TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP

September 4, 2021

Patrick Cantlay

East Lake Golf Club

Quick Quotes

Q. Patrick, how big was the birdie on 18 after the last four holes had gone?

PATRICK CANTLAY: I thought it was big for momentum. It was a nice putt to make, especially being out of position on that hole. And I'll take that momentum into tomorrow. I thought I rolled the ball on the greens just as good as the last couple days, and my speed was good, and a few putts went in today which was nice. So I feel like I'm in a good spot going into tomorrow, and that putt on 18 put the momentum in the right direction.

Q. In the final round, how do you process all the money that's at stake and how do you not let that interfere?

PATRICK CANTLAY: The internal drive to win golf tournaments is really what drives me, and so the external factors are not as much of a factor for me.

I'm going to feel similar to how I feel most any Sunday when I'm coming down the stretch for a golf tournament because my drive to win is strong inside me. And so the other stuff is just a consequence of that, and I don't play the game to make money. I play the game because I want to win golf tournaments and I love doing that, and I'm in a great spot to do that tomorrow.

Q. Do you enjoy the energy and the feeling of when the tournament turns late into a one-on-one duel? Is that something you like?

PATRICK CANTLAY: I think every tournament feels different. Coming off last week, it was definitely a one-on-one duel. This tournament is not quite that.

Q. I guess is it something you enjoy?

PATRICK CANTLAY: I enjoy pressure golf because it's everything I've practiced to do. And so getting in that moment is exactly why I've practiced for all those hours growing up and all those hours my whole life, and so getting to do it when it's important, I mean, that's exactly why I play golf. So I love it.

Q. Given that you've played a lot of golf with Jon in high-profile situations this year, what happened at the Memorial, does it feel like a competitive rivalry at all?

PATRICK CANTLAY: I don't know if I feel like that. There's so many good players in this generation and no one seems to be overly dominant. At least we haven't seen someone like Tiger. I think growing up, you kind of think that someone is always going to be on top of the game like that, and that's not the case. I feel like there's a lot of good players and I've had duels with, it seems like, a good amount of players in the top 5, Top-10 in the world this year.

So it's something I really enjoy, but I don't think about it as a rivalry, one person as opposed to another.

Q. Is there anything about his game that you see that is similar to your game?

PATRICK CANTLAY: I think we're both very consistent, and I think we both hit it where we're looking a lot, and that's why we play well.

But I try not to compare myself to others. I don't, you know, I don't think -- I don't think it helps. I usually try to shore up any weaknesses in my game, and I did a good job of that this year, and I feel like I've been all around pretty solid, and that's shown the last three months.

Q. You and Jon spending a lot of time together on the golf course, how well are you getting to know each other?

PATRICK CANTLAY: We've played a lot of golf together the last two or three years, and considering he's the No. 1 player in the world, I think that's a good thing for me. I think we have both seen each other play really good golf, and hopefully we both play well tomorrow.