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NORTHERN TRUST OPENFebruary 18, 2016Rory McIlroyPacific Palisades, California RORY McILROY: I felt for the most part I played well, got off to a nice start, 2-under through two, and that 10th hole here, you want to get off to a decent start there. I would have taken a four on that 10th hole today but it was nice to make a three and get off to a good start. Felt like I hit the ball pretty well from tee-to-green. Put myself out of position a couple of times, but with the way the conditions of the golf course were, it didn't punish you as bad as if it would have been as firm as it was the last couple of days. Tee-to-green was pretty good, but I felt like my pace on the greens was good. I left myself a lot of longer putts and I felt like my pace was good and I lag putted well. I think all of the things that you need to do around this golf course, I did pretty well today and I'm happy with a 4-under. Q. Is there any sense of surprise that the pace was so good on the greens, given the difference in conditions? RORY McILROY: No, I didn't feel like the pace had changed that much. Overnight it was just the softness of them, really. They might have got a little bit slower, but I'm always wary of putting towards the ocean here because some of these putts can really get away from you. Like the putt on 4 that I had, for example, on the front right of the green, I was really trying to get that halfway and trying to let sort of gravity do the rest of the work. There was a lot of putts like that today that I felt like I judged very well, and maybe as the week goes on, the greens will get a bit firmer and a bit faster. Feel like I adjusted well today. Q. Does it feel like a golf course you're going to be able to move your ball around? RORY McILROY: Yeah, it really is. I feel like you get on each tee box and you really -- some golf courses sort of decide the shape of the shot for you, and in some cases, this is true here, but there's also some holes where you can stand up on a tee shot and you can see a variety of different ways to play it, so it gives you options in that way. Anyone who is -- with the trees and the way the golf course is designed, I think anyone who is very visual in their pre-shot routine, it plays into their hands, and I like to see shots and I like to see Bubba shoot a good score. He's the exact same way. Q. How many courses do you play where it seems the golf course is almost as big a star as the guy who is playing it? RORY McILROY: That's a good question. It happens a handful of times a year. Obviously you've got Augusta, somewhere like this, Riviera. Q. Majors. RORY McILROY: Going back to somewhere like Oakmont this year, for example. But yeah, it happens a handful of times a year. We had it last year at The Irish Open at Royal County Down. That was a big reason why it attracted a lot of guys. It's always nice to come to historic golf courses like this and play because -- without naming courses or naming names, there's some that we go to on TOUR that are not quite as enjoyable to play. Q. Like what? RORY McILROY: (Laughter). Q. Is it now a bomber's course, after the rain? RORY McILROY: No, I still don't think so, because it doesn't play that long. You've got the 11th hole, which I guess plays a bit longer and just the longer guys can get up on that par 5. It's still a strategic golf course, even if you are hitting maybe driver, where yesterday you would hit a 3-wood or a 5-wood, you've still got to place your ball on the right side of the fairway to give yourself a good angle into these greens. You still have to plot your way around. Q. You mentioned being happy with a par on 10, what's your strategy there and what do you think of the hole? RORY McILROY: Just hit it left, basically. Anywhere over that sort of, that bunker at 260, if you can hit it over there and just try and get it green high, even if you're in amongst those little trees there, you'll find some sort of shot to run it up on to the green and at least you have the length of the green to work with. We were -- they used the call-up system today and we were calling the group up and one of the guys behind us, I'm not sure who it was, hit it like 50 yards short of the green on the right side of the fairway and Kuch and I looked at each other and went, that's not good. It's one of those greens that if you try to go for that pin, it's so difficult to hit the green. You have to hit a perfect golf shot. I like it. It's a 300-yard hole. The hole played over par last year. It's a great design. I wouldn't change it. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports   |
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