Matt Kuchar reflected on a steady week of golf, his improved form, and the perspective gained after a challenging year marked by personal loss. “The game’s been good. I feel good standing over the driver,” he said, describing his performance as “a good, solid, steady round of golf.”
Kuchar opened up about his 2024 season: “Dad passing earlier this year… that kind of changed a lot of what’s normal for me.” Despite missing more cuts than usual recently, he feels progress: “This year has been better from a consistency standpoint. I’m certainly much more comfortable than I’ve been in a while.”
He also shared the joy of making a hole-in-one — “It’s still a great feeling… very cool and very lucky” — and the fun of competing with his son: “He’s beaten me twice. I’m not sure if I’m happy or upset or proud… but it’s been great having him as a training partner.”
Matt, how’d you kind of charact characterize that round today? Very steady, very solid. Uh, super pleased all week. The game’s been good. Uh, feel good standing over the driver, which is important out here. Um, it’s a it’s a very getable course, but you better put it in the fairway to try to get it. And today, a lot of fairways, a lot of kind of short mid irons that with a with a lot of opportunities. And um, it was a just a good good solid steady round of golf. at this point in the year, how how would you kind of define your year so far? I I don’t know that I put much of a definition on it, but um you know, c certainly different. Certainly uh I think this might be my 15th event of the year. I’ve not not played much. With dad passing earlier this year, it um you know, kind of kind of changed a lot of uh what’s what’s normal for me. So that um certainly some some tough bits with with dad passing, but uh you know, the golf has somewhat been steady. Um it’s not been great up to this point. It’s just just kind of been steady. And uh I think the last two years I’ve missed more cuts than I I I remember missing in a long time. So not much fun. This year has been better from a consistency standpoint, just not quite piecing things together where you have a week where you hit it well but don’t convert on the putting opportunities. and other weeks you putt well and don’t hit it great and kind of I’ve had a bunch of 40th place finishes which um don’t really move you move you very far up the board on the uh on the fetish cup points list. So uh been nice lately to put together some rounds some tournaments with kind of some some good hitting and some good putting weeks. There’s some talk that this tournament may not return. Just what have been your impressions of this tournament? It’s my second time playing here. I I really enjoy it. Um, this is one, you know, I think if uh circumstances were different, if I was, you know, inside the top 100, if I was 90th and and kind of not real worried about my card, I think I still come here. I enjoy the people here. I enjoy the golf course. This is one that um checks a lot of boxes for me. Do you feel like maybe you’re playing your best golf season kind of right now after I think T13 Pro? Yeah, I’m feeling comfy. I kind of um continue working on the same stuff with with Okonnell with my coach Chris Okonnell and uh it it it feels like it keeps getting better and better. So, we um yeah, right now this is as comfy as I felt kind of all all year. Uh I’ve had some instances where I’ve I’ve showed up at tournaments thinking I’ve fully got it and I think that’s the always the kiss of death. You think you’re going to do great and end up not. But, uh, I certainly am I’m am pleased with what I’m doing mechanically, what I’m kind of, um, able to see with ball flights and shapes, and, uh, um, you know, again, I like to knock on wood because I can’t count on what’s going to happen tomorrow, but, I’m certainly much more comfortable than I’ve been in a while. Can you talk about your on the first day and stuff like that? Yeah, listen, uh, golf golf’s such a unique game in that, you know, we start every week from everybody starts even par and everybody’s got a chance to do something great. And so each week I think is unique. I think if you were a baseball player and your team starts, you know, 10 and 50, it you’d be in for a long year and maybe not look forward to the next game. But, um, golf, even if you miss six cuts in a row, you know, you never know what next week may hold. And so, uh, it is it is cool that way. I still I still love playing. I’m somewhat new here. This is just my second second time playing here in Jackson. So, um I’m I’m enjoying it. But, um yeah, things things like a hole in one. It was one of those things. I I told some people I made a hole in one years ago at the John Deere and I got one clap. The ball flew straight in the hole and nobody knew exactly what happened and one clap was all I got. Here I got no clap. So, I I didn’t know the ball went in. I was hoping it didn’t go over the back of the green, but as the anticipation grew to like peer inside the hole and then to see the ball at the bottom of the hole, I think is still a great feeling. So, yeah, still was a um a cool moment. Hole in ones are very cool. They’re certainly very lucky. Uh and you feel you feel lucky to get one during competition, particularly on a PJ tour event. Is it kind of fun with with your your son offer playing high level uh amateur golf and and you in your career? You guys have a lot of fun kind of competing a little bit. Is that kind of you know? Oh, for for sure. For sure. I love it. He’s turned into a training partner. I think it’s been good for both of us. Um, up to this point, he has beaten me twice. I’m not sure if I’m happy or or upset or proud or or not. I don’t know how to quite take it yet. I uh I’m doing my best to maintain a level that makes it hard for him to beat me, but um I I know my day is coming soon where it’s it’s going to flip-flop and go the other way where I I really do look forward to the days beating him. So, uh, at this point, we’ve had a ton of fun as just training partners, and it’s I think it’s helped me. I’d like to hope it’s helped him as well. All right. Thanks a lot,
