Q. When the season fished, what was your mindset, getting picked for the team?
MAX HOMA: Yeah, I probably spent a good time checking the standings more before the Playoffs and then had kind of just stopped. At that point I checked after Memphis. I was 12 or whatever it was, maybe after BMW. I was 12, so I figured I had a chance to make the team. Wasn't sure.
And then yeah, I had talked to Jim about it. To be honest I was looking for a yes or a no which I didn't get because I would have liked to start my off-season or if not I would like to know I was working towards something.
But obviously, yeah, super stoked when he did call. I'd say practicing just in case I got the call.
Q. What was that like --
MAX HOMA: Yeah, it was interesting, like if it weren't for the weekend of BMW, I would have felt pretty apprehensive about being picked but I played so much better and I've been fighting a driver, the tee ball. I just made an adjustment Friday night. Called a buddy of mine, and he just gave me some advice after I sent him some swings.
I went out that Saturday and I was unsure but changed a bunch of stuff in my setup by morning and missed one fairway for the day, and went out again Sunday and drove it great again. I was like, okay, I wouldn't -- I'm not as worried about my own game if I were to play the Presidents Cup.
So that did wonders for my confidence and how much I really wanted -- not wanted to be picked, but how comfortable I would have been being picked.
My golf swing feels great. I just needed some time. I just don't think people understand how impressive it is when golfers like a Scottie or a Wyndham, or anyone on our team goes through a week slump and then it ends. It's just not that easy. The back end of our season, it goes from The Open and the Playoffs and you just don't get a lot of time to go through and work things out as fast.
So having two, three, four weeks off to work on it, I used Napa as a check, checking the box of, okay, how is this going to be in competition, and I was really pleased with how I drove the ball there. So it was good.
Q. Playing so well for so long, so what was the internal feeling like when you weren't playing well?
MAX HOMA: I guess it's not difficult, just frustrating. Golf just a frustrating game. I've seen the bottom of this game on tour. It's not like new to me but I've always considered myself a grinder. I work my ass off in that aspect. Just felt like at times golf wasn't being fair to me. I wasn't getting back what I was getting in and that part can get you a little bit tilted.
As I've gotten older, I realize it's a long career and I have a lot more golf in front of me, and it's just preparing for the future at times and I know that that stuff will work itself out.
Q. (Why or why not should players be paid versus proceeds going to charity for this event_?
MAX HOMA: I don't know. I haven't really spent much time thinking about it. I don't think should. I mean, could, yeah, I could play devil's advocate to both.
One, like these events make a ton of money and we are on TV playing the golf.
But on the other side of the coin, I think we have been given so much as professional golfers and to get to do this is about as fun as you'll ever have. So to do it for free is also fine.
I get everyone's point of view. I don't think it should ever be a hot-button topic. I don't think it's the end of the world either way. I get why there's -- why, it can become a talking point. I just don't think it's a massive issue either way.
Q. How important is it to start off string, giving a message to the other team?
MAX HOMA: We got punched in the mouth the first day in Rome and that set the tone. But especially when you have a lot of guys who are experienced on the team, they keep talking about, there's so many points left and so many points in singles. All of us on both teams are good enough to win our match. You could theoretically sweep, and that would be insane.
It means a bit maybe to the emotions, but when you have great leaders like we have had on our teams, and we have this year, I think that's -- it's just the talking point turns to, hey, there's just a lot of golf left so don't get down.
Q. How do you manage this event, the same way you do for a tournament?
MAX HOMA: It's a little different. We're on everyone else's time; that would be the only difference. But mentally, it's just like a normal event, preparing the same way the best we can and going through the best checklist.
We probably play a bit more golf than I would typically on a normal week. I don't think that's a bad thing, just different.
Q. Do you think that's one of your roles, to bring energy? What can you do to do that?
MAX HOMA: Energy is typically brought on by good golf. So you need to start with good golf always.
I just think I've gotten along with all the guys on the team. I've known a bunch of these guys forever and the guy the I haven't known well I've tried to know this week. I try to be the glue guy and keep everyone positive and make sure everyone is having a good time and put them in their best mindset to play their best golf.
Q. Some of the actions --
MAX HOMA: I really think that -- I've loved all our assistant captains. I've gotten close with Stewart Cink over the years. Steve Stricker, all the guys. I was lucky enough to know Fred before I played on the team. Kiz has been one of my closest buddies out here for a while. Just like maybe a little closer to our age that we've played a lot of golf with. I think Kiz had made the team room really light, and same with Brandt. And Kiz is our punching bag which is always quite nice. I would love for him to not take his shirt off, we are obviously stealing it from the Solheim Cup but it would be great to see that happen.
You might need to ask Xander. Xander has been leading that charge.
Q. (Who have you been working on your swing with?)
MAX HOMA: I've been solo. I'm unfortunately not working with Mark any more. So for the three or four weeks at home I did a bunch of setup changes, and just got to like work through that.
Just like I said, time away, it's tough when you have a week at home and you know you have get ready for a tournament because you can spend a day or two fiddling. Then you realize, I need to make sure I find a golf shot that works and grind that in.
So you have sometime to mess with things and hit your stock golf shot until it feels good and get going.
I've just been could go it by myself. I have a buddy I've sent videos to and we've chatted about my golf swing. Joe has taken a big role in check ball positions and distance to the ball and things like that.
Q. When did that change?
MAX HOMA: After Memphis.
It's just a tough year. Time for a change. It's unfortunate, I love Mark. He's basically a part of my family. He's just been an amazing human being. And Pat has been a great coach and smart man.
But at times, the communication gets hard. I think everyone in here has gone through that at some point. It's one of those things, more for me I need a break and sometimes I don't do a great job of taking ownership of my own golf swing so kind of putting the ball in my court a bit, and you know, trying to figure it out myself.
I mean, as much as a coach can be brilliant, a genius like Mark, I know my golf swing better than anybody, and I can see it and feel it. Just trying to take some ownership like that.
Q. Being in good form, can that be overrated coming in in your experience?
MAX HOMA: I mean, I'm not going to speak for him. I don't really know. I would assume that was it. But you know if we went strictly off of form at the end of every week, I think it would be silly.
So yeah, I'm playing very well right now. I feel really comfortable. I think, I don't know, potentially thought with a few weeks can get a lot done. I'm not going to speak for him. I don't think it's necessarily overrated but I do think experience in this matters. I've proven myself and I've shown in these microscope stages I've done quite well and I'm imagining that factoring in a little bit.
Q. Being on the Presidents Cup bubble -- do you remember that now, the struggles?
MAX HOMA: I think that's fairly innate. But just in general, I didn't feel like I played well this year and I got to BMW. So like those things just keep you -- keeping that in perspective realizing if that's my bad golf is this, that's not so bad. I got third in the Masters, played in the last group Saturday, second-to-last group on Sunday.
I still had a fun year. Definitely more downs than ups at times. I just think maybe not -- it's just something that as you get older, you start to realize these things; that if your bad is not awful, then you're making Playoffs and all those things, it's an important thing to keep in the back of your mind.
Like I said before, it's going to be a long career. I'm just trying to keep chugging. It's not going to being a straight lineup.
Q. Did you ever play other sports?
MAX HOMA: My best sport outside of golf is basketball. I'm not going to sit up here and say I'm going to wax anybody. I do miss the team sports is awesome. It gets to be only on tour, not having Joe, and I have my wife on the road a lot of weeks. But being at the golf course and getting this whole group of guys and we are constantly playing together and eating with our wives and doing all that, it's very fun.
Q. Did you play basketball in high school?
MAX HOMA: No, I quit everything before high school.
Q. Is it healthier for you to --
MAX HOMA: I know how good I am, so I just lean on that. I know I've had good success in these things so I use it as fun.
Justin Thomas found like a highlight reel of my last Presidents Cup or maybe Ryder Cup and it's cool to have those moments to reflect on, and I feel very lucky to have those but I do definitely lean on them. I look at it more like when the lights got bright in the last couple team events, I made big putts on the last cup hole, so that's cool.
Q. How much of a help has Justin been?
MAX HOMA: He's been a humongous part of this year, the last couple years for me and especially this last maybe three months, just very helpful and just like a very kind human and a great friend because I'm sure I know he's not happy he's not here, but you wouldn't have noticed it the way he has been talking to me and doing all that.
Everybody on all of the teams I've been on has been like a great person to go look at and lean on and be a leader. I've just been closest with just from growing up, Justin. It's weirder for me not having him, but I was talking to him most of yesterday afternoon night. They might not be here physically but they are in people's ease.
If you look at any of these guys, they are great to chat with and great to pick their brain. I wouldn't even be able to pick one. Xander does an amazing job of getting everybody involved, being funny, making it light. I think you could pick anybody and you would pick a good person to lean on.
Q. What is your take on the course?
MAX HOMA: I really like it. It's very interesting. The front nine is incredibly different from the back. The greens are interesting. They all have like a spine in them. It seems like -- it seems like if you're hitting your irons well you're going to have a lot of short-ish birdie putts and it will be quite flat. But if you don't hit your spot you will have some funky two-putts.
It will be interesting, I think, for the best-ball days or matches. Because the rules typically try to get two birdies looks, but if you're not in the right section, it's kind of like an up-and-down. I think that will be cool.
I like it, though. It's challenging. It's longer than I thought. I know they have added length. It's pretty demanding and we've played in a lot of wind the last couple days so that might have thrown us off a little bit far as what the golf course might lead to with birdies and whatnot.
Today wasn't exactly a birdiefest out there but looks like the wind is going to die down. With the rain, I think you'll see low scores but not as many birdies maybe as a typical Cup from what I've been involved in.
Q. Do you see a benefit to --
MAX HOMA: I haven't felt rushed for a second this week. I do think it's good. I think the guys that qualified played a big role in that. I think they did a very good job. I know after the Ryder Cup, a bunch of us were talking about what we can do differently especially going on away trips. I think this has been awesome. I think everybody has done a 10 out of 10 job.
So it's been cool. I don't feel like -- I don't feel like I haven't done enough, and at times in the Cups with all the obligations we have, there's just a lot of things you have to do. You don't necessarily get to spend a ton of time practicing before and after, and I feel like we've had plenty of time.
Q. Inaudible.
MAX HOMA: We've had a great core. You have people like Scottie, Sam, Keegan is going to be the Ryder Cup next year, so he's been in tune with what everybody has been saying from previous Cups and then we have people like Xander and Pat. Just guys you know are going to be on the team every year, and those guys I think have just taken a strong role in that and just saying, hey, from the players side.
In all the things, I mean, Zach, Jim, Davis, like they are all players, too. So they know. It's just how much can you change and try to find a good idea, and I feel like getting here a day and a half early was a great idea.
Q. How do you compare yourself to an NFL quarterback?
MAX HOMA: Corner back. I'll go with quarterback. Man, what a great question. It's like you want to say like Joe Burrow, he's so cool. I'm just going to say Joe Burrow out of my own -- I feel like when the lights get bright, he's nice and calm. I always appreciated that about him.
Yeah, I just feel like he's got that "it" thing that you know, you've heard the other players around say he doesn't panic, and I'd like -- I think that people have looked at me like that a little bit. So I'll go with Joe.
Q. Do you have the hair --
MAX HOMA: I don't have that -- I had it back in junior high. It was not a good look.
Q. Any friendly, side money games this week?
MAX HOMA: We've had matches every day. But yeah, I think everyone's been trying to make a buck here and there.
I do it most every week we play in some fashion, as long as I can play with somebody I know pretty well. But like most majors, that's what we do because we don't have a Pro-Am.
So we have an extra day to play but I typically find somebody and we'll play some kind of game. I do think it's good. It gets you in the competition mindset and gets you out of just like technique and this and that and you've got to get the ball in the hole. I do think that's important.
Q. Inaudible.
MAX HOMA: He's just a wild human being in general. I don't know if it stops there.
Q. This season, how would you sum it up?
MAX HOMA: It was bizarre. Kind of just started last off-season. I wasn't swinging the club well, and I just felt like I was throwing mud at the wall all year and could not find anything that would stick.
I think at the end of my days, the win in Africa will go down in the history books of just like how the hell did I do that. It's something that I can lean on. Shows that even when it's bad, I can make it good. But probably spent too much time throwing mud and not enough time trying to figure out how to get the ball in the hole.
But yeah, I do think, though, on the positive side, I learned a lot and I got a lot better at things I sucked at, things that probably you all would not see. But now I know the tee ball is good, I had to work on my patience side. I had to find reasons I love this game at times. But getting through it is always nice and I always think it ends up propelling you further if you can come out the other side of it.
Q. Why do you love golf --
MAX HOMA: Why do I love golf? I'm just addicted to trying to get better at something, and when it's going well at times, it can be boring to practise. This was not a boring year by any means.
I just realized that like even little wins, just go back to, I had no intention of like celebrating when I made the cut at The Open. And when that just comes out of you, I just think you realize, man, I really love this. I just wanted to play for two more days amidst the entire year it just seems silly. I just wanted two more days.
And just reminds yourself, I would rather be doing nothing else, even playing bad golf at times, there's nothing else outside of getting to hang out with my family, outside of that, there's nothing I would choose other than getting to compete, even if it's not going great. I think getting that reminder is a good thing.
Q. Do you think that will help you this week?
MAX HOMA: Maybe, I don't know. I just really love being around these guys. I love competing with them. I just think this is like the coolest thing we get to do.
So yeah, I just think I'm going to be in a tremendous mood and it's a special week, too, because if you're not playing great, I mean, you have like one of the greatest golfers on planet earth helping you. That's pretty different than a normal Tour event.
Q. If you were to go back to yourself in the first Presidents Cup, what advice would you give with the knowledge that you have now?
MAX HOMA: I don't know, I would probably keep my mouth shut because I've done pretty good in these things. I'd say just keep doing what you're doing.
Q. What advice would they give to you?
MAX HOMA: I think it's important to smell the roses and appreciate being here. I think not taking for granted that I get to play in this is a big part of it. Being very grateful for the opportunity to get to compete with the 11 other best players from my country, I think is something that I think the more I appreciate that, the more out of my head I get and the more just joy I have playing golf, and I do think that's important.
Q. Inaudible.
MAX HOMA: I have multiple. Fortunately and unfortunately, I guess. I don't know what my favourite part -- I missed the cut in the one, the second time, or the last time I got it.
So I spent the weekend in Jax Beach with all the No Laying Up boys and I would just say that weekend was incredibly fun. The people on 9, they made it if you made a birdie you got dollar beers. I think they were sponsoring it. So I went there. We wore a ridiculous outfit and drank a bunch of beers when my friends made birdies. That was very fun.
The card ceremony is a bit of a blur but the stuff around it is cool, just being with the guys. My class of '14, I think it was, had just a ton of guys who ended up playing on TOUR very successfully, and you know, major champions and all that. Just getting to have those memories of those guys is pretty cool.
Q. What player on your team are you most jealous of his swing?
MAX HOMA: If you don't say Scottie Scheffler, you're a done person.
Q. Who is most likely to be late?
MAX HOMA: I'm going to say Wyndham.
Q. And then one more --
MAX HOMA: Probably Harm. I like country but I think his country is like real country, so I'm going to pass on Harm.
Q. This week, especially, with Xander, what is it like --
MAX HOMA: I've known Xander a long time. It's always funny when people say you get to see a different side of him. I fortunately and unfortunately get to see this side of him. He is a pot stirrer. He is witty, funny. He's just everything you'd want in like a buddy. So it always irks me when people are like, oh, he's so boring. I've seen that so much.
It's been fun seeing him be so successful this year, and I feel like more has come out about how great of a guy he is and great teammate, all those things. He just talks a slot of sh-t. He's just been absolutely abusing Brandt this week. So it's been quite fun.
Q. I assume you've seen that --
MAX HOMA: I think that's the beauty of Xander is I think people think he's boring because he has his golf mode and it works really, really well, so I would never change that. I just think he's been interviewed more and people don't ask him the same dumb question of why haven't you won more.
I think, yeah, I think he -- just getting to actually answer questions when he's winning two majors a year, it's not as -- it's not those typical questions. It's more questions that you would want to be asked. Yeah, I think that's probably helped the most. But no, he's never changed. He's always been a kind dude, like I said, talks a lot of trash, confident, but in all the best ways.
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