AT&T National interview: James Driscoll

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June 29, 2013

MORE INTERVIEWS: AT&T National transcripts archive

James Driscoll, one of the four co-leaders right now at the AT&T National after 54 holes.

Could you start with a few opening comments, and we'll go into questions. Comments about the day?

JAMES DRISCOLL: Yeah, it was just it's a tough golf course, and I think I've just been real patient all week long. It's led to three pretty solid days.

I'm not exactly firing on all cylinders by any means, but I'm just kind of playing smart golf and not wasting any shots. It's adding up to right there in the thick of it.

THE MODERATOR: We'll take some questions.

Q. You put together three pretty consistent rounds. Not many guys have done that out here this week. What type of confidence does that give you going into Sunday?

It's a tough golf course. Any time you shoot three rounds in a row in the 60s, it's something to feel good about. So, yeah, I mean, like I said, it's not it's not like I'm puring it out there.

It's not perfect golf, but you don't really have to play perfect golf sometimes. If you're just patient and putt well and have a good short game, it can go a long way, and that's kind of what I'm doing this week.

Q. Among the other leaders, James, Castro with a double, Andres with a double, Bill made a triple. All of them just seem to have really wild days on what was kind of a wild round. Better to go into it with kind of a low pulse in terms of excitement level out there?

Yeah, no question. I just kept my expectations really low. I wasn't playing that great coming into this week. So I had no expectations. I think sometimes in this game that's the best thing you can do is not think. It's try to not predict what's going to happen, just kind of take it one at a time and do the best you can. That's kind of what I'm doing this week.

Every time I miss a fairway, I'm like, that's all right. Even if I have a terrible lie, just chunk it out and just hit a wedge up there close and give myself a chance. Just try to keep my head above water and give myself chances.

It's a tough golf course, and it can come up and bite you like it did those guys today. You just got to just be as patient as you can.

Q. What would you say was kind of the key stretch of your round?

Well, I didn't really like you know, Bill caught fire a bunch of times and made a bunch of birdies. I didn't have a stretch, like I just kind of played steady. I never really got into too much trouble.

I'd say maybe 16, I hit a terrible drive. Managed to scrape a 4 iron out of the rough, kind of thinned an 8 iron up there about 35 feet and made the putt for birdie, and I just bogeyed the hole before.
So that was kind of big in terms of my round looked like not like it was getting away from me by any means, but it's just kind of nice to bounce back from a bogey like I did, bogeying 15, and 16, didn't play the hole well at all but kind of snuck that putt in there and got that stroke back quickly.

Q. Did you I know this is Saturday, but do you glance at the boards when you see them?

I didn't today. I looked at it a little bit, but I wasn't focused at all. I'll probably take a peek throughout the day a little bit tomorrow just to know if I'm five back or five ahead. I think that's important to know.

For the most part, I'll just throw the blinders on and just play.

Q. Have you ever been tied for the lead with a guy who only made five pars?

Is that what Bill did today? It was a crazy round. It seemed like he was birdieing every hole out there. How many birdies did he have, eight or nine? It was a lot, it seemed like.

Q. He had nine.

Nine birdies. That's not easy on that golf course. He's a great player. He's going to be tough tomorrow.

Q. Is there a number that you're trying to hit tomorrow? What do you think it's going to take?

How many people are at 6 and 5? Are there a bunch at 6 and 5?

Q. One at 6 and probably two or three at 5, 4, something like that.

10 will be in the hunt, I'd say. 10 will be close. You never know, 9 could win, and it could take 12. But I'd say 10 or 11 would be a real good spot to be.

Q. What's been your best chance to win?

My rookie year in New Orleans, I had a real good chance, lost in a playoff to Petrovic, and then the other playoff I was in with Zach, I shot 62 last round or 63 last round. So it was kind of one of those days where I came from nowhere.

Going into Sunday, this is as good a chance as I've had for sure, but there's still 18 holes to go. So a lot of golf left.

Q. Where was the playoff with Zach?

That was in San Antonio, Valero.

THE MODERATOR: James, thank you.

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