TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP

September 1, 2021

Harris English

East Lake Golf Club

Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: We'd like to welcome Harris English to the interview room here at the TOUR Championship. Harris, you come in here No. 7 in the FedExCup, minus-4, six back. There's going to be more points available. Just your thoughts on that.

HARRIS ENGLISH: Yeah, I love the way they're doing it right now. I remember qualifying for this, I don't know, five, six years ago for the first time. I mathematically had no chance to win. I think I was supposed to play with Louis Oosthuizen in the first round and I was 29 or 30, and I had no chance to win. I think now everybody has a chance to win if you play some really good golf.

The way I look at it, it's a five-round tournament. I just shot 4-under, and I'm six back, and there's a lot of golf to be played. Really anything can happen. I don't think six shots is a lot in 72 holes, especially on a golf course like this where it's not hard to make bogeys if you hit it in the rough, and if you play good golf, you can shoot 5-, 6-,7-under.

I feel like a lot can happen in the next four days, and it's going to be a good tournament.

THE MODERATOR: You've had a great season, two wins, won a spectacular playoff. There seems to have been a lot of playoffs lately. Do you attribute anything to that, just parity? We're in the playoffs, which is kind of weird, but do you think we'll see another one this week?

HARRIS ENGLISH: Watching the playoff last week was impressive when those guys were going toe to toe. We've got a lot of guys playing some really good golf right now. It's been fun to watch. The BMW Championship having that big playoff there. Playoffs are fun to watch. I enjoy it. I know the fans enjoy it.

I don't know what it is about how many playoffs there's been lately. Just a lot of guys playing good golf and making clutch putts on a couple holes to get up there near the lead, and it's been fun.

It would be awesome again to have a playoff this week of two or three guys fighting for $15 million. I mean, what more do you want on TV?

Q. Just kind of wondered, big picture, why so much success this year with two wins? Did something click, or what do you point to?

HARRIS ENGLISH: Yeah, it started last year. I had a really good year last year, very consistent. I don't know how many top tens I had, but I was close to breaking out. Played with Kuch in the Shark Shootout last December and played really well. I think we won by like nine shots. I kind of carried that into the Tournament of Champions in Maui and played really well.

It's just about getting in that winners circle again, knowing you can do it, craving getting in the hunt again, and I feel like I've done that. Getting back into it at the Travelers, it's just been a continuation of last year of just some really consistent play, really solid play, and if you do that enough, you're going to be near the lead and then have a chance to win.

Q. I was curious about two things. You mentioned a five-round tournament, and I was wondering if you've seen Dustin today because he said the same thing and I don't think you guys have really ever shared the same thought together, if you don't mind me saying.

HARRIS ENGLISH: I have not seen Dustin today, but we're mostly on the same page. If I think the way Dustin thinks on the golf course, I'm doing something right.

Q. Fair point.

HARRIS ENGLISH: The goldfish, and he's a good job of doing that. He does a good job of doing that.

Q. He has no memory. He said that, yeah. I'm also curious, going back to 15, like you mentioned you and Louis, you got in here by, I think, two points. Do you remember if there was a feeling when you were 30 of the difference between do I have the longest odds of all or man, I'm just happy to be here?

HARRIS ENGLISH: Yeah, I remember actually I beat Justin Thomas by, I think, two points. I made a putt on 18 at the BMW. I think it was Conway Farms. I can't remember what year it was, but it was definitely more of a feeling of I'm just glad I'm here playing East Lake with a lot of family and friends. Like let's just have a fun week.

It's definitely changed, like man, I feel like I've got a chance to win this. This is pretty serious business. Then you've kind of built the whole year for this, and you're playing for a lot of money. Obviously, getting your name on the TOUR Championship trophy is incredible, and this is the biggest prize of them all.

It's definitely turned more serious. I come in here wanting to win a golf tournament and wanting to get in contention and playing against the best when everybody is seemingly at the top of their games.

Q. Just a question, another question about this unusual format. Rory McIlroy was saying that he thinks it's the type of course where guys can separate pretty quickly out there because, if you start driving it in the rough or whatever, a guy can shoot a little bit of a higher number, whereas if you're not driving it in the rough, you can actually be aggressive and make quite a few birdies. Would you agree with that? Sort of how do you approach things starting six behind, I believe you are?

HARRIS ENGLISH: I agree with McIlroy's comments for sure. If you have your A-game, if you have a great tee-to-green game out here, you can shoot -- (Video froze).

So I like the format. I don't mind coming from behind. I'm going to play aggressive and try to -- I think my goal from my coach is 3-under per day. I know, if I beat that, shoot 12- or 14-under without the minus-4 start, then I'm going to be in the hunt and have a chance to win come Sunday.

Q. It's one more week until the Ryder Cup. I think you suspected this question might come given where you finished in the standings. What's your communication been like with Stricker at all? And do you feel like you've done enough?

HARRIS ENGLISH: Yeah, I've been on a group text with Strick over the past couple weeks, and obviously I'm really good friends with Davis Love and Jack Johnson, who are vice captains, as well as Jim Furyk, good friends with him as well.

Q. Phil's an assistant captain now as well. Just announced.

HARRIS ENGLISH: That's awesome. I think Phil will be a great assistant captain.

So, yeah, I have a good relationship with a lot of those guys. Jim texted me a couple weeks ago like, hey, man, I've been in your position before. Just go out and play good golf and let everything take care of itself, and that's kind of what I've been doing.

Talked to Davis Love on the phone when I was driving over to Athens yesterday, and we kind of chatted, and he kind of said similar stuff of you've got a big week this week. Just go play well and worry about this week and let the chips fall where they may.

I feel like I'm in a good spot. Hopefully, I can be picked for that team. I mean, my whole goal was to get in the top six and make it on my own merit, but I didn't do that, so hopefully I can get picked. I'd love to go to war with those guys.

I like a lot of guys on the team, all the guys on the team, so would love to play, and it would be an unbelievable experience.

Q. Harris, how do you feel specifically about East Lake? How is that course set up for you? Strengths, weaknesses? What are your thoughts?

HARRIS ENGLISH: Number one, I love getting back on bermuda grass. It's what I grew up on. A very similar setup to zoysia grass and bermuda greens as TPC Southwind, where we played the FedEx St. Jude. I love that course. I love getting back on bermuda grass.

I think I played this course for the first time when I was 13 or 14, so I've had a lot of experience here. I just love this area. I think the course sets up well for me, for my game of you have to have a lot of strategy out here. You've got to put the ball on the fairway. You've got to put the ball on the green. I would say this is not a bomber's course.

I played with Bryson last year, and it doesn't matter how far you hit it off the tee, if you're playing out of this bermuda rough, it's hard to get it on the green. I know the greens are going to get firmer and faster throughout the week with the sunshine and the cooler temperatures.

I think it plays well for me. I know you've got to ball strike it. You've got to hit a lot of fairways. Hopefully I can do that this week.

Q. Just a couple things. Your last match play in a team format, Walker Cup '11?

HARRIS ENGLISH: Yes.

Q. More than one year or just the '11?

HARRIS ENGLISH: That was it, 2011, Spieth, Cantlay, Russell Henley, Patrick Rodgers. We had a really solid team.

Q. Have you filled out your Visa for the ZOZO Championship?

HARRIS ENGLISH: I did. I did it at Liberty National. I'm kind of 50-50 going over there. I plan on playing the two Vegas tournaments, so it's a little tough going from the CJ Cup and flying straight to Japan, getting there on Tuesday. I don't know what their quarantine situation is.

So it's been a long year. I don't know when I'm going to take some weeks off. I'm hopefully going to play some of the silly season in December. Hopefully I can get in Tiger's event and playing in the Shark Shootout with Kuch again.

There's a lot of tournaments I want to play. I would love to go to Japan. I've never played golf in Japan. Obviously, watching Tiger win there a few years ago, the crowds were amazing, the atmosphere looked amazing. So I'd love to go there. It's just trying to find if the schedule works.

Q. Do you know where you are on the PIP program? Do you want to know?

HARRIS ENGLISH: I haven't asked, and I have no idea, but I would say I'm probably in the 30s. I have no idea. I don't do a whole lot of social media. I have a Twitter. I do do my Twitter, but I'm more follow football, follow sports.

I'm not a guy who's going to like self-promote a lot. I don't want people to know what I'm doing every single day. Whatever I'm doing, I'm going to video it or take pictures of it, like that's not me. So I can't force that. I can't be fake.

Whatever money they're giving out, I can't -- that's not me. If I'm up there close, fine. If I'm not, I don't really care. I can't change who I am, and I'm not going to force it.

Q. When's the last time you did TikTok?

HARRIS ENGLISH: I don't know -- I've never downloaded TikTok. I've seen a couple of videos. They're pretty funny. I have no idea how it works. I have a couple of younger brother-in-laws that showed me how all that works, but they can have at it.

Q. Do you like the program, or do you think it's unfair to those social media mavens?

HARRIS ENGLISH: I get why they did it. Obviously, the Saudi league has caused the PGA TOUR to up their game and keep the best players on the PGA TOUR. This is the best TOUR in the world. If we can keep the best players playing on the PGA TOUR, that's the best.

So whatever they need to do to keep those guys playing over here and keep our field strong, they can do it.

Q. What do you consider the strongest tweet you've ever put out?

HARRIS ENGLISH: I got a lot of backlash, I was watching the NCAA Championship a few years ago, and a lot of guys were using push carts and pull carts that I'd never seen before. Nobody used pull carts when I was in college or junior golf, and I had no idea that it changed so much.

So I put a tweet out there about the pull carts and push carts, and man, I had no idea that people were so against it. I'm not going to do that again.

Q. Your PIP probably went through the roof, though, if they had it back then.

HARRIS ENGLISH: Maybe I need to do more like that.

Q. I was wondering, should your name get called by Stricker this weekend or next week, what do you think that you particularly bring to the team room and to the table for a Ryder Cup?

HARRIS ENGLISH: I think I'm more of a Swiss Army knife of I can play with anybody, I can hang out with anybody. I think that's one of my strengths of I can find common ground with every single person. So whatever role they need me to play, whoever they need me to play with, whatever time, whatever format, I'll be there and go to war with anybody.

So I think that's kind of what I bring to the table. Obviously, I haven't played Ryder Cup before. I played a Walker Cup, love team golf.

That was one of the best parts of playing at University of Georgia was being part of a team. So I think I'd be great in the team room, and I would love to play and go to war with those guys.