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SHRINERS HOSPITALS FOR CHILDREN OPENOctober 17, 2014Russell KnoxQ. Well done. RUSSELL KNOX: Thank you, yeah. I was pleased with that today. I didn't get off to the greatest start but stayed patient and got some good results on the back nine. Q. You stumbled out of the gate a little bit with bogeys at 2 and 3. Did you start pressing at all? RUSSELL KNOX: I got a bit worried, though, because I was all over the map. I didn't feel real good with my swing, and I knew if I just made some pars, eventually something would click, and I made a couple putts, which really settled me down. Q. A technical adjustment? RUSSELL KNOX: Oh, just a little bit. I hit a poor tee shot off the first, and nobody likes to do that, so I just needed to see some good shots, and that settled me down. Q. I was impressed with your discipline not going for 16 in two. Was the lie dicey enough where it wasn't even considered at the par‑5? RUSSELL KNOX: I made that mistake last year, so maybe that's a sign I've got a year older, a year wiser. I laid up. I wouldn't have been able to hold the green. It probably would have went back bunker, so I was proud of my decision. Q. Really nice birdie on the final hole, as well. RUSSELL KNOX: Yeah, it's always nice. That tee shot is not too comfortable for me, and I hit probably the best drive of the year so far and just hit a little wedge in there and made a nice putt. Q. Are you comfortable in the last group? RUSSELL KNOX: Yeah, I mean, I think it's my time hopefully. This year I would love to be up there all the time. I've been in this position before on this course the last couple years. I've played nicely and just haven't really played well four days, so I'm off to a good start, and hopefully two more good ones to go. Q. How much harder did it play in the afternoon? It seemed like there's a pretty decent difference. RUSSELL KNOX: I mean, the greens just get firm and crusty and there's footprints, so the putting is probably the hardest part. Just coming into the par‑5s, the greens don't really hold that well. Just they're a little sketchy in the afternoon. Q. You shot a fair amount of low numbers. Do you feel like your putter gets hot? RUSSELL KNOX: I don't know what it is about this course. I feel comfortable off the tee, and from then on in, my iron play is one of my strengths, and I've putted great so far. I don't know, I like this course. Q. What's the shortened version of how you got to JU? Did you and Mike meet at all? RUSSELL KNOX: No, I joined a recruiting agency called First Point UK, and they got in touch with schools, and I pretty much had a list of schools that were interested. I don't think there was any big schools on there, but I went over to visit Jacksonville University with my dad, and I would have went to the first place I visited because I was so in awe. Everything was so cool. Q. I don't know if you see THE PLAYERS over there. Did you know a little bit about the area because of the TOUR and TPC, or was it just a coincidence? RUSSELL KNOX: Really it was just a coincidence. I just wanted to go somewhere warm, and I was pretty happy to just go to Florida and get to play golf all year‑round. Q. What was the biggest thing for the progression last year? RUSSELL KNOX: I think you have to be so selfish, and when I first came out, I wanted to be friends with everyone and I wanted people to like me, for a big‑name guy to put his arm around me, and then when I just realized they don't care about you, they don't care about anyone, everyone is just in it for themselves, and that's why I love this game, because it is, you'll step on your best friend's throat on Sunday afternoon to beat him, and that's what makes golf so great. I think whenever I finally realized that you've just got to stand on the first tee and be like, you know what, I'm a man and it's me versus the course, and kind of screw everyone else. Q. Are you cold‑blooded now? RUSSELL KNOX: Not really. I say that, it sounds a lot worse than it is, but I mean, of course I'm friendly with a lot of guys, and I wish everyone else I'm playing against the best of luck. You've just got to be wrapped up in your own little world. Q. How long did you know you wanted to go to college in the States? RUSSELL KNOX: Probably when I was about 16 or so. I just realized, I need to go play golf and see what happens. Q. Where is Inverness in Scotland? RUSSELL KNOX: It's way up north. Q. Coastal or inland? RUSSELL KNOX: It's kind of coastal. It's on a V, so there is water. It's on the coast, yeah. Q. So the weather is pretty bad in the winter? RUSSELL KNOX: The winters are pretty mild. You can play golf year‑round if you're a complete looney. Q. How good were you entering college freshman year? RUSSELL KNOX: I mean, I thought I was really good, but I didn't realize how unbelievable everyone was over here. If I would have went to a bigger school and tried to walk on like a Georgia or Alabama, I probably would have quit because I would have been like, wow, I'm really bad. So I think going to a smaller school and being the No.1 or No.2 guy really helped me kind of grow confidence, and then I just naturally improved, and then when I was playing against the top guys, I was a little more prepared. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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