American Century Championship
Sunday, July 12, 2020
Kyle Williams
Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: Welcome into the media room second-place finisher, Kyle Williams. You’ve set the all-time high for a defensive lineman in this event.

KYLE WILLIAMS: Silver lining in everything, right?

Q. You played three very good rounds this week. Gotta be pretty proud of yourself.
KYLE WILLIAMS: I was. It was a great week. I had a lot of fun but just couldn’t get the ball to drop today. And that’s kind of how golf goes.

So proud of Mardy and happy for him. I know he’s been beating on the door for a long time. And for him to finally get one in there, I’m happy for him.

Q. Finished second in only your second try out here is pretty impressive. So take us through your round. I understand it started off with Mardy hitting one in the water again on No. 1.
KYLE WILLIAMS: I had my opportunities. Mardy hit it in the water on 1. I hit it to about six feet behind the hole and he ran about a 25-foot bogey putt in from the right side of the green, and I left my six-footer out. So you can look at that and very easily he miss and I make and we’re in a dead heat the rest of the day.

I had plenty of looks. I had one loose swing on — was it 6? — that basically cost me. I made a double. Other than that, you know, I hit the ball pretty good. And just the way the day was, I didn’t make what I’ve been making.

To only make one birdie today, kind of the writing was on the wall. I knew if I only made one birdie today it wasn’t going to get it done. But I played pretty solid. To shoot what I have over the last three days, I’m not going to complain about it. Had a great week and looking forward to more.

Q. What are you going to do as far as working on your game? What do you think it needs any work on to win this thing; you came awful close this time?
KYLE WILLIAMS: I think the more you spend time on this golf course, the more familiar you become with it. Especially the greens. Where last year I was totally lost on the greens. This year I felt a little more comfortable.

My reads were by no imagination perfect, obviously from today. But I’m getting a general feel for them. I think I already told you that when the ball is moving right I can tell it’s moving right. I think that will continue to tighten up with reps and time here.

But the golf course is great. It’s so much fun to play tee-to-green. You think that you’re going to have a lot of wedges in your hand and you’re going to be able to take advantage of it but the greens are kind of the big equalizer here. But like I said, the scenery, the weather, the field, you guys, everybody who organizes this things makes it a special week for all of us.

Q. Did you feel nerves going in today? First time going in with the lead in this tournament. Only two years, but you were in a different sport, football, you know what you needed to expect. Here, maybe not.
KYLE WILLIAMS: Honestly, no, I just don’t — for whatever reason it’s not something that affects me. Like I said earlier, if I go play with my friends or by myself, I hit good and bad shots, whether it’s nerves or not. I was in a good place all week. I didn’t get nervy. I don’t feel like I missed a shot because of nerves or I had something going on.

Just sometimes with us being ex-professionals or professionals at something else, we’re not going to hit the ball the way the professionals do or we’re not going to roll the ball the way they do.

As competitive as we are and think we ought to, it just doesn’t work out that way. And I’m looking forward to — I think the more reps you get, the more comfortable, good things are ahead. Like I said, finishing second, I’m so happy for Mardy.

I don’t like that he did it at my expense, but at the same time I’m really happy for him.

Q. With Brady out of the AFC East now, do you think the Bills are among the favorites or maybe the favorite?
KYLE WILLIAMS: I think the Bills are equipped to be one of the favorites in the AFC, just not the AFC East. But we’re all looking at the circumstances of what sports in general, the NFL is, this year. And who knows.

I know Sean McDermott very well. If anyone is able to get ahead with the peculiar year we have had, he will be able to can; he can put together a plan together and execute a plan. But I think the Bills are loaded for some great things this year. Hopefully I’ll get to watch them play and we’ll all get to watch them play.

Q. Obviously 13 years with the Bills, you didn’t see — I don’t know if you saw any playoff games.
KYLE WILLIAMS: One. One playoff game.

Q. Does it make you want to go back now that they’re potential contenders?
KYLE WILLIAMS: Absolutely not. (Laughter).

You know, I had a great run. I have no complaints about what my career was. Obviously I wish we would have won more.

But I think that even if you ask Tom Brady, as much as he’s won, he’s always going to tell you I wish we would’ve won more or done this differently.

But I think the thing that can’t be replicated in my years there is the relationships that I have with people all across the country and the league and the guys I got to know and things like that.

So I wouldn’t trade that time for anything. But unequivocally, no shot about playing football again.

Q. You normally would have won $60,000 this week. Does that bum you out at all if this year —
KYLE WILLIAMS: I’ll say two things about that. With everything that’s going on in our country right now, there are better places for that money to be allocated than to us who get to come out here and spend a great week in this setting, at this tournament, enjoying old friends, new friends, all that. So that’s number one.

The other thing is I play as an amateur. So I wouldn’t have accepted any money anyway.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

American Century Championship
Sunday, July 12, 2020
John Smoltz
Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: John, take us through your round today: Third-place finish; 21 points it looks like today. Had a couple of guys ahead of you that had a pretty sizable lead when the day started.

JOHN SMOLTZ: My biggest thing is I can’t believe how good I hit it and how poorly I scored. I didn’t 3-putt all week. I only made three bogeys all week, and yet the birdies just didn’t fall. So 16 tries at birdie today and I only made two of them.

And that’s the difference. I mean, you play this golf course, I striped it pretty much all day, except for one hole. And unless you make birdies, I had a lot of chances to change the environment early on, and that’s what I was hoping to do, is put some pressure early. But there was just no way those putts, they just weren’t falling.

Q. Yesterday you seemed a little frustrated with a few shots today. And that’s not usually your style, from what we’ve seen over the years?
JOHN SMOLTZ: Like I said, I told my caddie Greg, I want to have 18 tries at birdie and see what happens. I started off 14-for-14 and then hit one in the water on the 14th hole. And it’s just one of those deals where Mardy played fearless. He played relentless. He didn’t change his theory, and it ended up working out.

Q. What was it like, you played enough golf with Mardy to see his game. And yesterday was one of those rare — that was unbelievable yesterday. Today he was pretty solid again once today.
JOHN SMOLTZ: I thought he won the tournament on the first hole when he hit his second shot in the water, made 15-foot for bogey; goes from zero to minus 2, and all of a sudden Kyle had a five-footer or six-footer for birdie, early on. He said that’s the only hole he doesn’t like is the first hole. And he had — early on it was more of a feel, I thought, that he was trying to gain. Once he got it, once he knew past 9, Kyle could never really close the gap. He had some chances. But didn’t work out.

Mardy hits the ball so far and he has such great touch. So playing against him is I knew going in this that lead wasn’t anything I could do anything with.

Q. You went 54 holes out here without 3-putting, that might be a first.
JOHN SMOLTZ: I think I set the record for the most pars in three rounds, too. You don’t want a lot of pars. That’s what’s amazing about this format, is I made like I said I made three bogeys all week, I think, and only made four or five birdies.

So you’ve got to — he was making 10 in one round. He made more in the back nine of his round yesterday than I made in my entire tournament, even though my score I think I finished even par for the tournament doesn’t reflect the fact that I didn’t make — gotta make birdies.

Q. I guess anybody who plays this game has a course that they love but it just kind of seems to eat their lunch; is this one yours?
JOHN SMOLTZ: Yeah, it’s pleasing to my eyes. Just the greens aren’t. You think after 12 years, 11 years, I’d figure it out. But I don’t putt on this kind of surface at all, ever. And you basically have to have the approach that — I mean they don’t lip in. You just have to hit pure putts. Have you to read them. We just couldn’t read anything right. That’s the difference between a seven-footer, eight-footer going in and missing right on the opposite side of your read. There’s no doubt that this place, I love the layout. I just can’t find a way to love the greens the way you should. And one of these days. Time is ticking. I’ll try to be the oldest winner, I guess.

THE MODERATOR: Thank you.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

American Century Championship
Sunday, July 12, 2020
Mardy Fish
Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: Mardy, congratulations. Twice at Diamond Resorts. What’s the difference between trying to win that tournament and trying to win this tournament?

MARDY FISH: Two completely different golf courses; two different completely golf styles of play. This one is much harder for me because of my ball flight. I hit the ball right-to-left. Lefty. And every hole is left-to-right.

I’ve wanted to play well here for a long time. It just doesn’t suit my eye very well. So I haven’t put it all together. And thankfully I put it all together yesterday, because it wasn’t today and it wasn’t Friday.

Q. You were asked yesterday about putting. So if your putting woes, if you don’t mind, are resolved, how big a problem are you for these guys out here?
MARDY FISH: If I could putt, yeah, a big problem. And I felt great yesterday. I hit some good putts today. I got lucky on 7 to make a long 40-footer or so off the green.

And just kind of kept Kyle — he kept it close, and I just sort of kept him at arm’s length the whole time. I don’t think we got any closer than four or five points.

And that can change quickly here because there’s a lot of opportunities. Certainly late. So even if you’re coming down with a four- or five-point lead, eagle, I had six-foot eagle putt there, that’s doable, for sure.

And so you never know. And so it was nice to have that lead on 18 to not have to worry about it too much.

Q. Did the absence of spectators help your concentration?
MARDY FISH: I focus in pretty good anyways. I’ve played a lot of matches in Davis Cup formats for the U.S. in some pretty hostile places, Colombia and Switzerland, and all over the place. And they’ll yell in your overhead and yell in your serve. So I’m used to that kind of stuff.

Q. So if we talked to somebody who has played with you over the last five years, let’s just say, would they say putting used to be a weakness and is not anymore? Not asking you, I’m asking what do you think John Smoltz or somebody like that would say.
MARDY FISH: I think he would say ball-striking, I can hit it with most people. And then if I can make some putts, I can play really well. I can score pretty well. I didn’t light it on fire today or the first day. So I had one great day. But it was enough.

Q. PowerShares, I think you’re ranked fourth, I think?
MARDY FISH: I’ll play anybody right now.

Q. Does your focus on golf hurt your tennis game? How much focus do you have on that?
MARDY FISH: You know what hurts my golf and tennis game are the kids. They take a lot of time up. Golf takes a long time to play. So getting out there and playing for five hours, I don’t want to leave them at home especially during this whole quarantine thing.

This is the least amount of golf I’ve played going into one of these things. So maybe there’s something to that. Maybe there’s something to riding in the cart with no caddie, maybe. I’m used to that. I do that at home on my home course there in LA. Who knows. But maybe I was just due for a win here.

Q. Now that you’ve checked this box, does that change anything as the way you look at your future, your immediate future in terms of playing golf and having —
MARDY FISH: No, I’m pretty busy. I stay busy right now with a lot of different things. And obviously family at home. Not until I’m 50. I’ll try the Senior Tour but nothing before that.

Q. Are you serious, is that something —
MARDY FISH: Yeah, I’d love to. Yeah, of course.

STATELINE, Nev. – Mardy Fish followed up his record round at the American Century Championship on Saturday with a rather ordinary 21-point effort Sunday, but it was enough to claim his first title at the 31st annual celebrity golf tournament.

Fish, the former top-ranked American on the ATP Tour, finished with 76 points (an even-par 72) and held off former Buffalo Bills defensive lineman Kyle Williams (67 points).

The left-handed Fish, who on Saturday shot a 9-under-par 63 and racked up a tournament-record 37 points, had a 5- to 6-point lead over Williams for most of Sunday’s final round and all but clinched it when he made a 3-point birdie on the par-5 16th.

“I’ve wanted to play well here for a long time,” said Fish, who jumped into Lake Tahoe to celebrate his win. “It just doesn’t suit my eye very well, so I haven’t put it all together. And thankfully I put it all together yesterday because it wasn’t today and it wasn’t Friday.”

Fish, who had five top-five finishes here in six previous appearances, has twice won the Diamond Resorts Invitational celebrity tournament in Orlando, Fla. He would have won $125,000, but the entire $600,000 purse was donated to social justice, COVID-19 and regional charities.

The ACC, which uses a modified Stableford scoring system that rewards points for pars, birdies and eagles, was contested without spectators and under social-distancing guidelines in accordance with governmental and health guidelines.

“I’m happy for Mardy. I don’t like that he did it at my expense, but he was the best player this week,” offer the 295-pound Williams, who finished 12th in 2019.

Hall of Fame pitcher John Smoltz was alone in third place with 58 points. “Mardy played fearless. He played relentless,” Smoltz said. “He didn’t change his theory and it ended up working out.” Golden State Warriors guard Steph Curry had 26 points Sunday – his second-best effort in eight appearances at the Lake Tahoe event – and finished fourth with 56 points.

Tony Romo, the former Dallas Cowboys quarterback who won here in 2018 and 2019, withdrew Sunday morning. He suffered an undisclosed wrist injury late in his round Saturday. Former NBA great Charles Barkley, who has frequently finished last in this event, was 70th in the 71-player field, edging out former Ohio State Heisman Trophy-winning running back Eddie George.

American Century Championship
Sunday, July 12, 2020
Dell Curry
Steph Curry
Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: We have Steph and Dell Curry in the room. We understand this event ended up in a dead tie between father and son once again.

DELL CURRY: Well, we had the number system down pretty good. I had to bargain for those six extra points. Needed every one of them. And also needed to make a 2-putt from 60 feet on 18 to push it.

STEPH CURRY: Big putt.

Q. Who established the six-point difference?
STEPH CURRY: His game did, because he’s been playing the best golf of his life leading up to the tournament. So we started from, like, what, 30 points three years ago, now down to six. I needed all six in a good round today to come back. So that was good.

DELL CURRY: I thought I was going to cruise today, but he shoots 69. And great round. I knew I had to pick it up just to get a tie.

Q. He had it going pretty good, especially on the front nine. Did you have four birdies on the front nine?
STEPH CURRY: I did. Finally made some putts.

Q. A lot of birdies from what we saw on the back, you were putting on 10, 11, 12, from 12, 15 feet on all of them.
STEPH CURRY: That’s the fun part about this game. Every day is something different. I paid below my average the first two days. Then figure out something. And it’s what keeps you coming back to this tournament and just playing golf in general.

Q. Over the years, what’s the score now, is it 2-1-1, Steph ahead?
DELL CURRY: 2-1-1, he’s got the lead.

Q. What was the bet this year? Are you going to tell us? Do we know?
STEPH CURRY: Doesn’t matter now; it was a push. But as long as we can hopefully come back next year. He’s still got karaoke on deck, a song and outfit of my choice. Karaoke in my back pocket.

Q. Do you have an idea what that outfit is going to be?
STEPH CURRY: Not yet. TBD.

Q. Steph, you finished, right now highest active player on the field, at third place. Dell, you are in a tie for seventh right now. So the Currys did a pretty good representation out here this year.
DELL CURRY: My goal was top 10 coming in. I was 15th last year, trying to get better. Top 10 was my goal. Looks like I might hit that.

Q. Steph, your career best, you were fourth and 17, if memory serves.
STEPH CURRY: Yeah, couple times. I don’t know what Smoltz is going to do at the last hole. Hopefully it stands. That was good.

Q. Will we have all three Currys?
STEPH CURRY: Seth is champing at the bit.

DELL CURRY: He’s been watching the whole tournament. He’s in Orlando, of course, but he wishes he could be here. But work comes first. So we’ll see what happens, see what happens next year.

Q. Take us back, when you played 20 years ago, whenever it was, how old were the kids, and what was going through your mind? And did you ever imagine being here with the group now?
DELL CURRY: It was stroke play then, and I was nowhere near the golfer that I am now. So it was rough. But it was a fun time.

I don’t think the kids came with me then. But I knew both boys were going to play golf. I knew both boys would play golf. It was fun having them here.

Q. Eight at the time?
DELL CURRY: I don’t remember what year it was.

Q. And then Dell, can you go top 5? Is that —
DELL CURRY: There’s some good golfers out there. Like Steph said, every day is different. You’ve got to make putts. The greens were lightning fast. So you had to hit it close for me to make putts. I just didn’t make enough putts today and had a couple of 3-putts and had a double as well. So you’ve got to stay pretty clean out here to be top 5. Some good golfers.

Q. Steph, when Michael Jordan played years ago, when he was an active player, he said once he retired he would win the tournament. And that did not work out for him. Is that what might be in the way of you winning the tournament? Do you think you could win before you retire? What do you think?
STEPH CURRY: I think I can. I came out a couple of finals runs and got a top 5. And then obviously this week. So it’s in there. That first day is always kind of the shaky one, just getting into competitive golf mentality, which is always — it’s tough. This game is extremely hard.

So I do think I can get it done. But I’ve got a couple more years on the court. So maybe play the odds on that front, but I think I can get it done.

Q. Steph, do you come into this tournament thinking I want to be the lowest active player here; is that a goal for you, or is it I just want to be the lowest?
STEPH CURRY: Just always the lowest. I know in terms of active guys and our day jobs and how much we spend on our crafts outside of golf, but it’s nice to represent all the active guys in that respect; but to be the first active one, I think, to win it, I’m still searching for that one. That would mean a lot.

Q. Is Mr. Alvarez an honorary Curry now?
STEPH CURRY: We’ve spent some good time this week. He just started playing golf like 10, 11 months ago. And he broke 90. So we put a bet on him last night when we were on the range. And he actually did it. So we’re going to have some fun.

Q. All three of you are going in the lake?
STEPH CURRY: We’ll see. We’ll see.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

American Century Championship
Saturday, July 11, 2020
Kyle Williams
Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: We have Mr. Kyle Williams here; yesterday’s first-round leader. He played another very solid round today with 27 points, a total of 52. And you find yourself three behind Mardy Fish, who set an all-time record today by four points; 37 in the second round. The previous record, 33.

But you played pretty solid golf today. You’ve got to be pretty happy with the way you came back after a really strong opening round.

KYLE WILLIAMS: I was pleased with it. I think when I made mistakes, I bounced back. Didn’t strike the ball as clean today, but made some good putts, some key putts. And really kind of kept me into it, kept my round going.

So I tried to mesh that all together. You’re going to have to play really well. Like I said yesterday, great field. And obviously what a great round by Mardy.

Q. It’s down to a two-horse race. It’s you two guys; you’re 15 points ahead of third place and he’s 18.
KYLE WILLIAMS: Don’t give me too much credit. I can see that thing going any direction. Like I said yesterday, there’s so many great players. Obviously what Mardy did today, Tony can obviously do that. There’s a lot of guys that can do things like that.

The one thing I’ve really just been trying to do is try to commit to every shot and hit it and then trust my lines on the green.

Q. You had mentioned yesterday you hit a lot of good wedges. Looks like you had a number of them today on 13 and 15. You made birdie on both of those, if memory serves.
KYLE WILLIAMS: I did. I hit, on 13, I hit it to probably six, seven feet, made a little slider moving right. On 15, I hit it to about three feet. So I hit a couple of good ones, that when you’re in the hunt like this, when you’re playing against a bunch of really good players, you better knock those things in, and I was able to capitalize when I had a chance.

I wish that I had the made the bogeys today coming off birdies, and things like that, I had a few 3-putts. But hopefully we can get that ironed out.

Q. Did you feel any nerves on, like, 11 or 12, because you came up a little bit short on both those, the first putts, I think.
KYLE WILLIAMS: So on 11, I tried to stay high in light of the flag thinking it would roll down. And it caught on me. And it’s such a slippery putt that you have to guard against running it 10, 12 feet by. And I just ended up leaving it seven feet short. When you get into that area, when the ball’s moving and it’s slick, it’s not places you want to be.

Every time I had a putt that I could be somewhat aggressive with today, I was able to make and put a good solid stroke on it.

Had some 3-putts on some greens and my second shot wasn’t the best.

Q. Last year this is — you played two really solid rounds in a row. How are you feeling confidence-wise going into tomorrow?
KYLE WILLIAMS: I feel good. I’m swinging at it pretty good. I think the biggest jump for me has been on the green. My reads are not perfect, by any means, but I have a very good feel for them at this point. I kind of feel where the green’s moving, where it’s trying to take the ball, and really dialling in. And I think just committing, watch the putts, it does a lot of good for you.

Q. I understand you and Mardy have not played before. So tomorrow’s the first time you’ll be going at it head-to-head.
KYLE WILLIAMS: That will be our first chance to play together.

Q. Tell us about your game, as far as driver. Mardy is very straight driver, very long driver. How far are you averaging, you think, off the tees here at lake elevation?
KYLE WILLIAMS: I’m probably hitting it 300 yards, maybe a little more. I hit it far enough, not crazy far. Typically my short game and my putting carries me through.

These guys that play the swinging sports, they can always move that golf ball. I think the main thing for me is, like I said, just trusting and committing to every shot that I’m going to hit and play my game; and, listen, if the man is going to make 10 birdies, we’ll have a front row seat and cheer him on.

Q. What are your thoughts going into tomorrow? How do you like your chances?
KYLE WILLIAMS: I think if I can continue to hit the ball the way I have and marry it up with my putter, I think I have a good shot. Obviously, Mardy, the way he’s playing, the way he played today, he’s going to be tough to beat.

But all you can really ask for is an opportunity. When you get in this field with so many guys who have either won or been right there in it, been in contention, all you want is opportunity on Sunday to be in contention. That’s what we’ve got. Have to be confident and make some good swings and hopefully hole a few putts.

Q. Looking at the score, you eagled four today.
KYLE WILLIAMS: I hit driver. I hit 4-iron to probably 20 feet and made it right in there. I was lucky. Knew it was a pretty slick, fast putt. Luckily it went in dead center, because I probably would have had eight to nine feet coming back. I got a little aggressive with it. But sometimes that’s what it takes.

Q. These greens rolling about the same today as they were yesterday?
KYLE WILLIAMS: They’re pretty quick. Like I said, if you have a loose shot coming into a green and you leave yourself a sidehill, downhill, you’re giving yourself a better chance than not to 3-putt.

That’s what happened to me today on some of my 3-putts. I didn’t execute my second shot well. And there I am staring at a 30-foot putt, sidehill/downhill, and you tend to get tentative or too aggressive.

THE MODERATOR: Thank you.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

American Century Championship
Saturday, July 11, 2020
Mardy Fish
Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: Welcome to the new course record holder, a man that just made ten birdies today and finished with five straight; shot 63, which is a course record. Beat Lee Trevino’s record of 65 back in the mid- to late 80s. What a round. Congratulations. All-time record for second round points in this Stableford format by four.

MARDY FISH: It was a dream day, for sure. I’ve been looking for one of these out here. I’ve been looking to play well.

I didn’t particularly score well yesterday. And I hit it fine. I just didn’t get it in the hole very quickly.

So today was much cleaner. I had a lot of chances, a lot of looks, a lot of putts. And I missed some that were pretty close as well.

So my new strategy of just hitting driver and trying to figure it out from there is working okay.

Q. This is your seventh time here. You finished in the top five five times; second twice as well. In the past, it’s been the putting that’s held you back a little bit.
MARDY FISH: Thank you.

Q. How many putts did you have today?
MARDY FISH: I don’t know. But I made a few, for sure. I felt like I put the ball in pretty good spots to have some comfortable putts. A lot of times you can put yourself in spots where you get pretty defensive because the greens are pretty fast.

So we saw that last putt on 18 there, I certainly wasn’t going to leave that short. But blew it by by four or five feet. Held my nerves pretty good today. Whenever I hit a bad shot, it felt like I got either lucky — I got a lucky bounce on 6 today off a tree that could have gone right in the water, it went left in the fairway.

I got lucky and found my ball on 8 and 13. So there certainly was a little luck involved as well.

Q. Did you feel like you were in a zone like you haven’t been before or in a long time?
MARDY FISH: What’s funny, I’ve played with Jack so many times. We’re members at Belair together, Belair Country Club. So we played a little bit before these events just in Orlando just to try to gear up.

And so it felt really comfortable to have him there and sort of cheering me on, rooting me on a little bit, because you can sort of tell when each other is playing well and we’ll sort of step aside and root for the other. So that was great to have him in our group.

Q. Thinking about tomorrow, what’s going through your mind? You’ve got to be feeling pretty strong.
MARDY FISH: Yeah. I mean, I haven’t looked at a leaderboard, but I did look for a little bit there, and it seemed like Kyle was playing great, too. So I think if he birdies 18 —

Q. He’s one back. He’ll be one back if he birdies 18.
MARDY FISH: There you go. 37-pointer and I can’t get away from him. He must have had a great day as well. Should be fun.

Q. What happened on 1?
MARDY FISH: I know. I had a crazy putt, didn’t know what to do. 3-putt.

Q. Where would you rank this among your greatest rounds of golf?
MARDY FISH: It’s funny, the only other one that sort of comes to mind is I got to play nine holes with Jack Nicklaus like a year and a half ago. And I shot 29 with him on nine holes.

And so that one certainly was fun to play with him. Made eagle and five birdies in the nine holes we played. He was pretty impressed.

Q. Where was that, and what did he tell you after the round?
MARDY FISH: That was at The Bear’s Club down in Jupyter, his course, The Golden Bear, The Bear. So he said — he was super nice, and we’ve kept in touch over the years. He’s a big tennis fan and plays a lot of tennis. He has three grass courts at his house in Palm Beach.

So I’ve been there to play tennis with him and was lucky enough to play nine holes with him that day. He was complimentary.

Q. If you win tomorrow and your wife tells you that you can’t put the trophy indoors, you have to put it in the garage, deal or no deal?
MARDY FISH: Okay. I didn’t know where that was going. Why would she say to put it in the garage? (Laughter) There are a couple of trophies in the garage but they’re tennis trophies.

Q. You had mentioned you’ve played a lot of golf with Jack, won club championships down in Southern California at your home course there. But what did it feel like for them? Did you have any idea? They had to just feel like they were getting blown by. And they’re good players, both him and Carson?
MARDY FISH: Carson, they both had a couple of stretches where they made either a double — I think Carson had two doubles in a row. And you just can’t — in this format, you can’t go backwards.

So that’s the goal is to sort of not go backwards and just keep adding points and adding points, and you set a goal before the week to 25 a day. Something like that. Get around in the mid-70s, and you are usually in the hunt then. But that may not be enough this time.

Q. You’ve won a couple times down in Orlando at the Diamond Resorts event. You haven’t won here yet.
MARDY FISH: No. Thank you. Yes, no.

Q. I’m building you up for a victory.
MARDY FISH: Thank you. It would be special, for sure. I’ve wanted to play well here. But again there’s a lot of golf left and a lot of good players out there. So we’ll see. It would certainly be special because I’ve wanted — this is the best week of the year for us. And I’ve wanted to win here for a long time.

Q. Has the putting been getting progressively better in recent weeks, months, years?
MARDY FISH: I’ve got a putting green at my house that we put in for my son. And he never goes down there and putts on it. So he goes in the pool and I do my putting. That’s really all I did to sort of gear up for this.

I played maybe three or four times in the last sort of four weeks, because we’ve had the kids at home with no help and been kind of stuck at home. So I haven’t wanted to leave for five hours a day to play golf. So I try to play kind of once a week before coming here and then knowing I can get here and play Wednesday all day and play Thursday all day without the Pro-Am, I knew that I could sort of catch up a little bit.

And again, I’ve seen this course a bunch now and know the greens a little bit. And, yeah, I feel comfortable. I didn’t have a caddie either this year. And it’s kind of nice to sort of — caddies are great. I’ve usually had a buddy come, and it’s fun, certainly fun and great.

But it’s nice to sort of make up your mind and know what you’re doing on your terms; and then if you miss it’s on you, it’s not on anyone else. So, it’s been nice to sort of jump in a cart and sort of stay away from everyone and teach yourself a little bit, which is the distancing thing, I guess.

Q. Isn’t that “hit it as far as I can and figure it out from there,” isn’t that reckless kind of sophisticated golf approach?
MARDY FISH: The thing is, first of all, I know exactly what I can do hitting the playing safe off the tee. I finished second twice. I finished third. I finished top five five times. I know I can do that. But I can’t win that way.

If I can get myself close enough to the green where I can have a couple of chips and pitches and put myself inside ten feet more often, that bodes well. And the other thing is I hit my driver as straight as any club that I hit. So it makes sense to do that.

Q. Kyle just parred 18. So you have a three-point lead. You’re lapping the field. It’s a two-horse race?
MARDY FISH: What’s third?

Q. Smoltz is at 36.
MARDY FISH: That’s third place? Oh, geez.

Q. You’re up by 18 points and he’s up by 15. That’s what I’m saying. Have you ever played with Kyle before?
MARDY FISH: I’ve never played with Kyle. I met him last year. I know he’s a great player. Obviously had an awesome day yesterday and today. So, yeah, I’ll need the three points, I think, for sure.

Q. You’ve always gone up against the quarterbacks and the pitchers, and now you’ve got a defensive lineman 285 looking at you. How is that going to feel tomorrow?
MARDY FISH: He’s menacing looking for sure.

Q. Quick follow on your putting. Did you come into this week — you said you played a few times. But did you come in with confidence with your putter, or when you got here and played on Wednesday and played all day, did the confidence slowly build?
MARDY FISH: I did. Like I said, I’ve been putting a lot, been lucky enough to have a putting green at my house with the synthetic grass, to be able to hit some putts. And, yeah, I just found a nice little — I’m the kind of guy that will switch putters every other week and switch putting stances every other week because it’s so frustrating to putt.

So I kind of found one specific putting style, and it feels good.

THE MODERATOR: Thank you.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

American Century Championship
Friday, July 10, 2020
Steph Curry
Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: Mr. Steph Curry is here to join us. This is your eighth year playing in the American Century Championship. 2017 was your best finish at fourth. There’s been a lot of guys this year talking about your chances and giving you some pretty good plaudits because they figured you had more time on your hands this offseason. Best finish was fourth in 2017. The oddsmakers have you at 18-to-1. I believe that’s the highest odds from active players out here.

STEPH CURRY: Respect.

Q. Take us through your round today, if you would, and what it feels like to be back in Tahoe.
STEPH CURRY: It’s awesome to be back here. Obviously all the things that are going on in our country and our world, just to be able to play golf and compete. Obviously no fans. It’s a little different vibe. It’s way too quiet. But once you get over that, it’s just kind of playing golf like usual. And I enjoyed it. Got off to a terrible start the first hole. I tried to go for the home run shot, and it didn’t pan out. Just grinded the rest of the way.

So excited about hopefully going — you said low — going high tomorrow and put myself back in there. I don’t think I lost on the first day. I’ve just got to play a little bit better.

Q. You’ve been very outspoken and active with social injustice matters. Obviously you’ve got a pair of shoes on that is sending a message to people. Would you like to tell us a little bit about that.
STEPH CURRY: Absolutely. Obviously shining a light on Breonna Taylor, demanding and praying and wishing for justice for her and her family. And anytime you have an opportunity to be on a stage or a platform to raise awareness and to continue the conversation that’s going on in our country, I’m all for that, and send these to the Black Lives Matter organization and hopefully raise a lot of money for the amazing work that they’re doing.

And we all have roles to play in terms of changing the racial climate in our country. And this is definitely more than just a moment that we’re feeling. And hopefully this is a very small gesture, but hopefully the money goes a long way. And hopefully they continue the conversation of what needs to change all the way around.

Q. So you’re donating the shoes; is that in raising funds that way?
STEPH CURRY: Black Lives Matter will get them and hopefully have an auction and raise a lot of money for what they’re doing.

Q. You mentioned it was way too quiet out there. So it’s like normal golf. But when you’re here, you’re so used to raucous, loud behavior. Is it more difficult to play quiet here?
STEPH CURRY: A little bit. I guess when you’re walking, you’re in tournament mode. And for us, we play a lot of golf, but you don’t get a lot of opportunities to play competitively like this. So the first six holes was definitely different because you’re kind of pressing, trying to stay in the moment, but you’re so familiar to the sights and sounds. And they’re just a little different.

So I guess, at the end of the day, we had to hopefully — our conversation in our group was trying to keep, stay engaged, keep the energy up. But it was definitely an adjustment. I think tomorrow will be a little bit better in terms of getting settled in.

Thankfully the boats that are out there, in a very socially distant space, they brought a little noise down the last three holes.

Q. And early on anyway it looks like dad’s got a slight lead on you. Have you guys discussed what’s going on this year yet?
STEPH CURRY: I negotiated, I have to spot him six points. So I’ve got some work to do. But hopefully tomorrow I can chase the ladder a little bit and put some pressure on him. He’s playing well right now. And he showed it obviously today.

So got my work cut out for me, but it’s always fun to play with him, play with Aaron, two great guys that know how to hit the golf ball.

Q. I think he played well last year; he’s taking this seriously now.
STEPH CURRY: Absolutely. He’s a competitor.

Q. What’s at stake this year; have you guys determined?
STEPH CURRY: Not yet. It’s a carryover from his karaoke bet last year. But we won’t be able to do that. Obviously I’m holding it in my back pocket. I’m playing with house money right now. We’ll see.

Q. Obviously not the season you wanted with the Warriors this year, but what gives you hope that things can turn around next season?
STEPH CURRY: We still have a great core. We have an understanding of who we are, like you said it was a crazy year. My hand injury. Klay being out all year. And Draymond in and out of the lineup with injuries all year. A lot of new young guys. It’s definitely different. But this could be a blessing in disguise in terms of this next three-, four-year run we want to have, get rested, get healthy. We’ll obviously be watching Orlando and taking all that in.

But come next season, wherever that starts, we’ve got to be ready. Had a long seven years. Nice to get a little refresh.

Q. Why was it important to you to sponsor the Howard University golf team and what do you hope from that endeavor?
STEPH CURRY: It’s something that slapped me across the face that I didn’t have a strategy around it. I went to Howard to debut their screening of a documentary we made called “Emmanuel,” and I talked to a lot of students there after the screening, and they had a lot of interest and passions.

I talked to this student named Otis Ferguson IV, and he told me how much golf means to him, how much just the opportunity to play. He was trying to put together a club team. And the idea came just from that.

I heard what he had to say, and I was like what can we do to bring that Division I program back, men’s and women’s, and create scholarships, because you know how great the game of golf is; we want to continue to create access and opportunity, not just playing but in the business of golf, too.

So hopefully this can be a kind of a funnel for younger kids to think I can either go play Division I golf at a HBCU and have something to kind of look forward to. But even now the student-athletes that we have on the team hopefully this fall will take advantage of that opportunity as well. Excited about that. Hopefully they have a really good run.

Q. You said you went for the home run shot on 1. I think I saw you, like, change clubs or something. Was the original plan to play it safe?
STEPH CURRY: No, I was just figuring out how aggressive I wanted to be the whole time. I got a new caddie this week. I don’t know if he was ready to pull a veto on the first hole. So he let me just get it out of the way. You’re going to make a double at some point in the tournament. So I got it out of the way on the first hole and grinded the rest of the way. So no harm, no foul. Tomorrow hopefully give myself a chance to make it interesting at the top of the leaderboard knowing you’ve got guys going low, I think Kyle wins with 25 and Romo is probably coming in, Mark Mulder, the usuals. I want to be in that group come Sunday.

Q. Looks like your love affair with No. 18 continues. Birdied today, wasn’t it? Did you birdie 18?
STEPH CURRY: It’s been four rounds in a row probably, eagle, eagle, birdie, birdie. Can I just play that hole 18 times and call it even?

Q. That would help. You’re at 14 points right now, in a tie for 13th. After one day you’re in the hunt. What do you think it’s going to take for you to get back in this thing to where you’re comfortable? You’ve played —
STEPH CURRY: Probably going to need like 24, 25 at least tomorrow, which obviously it’s doable. Somebody — Kyle showed it already. That probably gives you a chance to be within earshot going into Sunday. That’s all I want, just a chance to play some meaningful holes on Sunday. I started to hit the ball a little bit better as the round went on.

Q. Obviously you’ve been extremely successful in your basketball career, being a great athlete, golf. What would it mean to you to win this event?
STEPH CURRY: I’m trying really hard. Just for the active guys, I don’t know how many active athletes that are here. But I’m pretty sure I don’t think one’s won before. You may have to correct me on that one. But even for basketball players, this would be the first one to win from our sport.

So that would mean a lot. It’s not obviously just the win but how much fun I have up here and the guys you get to compete against. So we’ve got some work to do.

Q. One of the big social media campaigns out here you see at the #playitACC, a trick shot campaign playing off the trick shot you did. So share that trick shot you did and how many times did it take; how much fun was it; was it to do at home while you’re doing it?
STEPH CURRY: You’re not going to believe it but the first time I did it was back in March when quarantine started, I was extremely bored. I found my way to the front door. But only took me two shots. And then I tried to do it again and took me about 50 and I gave up. I came back for Jimmy Kimmel, took me a minute to get it on live TV. So that was solid. Pressure shot. But hopefully everybody has creativity coming out using all the different props and stuff, just having fun with it.

Q. As far as the charities this year, Steph, the entire purse is being donated to the different charities involved with the event, how good does that feel for all the players, do you think?
STEPH CURRY: Oh, it feels great. We know we come up here, usually it’s a purse to play for; but obviously with everything going on, the ability to come up here and play golf and know that — I don’t know what the amount is — but it’s all going to worthy causes that will impact lives, and we get to do it by being out here playing golf, being on a stage. Pretty awesome to be a part of that.

It’s a huge compliment to American Century, NBC, everybody, for doing what they could to get the tournament even possible to go this week. And hopefully that money goes a long way.

THE MODERATOR: Thank you.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

American Century Championship
Friday, July 10, 2020
John Smoltz
Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: John Smoltz in the media room. Take us through your round today, opening round today.

JOHN SMOLTZ: I played a perfect nine holes. And I missed a couple of birdie putts to get 4-under, but 2-under through nine. I lost my swing the last seven holes. I was kind of hanging on. 18 is not a friend of mine. It’s going to be a friend of mine the next two days.

But all in all, 20 points, I never really have good first rounds. But I’m a little disappointed in my swings coming down the stretch. I had some putts slip out. But all in all it could be worse. I think being in the final group or second to last group, one of those, it looks like, see if I can take care of the par-5s I didn’t do a good job of today.

Q. You tied for second after one day after a so so round for you. I think you are in the hunt.
JOHN SMOLTZ: I’ve learned from tournaments, when things aren’t going so well, you can still grind out some pars. And I did grind out a lot of pars down the stretch. My driver left me. And normally when it leaves me, I haven’t found a way to get it back.

I made some really crucial errors when I had easy birdies, like driving No. 11 to the front of the green and an easy chip and don’t make birdie. Had a hard time letting that go. But all in all, right within the striking distance that you want to be.

Q. I heard that before the round that the grounds crew double rolled and double cut those greens. What was the speed? I heard 13; is that accurate?
JOHN SMOLTZ: Yeah, they weren’t quite as fast as I thought the practice rounds had gotten them. So I don’t know if they put some water on it. But I was concentrating all day in trying to be below the hole and that helps. I think for the most part I was below the hole on a lot of my putts. I literally had four or five touch the hole.

Here they don’t lip in very often. So I didn’t 3-putt, which is a win on these greens. And for the most part, like I said, the first nine holes I thought I was in position to have a fantastic 28, 29 points and the back nine was disappointing.

Q. As far as the putts itself, how many birdies did you have?
JOHN SMOLTZ: Only had two. And two bogeys. That’s not the kind of round you want, especially going forward. I need to get more aggressive and have six birdies and six bogeys is better than 2 and 2 because the point system just doesn’t reward you for shooting par.

That’s the difference out here. And that’s one thing that I’ll have to work on tomorrow is be a little more aggressive. It’s one thing to try and make a 4-footer for par, you’ve got to be cautious. But five-, six-footers for birdie should never come up short, but if you 3-putt it, so what.

Q. You have Kyle Williams, as he joked when he came in here, a 300-pound defensive lineman, we’ve never had a 300-pound defensive lineman in the hunt in this event. So he’s trying to stand up for the big boys as he said. Does his performance surprise you?
JOHN SMOLTZ: Not really. He did this last year. He’s a really good player. Nobody kind of knew what to expect last year from him.

He was right there and I think finished kind of like I finished. I finished really poorly, and I think he tied me or he beat me last year. So that’s — I knew going in that he had the capability of throwing up 25 points. My goal was 25 points.

So five short of it, I’ll have to pick that up tomorrow.

THE MODERATOR: Thank you.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

American Century Championship
Friday, July 10, 2020
Tony Romo
Press Conference

TONY ROMO: For tomorrow, I think the most important thing is if I keep hitting the ball the way I am, I think I’ll be able to score. I just finished poorly. Those are the scoring holes, 16, 17, 18. You want to come out of there with at least at minimum five points, which is one birdie and two pars. And really you’re looking to make at least two birdies. And today to finish with zero points was a good eight points, six to eight points less than what you’re hoping for.

But the rest of the day was really good. Hit the ball well. If I keep hitting the ball the way I am, I think I’ll be okay.

Q. Obviously Kyle Williams is leading this thing. There’s never been a lineman up in this part of the world in the tournament.
TONY ROMO: I love it.

Q. Your thoughts on a lineman competing here.
TONY ROMO: I’m excited, because Kyle, he did the four-ball I think a couple years ago and played really well and got far in the USGA Best Ball match, but I feel like he’s obviously improved and continue to improve. He’s got a great swing. He’s a great guy. I’m happy for his score today, I think it’s cool. But he put up 25, that’s not easy; that’s a lot of points, especially on some greens that are very difficult. And it will be fun. Hopefully he keeps playing well and hopefully I can make a run at him at some point.

Q. Do you remember any personal battles with him on the field?
TONY ROMO: He was a great lineman. That’s the other part, you don’t see a lot of linemen come out and play great golf. And he’s just a rare guy who has a unique ability for hand/eye coordination and to take that to the golf course. And so I think you’re seeing that. But that was a really good score he had today. Impressive round of golf.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports