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ARNOLD PALMER INVITATIONAL PRESENTED BY MASTERCARD

March 17, 2017

Emiliano Grillo

Orlando, Florida

Q. Your thoughts today?
EMILIANO GRILLO: Yeah, it was kind of a very up-and-down round out there. Somehow managed to post a good round. I didn't hit it good off the tee and I was trying with that. But I was very lucky today, I made a couple chip-ins on the first two par-5s I was on the front nine and that kept me going really hard and I was able to hang on the back nine.

Q. You played the par-5s in 6-under par. I felt like the chip-in on 12, that save on 15 for the par-4 really looked like that kept you on and gave you some momentum.
EMILIANO GRILLO: Yeah, it was a very bad tee shot, I wasn't able to get all the way into the bunker from there, it was a very tough third shot. It was obviously a great putt, and like I say, those two eagles kept me going, but I think those, that save on 18 there, those things they really helped me around.

Q. So thoughts toward the weekend now?
EMILIANO GRILLO: Just play from the fairway, that's going to be key. Somehow, like I say, I managed to shoot a very good round, considering how bad I hit it off the tee today.

Q. 4-under 68, how would you describe today's second round for you?
EMILIANO GRILLO: Yeah, very up-and-down. I made a chip-in twice on the front nine for two eagles. That's going to help everybody's round. So, I was able to hang on the back nine. Something happened, I mean, I hit it absolutely perfect off the tee yesterday and today I was not able to do so. So, I'm going to try to hit some balls and get ready for tomorrow.

Q. How do you try to get back to the form you had in the first round, at least confidence wise?
EMILIANO GRILLO: No, the confidence is there, I'm one shot back of the lead, and that's not a mistake. So, just practice, like I say, try and do my routine and my basic, try and work on my basics and get back tomorrow.

Q. How does this golf course play the last couple of days in terms of the rough and the greens?
EMILIANO GRILLO: Well yesterday morning it was brutal. It was very cold. We were playing in almost freezing conditions. And today it's perfect. Wearing shirts all day and really enjoying not a single cloud out there. The course is magnificent and just got to go out and play your game.

Q. The leaderboard, Charley Hoffman, Fitzpatrick, have you played with either? What do you know about those guys?
EMILIANO GRILLO: I never played with Mathew. I know he's a great player. I played on the, I think the last year that I was on the European Tour I played with him, I know he's a great player, he's won many times on the European Tour and that's not easy. I know Charley very well, I played with him about four or five rounds or times with him. I get along with him. So it's going to be a fun day tomorrow.

Q. So that will be a comfortable pairing for you?
EMILIANO GRILLO: Yeah, definitely. I get along with him and his caddie, so it's going to be a fun day.

Q. What are you going to work on?
EMILIANO GRILLO: I've been working on my path, make it the same straight back and straightforward. I think I mentioned to you a couple weeks ago that the line of my putt was doing like an 8. It was a little bit inside or outside coming in, it was all over the place. And I was just trying to make it very Semple, straight back and straightforward.

Q. How much is that a key for your game?
EMILIANO GRILLO: Oh, it's everything. It's everything because if you fit the fairway and hit the green and don't make the putt and make par, it's the same as missing the fairway and missing the green and getting it up-and-down. Out here you have to make the putts to be in contention and that's what it takes to win the tournament. The more putts you make, the easier it's going to be for anyone.

Q. Did your ball hit something in the fairway on number 3?
EMILIANO GRILLO: 3?

Q. Took a weird bounce left toward the water.
EMILIANO GRILLO: No, I don't know. I don't know. I hit it perfectly, big bounce to the left maybe a divot or pitch mark or something. I don't know.

Q. Were you worried it was going to go in for a second?
EMILIANO GRILLO: Yeah, for the first second and then I saw it was going straight forward. I mean, it kept going left, but it was going forward, so it was okay, I was just like worried it wasn't that much left. It was fine.

Q. Speaking of which, was your heart in your throat a little bit on the 6th hole? Your tee shot there.
EMILIANO GRILLO: Yeah, I don't know, I don't know, today I was missing everything left. Everything was left. All the balls were starting left and going left. Driver, woods, irons, everything. So I knew that I had a lot of space left, even though -- and I was aiming almost to the bunker, which is 40 yards right of where my ball ended -- so, yeah, a little bit, when I saw it land, I was like, well, that's fine. I kind of knew it was going to go over, but I didn't think it was going to be that close. It was a very soft landing in there.

Q. The chip looked like it was going to run out a little bit. Did you hit that harder than you wanted or was it a good chip? On 16?
EMILIANO GRILLO: On 16? No, it was, it came out a little funny, there was a lot of grass behind the ball, kind of thought it was going to come out softer and it just went very low, with a lot of spin in there. It wasn't going to go too far, but it went in.

Q. It went down.
EMILIANO GRILLO: It went down. That's all that matters.

Q. What club did you hit on 12?
EMILIANO GRILLO: 3-wood.

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