Q. Is there anything about playing this time of year, September, October, that you seem to have a knack for playing pretty well?
CHARLES HOWELL III: I don't know why that is. I guess this week you know that the year is almost over. You've got a break coming up from competition. But also you've got to realize I have nothing to lose this week at all. If I win this golf tournament I will not win the money title. If I win this golf tournament, I won't win Player of the Year. So I've got nothing to lose. Basically, I have tomorrow to go play as hard as I can. And then I have two weeks in South Africa. I came into this week with absolutely nothing to lose. Where a person like a Tiger or a Vijay and a Davis Love and a Mike Weir and Jim Furyk, and Ernie, these guys all have -- if I win this thing, I may win Player of the Year and whatnot, which I had nothing to lose.
Q. Is it easier playing that way?
CHARLES HOWELL III: Yeah, I think so, because it's last event of the year and it's just all or nothing basically for me in my case. I haven't won this year. And so basically I give it all I can do to try to get my butt back in Maui in January, and I've got tomorrow to try to do that.
Q. Three straight 67s. I can't imagine, since you've been out here playing with the varsity that you've strung together three rounds that well, even in your win. I can't imagine it could be that low.
CHARLES HOWELL III: No, I don't think I have. These have been three good days for me. I've said before that any time you go to win a golf tournament, you always need like a 63 or 64 in there in the mix. And I've played three really solid rounds of golf. And I can't ask for anything more. When a guy goes and shoots 10-under par, there's absolutely nothing you can do. Just hang in there with him and keep it close for tomorrow. It will be fun tomorrow. Chad and I were paired together last week in Tampa and we're a lot alike, our demeanors. And he's obviously another young player. And it should be good. We don't bring a whole lot of experience to the table, but then again, from the things I've seen this year, who is to say experience is necessary.
Q. Speaking of experience, this was the 40-something year, all the old guys, and now look at the three of the names here, Riley, you, Campbell, all 20 somethings.
CHARLES HOWELL III: Right.
Q. Did it just take awhile for you guys to break through the young guns, are late in getting started, I guess?
CHARLES HOWELL III: We're late bloomers.
Q. Fresh legs?
CHARLES HOWELL III: I don't know. I can't explain it. I couldn't explain 18 first-time wins this year and then who would have thought it flips around and does the complete opposite this year. I don't know. I just will say that winning isn't easy, I think is what it shows. And any given week when you tee it up, any of the 156 there can win the tournament. And then especially when you reduce it down to the top 31 and it's even tougher then.
Q. It's the chaos theory kind of?
CHARLES HOWELL III: It's golf. Just the golf theory.
TODD BUDNICK: How about your birdies, Charles.
CHARLES HOWELL III: Yeah, number 3, that was a driver and a 9-iron to about 15 feet. I holed that for birdie.
5, the par-5, driver, 5-iron, two putt birdie.
9, par-5, hit a driver, that was blocked out a little bit, I hit a punch 5-iron on the green from 190, ran it up, 2-putt birdie there.
Then number 15, driver, 9-iron to about 8 feet. Birdie.
17, I hit a poor tee shot in the right rough with a 3-wood, 7-iron just short of the green. Holed a long putt there.
Then I bogeyed number 10. I hit a great drive, hit a poor second shot, a 6-iron to the right and didn't get the ball up-and-down.
Q. You were talking yesterday about how unusual it was to have two par-3s on a course where you're hitting long irons in. And I'm wondering, would you talk about the challenge that those two, particularly number 12, poses for you, because 12 has played the hardest the first two days.
CHARLES HOWELL III: You got two par-5s that are a lot alike. They're both similar distances. The wind's both playing off the left. They got the hazard short and left. They're almost identical holes. I think I've heard this story that Ben Hogan played -- that the fourth hole was the last hole in competition that he played -- about seven million times now this week. The other hole doesn't have as good a story on it as that one. But, no, they're just two tough holes you're just trying to make par on. The par-3s out here if you can play them in even par throughout the day, you've done fine. And then you try to take your best advantage of the par-5s.
Q. Through no fault of your own you're kind of going to be the bad guy taking on the hometown Texan tomorrow. Are you ready for that one?
CHARLES HOWELL III: Yeah, to be in this position, that's fine. Yeah. Chad's obviously played great this year. I believe he came into this week 8 or so on the Money List, which is a heck of a year. But he hasn't won. Basically the both of us have this same mentality tomorrow, nothing to lose. It will be fun tomorrow because we're both young players, we haven't been in the position a lot, there's nothing to lose on top of that.
TODD BUDNICK: Okay. Thanks, Charles.
CHARLES HOWELL III: Thank you.
End of FastScripts.
