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TRANSITIONS CHAMPIONSHIPMarch 18, 2012Scott PiercyPALM HARBOR, FLORIDA DOUG MILNE: Scott, thanks for joining us, quite the different story from Saturday to Sunday. Great playing today. 9‑under 62 has got you right at the top of the leaderboard, at least for the time being. Just some comments on just, that the difference from yesterday and what happened out there today. SCOTT PIERCY: Yesterday was from the middle of the trees and today was from the middle of the fairway and actually putting for birdies instead of for pars. It was quite opposite from yesterday. Q. Just talk about the situation, where the leaders barely teed off and you're finished and have the lead; that's pretty unusual out here. SCOTT PIERCY: That's what's nice about golf courses this tough is that if you do shoot a good round, you obviously want to win, but when you shoot a good round, you pass people instead of 4‑ or 5‑under to just kind of hold your ground. It's nice to shoot a good number that just passes people. Q. So what are you going to do for four hours? SCOTT PIERCY: Well, I'm supposed to check out of my hotel in about 30 minutes. I'll probably just watch the golf and if it looks like it's getting close, I'll come out when they are on 17 and hit a few balls and see where it ends up. Q. Are you optimistic? SCOTT PIERCY: You know, I mean, with Retief and Furyk in the last group, these guys are world beaters. So, I don't wish them harm, but definitely love to win. Q. Retief made double on the first hole‑‑ SCOTT PIERCY: He's got 17 more. He's not one of the best players in the world‑‑ those guys are too good. Q. Have you ever had a long wait for a playoff at any level of golf? SCOTT PIERCY: No. Never been in a playoff. When I won on the Nationwide, I won out right and when I won last year, I won out right. Q. Junior golf? Anything? SCOTT PIERCY: I don't remember yesterday really. Q. Talk about the front side, I think was the course record? SCOTT PIERCY: Well, 29, it's always nice to start the day. DOUG MILNE: Want to run us through the birdies. SCOTT PIERCY: Let's talk about the pars, there's only two. First hole, 4‑ or 5‑footer for birdie. Second hole, ten feet. It didn't matter where I was, it just seemed like the ball was going in the hole. All I had to do was hit it and the ball would just go in the hole. Q. What did you hit on 2? SCOTT PIERCY: 2, I hit 3‑iron, 9‑iron. No. 3, I hit‑‑ I missed that green and I hit 3‑iron, 6‑iron and made a really good par putt there from about eight feet. Then the par3, I hit it right to the middle of the green, pretty stock shot and I made a bomb, which that was really nice to see that one go in. The par5 fifth, I hit driver, hybrid just short of the green and chipped it up there to about three feet and made that. Three or four feet. No. 6, I killed a drive. Hit wedge to about 15 feet and made that. No. 7, I hit a perfect drive and actually I didn't miss‑club. I just played the wrong yardage. I had 140 into the wind. Should have played like 45; played it 40, came up short in the front bunker and got up‑and‑down. No. 8, I hit a 4‑iron to the middle of the green and made another 30‑, 40‑footer. These were like in the middle, too, like just crazy. Just one of those days where it just opens up for you. And then No.9, I hit driver, lob‑wedge just past the flag and made probably a 20‑footer there. 10, I hit driver, wedge and from about 40 feet, about made it again. Just one little rotation, goes in. 11, I hit 3‑wood, hybrid, chipped it up to about 15 feet and just caught the top lip there. 12, I hit 5‑iron, wedge. Hit a terrible wedge. I hit it just on the front of the green and 2‑putted. 13, the par3, I hit a 5‑iron that was not so good that just covered the bunkers on the right and chipped it to ten or 12 feet and made that. Good momentum for the next few holes. Then the par5, 14. I hit driver, 3‑wood just on the front left of the green and 2‑putted 40, 50 feet, 60 feet, which was a really good 2‑putt. I hit it in there pretty close on 15, the par3. Hit a great putt and just read too much out of it. Made par. 16, actually they came up to tell us we were on the clock. You know, thanks. I hit 3‑wood just to the fairway, had 193 to the hole and hit 6‑iron about 18, 20 feet I'm guessing. Made that. On 17, hit 4‑iron and 2‑putted. 18, I hit 3‑wood, wedge and 2‑putted there. Q. What were you feeling when you started? I think you were eight back maybe this morning. What was your feeling driving to the course? SCOTT PIERCY: I didn't have a whole lot to think, because I'm staying so close (chuckling). No, you know, what yesterday was terrible, it really was. If I was aiming in the middle of the fairway, the ball was starting in the right trees and the left trees. I mean, it was not even close. So I didn't really have a lot of expectations for today. I worked on the range yesterday and my setup was off. So basically all day I just worked on my setup, tried to make good swings out of a good setup, and I did, and the putter started rolling in. You start thinking about numbers a little bit when you shoot 29 on the front, but I was just trying to stay working on my setup. Q. At what point did you realize it could be sort of a special round? And did you start thinking about 59. SCOTT PIERCY: You know, it's kind of funny. When you start making putts, you're like, I'll just hit it, and it almost was like I didn't really care today. It was just trying to hit my lines, trying to get the process more than the result. A lot of times you get result‑oriented and the process goes away. My speed was away and I was reading greens great today. I was reading greens well. The greens were really smooth this morning. As far as it being special, any time you start just hooping it, the second hole is a good putt. The fourth hole went in, it was like 45 feet I think. But you see that going in and it's like, oh, there's a little momentum. I knew I could get home on the next par 5, and make a birdie, just kind of breeds a little confidence. Kind of a snowball and just keeps going. You just have to keep it moving. Q. Do you ever think about 59? SCOTT PIERCY: You know, yeah, you've got to. You'd be lying if you said no. When we made the turn, it was‑‑ my caddie looked at me and said, "Five more." Which in a way is thinking 59, but in a way, if I get five more, I get to 15 and I think that probably wins. And I think that's more where he was coming from. I think it was doable but 11, I let 11 slide by a little bit. Just the chip there crossed me up a little bit. But you know, I mean, overall, I played pretty solid. There was a couple shots I'd probably like to hit over. I had a wedge on 12 that was pretty bad. It was just a perfect situation, perfect distance and just hit a bad shot. But you know, even if you get it to 10,11, 12‑under going into the last three or four holes, you've got some good golf to play. And fortunately for me, I played 16, 17, 18 pretty well under par this week, I'm pretty sure. DOUG MILNE: 4‑under. SCOTT PIERCY: That's pretty good for, you know, for it being the Snake Pit. Q. Have you ever had a nine‑hole stretch like that? SCOTT PIERCY: Yeah, when I won last year in Reno, I birdied the first eight, or I birdied 2 through 9. So I was a little better. But I've shot 29 a couple times I would say. Q. You have not had great success here in the past? SCOTT PIERCY: No. You know, the golf course usually plays a lot different. It's usually a lot drier ‑‑ what's the word, it's dormant, it's dormant bermuda; it's faster. For me, when I first got here, I didn't know how to play the golf course. My lines this week were so much different. I would just hit it over the trees and curve it back into the fairway where I'm trying to really hit it down the middle of the fairway. This week, if I would have told you where I was aiming it on certain holes, like on 18, I'd aim out in the middle of the trees on the right trying to hit draws into that fairway today, but it makes the hole so much wider. This week, I figured out how to play the golf course more rather than just look at it and hit shots. And, you know, my week off last week, I gave myself a lot of thought as to how to play this golf course. I like the fact that it was softer earlier in the week. The harder it gets, the less club I have to hit off the tees obviously. I guess I kind of figured out a little bit more how to play the golf course rather than just get up and hit it. Q. Would you consider these conditions today perfect scoring conditions? SCOTT PIERCY: You know, the wind was down probably through at least the first ten holes, it was down pretty good. The last probably nine holes, it was up a little bit. It was starting to‑‑ the wind said it was supposed to be out of the east most of the day and it wasn't really there. It was more south, southeast. So it was kind of moving around the last few holes, which, you know, can kind of throw you off. The wind can swirl so bad around this place, it can make you look really bad. The greens are perfect, though. The greens I thoughtlooked really smooth. There was not a lot of stuff going on but that's also playing early. Q. You said you worked on your setup after yesterday's round; did you figure that out yourself? Caddie help? Coach help? Did somebody else? SCOTT PIERCY: My caddie kept an eye on me. I have a tendency, I move the ball too far up in my stance and aim too far left. You know, that causes a two‑way miss, right and left. Generally it's more right for me. So I move the ball back, squared up, got into my set up and then I was able to compress the ball a little better and start it on my line, which helps. Q. Be a shame if that wind really started blowing now, wouldn't it? SCOTT PIERCY: It could blow as hard as it wants. (Laughter) You know, those guys are good. Even if it's windy, these guys have won multiple times, majors; these guys are good. We'll see. DOUG MILNE: All right, Scott, we appreciate I didn't tell your time. Great playing today. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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