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DEUTSCHE BANK CHAMPIONSHIP

September 3, 2011

Charl Schwartzel

NORTON, MASSACHUSETTS

JOHN BUSH: We'd like to welcome Charl Schwartzel into the interview room here at the Deutsche Bank Championship after a second consecutive 5-under par 66. Talk about your round today, which included a 6-under 30 on the front there.
CHARL SCHWARTZEL: Yeah, a little different than yesterday's 5-under, but we'll take it. I started off the day, I felt like I played well, and I was very frustrated through the first nine holes. I felt like I played much better, made a very soft bogey on 18, and I probably gave up two shots to the field there.
Then just got it going my back nine, the front nine of the course. Just from the first tee, I normally hit 5-wood off the 1st and just decided -- maybe a little bit of anger let me hit driver, so I hit driver and got it close to the green and made birdie.
No. 2 was downwind, got it way down there, hit 7-iron in there, made birdie, and it just sort of snowballed.
Hit a fantastic 4-iron on No. 3. It's a tough hole today, the par-3 there. Hit it to 12-foot, made birdie.
And drove it on the back edge on the 4th hole and made another birdie. I kept going, I thought I was going to make nine in a row.

Q. How did you screw up 5?
CHARL SCHWARTZEL: I left it short in the mouth. No good.

Q. I'm trying to remember, did you say yesterday that had you played last week it would have been 13 weeks in a row that you would have been looking at?
CHARL SCHWARTZEL: No, not 13 weeks in a row golf but 13 weeks on the road. I would have had a week in between breaks. I would have been I think four, four, then one week off and then five. It's just a bit too long for me to carry on, to be on the road for that long. Even though I had a week off -- for me a week off, I can't just do nothing, I have to practice, because you've got the next week coming up. In order to take a proper break you need two weeks in order to sit down and do nothing for a week and then start preparing for the next.

Q. What's on the agenda from here on out, Chicago, Atlanta hopefully, and then what?
CHARL SCHWARTZEL: Yes, all the way through to TOUR Championship, and then after that the Dunhill Links in Scotland, and then I think a couple days off in Bermuda, and then from Bermuda I'll play Bermuda, I play two in China, one in Japan, play Presidents Cup, World Cup, Million Dollar, Race to Dubai all in a row. I think that's eight tournaments in six different countries.

Q. Who did you take for a partner for the World Cup?
CHARL SCHWARTZEL: Louis Oosthuizen.

Q. I think I saw you on Tuesday here, so I'm not sure -- you've never played this tournament before, so how many looks at the golf course did you get before Friday, and how important was that to familiarize yourself with it?
CHARL SCHWARTZEL: I came through on Tuesday, hit some balls, and then I played 18 holes on Wednesday and the pro-am on Thursday. Sounds weird, Thursday pro-am. So I got to see it twice.
You know, it's a great golf course. It's very much all in front of you. You just need to be on form with the irons and the putter.

Q. I realize you don't know the ins and outs of the point system, but were you at all aware that both Tiger and Jim had won the FedExCup without playing in the first event?
CHARL SCHWARTZEL: I was (smiling). I'm aware. It's quite a good omen.

Q. Assess your rookie year. I mean, I know you're not really a rookie by any standard other than the fact that you haven't played here, but by and large all new venues for you, new faces, new places. How do you think you've done?
CHARL SCHWARTZEL: Yeah, I feel I've done well. I think it's helped that I've played out here for the last seven or eight years. I've played 45 events, sometimes 46, depending on the invites I got. I think I had a good learning curve coming out here. I don't think I was put on the back foot when I took up my membership to start playing here. I feel really comfortable playing out here right now.

Q. Was it always your intention to eventually come over and play the U.S. Tour?
CHARL SCHWARTZEL: Yeah, I think it was in my mind always the ultimate to come and play out here. I started -- I'll never knock Europe. That's where I learned. I learnt a lot. My game in South Africa was very similar to what I would have had out here. But Europe gave me that start I needed, and it taught me a lot of things. I'm fairly happy making a move only now, the experience that I've got behind me.

Q. Learning how to win, those types of things?
CHARL SCHWARTZEL: Yeah, learning to win. Lots of opportunities to win. There's nothing -- it doesn't matter what tournament you win; a win is a win. It takes almost the same to win a small event as it does a big event.

Q. I was just curious, when you came over to I think it was your first WGC event in San Francisco in 2005, Ricci (Roberts) was on the bag for you that week, I remember that.
CHARL SCHWARTZEL: Yes.

Q. Where is your game now compared to then in terms of where do you think you've made the most improvement from when you first played a WGC to where you are now?
CHARL SCHWARTZEL: You know, that's a tough one. I think all aspects of the game. At that time I think you came out here and it's almost just how far you can hit the ball, and where you've learnt just how to play the game more now, put a score on the board. You get wiser. You learn you don't win it on the first day. You've got to progress, and it takes time. You know, back then, you shoot 66 the first day, you're thinking to yourself, geez, I could win this thing, but there's three rounds to go. So you've got to learn all those things. So it's small things.

Q. Same score yesterday as today. Were the rounds carbon copies of each other or one was strong in one part and today was strong in another part?
CHARL SCHWARTZEL: They were completely different. But I felt I played well. I've been swinging the club really good for quite some time now. My ball-striking has been really solid, and especially on these fairways since the ball lies down quite a bit, you need to be on top of your ball striking. I have been striking it well.
Today my first nine holes I played I hit some great shots, hit some good putts and they don't go in. I made a really stupid bogey on 18, and I turned at 1-over where it should have maybe been 1-under. The back nine just brought it back.

Q. Any change in the course or the conditions today?
CHARL SCHWARTZEL: No, I mean, the wind was quite a lot stronger today than yesterday. It's quite difficult in between these big trees. It's swirling, a couple times where I came up way short where the wind gusted. It's definitely tougher than what it was yesterday morning.

Q. So knowing that it was windier today, is your 66 today better than yesterday do you think?
CHARL SCHWARTZEL: Yeah, I think you could say that. You know, it's tough when it gets firm and the wind gets up.

Q. Is there any one shot or any one hole that really stood out in your mind today or really got you going, gave you the confidence?
CHARL SCHWARTZEL: Yeah, maybe even just the birdie on the 1st hole, my 10th hole. After the bogey on 18, I was, to say the least, fairly upset. It's sometimes very crucial to come back straightaway, otherwise your round can get away from you. The birdie on the 1st just got me going in the right mindset again. Great tee shot down 2, and all of a sudden, I felt like, wow, I can do this again.

Q. What iron did you hit in on 2?
CHARL SCHWARTZEL: I hit 7-iron.

Q. Perfect segue, you're 140 pounds. Have you tried to put on weight? Do you find it hard to put on weight? You've kind of got that Charles Howell build where from a distance you can see is a hat and a pair of shoes.
CHARL SCHWARTZEL: I think it's time I updated that sheet where it says I'm 140 pounds.

Q. A little more now?
CHARL SCHWARTZEL: That was back in 2002. (Laughter.)

Q. What's the new number?
CHARL SCHWARTZEL: 160. Yeah, I mean, I try and put on weight, but it just forces me to fill out, so I don't think I'm achieving anything.
JOHN BUSH: Charl, we appreciate your time.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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