of the fairway. Hit a really good second shot. It's playing tough. It is kind of in between club and 6-iron, 160 yards, but be below the hole.

Q. It was blowing pretty hard when you hit your shot into the green.
JAMES HAHN: We were doing some checking sessions earlier in the week and kind of noticing moreso the spin rate that we needed to get to be able to control the flight. I could have hit 5-iron from there as long as I kept it down and lose the spin.

One of those shots you just have -- there's nobody can tell you exactly how far to play it, just see the shot, how high you want to see the ball flight, where you want it to land and hit a good shot there.

Q. Hit a 5 and no spin on it at all, it goes --
JAMES HAHN: We did that yesterday, good mistake, especially on a Wednesday, take one more club. But you don't get enough spin and the ball soars straight into the air and now you're chipping back down the hill from there. It's a difficult yardage but you know the course is playing tough. I think anything under par is great.

Q. Absolutely, man, with the wind blowing as gusty as it is. It's blowing hard but bouncing, too.
JAMES HAHN: It really is. It's gusting probably up to 20, 25 miles per hour. Lay down to about 10. So, especially on putts they are probably affecting the putts a couple inches one way or another so you really have to figure the timing and where you want to hit the ball.

Q. Good luck through the week.
JAMES HAHN: Thank you, appreciate it.

Q. Well, bogey-free effort James Hahn to open up the Byron Nelson. How nice is it to get that one on 18?
JAMES HAHN: Feels good. One of those holes you're not really expecting to make birdie. Wanted to every shot. One shot at a time, cliche. Make sure the drive in the fairway and the second shot on the green. Put a good stroke on it.

Q. At what point did your round did know that (inaudible) --
JAMES HAHN: Probably 18, walking up the last putt. It's playing tough out there. You know, once you start counting up your strokes in the middle of the round it's kind of when things go haywire.

I did a good job of staying in the present, just making sure that I put myself in a position that I at least made par and judged the wind. I had a great conversation with my caddy on almost every hole trying to leave ourselves the best opportunity for a birdie. Did a good job of that today and look forward to the challenge tomorrow.

Q. Nice playing. Appreciate the time.
JAMES HAHN: Thank you.

Q. Seems like another good one.
JAMES HAHN: Played great out there today. Hit a lot of fairways, 12 of 14 fairways, 17 greens. Anytime you do that, you make some putts, you're going to hopefully score well.

Had the flat stick rolling today. Couple of good par saves in there. Made a couple long putts especially one on the last. Definitely helped the round going and helped out.

Q. You played well here in 2014, I think. Obviously this is a course that you (inaudible) --
JAMES HAHN: Not really. It's a difficult course. You know, some of the holes fit my eye and others don't. You really have to be smart out there. I remember last year I had a good 1st Round, good 2nd Round going and kind of fell away on the weekend.

So, it's one of those courses where you really have to respect it and just kind of take it for what it is, the wind blows 20 miles an hour. Par is a really good score. Lucky enough to make a couple coming down the stretch.

Q. How would you describe your 2017 season to date?
JAMES HAHN: I would describe it as blessed, you know. I feel like any opportunity that I get a chance to play on the PGA TOUR, you know, I feel blessed to be able to do this for a living.

You guys are aware of the pin on my hat and there's a lot of things going on around Tour, people's healths are definitely in jeopardy.

I know John Senden who, unfortunately, is not able to play this week, we definitely keep him in our thoughts and prayers. Anytime that things like that happen to our community, to our players on Tour, you know, you really kind of take things for what it is and we're very fortunate to be able to just play and be healthy.

Q. What is the pin?
JAMES HAHN: John Senden's little boy has a brain tumor.

Q. How much does that put life in perspective?
JAMES HAHN: Everyday. It's something that, you know, I have a two year old and we hear about all the things that, you know, people's kids, their health are in jeopardy, whether they have cancer or they have something going on with them internally.

So, for us to be able to play golf, come out here and just compete against each other and stay healthy I feel like definitely puts everything in perspective.

Q. Is there something going well today that hasn't been there earlier this year for you on the course?
JAMES HAHN: I would definitely say the putting. Been playing well enough, hitting a lot of greens and fairways but just the key putts, the ones that should go in or the ones you're not expecting to go in and it goes in.

So, you know, made the turn at 3-under, felt like it could have been 4, 5-under. But, anytime you're under par on this course you feel like you're doing a good job. Made a really good par save on 14 and hit a good putt on 15, great two-putt on 16 and, you know, just kind of kept the momentum going and good to finish off the round.

Q. How did the wind affect play today?
JAMES HAHN: Very much so. We're hitting -- give you an example, we hit 6-iron from 160 yards on the last hole. It's definitely playing tough. You have to think about your shots, not only trajectory-wise but how much spin you're putting on the ball just to see you can hit the ball low but if it has a lot of spin coming up short.

We did a good job of controlling that today and it's tough when you have, you know, 4-iron from 170 and you want to hit this pretty hard, it's hard to trust that. But, then again, the holes that are downwind and you have 190 and you have 9-iron in your hand, those are fun. So, kind of works both ways and just fortunate enough to -- we picked some good clubs today.

Q. You were born in Seoul. Si Woo was born in Seoul. Do you know him?
JAMES HAHN: I do.

Q. What did you think about him?
JAMES HAHN: I think that's amazing for Koreans in general, but for him as a growing man. He's 21 years old, two-time winner on the Tour, Players Championship winner, most likely make the international team, the Presidents Cup and we all knew he was going to be great, just a matter of time until he realizes how good he can be.

I know he earned his PGA Tour card when he was 17 years old. One of the youngest players to do that. PGA TOUR didn't allow him to play because he was under the age of 18 so we could have had a glimpse of him back then when he was 17.

You know, fast forward four years later and now we're finally hearing of him. I think he's got a bright future ahead of him and he needs to stay out of trouble and keep doing what he's doing.

Q. Did you text him afterwards?
JAMES HAHN: I know him and we had some text exchanges but I like to congratulate players in person. The whole Twitter thing, social media, I'm not really all about that. I just want to see him in person, tell him how happy I am and congratulate him.

Q. He seemed pretty calm and collected that round. Did you sense kind of excitement from him afterwards?
JAMES HAHN: He's definitely a quiet individual. He didn't really break out in any crazy celebration but, that's just his demeanor. He's very focused out there and you can tell when he's not playing well that he doesn't really show a lot of emotion so I think it helps him out to kind of keep him level.

It's a long season. He's going to have a long career and for him to be so mature at such a young age, that's going to play to his welfare.

Q. Could be two in a row for the Koreans?
JAMES HAHN: Only the first 18 out of 72. I don't want to get too ahead of ourselves.

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