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THE MEMORIAL TOURNAMENT PRESENTED BY NATIONWIDE

June 3, 2016

Rickie Fowler

Dublin, Ohio

Q. Just curious, do you feel good with the game?
RICKIE FOWLER: Yeah, it's not the train you want to get on, the missed cut train. No, the game actually feels really good. I played well when I was off at home. I had some low scores and didn't swing it all that great yesterday, but on top of that, putting was really bad yesterday and today.

I felt like I hit a lot of good putts today, and nothing went in. Yesterday it was a combination of everything on the greens.

No, I'm looking forward to getting some good work in at home. Like I said, the swing felt really good today. Just tightened things up and definitely need to get the flat stick happy and ready to go.

Q. If you had a plan going into Oakmont based on your play here, will you change it at all?
RICKIE FOWLER: No, I'm planning on flying up Saturday afternoon. I think I have a first tee time out on Sunday. I think this is the first time they're doing actual tee times on a Sunday before. So I think I was planning on playing 18 that day and then having a match at some point, whether it's Tuesday or Wednesday. And stick to what we normally do the week of a major.

Q. What did the fan say?
RICKIE FOWLER: Oh, I missed the putt, and someone yelled nice putt, which is not exactly what you want to hear when you miss one to shoot 75.

Q. Have you heard worse?
RICKIE FOWLER: No, it wasn't that bad, but a long day on the greens and last thing I want to hear.

Q. What's your level of concern about going to Brazil?
RICKIE FOWLER: Obviously, we're looking at everything from the security side of things to everything -- all the developments with Zika and the continued kind of research and everything they're doing down there. Concerned? Yeah. I want to make sure that we look thoroughly through everything and make sure we're well prepared to go down there. I'm not on the team yet, but it's something I definitely want to do. But if it's too risky to go down, then we'd have to pull the plug.

The Olympics has been something that I've always watched growing up, and when it was announced a few years back that it was going to be back, it was somewhat of a dream come true to possibly have that happen. I want to do everything in my power to make sure we all feel comfortable on my team -- myself, my family, and everyone -- that it's -- you know, I don't think you can say it's the right decision one way or the other, but that we make an educated decision to go.

Q. You made a very big ace for Ernie's cause, his foundation. What was that like to see his reaction, to get that bear hug, and just to know how much that meant to him?
RICKIE FOWLER: Well, it was pretty scary when you have Louie coming at you first and Ernie's right behind him running full speed. It's one of my favorite pictures that I have. They got me a big blown up framed picture, and I'm still figuring out where I'm going to put it.

It was a cool moment. Probably one of the coolest moments I'm going to have in my career just because the situation where you have 18 to 20 or so pros, guys from all around the world -- we're not all going to be on the same team ever. Rory and I are never going to be on the same Ryder Cup team or Presidents Cup team or wherever it may be. And just to have everyone there, I mean, it was -- I don't know, it was as big of a celebration as you're ever going to see.

Q. Rickie, a lot of the groups that played this morning were raving about the weather, oh, this was great. It definitely heated up in the afternoon. How much do you think the heat and the lack of wind affected the players and affected the course?
RICKIE FOWLER: This afternoon -- yeah, both days were warm. We're used to playing through warm weather through the summer. There's nothing against that. Course has been good. The afternoon, typically the greens get a little bumpy here and there.

I think the tough thing the last two days -- I'm not sure how it was for the afternoon/morning wave, but I know yesterday in the morning and this afternoon, it was tough with the wind. It kept jumping around from different directions. So you play -- you'd be coming with your shot downwind, and it switches back in. So couple of miles an hour switch from one area to the other can have a difference of five and seven yards, and that's a big difference out here when you're trying to hit some two- or three-yard areas.

Q. How much since then have you seen Ernie around Ben?
RICKIE FOWLER: I see them a bit at Bears Club. I just saw Ben was out there last week. Ernie will have Ben in the cart with him every once and a while to come out and practice. So he's -- Ben's either always with Ernie hanging out or with Liesel. No, it's always fun to see them.

Q. So I can verify a story that Ben has a way of like expressing himself right when people Ernie's playing with, on their backswings?
RICKIE FOWLER: I haven't seen that, no.

Q. It's like his secret weapon?
RICKIE FOWLER: No, I haven't been out on the course with Ernie and Ben being there. I'm up for the challenge, though. Bring it on, Ben.

Q. How would you describe their relationship?
RICKIE FOWLER: It's definitely special to see what Ernie is doing with Els For Autism and for autism in general. Just to see his excitement when I did make the hole in one and what it was going to do for the foundation and them now going forward and building the upper school. And Ben was coming to the point where he was done with the lower school and wasn't going to have a place to go.

So not just for their own son, but obviously for other kids in the area to have that facility now in the works is, I think, that alone with the hole in one and just the culmination of the foundation probably means more to Ernie than any of his wins.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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