	products recent interviews FastScripts archive about ASAP Sports

Our Clients:

Browse by Sport

Find us on

Subscribe to RSS

Click to go to
Asaptext.com

View our
e-Brochure

THE GREENBRIER CLASSIC

July 6, 2017

Davis Love III

White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia

Q. Davis Love, how about that start? Four birdies in the first five holes. Could you have imagined a better start than that today?
DAVIS LOVE, III: No. That's about as good as it gets. I hit it stiff at the 1st hole, made a nice putt at the 2nd hole, and actually had a look at it at the 3rd hole.

Then 4 and 5 I just was rolling it really well, hitting it really well. You know on a day like today you're going to have to get your good round in.

This is as good a scoring conditions as we're going to get probably for the whole week. I'm glad I took advantage of it.

Q. Your impressions of the course and what the folks here at the Greenbrier were able to do to get the course ready for the tournament this year and the first day of competitive play of the Greenbrier Classic.
DAVIS LOVE, III: Well, yeah, to get anything back in order out there would've been an incredible feat, but what they did with the renovation, to take really, really good golf course with a lot of history and make it even better; the redesign is incredible. The players are just raving about it.

The condition obviously is incredible. Nobody's played on it until we got on it. It's just amazing what this community has done and what Mr. Justice has done with the golf around here.

Q. A 63, your best round here at the Greenbrier. Any inkling of this sort of round coming for you based on recent play, practice, otherwise?
DAVIS LOVE, III: Based on recent scoring average, no. Based on good attitude, yeah. I've been working really hard the last couple weeks on trying to fix my swing to kind of swing around a stiff back and stiff hip.

I put a lot of time in hitting balls and trying to get back to hitting it solid. I've given it up on hitting it a long way. I'm just saying I just got to hit it straight. This is a perfect golf course for me. If you get it in the fairway, everybody has an opportunity from the fairway.

A lot of hard work is kind of starting to pay off, and hopefully the rest of the summer I can keep it going.

Q. People just waking up this morning and you're already making a charge. How did you get off to the quick start?
DAVIS LOVE, III: Well, the greens were perfect. I hit it in the fairways. That's the main thing here. If you get it in the fairway you can shoot at the flags.

I hit a few balls really close to the hole and had really some kick-in birdies, which is nice, off nine irons and wedges.

Then hit a lot good 5 irons, long shots in. Had birdie opportunities. I birdied the 11th, which is one of the harder holes.

Then when I did screw up I chipped in. So I'd hit it 35 feet with a wedge and make it or miss the green with a wedge and chipped in. I had a couple that could have gone either way and I made birdies when I could have made pars.

That turned the round from something good to something great.

Q. Leading up to the tournament you talked about how much you liked the redesign. When you're in a positive frame of mind, how often does that lead to good results?
DAVIS LOVE, III: It always does when I come here. I have had a lot of rounds under par here. I have always enjoyed playing the golf course. Now it's even better than it was before the flood. The renovation is incredible.

I just love this style of golf course, and so I get excited when I get here. I was pointing out everything to my son all the way around the golf course. I'm sure he was getting tired of hearing it.

But it's a treat to play a golf course like this. I had a really good attitude coming in.

Q. Davis, excellent start. Some comments on a great day.
DAVIS LOVE, III: Well, obviously a hot start. Hit the fairway on 1 and hit it about two feet for a kick-in birdie, and that's always a great way to start your morning. Made a nice putt at 2 from about 15 feet for birdie. Just really never was in trouble the first nine.

And then hit a couple bad shots on the back nine and got away with them or got the ball up and down. Fatted a wedge at 17 short of the green and chipped it in.

Everything went right today. I didn't make every putt, but I hit a lot of really, really solid putts and hit a lot of fairways and greens.

Yesterday my scorekeepers, when we were riding in from No. 9 in the pro-am, they said, You only missed two fairways and greens today. You're really hitting it good. They noticed that I put in a lot of work and I was hitting the ball well.

Did the same thing today.

Q. Talk about the birdie at 17; that was a bonus.
DAVIS LOVE, III: I had a couple that were bonuses. At 14, I hit it in the middle of green with a wedge. Not a great shot; 35-footer and made it.

Then again trying to get cute with a wedge into 17 I fatted it short of the green and chipped it in.

But I been trying to do things to get more confidence, so yesterday when I finished the pro-am, even though it was kind of drizzly rain, I went and chipped a bunch out of the rough, chipped a bunch out of these tight lies.

I told my caddie after I chipped in on 17, That was that half hour, 45 minutes last night of putting in a little bit more time and getting some confidence.

I've been working hard, and hopefully the rest of the summer is going to pay off.

Q. You were in the same group as Robert today and he was making putts as well. Does that kind of give you extra motivation to keep playing at that high level?
DAVIS LOVE, III: Yeah, I got some early and then he started making some, and right behind us Graham was making birdies.

It was one of those days where you knew there were going to be some really good scores. The greens are perfect. Thursday morning on tour are the best greens of the week. Not going to get any better than that.

There was hardly any wind maybe until the 10th or 11th hole. Just an ideal day for scoring, and you want to take advantage of that.

Q. If it stays warm the rest of the week and then dries out a little bit, Saturday and Sunday will be a bit more difficult, won't they?
DAVIS LOVE, III: Yeah, the greens are still bouncing even with the rain we got the last couple days. A wedge will spin back but a 5-iron won't stop. You can tell in a couple days if it stays dry they're going to get firm.

New greens are always firm. Practiced that the last three days and prepared for it.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297