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DP WORLD TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP, DUBAI

November 17, 2018

Patrick Reed

Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Q. You've broken 70 for the third consecutive day, today a 67. Give us your summation of that round.
PATRICK REED: It was steady. I didn't quite have the warm up that I wanted to kind of start the day and get going, but once I got on the golf course, things all seemed to settle out. Started hitting the driver how I needed to and hit irons pretty solid.

Even though I was only even par through four, I felt like I really didn't miss a golf shot at that point. You know, it was a tough flag and awkward number for me on 4 there, which caused me to put it in the wrong spot and have a 3-putt for bogey there.

But after that, I just kept on playing well. Kept on hitting the golf ball how I was hitting it all day and just kept allowing the putter to do its work.

Q. We know you as a confident individual and a lot of self-believe, where is your confidence with your game right now?
PATRICK REED: I feel good. I feel like the consistency of my game is where it needs to be. You're always going to have hot flashes here and there and you're always going to have kind of low points.

I feel like my low points are getting better, and they are more manageable and I can miss the golf ball where I need to miss the golf ball. When you can do that, you're able to eliminate a lot of the big mistakes and keep the bogeys off the card and I think that's key, especially finishing Top-10 and winning golf tournaments is minimising those bogeys.

Q. How exciting about the opportunity tomorrow to win the Flagship Event, the DP World Tour Championship, the final event on The European Tour?
PATRICK REED: Yeah, it means a lot. Just to be in the situation to be able to come over here and play, with the limited schedule that I play over here on The European Tour, and to have a chance to go out and finish the year off right and win a golf tournament, give myself a little early Christmas gift, a trophy, would be amazing.

Q. Really solid, consistent 67, something you've been doing all week. What kind of game in your opinion from a confidence perspective did you bring here to the desert?
PATRICK REED: I feel good. I feel like the game has been trending and I feel like it's been pretty solid for the last half of the season. I think the biggest point is everyone can play great golf and have those hot flashes where they play really well.

It's when you're not quite feeling as comfortable and as well on certain days, are you able to have the consistency to keep the ball in play and put it in the right spots.

Right now I feel really confident with where that part of my game is, and because of that, I'm eliminating the mistakes. Any time you can play a golf course where you don't make any bogeys, any birdie adds and helps out. You know, I don't really feel like I have to play catch up as much as allow my putter to do the work.

Q. Looking at that leaderboard, first off, very condensed and a lot of players in the mix. You've been able to close out, like at Augusta this year. What kind of attitude do you bring to a tournament when you need to close?
PATRICK REED: Biggest thing is around a golf course like this, you have to go low. You have to go out and you have to stay aggressive. You know, act is if everyone is starting at ground zero and try to go shoot the low round of the day.

Depending on what the wind does; if the wind lays down, there's a 7- , 8- , 9-under par round out there. If the wind picks up and you get hot, you can still shoot 5-, 6-, 7-under par. No lead is big enough around this place and because of that you have to go out and for me, I'm going to treat it as if it's a Monday qualifier day and try to shoot as low as I can.

Q. When you were walking from the range to the first tee at the start of the day, would you have slapped someone's hand off for a 67?
PATRICK REED: Yeah, I wasn't hitting the ball really how I wanted to in warmup. Felt like I was putting well and I was chipping kind of normal, how I've been. Didn't quite have the warmup I wanted to. The back seemed to be a little stiffer than I wanted and so I wasn't moving through it as freely.

Kept reminding myself it's warm up, and once you get to the first tee, get the adrenaline going and get a little more focused, see how it goes. Once I got on the golf course, it seemed to kind of all fall into place. I was hitting the ball down the lines I was looking and hitting how I wanted it to, and from there, trying to make some putts.

It's been consistent and I feel like I've been driving the ball well, and when I don't hit a fairway, if I happen to miss one, I'm missing in the right spots where I can still get it on the green or even towards the flag. I think that's key for me is just getting the ball in play off the tee.

If I hit fairways or even if it's on the fairway or if it's in a manageable spot where I can either get it on the green or close to a flag where I have a makeable birdie putt, I'll be pleased because I feel like I'm putting pretty solid. Feel like I'm hitting my lines, and from there on, it's all fun and games from there.

Q. Tell me about the dynamic for you as an American in this event. I know we asked you about this an awful lot but I just wonder, is a leaderboard a leaderboard, or does it feel different here as a big European Tour event?
PATRICK REED: It feels the same. It feels the same as if I'm back home playing the big events at home. When you come over and you play events like this, especially this event, the last one of the year, the guys are in this event because they have played some incredible golf throughout the entire season.

Because of that, any one of the guys can win a golf tournament. You treat it like that. You treat it as it's one of the major events. You have to go out and you have to play some solid golf. If you shoot even par around this place, you get lapped so you have to stay aggressive and you have to go and play well, and it feels how it's supposed to be. When you get to that first tee, you get some adrenaline going and coming down the end, you have adrenaline.

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