BMW CHAMPIONSHIP

August 18, 2023

Max Homa

Olympia Fields Country Club

Quick Quotes

Q. To have a round of 62, a lot has to go right. What was the best part of your game today in your opinion?

MAX HOMA: Obviously I holed a lot of putts, which you have to do to make 10 birdies, but I was very proud of how I drove it. I felt like I was able to attack kind of all day. Obviously the greens are still really soft, so being in the fairway as often as I was, it felt like I was able to be aggressive when I wanted to, and if I didn't, I could just play to the middle of the green.

I felt that the tee ball set up everything. It was a major bonus to make as many putts as I did, but it was all really good. I think that out here when you're in the fairway, it becomes significantly easier, more so than other golf courses.

Q. As well as you're playing and putting, you made 10 birdies. Did you realize you were making 10 birdies? Was there ever a moment when you looked at the card and just saw a bunch of circles?

MAX HOMA: I guess not until -- after 14 or 15, I just was thinking to myself, I've birdied most of the holes on the back nine, and that was quite a nice feeling.

I guess not really. Yeah, sometimes you're just zoning, but I knew I was making a lot. I heard the standard bearer say something about how he's getting tired because he had to change the numbers on our thing so much because Pat was making a lot, too. It was just a crazy day.

Q. How much does this course ask of your game? Do you feel like it's pretty thorough?

MAX HOMA: Yeah, I feel like it's pretty thorough. They have a couple collection areas. You obviously are going to have a lot of kind of chop-out chips from the thick rough. It does feel a bit like if you don't play from the fairway -- I know Rory did it yesterday, but he's a bit unique in that, but I do feel you need to be in the fairway.

I'd say that's something that is probably needed more so unless you absolutely bomb it.

But yeah, I do think that it asks a lot. The greens are really tricky, so when you get on them, you have some odd putts, you need to lag putt well, and you're going to have some awkward little ones. The greens kind of remind me a little bit like Augusta where you can have some putts on some decent slopes. It's pretty thorough throughout the golf course what it asks of you.

Q. I'd be curious of the difference of the greens from yesterday because those back pins were problematic in terms of measuring spin. What was it like today?

MAX HOMA: I think somewhat similar. The only difference is we got a round to figure it out. That always helps. You get a little more comfortable hitting some of those, I guess, awkward types of shots.

Q. You said it, we've heard it several times today, the greens are tricky, not easy to putt, yet you seemed to manage them quite well, and I think you've referenced being below the hole a lot, but I think there's more to it. All year it seems your putting stats have been --

MAX HOMA: Yeah, I've been putting great all year, but it was helpful, like I said, I was in the fairway a lot, so I was able to be a bit more particular of where I was leaving it.

When you're in the rough, you're just trying to hack it on to the green or somewhere near it, so I think that helped a lot because I made a couple sidewinders, of course, but for the most part I did feel like I had a lot easier putts than I had yesterday.

Q. Did you know what the course record was?

MAX HOMA: I did randomly because Kirk was playing good and the board said, Chris Kirk is challenging the course record of 63, so of course that's -- just randomly saw that today, and then I had to think about it.

Q. You went right by it?

MAX HOMA: Yeah, that was the goal, just keep playing good.

Q. Was there a particular shot or putt or something that really got you going today where you felt like you were in a groove at that point?

MAX HOMA: Not really. I've been playing good, so I don't know. Certain tee shots when they go just exactly where you're just looking are nice. The one on 3 -- when you're getting started into a round, those are just comfy feelings.

But for the most part, not really. There's a couple shots that were really -- I just thought like solid that made me feel good, but I don't think that I ever really thought I was in a groove. Just like I said, when you play from the fairway out here with how soft the greens are, I don't think it's insanely hard. As it gets firmer it gets really tricky, but the way it was today, I felt like I was able to stare down a lot of flags.

Q. The Ryder Cup, does that potential of automatic qualifying, is that any sort of thing you keep track of in the standings? How does that fit into your goals?

MAX HOMA: Yeah, I told Zach last year I was kissing up to him, but then he also said, well, I'd like to not have to pick you, and I said all right, there's my promise, I'll try to get an automatic. That would be really cool.

That's been kind of my goal since these Playoffs started, to get into that top 6.

Yeah, all that obviously takes some great golf. You're playing against a lot of great players.

It has been fun keeping that goal, though, in mind because you're competing against the best Americans, which is a tall task.

Q. Yesterday was the five-year anniversary of the streak. How long ago does that seem?

MAX HOMA: Feels like forever ago but I think about it all the time. It's just crazy sometimes walking up the 18th hole here today and just thinking about -- I don't know if that would have happened had it not been for those four holes in a row, so it was pretty cool to look back on it and reflect on it, and it gives me a lot of appreciation for what I'm doing.