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THE HONDA CLASSIC

February 29, 2020

Brendan Steele

Palm Beach Gardens, Florida

Q. The conditions early were brutal with that wind, and you kind of weathered the storm I thought. How would you describe it?
BRENDAN STEELE: Yeah, it was really tough. I didn't play quite as well as I did the last couple days. It's amazing how the course gets really hard if you're not hitting perfect shots. Luckily I didn't miss too many the first two days, so I didn't have to deal too much with it, but today I saw a little more of the course than I wanted to.

Q. How pleased were you with the finish? The birdie at 17 puts you in position again to be in the last group on Sunday.
BRENDAN STEELE: Yeah, definitely. I made those four bogeys from I guess 4 to 11, and after that I said to Christian, my caddie, I just want to make sure that we have a chance going into tomorrow. This course, it's really going to come down to the last few holes, and if you have a chance to hit great shots at the end, that's really all you can ask for.

Q. At 18 when you're in that fairway bunker, what's the thought process because it was like 230 yards, but again, that's a tough shot.
BRENDAN STEELE: Yeah, I mean, wind is off the left, there's kind of some trees over there so you can't really start it that far left. If I could have got a 5-iron out and been comfortable with it or if the wind was coming the other direction, I might have given it a shot. It was going to be a 4-iron. I just didn't feel that comfortable. Felt like a better chance to just try to make 5 and give yourself a look.

Q. This is a tough, tough track.
BRENDAN STEELE: Yeah, they're incredible. We would be waiting to hit a shot, and we would think we'd know where the wind is, and then it would change, and it's just changing slightly. And if you're not out there, you don't really notice, but it'll change from dead right to left to a little down from the right to a little in from the right, and it'll make 10, 12 yards of difference depending on the shot you have. So when you're looking at a shot like 11 where it's five over the water, you have to be really careful.

Q. Can you just talk about kind of weathering the storm today and how your round went?
BRENDAN STEELE: Yeah, got off to a really nice start. Hit some really nice shots right away. Was hoping to do that all day, but made a few mistakes, and this course gets really difficult. So struggling through the middle of the round and then was able to finish with some really good shots. I'm really happy with how I closed it out.

Q. Talk about being in the last group or last two groups tomorrow and what that means to compete down the stretch?
BRENDAN STEELE: Yeah, it's where you want to be on Sunday. You want to have a chance to hit great shots at the end to hopefully win the tournament or at least get that feeling that we're all looking for. This course especially, it's going to come down to the last few holes, so if you put yourself in a position where you can hit a great shot to win the tournament, that's all you can ask for.

Q. You had some success at Sony earlier in the season. How are you drawing upon that success in the last couple of groups going into tomorrow?
BRENDAN STEELE: Yeah, I mean, that's huge for me. Obviously I wanted to win there and felt like I should have, but I did a lot of things really well that week, and I'm feeling very comfortable in those last couple groups with a chance to win.

I know tomorrow is going to be really hard. It's hard emotionally, physically, mentally. The conditions will be difficult. The course will be difficult. I'm looking forward to the challenge.

Q. How do you keep yourself and your mindset focused on the process with what you just said?
BRENDAN STEELE: It's really hard, but I know that when I get off of that process and exactly what I want, then the results aren't very good. You have to just remind yourself, all you can do is plug this information into the computer and do the best you can and hopefully that's good enough.

Q. That said, there's probably -- like you're tempted to maybe dig a little bit deeper on Sunday, the competitor in you. Do you have to tame that a little bit and play the way you've been playing, or is there another level?
BRENDAN STEELE: Yeah, that's actually a really good question because I struggled earlier in my career trying to dig deep and be like super focused and make it more important, and that doesn't really work for me. It's not in my personality. It's better for me to be a little bit more relaxed and a little bit more like I'm just going to do the same thing, and if I can shoot 6-under or if I shoot 5-over, at least I know that's the best I can do.

Q. Can you talk about obviously your caddie being the brother of Luke Donald; he's up there, as well. Has he done any scoreboard watching at all?
BRENDAN STEELE: I'm sure he's paying attention pretty close. Obviously they're staying together this week. Luke lives here, so Christian is staying with him, and we've been paired together a few times, and it's usually been in a good position, so it's been kind of fun. But it's just great to see him playing well. I'm super close with him, and obviously with Christian. So very close with the family, and it's fun to be up there with your friends.

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