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SANDERSON FARMS CHAMPIONSHIP

September 22, 2019

Jackson, Mississippi

THE MODERATOR: Okay. We'll go ahead and get started. Lime to welcome the 2019 Sanderson Farms Championship winner, Sebastian Munoz. Congratulations on your first PGA TOUR career victory. What a time to have done it with a standalone event this year, 500 full FedExCup points, and the way did you it in dramatic fashion with the birdie on the 72nd hole to extend your chance to get that first PGA TOUR win.

Before we talk to you, we would love to get a few comments from the CEO and chairman of the board, Mr. Joe Sanderson.

Mr. Sanderson, thanks for being here with us.

JOE SANDERSON: Thank you. It was a great week here in Jackson for the tournament. I thought the course was just excellent. Rode over the course several times. Played part of the round Wednesday. Weather was very hot Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and cooled off a bit for the weekend.

But the condition of the course was as good as we have ever had. I'll let Sebastian talk about his thoughts about the course, but in my seeing it for a long time, I thought it was good as we've ever had.

I was very pleased with the field we had this year. I was very pleased to make the announcement we made this afternoon about our dates for next year. We are very grateful to the PGA TOUR for giving us the October 1 through 4 dates for next year for a couple of reasons. We can have hot weather just like we had this week. Normally this time of year we're 86 to 90, but you can have episodes like we had.

Also in September we can experience hurricanes or tropical depressions. The one that hit Texas this week could have easily come right up through Mississippi. A move to October, the odds are we will have cooler weather and the chances for a hurricane or tropical depressions are diminished. Not ruled out, but diminished.

The cooler weather is better on the people that buy the pro-am teams, better on our patrons, our fans, the golfers, and the caddies. The people that go out there and in afternoons and walk the golf course, odds are it'll be better conditions for them. That's why we requested that the PGA TOUR, and I am very grateful for the opportunity that they've given us to have those days for next year.

All in all, it was a good week for us. Very, very grateful for the TOUR's giving us those dates. Very happy that this young man -- it was a very exciting finish. I was right there. Saw him make his approach shot. Saw him make that putt. I've been watching that putt for four or five hours since maybe 11:00 today. There were not very many putts made on the 18th hole.

He did a marvelous job. Very, very proud of him for making that putt, tying it up, and then winning it on the 18th hole, the 1st hole, sudden death.

Congratulations.

THE MODERATOR: Thank you, Mr. Sanderson. With that, love to get a few comments from you, Sebastian.

SEBASTIAN MUNOZ: Yeah, I mean, thank you so much to the organization, to the Sanderson Family, to everyone that made this event possible. You know, I'm so thrilled to be here and to be the champion.

I always will have a special connection to Jackson, Mississippi because this was the first event I ever played as a PGA TOUR member back in 2016. So just one of those places that I'll just cherish, and this moment just add on to that. I will always be grateful to this city what whatever it got me. Just really happy and blessed to be here.

THE MODERATOR: Speaking of what it got you, in addition to the full FedExCup points, two-year exemption, you obviously get a lot of the other perks. You get in Hawaii right around the corner, Century Tournament of Champions, PLAYERS Championship, PGA Championship, that little event in Augusta, Georgia, all kinds its perks. That probably hasn't all set in yet, but it's got to make you excited.

SEBASTIAN MUNOZ: Yeah, no, not even close. I was lucky enough to keep my focus on 18. Like when I had that big putt, I was just thinking about striking it and not the perks, how my life could change and things like that. So boobytrap we tried to avoid, not to think about external stuff, instead of just what's happening here.

So, yeah, I mean, whenever they were doing the trophy ceremony I just kept smiling to myself, reminding me, Oh, yeah, Hawaii is around the corner. Oh, yeah, Masters. Like, oh, yeah, I got job security for a couple years. It's just like smile, then smile again. It hasn't set, but I'm fully aware of the perks of being a PGA TOUR winner and I'll carry that forever.

THE MODERATOR: With that, we'll open it up and take some questions.

Q. Go through the shot on 6. How risky was that approach?
SEBASTIAN MUNOZ: Yeah, so on 6 I hit my driver left and it was unlucky enough that it hit one of the first trees and came back. So by my calculations we had like 235 front with not a lot of options in front of me. Like had to keep it low, and fairway runs on an angle.

So it was really easy to hit it from the rough to the rough and have like 90 or 130 out. So I saw the left and it was like -- it's probably like 260 to the pin. That's what I had the my 3-wood. If I just slice it, which is the shot I feel more comfortable with, fade instead of draw, I could give myself a chance.

I saw a bounce there and just reminded me of Phil. What would Phil do? I'm like, Fortune favors the bold, so took it, believed in myself, pulled the shot, and got the up and down. Make it all worth it.

Q. What was your mindset going into the playoff hole? Were you expecting to win the way you did?
SEBASTIAN MUNOZ: I mean, it was great. So we go to 18. Like first of all, made like a six-footer on 17 to kind of have a chance on 18.

Then I wasn't aware of what Sungjae was at. I kind of knew he was 18, but didn't know for sure. Just focused on hitting in the fairway. Got it in the fairway and realized, all right, we need to make birdie here. Picked a really aggressive line, like right at it, nowhere else to go. We're going for this right now. We're here.

Pulled the shot. Thought it was a little closer based on the reaction, but still pretty much up the hill like 13, 15 feet. And, I mean, that's all you want on the last hole, to give yourself a chance. Sometimes going to go in; sometimes not going to go in.

I just said, Just strike it. I blanked my mind, just hit it -- I hit it and it wiggled in. It was amazing. Place erupted. I got so like goose bumps, like everything emotion. I teared up a little bit.

And then back on the playoff hole, all back to the beginning. Still like my heartbeat was still up. All right, calm down. We still got work to do. Still hit a good drive, and from there on. Once I notice Sungjae was over the green, all I wanted to do was kind of keep it short of the pin. I knew that's a tough up and down.

So hit the 9-iron, but it didn't came as hot as I thought it was going to be from the rough. Left it short, and that's not an easy chip. These bermuda greens, they kind of check pretty fast on you. Got to be pretty bold. It's just different way to play it.

And I did it. Hit it to about three, four feet, and last putt I just tried to do blank again, just strike it. Boom. Winner. (Laughter.)

Q. Obviously Joaquin won lasts week from Chile; you won this week from Colombia. What does that mean for South American golf and for you?
SEBASTIAN MUNOZ: Yeah, him winning last week was kind of like the last piece of the puzzle that I needed to know that we're good enough, we're able to compete. That we're here, we're PGA TOUR members, and we play to win. Seeing him raise the trophy last week was just -- I don't know -- inspirational for a little bit.

You know, like I can do it, too. I remember talking to him. Just kind of going through his round when we were on the charter coming here to Jackson. You know, I played good last week. I finished seventh. I just started to believe one day at a time. Got really hot on Saturday and everything was going in. Today things were not going my way at the beginning, but managed to pull it up.

Q. Were you aware on the back nine of what Sungjae was doing?
SEBASTIAN MUNOZ: Yeah, I had no idea. I was doing my part of my work not making any bogeys. I think it was on 16 -- on 15 everything tied together. Like I saw the screen and said Sungjae is the leader with three consecutive birdies. I'm like, Oh, all right.

Then I'm short-sided left and the lie wasn't very good. I didn't have a lot of options. I went with -- I mean, I chunk it. Got it in the bunker. Didn't make the up and down. One back.

Like walking up 16, especially seeing my that was a mud ball on 16, first mud ball I seen all week, I said, Just slip through. Slip through. It's been 17 didn't hit me. I put my approach close and I was like, Just slipping through.

I was lucky that he didn't make any birdies and I got to birdie the last.

Q. Tell the story of North Texas when you started there. Didn't sound like you thought the TOUR was an option until Carlos had some success. Elaborate on that.
SEBASTIAN MUNOZ: Yeah, short version of it is like, I mean, I always play golf since I'm really little. I was pretty good when I was young. When I turn like 15 I got a little discouraged. The option of going to the United States kind of pumped me up a little bit, so I did it more for having my education here in the States, not for being competitive in golf and trying to follow my dreams.

I did it more like if I can get a scholarship playing good golf, why not do it? So I played really good when I was 17 and 18 and got myself a scholarship to North Texas. There I met with Carlos. He was a junior when I came in. You know, first couple years I had the talent but didn't put the hard work at it. Like I never really thought I was going to be a PGA TOUR professional. I didn't think I was that good.

You know, back in the day, like it wasn't even an option. Just doing my entrepreneur studies, my business administration studies, and then he -- okay, couple years go by. He graduates, and then goes on the Web and wins three times. Go to the PGA TOUR and has full status for the next year.

I'm like, Wait. I know he's good, but I can compete with him. He's better right now than me, but if I put the work, I bet he's not that much better than me. So in a sense he kind of made me believe and realize that I'm just as good and I could do it as well.

So my junior year was better. I became the No. 1 guy on the team. Then, all right, so senior year I said to myself if I'm able to win at least once, I'm going to go for pro. If I don't, I'm just going to go back to my home country and start working with my family.

And lucky enough I won twice and I'm like, All right. Made a promise, so let's go. Well, you know. Mini tour in Colombia and sponsor exemption to the Web, win the Web, here, PGA TOUR, back down, back here, so that was it.

Q. What does your family do?
SEBASTIAN MUNOZ: Oh, we run a farm. Rubber Tree Plantation. So that's the family business.

Q. (No microphone.)
SEBASTIAN MUNOZ: Just, I mean, life works in weird ways. Like I never thought this was going to be my path, but here I am. I'm enjoying it 100% and I can't wait to see what comes next.

Q. What have the last three years been like for you? (No microphone.)
SEBASTIAN MUNOZ: So sweet. Like I remember I was leading the Greenbrier by two two years ago. The last day didn't get my win; didn't even get 125 to 150 status. Lost everything. I was like, Well...

I was lucky enough that I played good in a couple Web events, so I had Web status. Well, Korn Ferry status. But I met with my now coach back then. I was talking to him, Troy Dannon, and he told me, Man, you can make it work. I don't think you're going to do better than that, but you can make it work. You almost won.

I was like, No. I just don't feel confident enough. Let's rebuild my swing. So I rebuild my swing the winter break and start the Korn Ferry season of 2018 with a new swing. It took me a while to get used to it. By the end, progress showed. I was a lot more consistent. I wasn't missing that many cuts. I was having more Top 10s. I wasn't getting as hot.

Last year I played a lot much better than my first season but I never had the lead. My rookie season I had the lead five different times. So just showed that the game was there but my consistency wasn't. Now the consistency is here, so just feels awesome that that hard work paid off.

We're here.

Q. What did you guys do? What did you change?
SEBASTIAN MUNOZ: Well, not to get too technical, but my path was out-in pretty severely. Like I was hitting steep cuts. We just tried to shallow it out a little more using the body.

Q. Had some good results from the summer on. What do you feel like you're doing better?
SEBASTIAN MUNOZ: So I feel my putter was holding me back for the first half of the last year season. I was trying to be too perfect instead of just striking the putt and just let it come to you.

So once I kind of unleash my potential with the putter, it has given me the results that we were expecting, that I was playing good, hitting the ball pretty good, and we got in from the summer on.

THE MODERATOR: All right, Sebastian.

SEBASTIAN MUNOZ: Cool.

THE MODERATOR: Congratulations.

SEBASTIAN MUNOZ: Thank you, guys. (Applause.)

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