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U.S. AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP

August 18, 2015

Brett Coletta

Olympia Fields, Illinois

Q. Would you like to be on the Golf Australia team?
BRETT COLETTA: Yes, I would. I'm already on -- like we have the squad, and there's eight of us here. Not all of us are on the squad, but yeah, we have -- I'm in the team, and I'm very happy to be a part of it.

Q. (Inaudible.)
BRETT COLETTA: Definitely I got inducted last year November, so there's little perks that kind of help along the way, so I'm really -- really it's such an honor. It was one of my goals to get into that team, so to get into the team, the squad, is a really big bonus. Little perks here and there to help you along the way.

Q. Can you tell me a little bit about the perks?
BRETT COLETTA: There's a few -- I mean, coming to play these events, getting priority to play, coming to all these events. Like I was in Europe before here, and getting the opportunity to play over there was really good, just a good experience, and then coming over here, this is like my first time coming over here to play a full summer season of golf.

Q. How many events are you playing?
BRETT COLETTA: We were going to play one other, Porter Cup.

Q. How long have you been in the States then?
BRETT COLETTA: Starting mid-July, so about four weeks, just about four weeks.

Q. So it's mostly practicing then?
BRETT COLETTA: Yeah, so what I did, I played in the qualifying for this, qualified, and then played in the Porter Cup, and we also in Texas had a Houston camp, which every year runs for Golf Australia, so that was good. That's always great. Really happy to be a part of it. Then had Porter Cup after that, and then I was trying to get into Western but didn't in, so I had to kill a week because I qualified for this, so I went back and stayed with a friend in California and practiced.

Q. So the practice paid off. Great round today. What went right today?
BRETT COLETTA: I was just really solid like yesterday. I didn't make a bogey until the par-5 on the back, which was a silly bogey. I was just playing really solid golf. Yeah.

Q. What do you think about the difficulty of the golf courses? Is it one of those you've got to hit it straight and then make putts?
BRETT COLETTA: Yeah. I'm hitting my driver unbelievable, so having that extra distance and hitting it straight, having those short irons in really helps. I mean, the greens here are really tough, tough to read, and you've got the pin positions out there that are quite tucked. Yeah, I thought I played really well and really solid.

Q. The fact that you have spent a lot of time here in the United States and have not played a lot and practiced, does that speak to the importance of what the U.S. Amateur means to you and what it can bring to you if you have success here?
BRETT COLETTA: You know, at home, everyone says this is the tournament to get into. This is the tournament to win. This is the tournament to -- this is like the biggest experience you're going to get, and it's hyped up to be what it is. So I've come here, and all the stands are up, all you guys out here, the TV cameras will be out tomorrow. That's what it really hits. This is a great experience for me, coming to play this event, and to play well is even better.

Q. What about the fact that if your score holds up and you're near the top or you're the medalist or something like that, what would that mean to you?
BRETT COLETTA: That's just a bonus. My goal this week was to get into match play, and at this point it looks like I'm going to get in, so I've already achieved my first goal.

Q. How much better are you because of this program?
BRETT COLETTA: That's a tough question. I can't really put a pinpoint on it. But I feel that it's a gradual increase. Coming out here and having these scores at this event kind of shows the practice we're putting in and the facilities that we're able to access.

Q. How many of you are traveling together this summer?
BRETT COLETTA: We're not really traveling together. It's a bit different because in the U.S. it depends what tournaments you get into. So we're not really as a team, but when we come to these events, we're a squad. We've got the same bags, wearing the same gear, same hats.

Q. Hang out together?
BRETT COLETTA: Yeah, here and there.

Q. Do you have any relationship with Jason Day at all?
BRETT COLETTA: No, I haven't. I mean, he's one of my favorite golfers. No relationship, never met him. But just so happy for him. He deserves everything he gets.

Q. If it weren't for Golf Australia, would you have come over here to try to play?
BRETT COLETTA: I would have definitely tried to come over here, but Golf Australia have really excelled with my development, I feel, the last 12 months.

Q. What's your USGA background? Have you played any other events?
BRETT COLETTA: This is pretty much my first year coming to play the summer. Played a lot in Australia, all the junior events there, the Aussie Amateurs and all that stuff.

Q. What's the biggest win for you in your career?
BRETT COLETTA: I haven't really had a big win, but I've had a lot of top-5 finishes in big events, Victorian Junior and Nanjing Olympics, did really well last year, Porter Cup last week, top 5, a few events at home. I'm coming into good form here. I'm confident in myself. I just had to believe in myself, and I have, and it's paid off nice.

Q. The camp down in Texas, is that at the Woodlands?
BRETT COLETTA: Yes, that's right.

Q. Were you down there for a week?
BRETT COLETTA: Yeah, went down there for a week, late July.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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