Q. Maverick, Top 10s here the last two years. Safe to say you enjoy playing this golf course.
MAVERICK McNEALY: I do. Feels a little bit like home. Scottsdale and Summerlin are pretty similar. It's a golf course that really tests the two strengths of my game, which are driving and speed putting.
I just enjoy it. It's a lot of fun. Really like Scottsdale as a place to be for the week, but also just a fun atmosphere that we get once a year.
Q. Eight birdies in this atmosphere Saturday at this tournament, what's that like living it?
MAVERICK McNEALY: It's fun. It starts with a good tee shot, getting it in the short stuff. Like I said, this golf course kind of tells you when you can be aggressive and then not to. You just have to be disciplined when you don't have the right number and don't maybe have the right wind for the shot.
When you do, you can fire one in there. The greens are great; make some putts.
Q. Is it comforting knowing where your game is to have a great result at a place like Torrey Pines and come here the next week, very different test, and see some more positive results?
MAVERICK McNEALY: Definitely. I took a lot more time off this offseason than normal. Maya and I had our first kid, baby girl, Addie. It's been nice to knock of the competitive rust. I would say my attitude coming to the golf course every day is so excited to be doing what I get to do and fresh and feel like I made good progress this offseason, and so far so good.
Q. We already mentioned your eight birdies. Four of them came on the harder end of the course, the front nine. How are were you able to find that success or what helped you find that success?
MAVERICK McNEALY: So let's see, No. 2 I hit a great tee shot, and it's a hard par if you miss that fairway. I had a sand wedge. Hit a great high, spinny sand wedge in there. Same with No. 9. Hit a nice high, soft gap wedge. Those were two inside of five feet.
No. 3 hit the fairway, so just a perfect 6-iron to the middle of the green and two putt birdie.
What else did I birdie? No. 8. No. 8, good tee shot again. Kind of a theme there. It was a good number, flighted 8-iron, and that was a nice putt, nice 20-footer.
Q. What's the strategy tomorrow? How are you going to approach it? Looks like more of a shootout, right?
MAVERICK McNEALY: Yeah. You have to take every hole as it comes. If you hit the fairway you can be aggressive if you have the right number. Miss the fairway, you just can't shoot yourself out of the tournament and make soft bogeys. I was guilty of that on 17 today. I wish I could have that one back, but I thought the lie was better than it ended up being.
It's that kind of thing. If you miss the fairway, make a par. If you hit the fairway and have the right number, try and make a birdie.
Q. ....a lot of tournaments. Feel more comfortable going after another one?
MAVERICK McNEALY: I think so. More than anything, I think the confidence comes from seeing the shots executed really under the gun. When you're standing up a little bit uncomfortable and fall back on that swing key that gets you to hit the shot you see, that's what builds confidence for me.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports