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TRAVELERS CHAMPIONSHIP

June 23, 2017

Patrick Reed

Cromwell, Connecticut

Q. Patrick, lot of players were talking about the windy conditions and how that manipulated the ball. How did you put together that 56, despite the conditions?
PATRICK REED: Really just staying patient. A golf course like this, even when the wind is blowing, if you're hitting your tee shots straight, you're going to have some wedges into the greens. To start off and make a long putt on the first just kind of gave me the confidence on the green as well. Kind of one of those days I was able to keep the ball in play and give myself some opportunities to make some putts.

Q. It's a good feeling to finish the second round with a birdie on 18. Over the last month, what do you feel like has come together to put you in this position?
PATRICK REED: Really I feel like just scoring. I feel like I've been hitting the ball well all year. I feel like I've been putting pretty solid. It's just every once in a while there is something that's not quite there that day, and the numbers aren't adding up. Here recently, I feel like scores are starting to reflect how I'm playing and hopefully I can continue it all.

Q. Patrick, what a sweet way to finish the second round rolling in that birdie from 13 feet away to close out the second round?
PATRICK REED: Yeah, I feel like I was playing pretty well today. I feel like the only really bad golf swing I made was there on 16 which was my only drop shot. The big thing was trying to get a birdie coming in, just to finish the day off of how I felt like I was playing all day, which was pretty solid. To give myself a good opportunity there on 18 and hit the putt kind of right where I wanted to, that meant a lot.

Q. How good was the 66? It appeared you had pretty good control of the tee ball today as well?
PATRICK REED: Yeah, it was huge. This is the hardest I've seen the golf course play today than in the past couple years because it was just windy out there. Yeah, it was kind of switching a little bit from south, to south-southwest, back to south. So not only trying to figure out where the wind is coming from, but also how hard it's blowing, it made it a little more difficult out there than yesterday. So I'm just happy to come in, shoot a low number, and have a chance to win this golf tournament.

Q. How do you feel about the weekend? You were in contention last year and shot 66 on Sunday. You've got two big rounds ahead of you here in Cromwell, Connecticut?
PATRICK REED: Yeah, I feel good. I feel like the games where it needs to be. Really, the biggest thing is take it day by day and shot by shot. Go out and have some fun tomorrow and give yourself an opportunity to win a golf tournament on Sunday.

Q. Put yourself in great position heading into the weekend. How you feeling?
PATRICK REED: I feel good. Anytime I can come out and play kind of stress free golf like today, especially on a windy day like that, it gives you confidence going into the weekend. If you were hitting it just a little bit un-solid or not striking it as well as you want to, you can get the ball going sideways here, especially on a day like today where it's blowing. Having control with the tee ball and the iron shots just gave me confidence to go out and shoot a low number.

Q. Patrick, second shot on the par-5 there at 13, what did you hit, and talk about your up-and-down birdie?
PATRICK REED: I had 243 front, like 276 flag, dead into the wind. Didn't even think there was an opportunity to get the ball back to the flag. I knew the number was 253 cover water, which a hard 3 for me will cover 260, 265. So that was kind of in question.

Brother-in-law said aim at that bunker on the right and hit it hard. If you happen to turn it over, it's going to be probably on the front. If not, you're just kind of chipping off the green. It's one of those where it's absolutely right on the middle of the face, and it just went forever. All of a sudden I get up there and I was like wow, you kind of left yourself in the worst spot you possibly could without hitting it in the water.

At that point I was like, well, you need birdie. You can't play safe. So opened it up. I messed around with hitting flop shots all the time around the practice green. So this was nothing different. I hit a major flop, and I was able to pull it off, three feet and tap it in.

Q. The U.S. Open wasn't as treacherous as some have even in the past. But was it a nice change of pace to come here afterwards?
PATRICK REED: It is. It definitely makes you realize how wide those fairways were when you get to a place like this. Monday and Tuesday when you step up here for the first time and you start hitting those tee shots, the golf course is narrow compared to last week.

But last week was a huge golf course. So, just kind of a little different. You have slopy, but slow greens here this week. But you have narrow fairways. Last week you had fast and soft greens, but really, really long golf course and wide fairways.

Q. I think I asked you this at Wells Fargo. You put yourself in contention a lot this year. Is it a balancing act between using that as confidence and getting a little aggravated and having to stay patient?
PATRICK REED: Not really. I think the biggest thing is just staying patient. If anything, I try to get too aggressive a lot of times. Something like a day like today where it's blowing a lot, you know that the morning wave, they're going to shoot some low numbers and kind of get it going because the wind wasn't quite as hard this morning.

So you have to know that you have to kind of keep the foot down. Don't beat yourself up. Keep it going to give yourself a chance, because everyone will be playing around the same time over the weekend.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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