HONDA CLASSIC

March 20, 2021

Matt Jones

PGA National Resort

Quick Quotes

Q. You didn't hit the green in the Bear Trap, but you made it through unscathed.

MATT JONES: I wasn't really trying to hit the greens on any of those holes. I was happy to hit where I did on 15 especially I was trying to hit it front left of the green there and 2-putt. I was lucky to have a good up-and-down on 16. And 17, I was just trying to get something under the wind and it went further than I was expecting but made a good up-and-down there to save the round.

Q. The birdie at 14 was big and that hole sets up for your right-to-left tee shot and the right-to-left second shot.

MATT JONES: It did. It's a very comfortable tee shot, with that wind especially. And I hit a high draw that came out knuckling and it was a long way down there, much further than I've ever been. I hit a really good second shot and made the putt.

Q. Did it surprise you, the wind today, because it kicked up a little more than we thought?

MATT JONES: It was very windy. It was, I played Thursday and I don't think it was this windy when I played Thursday. I think this was windier than, maybe when I was finishing it was this windy, but it was tough from the get-go out there and I was happy to shoot 1-under.

Q. Now in position to win again on the PGA TOUR.

MATT JONES: Yeah, got a long way to go. A lot of holes out here that can get you, but if I keep managing my game, hopefully I'll have a chance coming down the last nine.

Q. (No Microphone.)

MATT JONES: Yeah, playing it in those Australian Opens where I won two, it was windy, so I'm quite comfortable in the wind. So, yeah, growing up in Australia we're used to the wind and hopefully we can just keep managing the game.

Q. You seemed to plot your way through the Bear Trap on that back nine very well here on Saturday. How would you assess the way you played here?

MATT JONES: Good way to put it. Plodding my way around those holes. They're not birdie holes at all. They're just don't make the biggest mistake holes, and I managed to play them even par, which is great. And then played the front nine, made a couple of bogeys, but then made a couple of birdies coming down the stretch on the back nine.

Q. You said you enjoy playing in the wind because you lower your expectations. What were your expectations today?

MATT JONES: Maybe not lowering expectations, I just probably played a little safer. I don't go at pins. I like to try and control my ball flights in the wind, so I probably take the speed off a lot of the time. But, yeah, it's not lowering expectations, it's just playing a little more conservatively is a better way to put it.

Q. As you look ahead to tomorrow, do you want the conditions to be as tough as they were today? Does that suit you?

MATT JONES: I'll take whatever I get given. I mean, I don't know if I would say I want these conditions. It's a grind out there. It's a battle out there. So I'll just -- we'll see what it gives me.

Q. You've been in this position before back in 2008. How are you different as a player now than you were back then?

MATT JONES: Oh, I got a lot more experience, a lot more gray hair, and I've been in this situation before, so hopefully I can just draw from that and look back on that and learn from that and figure it out.

Q. How important will experience be tomorrow, do you think?

MATT JONES: The more experience you get, it can only help. I just have to manage the golf course and just play my game.

Q. You were six behind after six holes. Now you're three shots clear. Talk about that great turnaround.

MATT JONES: Yeah, I saw I was six back, but I really knew six back means nothing on this golf course with the holes we had to go. So I was just trying to manage my way around, make pars, as many pars as I could really and I was lucky enough to do that and make a couple of birdies.

Q. What's your thoughts tomorrow knowing it's going to be similar?

MATT JONES: I'm going to do the exact same thing I did today probably. I don't know what the wind's supposed to do tomorrow, so I haven't got a game plan yet. I'll have to look at that tonight and get a little bit of a strategy there. But just go and relax and rest.

Q. What's the most difficult part of the challenge out there today?

MATT JONES: Probably putting. These greens are very, very fast, there's a lot of, there's down grain, into the grain, (no microphone) the ball just sits right on top of the grass and you have a little bounce here and there. Especially with the wind.

Q. What's the potential for a wild finish tomorrow, given the last four holes here?

MATT JONES: I think there's always that potential out here. Doesn't matter how big your lead is or how small your lead is, anything can happen. And not just this golf course, it happens every week out here. So we'll see what happens.

Q. It's been seven years since you won out here, what are you going to draw upon for the final round? What kind of memories and experience?

MATT JONES: I mean, I'll draw on I've won a couple of Australian Opens in between, so I can draw on those. I mean, playing with those top players in the final group down there was always something I can draw on. And playing out here it's just a tough golf course. I mean, you have to go hit the ball (no microphone) so coming from Australia we grew up in a lot of wind so I've got 36 years experience playing in the wind.