THE MODERATOR: We'd like to welcome Matt Kuchar here to the interview room at the FedEx St. Jude Championship. You enter the week No. 60 in the current FedExCup standings, and you've made the FedExCup Playoffs every year since 2007, 17 straight years. Maybe some opening comments on that honor and your outlook for the week.
MATT KUCHAR: Yeah, it's hard to say. This is not something that anybody as a player shoots out to try to do. But certainly in my case, I love doing what I do. I love being able to play golf for a living, be out and play PGA TOUR events week in and week out, and to do it for this many years has been a treat.
It's flown by, I assure you. I still feel like a kid. I still feel like I'm fresh out of college, but here I am in the 17th straight Playoffs.
Today was nice. I had a bunch of players congratulate me in the locker room as I walked through. I was going, holy cow, that's really cool. It hit home a little more when kind of had some peers say something.
I think when I heard it basically through the media, I chuckled a bit at it because it's not a goal of anyone's to be in this position and make this streak. Certainly it's a nice feather in the cap, but today to hear from players was a great feeling, kind of put a little more perspective to the accomplishment.
Listen, I know that there are a lot of young great players out there that just haven't been around for this long. I expect them to certainly go way past 17 years.
I probably just happen to be in that lucky sweet spot of timing from when I came along to when the Playoffs began. There's only so many players out here that have that potential. So the pool of us is small. It's not like there's thousands of guys with this chance.
It still is a nice thing to go 17 straight years. I laughed originally, it was 17 straight years of keeping my job. I thought that's what we were supposed to do. But it's nice to hear, like I said, from the other players. That's a cool deal to have done.
THE MODERATOR: Maybe a couple comments on the state of your game and returning to TPC Southwind.
MATT KUCHAR: I'm excited. My game has been good for a few weeks. I've hit a point in my career where it's harder and harder to leave the family. The family used to go everywhere with me, as most of you know. Now they've hit an age, the boys are old enough to where they stay home and don't travel.
So when I do go on the road, I want to be productive.
I think now we know the top 50 is a major deal for next year, and so trying to kind of solidify that. I played a few more tournaments than I maybe would have in the past. I played the last two weeks and felt good about my game.
Went from, I think, 55th in the rankings to 60th. Even though I made two cuts and felt good, I did not have great finishes, I think a couple 40ths.
Tough to travel and not be as productive as I'd like to be, but I'm hoping that it's building because I have felt very good about the state of my game. I'm seeing progression. I'm seeing a lot of high-quality shots. Just probably not scored the way I'd liked to have scored.
This is a place, I think it's a great golf course, I think a great test of golf. I think anybody can do well here, and when I say "anybody," I'm hoping that includes me, as well, so I'm hoping for a great week.
Q. You just mentioned that making the FedExCup all these years was essentially keeping your job, but now that's actually changed starting this year, top 70. I'm curious what you think about the change and what that's going to mean going forward.
Obviously there's some guys that are not here this week that would have been in the FedExCup Playoffs previously.
MATT KUCHAR: Yeah, I'm not sure yet. I think kind of interested to see how it plays out. Kind of knew the idea, knew this year the first playoff was top 70, knew that the fall was not the restart of the new year. I am a fan of that idea.
But still, I think I need to see it play through before I have any real comments on whether or not I like it or don't like it. I think the general idea of just starting the Playoffs that the guys that keep their card made sense to me, but the fact that the fall is -- when I came on TOUR, I don't know that many people playing remember the fall being a kind of chase for your Top 125. I remember there was kind of a shootout between Luke Donald and Jim Furyk. I think it came down to the last tournament at Disney. I think Luke won the money title that year. Was one of those kind of kind of -- it feels like we're going back to that state, where we have a TOUR Championship, and then there's a fall that exists just as a Money List title. But now it's a Money List, kind of keeping your job or not.
Q. If you remember back to Hartford, I don't know if you were there last year, but when they first started talking about the top 70 were going to advance instead of 125, did you think going into this year that it's time to step up a little bit?
MATT KUCHAR: No. No. I think if you set your sights on just making the cut, you'll be one of those guys hovering around the cut. You said your sights on just keeping your card, you'll be one of those guys hovering around keeping your card.
My sights were never set on just a top 70. My sights have been set on winning golf tournaments, really wanted to make this year's Ryder Cup team, these much bigger goals that were in my head than let's make top 70 and start the Playoffs.
Q. Have your goals ever changed from the time you were 22? Have you found yourself through graying hair and all that good stuff of trying to keep expectations a little bit more real?
MATT KUCHAR: I've kept most things pretty simple throughout my career, and in that simplicity, the constant goal has always been to get better. I've never been one to set sights on, I want multiple wins or a major or putting definite numbers on it. My goal is to try to get better every year.
If it's 1 percent better, it's better, and if you multiply that over a 20-some-odd-year career, hopefully it's a lot better. I certainly feel like a better player now than I was. Haven't had the results, but I've certainly enjoyed the process, and that continues to be the process.
Q. What else do you have coming up?
MATT KUCHAR: Chicago next week.
In the fall?
Q. Yeah.
MATT KUCHAR: In the fall is to be determined. I am not really sure -- I think a lot depends on this week. I certainly have hopes of making Chicago, and then if you're in the top 50, I think that changes a lot of what your fall looks like. If you're not in the top 50, if I'm not in the top 50, my fall will probably include a few more events, hoping to secure a couple spots in the elevated events next year.
Q. When the field is reduced like this to top 70, how does that make you feel about your competitive advantage going into this week, and what were your thoughts on the course when you were out there? What do you think the course is going to play like today? Obviously it's wet, but you never know what it's going to look like the rest of the week.
MATT KUCHAR: I know it's a bit limited field with the 70-man field, but we do have the best 70 players in the game of golf at the moment. So it is a -- the guy that wins here is going to be awfully proud, awfully pleased. He's going to be the guy that's played the best golf in the world this week.
This course is one of those demanding courses where you have to do it all right. If you don't drive it well, you are really going to struggle around here. That's kind of job No. 1 is to drive it well.
From there, the course gets a little easier if you're playing from the fairway. But still, with greens as fast as these, it's fun to play Bermuda that putt like this. These are beautiful Bermuda greens that really putt well, putt fast. You want to leave yourself uphill putts if possible around this place.
Those are kind of the two things you really want to do well is drive the ball well, hopefully put yourself in positions to have makeable putts, and then make the putts.
Q. There's been a lot of talk in the last couple weeks about players having more control, more say on stuff going forward, and just makes me curious over the years, do you feel like your voice has been heard enough, and is that something you've ever been interested in in terms of making sure your voice is heard on whatever issue?
MATT KUCHAR: When I first came out on TOUR, I think I took my coach from Georgia Tech's philosophy of keep your head down, play golf, they'll tell you at the end how many shots it took you to complete the week's tournament round, and they'll pay you accordingly. I kind of kept that philosophy for a lot of years.
At some point I got comfy enough to look around and see a little bit of the bigger picture. Listen, I still believe this is a great place to play. I think there's probably a pretty healthy balance of the players electing officials to work on their behalf. I think everybody probably would have certain tweaks that they would like to have in their favor.
I think as a whole, this is an incredible Tour, and it's an incredible system. I think so many people have such respect for the game of golf. Everything is performance based here. Still continues to be.
Is my voice heard enough? I think so. I'm awfully grateful for the guys that maybe carry more weight are taking more of a position. I'm grateful that a Tiger Woods has stepped up and taken a board seat. I'm grateful that Rory has taken a board seat. I think these are guys that I have a great deal of respect for, not only as players but I think for the direction they'd like to see the TOUR go.
I think it's great to have guys like that as part of our board.
Q. I was wondering if you had a chance to be in the players' meeting on Tuesday with Jay --
MATT KUCHAR: I did not. I was not there.
Q. Have you had a chance to talk with any of the players about what came out of that meeting?
MATT KUCHAR: No, I've read a little bit as to what you guys have had to say, and it doesn't sound like a whole lot was said. But that's just my couple articles I skimmed over. It sounds like not a whole lot of detail is just to be kind of released.
Q. What are some of your thoughts on that progressing forward and trying to get some more clarity about what's going to happen here on the TOUR?
MATT KUCHAR: Again, for me, it's a wait-and-see. I don't really know the direction.
I think there's certainly exciting possibilities to happen, but it's very much a wait-and-see the direction before I cast any judgment.
THE MODERATOR: Matt, thanks so much. Best of luck this week.
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