What they're saying: Anthony Kim

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All interview transcripts from the Verizon Heritage courtesy of ASAP Sports.

JOAN vT ALEXANDER: We'd like to thank Anthony Kim for joining us. You had a great week this week. You played really well. Put yourself in great position moving forward. You've got to be proud of yourself.

KIM: I'm very proud of the way I played after a little break. I haven't been playing so well. It feels great to be back in contention.

Q. You had a pretty good run on the back nine there, and Boo was kind of scraping around all day, can you talk about that stretch.

KIM: I didn't think it was over until No. 16, when I missed that 12-footer. I was just grinding away. And I knew anything can happen on this golf course. It played tough all day. I'd never wish bad upon anybody, but you never know what can happen.

Boo played great. He hung in there. He didn't have his best game today. But he got it up and down when he needed to, and hit the right shots when he needed to.

Q. Talk about your run of birdies there and how much momentum that gave you.

KIM: When I made the first one, I said, here we go. Maybe if I get on a little bit of a run I could still win this golf tournament.

Like I said, I've been positive all week. I'm not going to let this finish deter me from thinking that way. I felt like I had a chance, but Boo hit the right shots at the right time.

Q. How did you feel after playing No. 9? Did you get down on yourself then?

KIM: I was definitely frustrated after 9, but I still knew we had a lot of golf to go. I told my caddie yesterday when we were at dinner that if we have nine holes to go and I'm within five or six, I'm still in that golf tournament, because that back nine anything can happen. We were right in it. When I made those three birdies I had a chance. If that putt on 16 goes in, maybe things will go a little bit different and I put a little bit more pressure on Boo. But I'm sure he would have handled it great.

Q. Do you have to just shrug your shoulders, on 10 he could be in a little trouble and he chipped it in. On 14 you're in pretty good position waiting to putt, and he jams one in. If it didn't hit the cup, it might have rolled off into the water.

KIM: Well, it didn't (laughter). I can't think of it that way. He did what he had to do. I had my share of good breaks this week, and he had a couple and he had some bad breaks as well. All in all you've got to take the good with the bad. You just keep playing hard.

Q. This going to help with your new house payments?

KIM: It should.

Q. You said yesterday that you didn't think last year you were ready to be in this position. How did you feel when you went and teed it up today, were you ready?

KIM: Well, I tell you the first couple of holes I was a little bit uncomfortable out there. I hadn't been in this position as a professional, but it's been a while even in amateur golf, because in college you don't play in the last group; you play tee times according to how your team played.

So I was a little bit uncomfortable on the first couple of holes, but I was struggling with my swing starting yesterday. I knew it was going to be a little bit of a struggle, but I was just trying to make some birdies and gut it out. I hung in there pretty good, but it wasn't good enough.

Q. Will you be better prepared the next time?

KIM: Absolutely. I think so. I feel like I could have let it get away from me today if I didn't have a good attitude. I learned a lot today. Boo pretty much taught me face to face what I've got to do to win a golf tournament.

He did a great job.

Q. Are you consciously making an effort to stay calmer after the six at No. 9, were you consciously trying to stay calm?

KIM: Absolutely. There was a good chance that a couple of years ago I might have walked over to No. 10 with about eight clubs in the bag (laughter).

ALEXANDER: Let's go through your scorecard real quick there. You made bogey on 2.

KIM: I hit a poor drive, not a great second shot. A terrible third from about 180, plugged it in the downslope lip of the bunker behind the green, and made a 5-footer for bogey. I felt fortunate to get away there.

ALEXANDER: Birdie on 6.

KIM: I hit a terrible 3-wood off the tee. It went almost in the hazard, hit an unbelievable shot from the bunker with an 8-iron and made a 12-footer for birdie.

ALEXANDER: Double bogey on 9.

KIM: I don't even know what I hit. 5-iron off the tee there, and just laid the sod over it with the lob wedge trying to hit it over the tree. Shouldn't have tried to swing so hard, and plugged it in the bunker, and had 40 feet left and three-putted there.

ALEXANDER: Birdie on 13.

KIM: I had two good shots about three feet, made that.

ALEXANDER: 14.

KIM: Hit a 6-iron to about eight feet and made that.

ALEXANDER: Birdie on 15.

KIM: I hit two good shots or three good shots and made about an 8-footer there.

ALEXANDER: And bogey on 16.

KIM: I missed about a 10-footer after driving it in the trees on the right.

ALEXANDER: Thank you for joining us.