PGA CHAMPIONSHIP

May 18, 2023

Scottie Scheffler

Oak Hill Country Club

Flash Quotes

THE MODERATOR: Scottie Scheffler joins us at the 105th PGA Championship. Scotty, a bogey-free 3-under 67 for you today. How did it go out there for you, and what did you like?

SCOTTIE SCHEFFLER: Definitely no bogeys. Today was probably the easiest conditions we'll see all week with the golf course. So getting around with no bogeys was really good.

I mean, that's pretty much how I shot 3-under. There's not really many birdie opportunities out there. So if you can limit the mistakes, good things will happen, I guess.

Q. It was your first run at a major bogey-free. What's the sense of accomplishment of doing it at this place?

SCOTTIE SCHEFFLER: This place is pretty tough. I came into today's round just trying to play solid golf. I kept the course in front of me for the most part and hit some really good tee shots on the important holes. Then I had some nice saves as well.

It's just one of those places where you hit one shot maybe barely offline, and sometimes can you hit a good shot and end up in a place where it's pretty penalizing. There's lots of tough holes out there.

I'm just going to go out there and keep trying to hit good shots.

Q. What was a key save for you out there today? You scrambled well.

SCOTTIE SCHEFFLER: I would say I got some good momentum after No. 4. I pulled my drive a little bit there, which is a miss. If you hit it right in the bunker, you are chipping out sideways.

I went up against a tree and actually got the ball back into play somehow, which was a great shot. Hit a pretty good iron shot in there too. We got a wind switch and had a really good up and down to keep the round going. You would hate to bogey a par-5, especially when there's only two of them around this place. That was good momentum.

I used that to close out the round pretty strong.

Q. Did Tiger get you to rethink your divot-taking strategy?

SCOTTIE SCHEFFLER: No.

Q. Are you surprised at how much people have gotten a kick out of that video?

SCOTTIE SCHEFFLER: I haven't actually watched it, but I do remember that day. That was one of the first things we did that day, so I was just trying to wake up. I look over, and he hadn't made any divots, and I was, like, a little bit confused. So the look on my face probably said it all.

But, I don't know, I think he was doing some sort of drill or something like that and maybe didn't want to tell me because the cameras were on. Who knows? Maybe he really doesn't take divots. Ask JT.

Q. You spent a lot of time looking over that ball on 9, your last hole. Just how relieving was it that you got all of that shot, and just how disappointing that you just MISSED on a birdie there?

SCOTTIE SCHEFFLER: Yeah, well, I mean, I hit a really good putt, and I hit a really good tee shot too. It's just, like I said, when you are on a major championship golf course, the areas out here are so firm.

Like No. 9 is extremely difficult to hit that fairway. They're tight to begin with, and when you get that firmness, they start playing even smaller.

I was just trying to read the lie. There wasn't obviously anything in front of the ball, but there was a lot of grass built up behind it, so I didn't know if it was going to take off, spin. I knew it was going to take off spin. I didn't know if it was going to take off any speed.

I was just trying to read the lie and just figure out where our miss was. Fortunately, just hit a really good shot in there, and then hit a good putt that didn't fall, but really good putt.

Q. Just as a follow-up. On 1 and 2, you were talking about keeping the course in front of you and also avoiding bogeys. How important were those two saves for par where you rolled down the hill on 1, and then you overshot the green up near the TV tower on 2 I think it was? How important was that for your confidence at that point even before you got into tree trouble there?

SCOTTIE SCHEFFLER: Well, No. 1 I think I had 122 stick, and I hit a 130 shot. It ended up on the front fringe. It really was kind of a good example of me keeping the course in front of me where if I try and force something over by the pin, it may have come up short in the bunker, and then I would have be in some trouble.

No. 2, I had 161 to the pin, and I hit a low 50 shot, and it flew about 170. Those two shots go the same direction on the golf course. I had one where I had over ten yards of hurt, and then the next one I had over 15 yards of help. It's one of those deals where I didn't hit a bad shot. I executed the way I wanted to, and I think we thought through things properly there. I could not get frustrated. I just got an unfortunate break and just a really good up and down there on 2.

Q. You mentioned you think today is going to be the easiest day maybe. Why do you think that is? Why do you think it's going to get tougher?

SCOTTIE SCHEFFLER: I felt like today there wasn't as much wind, and tomorrow it looked like the wind is going to be blowing 10 to 20. I thought I saw a lot of that over the next three days as well.

So going into today it looked like it was going to be really calm. That was just my thought. Could be wrong.

Q. Is there kind of a survivor mentality at tournaments like this now that are you in the position you're in? Like a sense that it's going to be a grind over the next 54 holes?

SCOTTIE SCHEFFLER: Yeah, I think no matter what position I'm in going into tomorrow, I would be grinding it out. This is one of those places where that's what you have to do. You just try and stay in position, make the important par putts and just keep the momentum going. I did a good job of that today.

Going into tomorrow I'll try to do more of the same.

Q. How relieved were you that there was a frost delay this morning, and what would it have been like if there wasn't?

SCOTTIE SCHEFFLER: There would have been a lot of ice out there that we would have been walking through if there was no frost delay.

I think we were pretty aware it was going to happen, but you still wake up and prepare the same way. Fortunately, they let us know pretty early in the morning, which was nice. I was actually still at home.

So I showered and shaved and all that stuff. I basically just went back to sleep.

Q. What is your take on the situation on No. 1 and No. 14 with those tees on the same box there? I saw your group -- you seemed like you guys went through pretty easily coming off of 18, but I didn't see if you were backed up when you played 14.

SCOTTIE SCHEFFLER: So there hadn't been a backup. Yet when we played 14, we were one of the first few groups off 10, so there hadn't been too much time. I did see two groups on 14 when we were there on No. 1, an that's just a tough area of the golf course to get guys through.

I mean, you are hitting -- when you are hitting your chip shot on 14, too, from short of the green where the tee is on 15, it's also right behind the pin, and so you can't be hitting at the same time, and then the guys on 1 and 14 can't be hitting at the same time.

It's just a place where you know you're going to get a jam, and that's just from how the place was set up. It is what it is.

Q. Scotty, you said 4 felt like that's where you got some momentum. What do you think was the most clutch putt of the day for you?

SCOTTIE SCHEFFLER: 4 I got good momentum. I forgot about the up-and-down on 2, so that was probably a pretty important one, too. That was a really good putt.

Then, I hit a lot of good putts today. I feel like I did a lot of things really well. I think there was a few putts that could have gone in, and my score could have been even lower. I'm just happy to get through it no bogeys and good momentum going into tomorrow.

Q. Is there anything different between your putting now and maybe at Augusta?

SCOTTIE SCHEFFLER: Hopefully. I didn't putt very good at Augusta, so hopefully it's a little better.

Not really. I've stuck to my process of how I like to putt. I'm still working on the same fundamentals that I'm usually always working on. Golf is a hard game. You can't play perfect every week. The more free and loose I can play, especially on the greens, it's usually the better off I am.

Q. Last week obviously very low-scoring. Do you approach it any differently a week like last week versus this week, and do you feel like there's one test that your game is better suited for?

SCOTTIE SCHEFFLER: I feel like my game is better suited for this kind of test. I don't know if the results will say that, but I feel like I get more excited for a tournament like this versus a birdiefest like last week.

With that had being said, you know, I don't think mentally I would be able to handle playing a tournament like this every single week out here on Tour. I think I would have to really lighten my schedule a lot.

But going into these events, whether it's an easy or hard course, I'm still trying to stay patient. If I execute appropriately and hit good shots, I'm going to score well whether it's an easy or hard golf course.

Q. What makes you more excited about a test like this?

SCOTTIE SCHEFFLER: I just think there's more separation. From good shots, you can make birdies still. You get a little bit off, and you are going to find some bogeys really fast.

Q. When you come into this with the changes knee made here and not knowing the course, do you ask people about it? How do you prepare in that way, and if so, from what you heard after 18 holes, did it play the way you sort of expected it to be?

SCOTTIE SCHEFFLER: Yeah, I felt like at the beginning of the week it was going to play pretty hard, so I'm glad that it wasn't just me that felt is that way.

So, yeah, it's just a tough test. I didn't ask anybody too much about the course. I watched some fly-over videos, and I pretty much knew what I was getting into up here. Donald Ross designed some fantastic golf courses and the restoration seems like Andrew did a really good job. Golf course is in good shape. Rough is healthy. Feels like a major.