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THE NORTHERN TRUST

August 25, 2017

Paul Casey

Old Westbury, New York

PAUL CASEY: The scores have been good. I know I'm sitting on 3-under, but I've had the lefts and rights so far this week, and that was a good example. I was trying to play a cut 8-iron in there on 15 and I double-crossed it and hit a nice, beautiful draw, away from the flag. But the putting's been pretty good. I know I've had a 3-putt in there but my touch putting's really good, and that was the 85-footer. Although that doesn't count because I missed the green.

Q. The last three years, you've been sensational. What's the percentage of love for your play from within versus any sort of frustration that you haven't had the win? I imagine there's a lot of good.
PAUL CASEY: There is a lot golf and I do think about it, and I'd love another win, I really would. But I feel that, you know, enjoying my golf as much as possible is the path that will lead me to more wins, because it certainly led me to a lot of great golf the last three seasons.

You know, I don't think -- I've been looking at it. I've been looking at things like strategy on the golf course recently. It's no question, the game has evolved. Certainly since I've been out on TOUR. But the last few years, it's really, really changed.

Johnny and I have been looking at strategy recently: Have we been aggressive enough off the tee. We talk about, since you have the shots-gained statistics which has come out and you look at the guys who have not only won this year but won multiple times, how have they played golf, how have they attacked golf courses, are we doing the right thing.

So I think my love for the game and enjoyment we're getting is certainly the right thing. It's other little aspects, and that won't change. It's other little aspects that we've got to change and see if we're doing the right thing that might be the difference between winning and not winning.

Q. Do you worry because if everything is going so well, if you try to chase something, that you might fall out of that.
PAUL CASEY: It's not really trying to chase it. It's such a fine line. It might be one more up-and-down a round, short game, something I can sharpen up.

Q. Have you enjoyed the Saturdays and Sundays when you've been at the top of the leaderboard? Is that the most enjoyable, or how do you -- is it scary enjoyable or plain enjoyable?
PAUL CASEY: It's fun. I get to play a sport for a living in front of people. It's only ever, for me, if it's ever scary, it's only scary for the shot you're being required to hit and the danger if you don't have control of the golf ball the way you want to. There's hazards everywhere. That's, for me, the only fear.

There's no fear on walking out to a golf course with lots of people or a New York crowd. And none of these guys are doing anything that is -- where the outcome, you can't handle; I would like to think. The worst you do is you make an error on the golf course, you miss the cut, you go home. Everybody here this week has their TOUR card for next year. They are in a good position.

So no, there shouldn't be any fear out there.

Q. Is there a bit of the chicken-and-the-egg thing, because you can play good golf if you enjoy it, but can you enjoy it if you're not playing well?
PAUL CASEY: Yeah, I understand. I think having played some really bad golf in the past, I think I work on the enjoyment as much as I can, and then that leads to the good stuff. I've certainly beaten myself up on golf courses and practice grounds away from the game, trying to be better and search for something, and try to search for happiness in the game through results.

Having seen pretty much all sides of it, I understand what I need to work on. So I think I've got it figured out.

Q. We keep hearing the mantra, grow the game. What does that mean?
PAUL CASEY: No idea.

Q. What is the best way you feel like you can grow the game; you as an individual.
PAUL CASEY: For me, play great golf. You know, enjoy what I do; do everything I can to assist this game. I'm not going to use that phrase you just used. But if that's signing autographs for kids --

Q. Do you consider this part of it?
PAUL CASEY: Yeah, it's all part of it. And I don't know what that necessarily means. I don't think the game of golf has an issue, per se. I don't necessarily understand it, and yeah, I don't know what growing the game is, because nobody's ever told me, and I've asked.

PGA TOUR do an amazing job I think of growing the game, however you want to phrase it. But I don't see a problem with it because we get amazing crowds. We get great support, whether that's here or you're looking at an event in Denmark this week. It's amazing. I think participation numbers, everybody is obsessed by this, how many rounds of golf are being played. I just think things are shifted.

You get so many people that come out and go, I played top golf last week or you're in my fantasy team, or you're my character on Rory McIlroy EA SPORTSTM computer game. They are still golf fans. They are still absorbing or taking in consuming the game. They are golfers. It doesn't matter, you know, whether you've -- there's a guy at my golf club who doesn't play golf. He practices.

Q. Is that Whisper Rock?
PAUL CASEY: He pays a lot of money just to practice. I still consider him a golfer and he still considers him a golfer, but statistically, he's probably not put down as a golfer. So I don't think the game has any issues whatsoever. I just think it's changing. It's organic. I think it's cool.

Q. Can I ask you a follow? I think people look at the Tiger era, and everything is compared to that: TV ratings, all these barometers. Is that even right or fair or germane?
PAUL CASEY: I don't know if I can answer that. It's always going to happen. He was, is, so amazing.

It's an unfair comparison I think but it's natural for us to compare. Everybody does it. I do it.

Q. In what respect to you do it?
PAUL CASEY: On the golf course today, his name came up; we talked about him. It's always there. It will always be there for somebody who lived through what we lived through, a decade-plus of just the most amazing stuff. We talked today about hoping we see him back on the golf course. It will always be the barometer until it gets beaten. It will always be the level.

Q. That buzz.
PAUL CASEY: The buzz was amazing. I got to see it enough, Bernie, you know that. So cool. Nothing like that.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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