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BMW CHAMPIONSHIP

September 6, 2007

Jonathan Byrd

LEMONT, ILLINOIS

JOE CHEMYCZ: We welcome Jonathan Byrd into the interview room, Jonathan with eight birdies today and a 7-under par 64 for possession of the first-round lead. At this point Jonathan No. 30 on the FedExCup points list, so obviously some pressure on you to play well this week and maintain your position for next week.
JONATHAN BYRD: Some pressure. You know, I try not to put any extra pressure on myself this week. I've played well all year, and it's been a successful year, won a tournament and have a lot of good finishes, feel good about my game. It would be nice to play well this week, and that's what I'm here for.
You know, if I get in next week, I get in next week. I went out just trying to play the golf course today and felt good about my game and made a few extra putts today, and here I am.

Q. Lift, clean and place rules in effect for round one, 12 of 14 fairways, so that had to help?
JONATHAN BYRD: Yeah, I mean, every week -- I have not been driving the ball -- about three months ago I was really struggling driving the golf ball, and I've been driving the ball better and better every week. It's just been putting the ball in the fairway and hitting it really good off the tee, and I just gave myself a lot of chances today.

Q. The win at the John Deere kind of really got you going. Has that kind of been the key to your season?
JONATHAN BYRD: It's amazing what winning does for you confidence-wise. I missed the previous four cuts before John Deere, and then I go win a tournament, and I'm just bubbling with confidence. It just does a lot for you. You get in position to win and you do it, and then you just feel like you go to the next tournament and try to win that one. So it's very addictive, winning.
You know, I'm playing a lot better than I was probably that week at John Deere. My game is sharper. John Deere is not quite as difficult a golf course as this one is or some of the other golf courses we've played, and my game has just kind of continued to get better and better.

Q. Could you maybe talk in general terms about why you're driving it better, if there's an adjustment that you made?
JONATHAN BYRD: My caddie, my swing instructor, my mental coach, just they constantly engrain in me to swing 85 percent. I'm doing a better job of that. But when I start to feel uncomfortable on the golf course, I just start swinging harder and harder. I've been doing a good job of getting away from that and been swinging within myself. I think the best players do that; even Tiger, as hard as he hits it, he's usually swinging within himself. I've been doing that well, and my swing has just gotten a little bit tighter and my focus has gotten a little bit better, and my misses aren't as bad. It helps when the fairways are softer, too, like today.

Q. It seemed like on odd atmosphere out there today, not many people. I wonder what it was like playing in that situation.
JONATHAN BYRD: Well, Stewart Cink made the comment when we got out there this morning, we were only two groups ahead of Tiger, and usually when you're two groups ahead of Tiger there's people swarming all day, especially if you're one group ahead of Tiger. It just didn't seem like there was that many people out there today. Following him, he usually brings everybody out.

Q. Do you realize when you're playing, or do you shut everything out because there just doesn't seem to be that many people watching?
JONATHAN BYRD: It's not weird. We play plenty events throughout the year where there's not a lot of people out there. You know, especially if you have an early tee time on the last tee time. We play a lot of golf with not a lot of fans. Tiger doesn't usually play a lot of golf without many people.
But it didn't feel that weird out there. I think this town is excited we're here, and I think probably a lot of people because of the weather didn't come out today thinking it was going to rain. I think there will be a lot of people out here on the weekend for sure.

Q. Did it seem odd at all with a short week this week as opposed to last week where you actually got a later start on Friday? This week you played through until Monday and then only had a day off?
JONATHAN BYRD: Yeah, that last day off the week prior sure is nice. You finish the previous tournament, whoo, I've got a day off, I can rest a day, and then you feel fresh coming into Boston. And then it catches up to you this week.
I think as a player you've really got to plan your whole week out, you know, and say, okay, normally I would do this much work to prepare for a tournament, now I just have to cut it in half or do whatever. It helps to play the Pro-Am on Wednesday. I didn't do a whole lot on Tuesday, I think I played four holes just to get a feel for the golf course. I tried to get a good feel for the speed of the greens, and that was about it.

Q. Going out today, you obviously probably knew you were going to have to shoot low because scores -- lift, clean and place, the greens were soft, and did you know that, and how does that affect your round?
JONATHAN BYRD: Well, being 30th and kind of on the bubble, I knew I would have to stay aggressive this week. I can't say, you know, I've got to finish 15th this week or I'm not getting in or I've got to finish 30th. I don't know what that's going to be because I don't know how the other guys are going to play. I might as well shoot to win the golf tournament.
Whenever it plays soft, you've got to alter your game plan and get more aggressive and hit your iron shots into the greens. Usually you're playing away from some of these hole locations, and today you just kind of had to keep firing at them just because the greens were soft.

Q. How low do you have to finish in the FedExCup points list to get free FedEx delivery for a year?
JONATHAN BYRD: They haven't told us that yet (laughter).

Q. You said earlier, if you play next week, you play next week, something to that effect, I'm paraphrasing. But I can't imagine anyone saying something similar about advancing to the next round of the Major League Baseball Playoffs or the NBA Playoffs. Do you feel like you're in a playoff right now?
JONATHAN BYRD: Well, you know, I think those guys would have a similar mindset. You've got to -- honestly, I want to play next week more than -- just as much as anybody else. It's really important to get in the TOUR Championship. It's a tournament I've never played in. I've never made the Top 30, and I'm competitive. I want to be there.
I want to have a chance to win this tournament and next week. I want to be there. There's no difference with that comparing to other sports. I just feel like mindset-wise, with our sport, I have to just kind of focus on this week.
Our sport is just kind of cyclical. You can go out and play pretty good and finish 30th this week and not make it next week. I just don't want to set myself up for failure or disappointment when I could go out there and play pretty good and maybe not make it.
You know, but it doesn't really feel like, per se, a Playoffs, like some of the other sports. For us it just feels like another tournament. It feels a little bit more important than a regular tournament.
JOE CHEMYCZ: Take us through your birdies and bogeys.
JONATHAN BYRD: Started on the back nine. I made a long putt on 10, probably 25 feet, for birdie.
Didn't birdie 11, the par 5.
12, I hit it about six feet, made birdie, par 3.

Q. What did you hit there?
JONATHAN BYRD: I hit a 5-iron.
15, par 5, I hit it in an awful spot long left in the rough and just tried to get it on the green pretty much from where I was, and I hit it about 20 feet and made it for birdie.
16, I hit it about seven feet.
Made about a 12-footer for par on 17.
And then 2, I just kind of hit it through the green into the rough, didn't really have a stance next to the bunker and had a tough shot, made bogey.
Came back, made about a 20-footer on 3 for birdie.
6, the long par 3, I hit 5-iron just short of the back shelf probably about 30 feet, 35 feet, made that.
7, about 15-footer, left of the hole, made birdie.
And then 8, hit a wedge about six feet, seven feet, made birdie.

Q. Who do you think should be the FedEx champion? Should it be representative of who played the best all year, or should it be representative of who played the best during this four-week stretch? How do you feel it ought to be balanced?
JONATHAN BYRD: I feel the system is set up for the FedExCup champion as a combination of the guy who plays well all year and plays well this week, and I think that's what the PGA TOUR intended, and I think that's what's going to happen.
Now, with Steve Stricker up there, he's played well all year, and he's played well in the FedExCup. So has Tiger and Rory Sabbatini, the guys that are up there.
JOE CHEMYCZ: Jonathan, thank you. Play well tomorrow.

End of FastScripts

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