TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP

August 25, 2023

Xander Schauffele

East Lake Golf Club

Quick Quotes

Q. How would you characterize the round out there?

XANDER SCHAUFFELE: Pretty solid, I'd say. The ending was a little bit of a scramble. I made a couple nice mid-range putts on 16 and 18. That par on 17 was big for me. So just keep my head down. I look up at the board and I'm just barely picking up ground, so still a lot to do.

Q. Is it frustrating sometimes when you're barely making up ground? We seem to talk to you about this year after year, but you play so well here. Is it kind of frustrating when you play so well and you don't make up as much ground as you would think?

XANDER SCHAUFFELE: Just got to come into the week in a better position. That's all.

Q. Your record is so good here. Is there something specific game plan-wise or game-wise that sort of fits? I mean, you drive the ball well, you hit the ball well, but is there anything beyond that?

XANDER SCHAUFFELE: Yeah, I mean, you got to -- it's pretty obvious. It's just you got to sort of plot around the property well and if you can get your putter going, the greens are so pure you feel like you can start rolling anything in.

So it must just fit my eye. I'm not really sure. But, yeah, I mean, I played pretty well around the property and I'm going to need some more of that magic here on the weekend.

Q. Would you characterize this as a defensive golf course or can you go out and shoot a 64 every round?

XANDER SCHAUFFELE: If you're hitting the fairway, you can be offensive. If you're in the rough -- yesterday was probably one of the better 3-unders I've ever shot. I hit six fairways and fortunately I think a couple of the birdies came out of the sand, which was big.

But it's just the course will eat you alive if you're not in the fairway. You can kind of manage, and manage your way around the property, if you can score a little bit on certain holes, but for the most part, if you try and run up this leaderboard you got to start from the fairway.

Q. You said 3-under felt really, really good. Of all your success here what round stands out? Which one do you go back to and think, yes, that was awesome?

XANDER SCHAUFFELE: I'm not really sure. It's funny, you start -- it's cool to come back to the same golf course year-in, year-out. A few times today I -- you always try and leave yourself below the hole, and on the first hole to that back left pin I actually hit it like 6 or 7 feet past. I was able to make my putt, but I looked at Austin and I said, I've never had that putt before. I didn't even think of practicing that in the practice round because everyone always -- you play up to it.

So it's cool to play this course so many times and still sort of have new shots or new putts to hit.

Q. Considering where you started, though, you got to feel pretty good with where you are and the chances going into the weekend, correct?

XANDER SCHAUFFELE: Just trying to give myself a chance, yeah. I was pretty far back to start. I watched Rory do it. He started six back and was able to win. So, if you're golfing your ball, you can make it happen. But there's a reason the guys ahead have an advantage with that lead, which they deserve, obviously. So, like I said, just got to keep plucking away here.