Q. Denny, 5-under today, excellent round. If we can get some comments.
DENNY McCARTHY: Yeah, I played really, really solid today. I knew it was going to be a battle. My body wasn't moving well yesterday. I think the heat kind of took me by surprise yesterday.
Just felt terrible yesterday, honestly. Didn't drive it in the fairway. Really actually fought hard to just shoot 1-over yesterday.
I knew it was going to be a battle today coming out. I came out with just a really energetic and good mindset today, and I think that's a big part of why I played well today. There's not much quit in me, and I was a little disappointed after yesterday, but I played a really, really good round of golf today.
Q. Do you think it was like heat exhaustion yesterday?
DENNY McCARTHY: Yeah, it's been really nice all week. It's been really nice, and then yesterday just kind of caught me by surprise. I sweat a lot. Memphis was good prep for me last week, but yesterday kind of took me by surprise. I just don't think I ate enough on the course and probably just didn't quite drink enough, and I just felt a little off yesterday.
I prepared myself last night and this morning and throughout the round. My caddie Derek and I, we did a really good job of just staying hydrated, making sure I was eating something every few holes, and that might have been the difference today.
Q. Is that kind of frustrating knowing how significant each of these rounds are, to have a day where you're kind of battling?
DENNY McCARTHY: Yeah, but I also took a lot of positives from yesterday. I could have shot probably 3- to 6-over very easily, and I didn't let myself do that. I hung in there tough and put together a somewhat respectable round for how poorly I felt like I played.
Q. The other thing we've heard all week is this is a bomber's golf course and you've got to fly it 330 in order to be able to score well. Why do you think you've been able to have so much success this week?
DENNY McCARTHY: I mean, I've played well on big golf courses all year. You look at Memorial, I played well there. That's a big bomber, ball striker golf course. U.S. Open I was right there, in the mix. Obviously that wasn't the longest of courses, but I have a good handle on how to play really difficult golf courses.
Found a nice key this morning. Hit it well on Thursday. Did not hit it well yesterday. I just had a really free mindset today. Drove it really well. Was just seeing my pictures off the tee and letting the driver go, and I was able to hit some nice iron and wedge shots after that.
Obviously my putter kept me in it today. I made a lot of nice saves in the middle of the round, early in the round. Got to do a little bit of everything around here. It's a heck of a test of golf.
Q. What was the key you found?
DENNY McCARTHY: I don't want to share all my secrets with you, come on. Just one of the keys that I always kind of go back to, just kind of something I do in my body, nothing related to what I'm thinking about, what the club is doing. Something that I do with my body.
Q. I had the chance to walk with your family today as you played, and when you made your putt on 10 to save par, your dad said it was the kind of putt that is the glue that keeps the round together.
DENNY McCARTHY: Yeah, he said it about right. That was a nice one. I kind of drove it into the face of a bunker there, was never really in the hole until I made that nice putt. It's the same as somebody striping it down the middle and hitting it 10 feet and missing. We made the same score. So yeah, that was a nice little kind of boost.
I did bogey the next hole. That was my only bogey of the day, but then I bounced right back. I had a nice positive attitude after that, and just kind of kept my mindset, didn't really let anything bother me today.
Q. How have you approached this week? This is kind of your first bubble opportunity. Have you been checking the standings? Have you just been kind of keeping your head down and not paying attention?
DENNY McCARTHY: I'm just coming out and trying to win a golf tournament. I've been close for a while now. I think that mindset has worked well for me. I know I need to have a good finish. But winning is a pretty good finish, too.
Q. If someone asked you, why has this year been your best yet, what would you say?
DENNY McCARTHY: I'm starting to pick up a little speed. I'm starting to find it with the driver, more so than -- I was always a decent driver of the ball for average length, but now I feel like I'm climbing slightly and maybe a little more accurate than I used to be my first few years on TOUR.
My wedge play has been a little streaky, but for the most part it's been on the better side. I think I have a much better understanding of flighting shots, windows, trajectory, spin. I'm learning a lot more. My ball-striking with the irons has been really good. My coach and I, Brian Creghan, have put in a lot of work over the last year and a half. We've worked really hard to get my ball-striking up to a top-tier player. It's not quite there, but it's gotten a lot better than what it used to be.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports