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MASTERS TOURNAMENT

April 6, 2017

Matthew Fitzpatrick

Augusta, Georgia

Q. Little bit of a roller coaster round, especially on the back nine. What happened on 18?
MATTHEW FITZPATRICK: Just didn't really feel comfortable over the tee shot. My low one's lower than everyone else's, so I can actually kill someone at head high, so I didn't feel comfortable with people sort of poking their head round. Should have backed off it and got everyone to move. So I'll do that the rest of the week.

Q. Was that the highest yardage a caddie's ever given you? I think I heard 367.
MATTHEW FITZPATRICK: No, no, that's almost back at the tee. So, no, it was 267 to the front. Yeah.

Q. What was your thought on that second shot?
MATTHEW FITZPATRICK: We were just trying to get it up there. Trying to get it in the trap, to be honest. So, if anything we almost got too lucky, the lie was on a tee, so we didn't want that. I almost wanted it plugged, if anything. So then you can sort of duff it and run it out up the hill. But you learn.

Q. On 15, did the wind change your mentality a little bit? Did you have to play a little safer?
MATTHEW FITZPATRICK: 15? The pitch?

Q. Yeah.
MATTHEW FITZPATRICK: Just seeing Jordan's, I always was going to plan on playing a 54 rather than a 58. I was sort of a little surprised that he hit 58 with it being a bit soft there. So, it was easy to, obviously, spin it back and end up in the water. So we tried to do the same on 13 as well, play a lower, one bounce, stop, and it worked well on 15.

Q. Both your partners put it in the water on 15. You obviously didn't. Does the wind force you to play that hole a little more conservatively?
MATTHEW FITZPATRICK: Yeah, it did, in the fact that I couldn't reach in two. But, I mean, we were always, we discussed in the morning that we were trying to pick a club up, hit it softer, in order to control the ball flight a little easier. So that's what we did.

Q. On 18 you just felt like you were, it was just a, they were kind of close to you, the spectators?
MATTHEW FITZPATRICK: Yeah, a little bit. I like sort of teeing it up on the right side of the tee and so I'm near to everyone as it is. And you've seen the famous photograph of everyone sort of looking down there and poking their head out, so you know that suddenly it sort of creeps in on you and I just didn't want to kill anyone.

Q. Overall the conditions, what did you think, how did it affect the entire round?
MATTHEW FITZPATRICK: Yeah, it was tough. There's no one going out there shooting an unbelievably low score. Obviously Thomas Pieters had it going early, but it sort of went away on the back. But I think that that's the thing around here, you just got to be so patient and every shot you got to think about it. You got to think about how you're hitting it and how far you're hitting it and you got to always be switched on, so...

Q. When you chipped in on 14, did you say, well this is the kind of thing you need on a day like this to get some momentum?
MATTHEW FITZPATRICK: Absolutely. I see it on TV all the time. If I got an afternoon tee time and the morning guys go out and see a few go in because it's windy, particularly The Open Championship, and you're thinking, that's what I need today, so, yeah, it helps.

Q. Did you enjoy, do you enjoy playing with such a high profile group? What did you think when you saw the other two?
MATTHEW FITZPATRICK: Yeah, it was fantastic. I'm good friends with Martin as it is and I played with Jordan only once before, in the Open Championship, in 2013, when I was an amateur. But I would probably be bold enough to say he's probably America's favorite golfer, so, it was fantastic to play with the crowds like that.

Q. Plenty of positives then to take from today.
MATTHEW FITZPATRICK: Yeah, it's a solid day, really. If you look at the leaderboard, no one's really running away with it. It's easy to place yourself out of it on a day like today. You come in with a 78 or 79 and before you know it you're battling to make the cut and compete. So, no, it was good.

Q. What's it like being out there when you know there's birdies to be had and there's also double bogeys to be had. You mentioned Pieters, he had it to 5 and he finished even. It's crazy, right?
MATTHEW FITZPATRICK: Yeah, absolutely it's easily done. You have a couple of bad holes in a row, a few water balls and before you know it you sort of drop down the leaderboard fast. So, yeah, it's just one of those things that you just got to be patient and really plan your way around.

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