CHARLES SCHWAB CHALLENGE

May 26, 2023

Michael Block

Colonial CC

Quick Quotes

Q. Can you exhale now? Let it all out now?

MICHAEL BLOCK: I'm not going to let it all out until I get probably in the -- when I get to my house and I'm sitting in the backyard -- no, I can't talk about this stuff right now.

My black lab Messy, he's waiting for me. I haven't seen him in almost two weeks, and I can't wait to get home and throw the ball with him.

Q. Was there a particular moment here at Colonial these last couple days that you'll take with you?

MICHAEL BLOCK: Oh, yeah, the people, 100 percent. I had no idea that people would like me here, and they did, and it was cool.

Yeah, the people in Fort Worth, Texas, everywhere around here, they all came out. I made sure to say hi to every volunteer here, and somehow they knew me, which was insane to me. The players are amazing about it, and the volunteers, the members here, the people at Colonial were first class all the way around, 100 percent.

Q. Can you help convey to us what it means to kind of embody the spirit of every man? Because that's what you've done?

MICHAEL BLOCK: I thought we weren't going to cry today, right?

Q. No problem.

MICHAEL BLOCK: I'm not trying to do anything, period. I'm just playing golf. That's what I know to do.

If somebody says, hey, Michael, I got a problem not looking at them and shaking their hand. I have a problem not doing that. I've got issues with it. So I will definitely, if someone says, Michael, I'm going to look at you, and I'm going to say hi, and I'll shake your hand. If you want an autograph, I'll sign your autograph, and if you want a picture, I'll probably give you a picture too. My dad raised me right.

Q. Michael, like you said, it's been two weeks since you've been at home. Obviously you planned a flight last week to be going home. How mentally and physically drained are you right now? Has it hit you?

MICHAEL BLOCK: I have no legs. I was scheduled to fly out at 10:00 a.m. last Saturday. So if that gives you any confidence on how much I had of making the cut at the PGA Championship. My whole family, everybody, everyone that even came out to watch me last weekend was scheduled to go out on Saturday.

So to say the least, for me to finish 15th and make the cut and be there on Sunday and for whatever happened happened is insane because we were all going home Saturday morning, and that didn't happen obviously. Life changed a little bit since then, and I've enjoyed every single moment.

Appreciation for everybody is beyond for me. I appreciate everybody that's shown their support. The people here, the pros here, the members here, the volunteers here, and the fans have been amazing.

I thought I was just going to hit a chord with like 40-year-old -- what do they call it? Dad bods. I thought I was going to hit a chord with the dad bods, which I think I did, but I think I hit a chord with all the other ones too, which is really, really cool. I met a lot of young people and old people and middle-aged people and whatever else.

It's my appreciation to them all. I just want to say thank you.

Q. This whole journey, what's been the most gratifying part about all of it?

MICHAEL BLOCK: I practiced a lot in my life. I spent so many hours on a chipping green, putting green, I can't even explain to you. Like years, years. If you added up all the minutes that I spent around Whitmoor Country Club's chipping and putting green in St. Louis, Missouri -- St. Charles, actually -- it would be insane. It would be years. It would be probably ten years worth.

Nobody is around me. Nobody telling me to do it. I just loved it. I loved it, and it paid off.

Q. Last week when you had the hole-in-one, it's going to be a lasting memory. Can you talk about No. 10 yesterday, hitting off the bridge?

MICHAEL BLOCK: I came over that hill, I'm like where's my ball? Because usually it's like a white pin in the rough. I'm like, where's it at? I can't see it. There's a guy going, it's on the bridge. I'm going, oh, of course it is because yesterday was going that way. I hit 3-wood down the right center of the fairway, and I'm on a bridge.

So it's like I get it. I play golf a lot. I get how it works, and that happens. I was lucky enough that the ball was not up against the side. I was lucky enough it was on the right side. I was lucky enough it was on a slight uphill slope. I was also lucky enough that I had trees that were gigantic right in front of me and the pin. Not really that lucky.

I took a gap wedge from 106 or 108, I forget what it was. I thought it was going to come off low and to the right off of that lie, and it actually came out high and left. So it came out great. Honestly, I thought I stuck it. I really honestly, when I hit it, I'm like oh, my God.

It came out high and perfect, going right at the pin, but because of all the spin off the cart path, it didn't get he there because the RPMs on it had to have been ridiculous. So it came up short, and I made a par. It was one of the best pars of my life.

The rules official is like, yeah, Block, you've got to take it back here on the rough on a downhill slope over trees, and I'm like, no, I'm not. I'm going off of this. He's like really? I'm like, yeah, I am, and I did.

Q. Michael, you said this course fits your eye. Under ideal conditions, if you had some rest, been mentally and physically 100 percent --

MICHAEL BLOCK: If I had legs, this -- if I felt good off the tee -- the tee shots killed me, honestly, this week. I still had the short game. I still had the irons. I still had the putter and everything else, but I'm usually a very straight driver and I love a cut, and I was not feeling it.

From the first tee shot where I blocked it right, I was either blocking it right or pulling it left. Block it right, pull left.

Even when I hit it good, it would land over the bunker and then bounce back in the left of the bunker when it shouldn't. Whatever. It is what it is. I think I felt the wrath of the golf gods this week, which I get it. I completely get it, and I don't blame them for it because they gave me a lot of positive things last week.

I got it. I'm not even surprised by it. I'm not surprised at all by my kicks and whatever else happened, my lies. It is what it is, and I'm moving on.

I can't wait for Canada, to tell you the truth. I cannot wait. I cannot wait to get to Toronto.