THE MODERATOR: We'd like to welcome Xander Schauffele to the Media Center here at the Truist Championship.
Xander, you're making your first start since the RBC Heritage, where you've had three consecutive top 20 finishes. Can you just talk to us about the state of your game going into this week?
XANDER SCHAUFFELE: Yeah, the game, I feel like it's coming around. I feel healthy. I feel good. I just need to keep playing, keep playing until I kind of get myself in contention to win.
Q. New course this week at the Philly Cricket Club. You just played nine. Can you talk about the course out there and what it's like to play in Philly?
XANDER SCHAUFFELE: It's been fun so far. The course is awesome. It seems like hopefully the weather kind of stays away and the course gets a little bit firmer. I think scores may be -- for some reason, whenever courses seem to be really, really hard, guys seem to shoot low.
I think this course is kind of the middle of the road in terms of difficulty. I think there's some hard holes on there and some holes that are really gettable. So I think scoring is going to be relatively low.
Q. Does seeing the recent success of Rory and Scottie kind of give you any extra motivation to remind people why you won two majors last year?
XANDER SCHAUFFELE: I don't think it's motivation to remind people. I think it's just motivation to play better and to keep working hard.
Whenever anyone does anything, if I'm sidelined or have an off week, watching Scottie shoot the lights out in Dallas, that's motivating. Just motivating to get better at what I do and to show up and try to get myself in contention to win.
Q. Because you guys play so many repeat courses throughout the course of the schedule, when you get to a course like this and you're seeing it for the first time, how do you approach your practice rounds?
XANDER SCHAUFFELE: Try to take in as much information as possible, maybe avoid a game that you normally play with some of the guys, a little two-on-two or one-on-one.
I feel like, when you're in the Northeast, we've been on the grain for a little bit. There's a little bit of grain, I guess with the bent greens, but for the most part, I guess it's bluegrass, it's like a thick blade, and your ball can kind of sit differently in it. So getting used to that is important, and trying to figure out where the pins would be and things of that nature.
Q. How is this course different from sort of the typical PGA TOUR setup?
XANDER SCHAUFFELE: I'm not really sure. I feel like right now it's weather dependent. I'd say that right now the greens are probably a little bit slower. To be honest, if the greens got really fast, it would probably be a pretty scary test with how much undulation or how much slope is on the green.
I think the grass is a little bit different, and the greens might be a touch slower. It's supposed to rain tomorrow, but if it doesn't, I thought the greens were about a foot faster already. There's definitely an ability to roll them and get them going if need be. I feel like they're kind of keeping that up their sleeve.
Q. Are you much of an architecture, like course architecture kind of guy?
XANDER SCHAUFFELE: Not really. I think certain holes look cool. I think the par-3s on the property are probably, to me, if you want to talk about architecture, they're the coolest looking holes to me for some reason. I think they set up and frame really nice.
Other than that, I don't really know much about anything else.
Q. At Augusta, you said confidence is a tender thing and you were going to try to have to work to build your confidence back up to where it was last year. As you look to this week and next week at Quail where you played well, where is that confidence at?
XANDER SCHAUFFELE: It's building. I don't think I've done anything to knock myself down in confidence. That can obviously happen pretty quickly, but for the most part, I feel like I'm putting nice building blocks together to get me back to a place where I feel like I can win every week.
Q. After you were done playing at Augusta, were you able to focus at all on the tournament, and did you find it wildly entertaining like so many of us did?
XANDER SCHAUFFELE: Yeah, for sure. Definitely had this need to turn it on. I was in the parking lot and doing the sort of classic -- you know, some friends and some family there. Everyone wants to take a photo. I was like we need to get home and watch the end of this because I don't know what's happening. I was definitely a fan in that moment.
Q. Xander, does this course remind you of somewhere else you've played?
XANDER SCHAUFFELE: Some of the trees and the way the course sits, the grass, Aronimink kind of comes to mind a little bit. Aronimink kind of has more maybe -- not rolling hills, but it seems like the property has more slope in certain areas, in front of the fairways at least.
A course like Ridgewood -- these are all courses that are kind of close. I'm just trying to think of courses I've played in this area. It just has that sort of nice Northeast feel. It's a change for us, which is cool.
Q. What's your strategy heading into next week being defending champion, and can you tell us a little bit about the plans for the dinner?
XANDER SCHAUFFELE: I didn't go do anything unique. I'd say it was sort of middle of the road, a steak option, a fish option. I wanted everyone to be happy or to be able to eat whatever they'd like. I think the gift is pretty fitting for everyone. I think they'll enjoy it, and if they don't like it, they can re-gift it pretty easily.
Q. What are you giving them?
XANDER SCHAUFFELE: Pretty on brand, I guess, a humidor and some cigars.
Q. As you talk about confidence, do you have to just see something happen or feel it to know, okay, I'm taking the next step?
XANDER SCHAUFFELE: I think it's sort of -- it grows the quickest for me personally in tournaments when I'm able to hit a certain shot. Whether I'm uncomfortable or comfortable, just pulling off a shot, whether it's a drive or an iron shot, we kind of get a feeling, and then you're like, all right, I just hit that.
You kind of stack up a few nice shots one after the other, and all of a sudden, you're just kind of on cruise control. When I watched Scottie, the way he kind of went around Dallas, he was kind of stacking up really nice shots. Sure, he missed -- he'd kind of leak a drive out to the right, but you don't really think of that because you just hit 10 or 12 really good shots in a row. So it's easy to fall back into a really good rhythm and flow.
Just something of that nature. I think the only way to really do it -- you can do it at home. That happens. But once you do it in tournaments, you can kind of go into autopilot almost, and that's when it kind of becomes fun.
Q. Just following up on Michael's question from Rory's win, I'm wondering are there any other golf tournaments that you can remember watching as a fan? Do you have favorite tournaments that you watch when you were either not playing professionally or playing professionally?
XANDER SCHAUFFELE: It would have to be something with Tiger. Watching Tiger live at Torrey Pines is something that comes to mind quickly. Tiger winning the Masters. Tiger winning East Lake. Then along the way, there's been times where I had a few guys that I like out here pulling it off as well.
But in terms of the drama factor, it's been a while since there's been sort of that much drama, I feel like. Everyone I talk to is saying the same thing. It's like a must watch, what is going to happen thing, you know what I mean? It was unfortunate, obviously, that there had to be a loser there, but it was a cool, cool thing for golf.
Q. You mentioned the grass and the new challenges that come with playing in the Northeast. We don't have a lot of events out here, except for the Travelers and the occasional major. Would the PGA TOUR benefit a little bit from having a more consistent staple in the Northeast aside from the Travelers? For both fans and also for you guys to have a more wider look at the Northeast?
XANDER SCHAUFFELE: For us it's not really -- I don't think we should play in certain places because the players would like to. If there's a big market and the people would like to watch it and the correct sponsor, I think we should play wherever that should be.
Philly's got some good fans. They're into a lot of other sports, and I've heard there's a pretty good number of people coming out for this week. Hopefully the weather stays away and it's like today. That would be awesome. I'm sure the weekend, if it's like this, will be a good viewing and a good following.
Yeah, if the fans and the community support it, then we should be here.
Q. Does seeing Rory complete the career grand slam do anything for you in terms of your goal to want to be part of that club?
XANDER SCHAUFFELE: Yeah, it's a couple things. I think you realize how hard it is. It took him 11 years, and Jordan is the next closest, and then everyone else before that had like three years before they clipped it.
One, getting yourself in position to do it would be awesome. I'm far away. Closer than some, but I still feel far away. I still need to win another major before -- I should say the correct major before I'm in the talks of it. Yeah, it's extremely motivating. It's something I've always wanted to do.
I think there's a reason there's only seven guys. It's a big honor, and it's quite the career accomplishment. Yeah, there's a lot of things that motivate me, but that's always been something I've wanted to do.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports