Q. How would you characterize that round today?
MATT KUCHAR: Very steady, very solid. Super pleased all week. The game's been good. I feel good standing over the driver, which is important out here. It's a very gettable course, but you'd better put it in the fairway to try to get it.
Today a lot of fairways, a lot of kind of short bit irons with a lot of opportunities. It was just a good, solid, steady round of golf.
Q. At this point in the year, how would you kind of define your year so far?
MATT KUCHAR: I don't know that I put much of a definition on it. Certainly different. Certainly I think this might be my 15th event of the year. I've not played much with Dad passing earlier this year. That kind of changed a lot of what's normal for me. So certainly some tough bits with Dad passing.
But the golf has somewhat been steady. It's not been great up to this point. It's just kind of been steady. I think the last two years I've missed more cuts than I remember missing in a long time, not much fun.
This year has been better from a consistency standpoint, just not quite piecing things together where you have a week where you hit it well but don't convert on the putting opportunities, and other weeks you putt well and don't hit it great. I've had a bunch of 40th place finishes, which don't really move you very far up the board on the FedExCup points list.
Been nice lately to put together some rounds, some tournaments with some good hitting and good putting weeks.
Q. There's been talk this tournament may not return. What's your opinion of this tournament?
MATT KUCHAR: This is my second time playing here. I really enjoy it. This is one, I think if circumstances were different, if I was inside the top 100, if I was 90th and kind of not real worried about my card, I think I'd still come here. I enjoy the people here. I enjoy the golf course. This is one that checks a lot of boxes for me.
Q. Do you feel like you're playing your best golf of the season right now, after I think T-13th at Procore?
MATT KUCHAR: I think so. I keep working on stuff with my Coach, Chris O'Connell, and it feels like it keeps getting better and better. Right now is as comfy as I've felt kind of all year. Had some instances where I showed up at tournaments thinking I've fully got it. I think that's always the kiss of death. You think you're going to do great and end up not.
I certainly am pleased with what I'm doing mechanically, what I'm able to see with ball flights and shapes. Again, I like to knock on wood because I can't count on what's going to happen tomorrow, but I'm certainly much more comfortable than I've been in a while.
Q. Can you talk about your ace on the first day? Does stuff like that still excite you?
MATT KUCHAR: Yeah, listen, golf's such a unique game. We start every week from everybody starts even par and everybody has a chance to do something great. Each week is unique. I think, if you're a baseball player and your team starts 10-50, you'd be in for a long year and maybe not look forward to the next game. Golf, even if you miss six cuts in a row, you never know what next week may hold.
It is cool that way. I still love playing. I'm somewhat new here. This is just my second time playing here in Jackson. I'm enjoying it.
Things like a hole-in-one, it was one of those things, I told some people I made a hole-in-one years ago at the John Deere. I got one clap. The ball flew straight in the hole. Nobody knew exactly what happened. One clap was all I got.
Here I got no claps. I didn't know the ball went in. I was hoping it didn't go over the back of the green. As the anticipation grew, to like peer inside the hole and then see the ball at the bottom of the hole is still a great feeling. It was a cool moment. Hole-in-ones are very cool. They're certainly very lucky. You feel lucky to get one during competition, particularly in a PGA TOUR event.
Q. Is it kind of fun with your son playing high level amateur golf and you in your career. Do you guys have a lot of fun kind of competing a little bit?
MATT KUCHAR: For sure. I love that he's turned into kind of a training partner. It's been good for both of us. Up to this point, he's beaten me twice. I'm not sure if I'm happy or upset or proud or not. I don't know quite how to take it yet. I'm doing my best to maintain a level that makes it hard for him to beat me. I know my day is coming soon where it's going to flip flop and go the other way. I really do look forward to the days beating him.
At this point, we've had a ton of fun. It's just training partners. It's helped me, and I like to think it's helped him as well.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports