THE PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP

March 16, 2024

Wyndham Clark

TPC Sawgrass

Quick Quotes

Q. Did that feel like a pretty important bogey on 17? You seemed really pumped to make that putt. After a mistake like that, is it a big deal?

WYNDHAM CLARK: Yeah, it's massive. It's unfortunate on a hole that's so iconic and has a bunch of trouble to have kind of your worst swing of the day. But yeah, I followed it with a great swing and a great putt. I'm in the final group tomorrow, which is huge.

I'm hoping that's a huge point in the tournament and we look back after tomorrow and look at that hole and say, hey, that was maybe the shot and the putt that meant it all.

Q. Does not going to the drop area, is that your thing that you would always do, or is it a circumstances where the pin is?

WYNDHAM CLARK: Fortunately I went first and I had some time to think about it. I asked my caddie John, and he's like, it's just too close for us to be able to hit it -- the easier shot was just redoing it. We had a good club. Honestly, I made a bad swing and chunked it, and if we went closer, I think it made it a tougher shot.

Q. Did you lose your focus?

WYNDHAM CLARK: No. I mean, I'm not throwing John under the bus by any means, but it was probably a perfect sand wedge. He thought if I nuked it, it could get on top. Kind of, as we were walking to put the ball down, he's like, Let's take a little off a full sand wedge. As I was over the ball I kind of got to the top and I was like, take a little off and then I just kind of deceled and chunked it. It wasn't really a lack of focus or anything. It just was honestly a poor swing.

Q. You shot 70, kind of felt like maybe your bad round, but to still be in the final group --

WYNDHAM CLARK: Yeah, exactly. I think everyone kind of has one round where they have to really grind it out and make those par putts and bogey putts or whatever it is. I felt like that was today. I'm hoping tomorrow I'll wake up laser locked-in focused and can go have an awesome round and hopefully have a great finish here.

Q. I heard you talking to Todd. Did you feel like you lost focus at any point throughout the round?

WYNDHAM CLARK: No. I mean, gosh, it's hard in a final group on a Saturday, and especially when everyone else is making a lot of birdies. Sometimes you can press and try to force the issue, and I thought I did an amazing job. If I make the par putt on 8 and make the birdie putt on 9, could have been a totally different round. I could be at 19 or 20, and we'd be having a different conversation.

I felt like I still played good golf. I hit a lot of good shots. Just seemed like a couple missed clubs, a couple missed putts. Other than that, I thought I played fine.

Q. That swing on 12 --

WYNDHAM CLARK: On 12, yeah. I don't know, I'm still -- I think I like laying up there. John was really pushing for me to go for it. He just said anything past is great. I thought, we just made a great birdie, kind of why lose momentum. I don't know, we'll rethink it going into tomorrow. Once again, it's a pretty demanding shot. If you miss it way right, it's really hard to get up-and-down, so you kind of have to take the shot on, and I tried and just hit it left.

Q. What do you make of the closing stretch here late in the day?

WYNDHAM CLARK: I mean, it's the coolest -- got to be one of the coolest stretches in golf, having a par-5 where you can make birdie or eagle and then a really tough little par-3 and then you have the nails on 18 that's super tough. It's really fun because everyone kind of congregates right there, and that's where you want to be. You want to be right there on the final couple groups with all the people on Saturday and Sunday. It's cool.

Q. How important was it for you to be in the final group? Does it feel a bit like Wells Fargo all over again?

WYNDHAM CLARK: Yeah, I always think it's great to be in the final group and kind of know where everyone is at, so depending on what the circumstances are, you can either press it or play really smart coming in.

But yeah, it's fun playing with Xander. He's so good, and his caddie, we're all good friends. It's going to be fun tomorrow. He has the upper leg right now, and I'm hoping tomorrow I bring it and we can have some fireworks and play some great golf.

Q. What do you think makes him tough as a competitor?

WYNDHAM CLARK: He's so consistent, and obviously you saw today the guy makes a lot of putts. Hopefully tomorrow he doesn't make that many putts and I make some putts. I have a lot of respect for Xander's game. He's just so steady. He doesn't really have any flaws.