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THE SENIOR OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP PRESENTED BY ROLEXJuly 28, 2017Steve FleschRoyal Porthcawl, Wales, United Kingdom Q. Even par 71 in these difficult conditions. As you walk off the 18th green, what are your emotions? You were 2-under going into 17 and then you go bogey, bogey. Are you still satisfied with the day or are you just stinging a little bit from that finish? STEVE FLESCH: Well, the bogey on 17, that's a tough hole. But bogey at 18, that's totally giving kind of a shot or two back. You know, you've got to drive it well out here, and that's kind of how I played the first couple days. I just kind of steered clear of the bunkers out there and kept it in play and really scrambled today. That was kind of the secret of why I played well. I didn't hit it that great but I just kept it in play and really scrambled. Especially on the front side. Bogey on 18 is a little sour but that's okay. I'm here for the weekend and ready to go. Q. How would you rate yourself as a poor condition player? STEVE FLESCH: Not good because I hate it. I don't mind links golf. I love links golf. But I can't stand rain. I don't mind if it's blowing 40 but rain really gets under my skin. I played well today. I wasn't looking forward to playing today but I hung in there and played well. Q. On that note, with not such optimism playing in the rain, what were you able to do so well in your opinion? STEVE FLESCH: Well, today, like I said, I scrambled well and putted really well on the front nine. I made saves from everywhere. I wasn't too far off line but I just got the ball up-and-down and then finally surprisingly when the rain did start coming on the ninth hole, I hit like six greens in a row and I don't know how that happened, either. I just plotted along out there and did all those cliché things that you have to do to play well in the rain. Good rain gloves are key. I pretty much abandoned the umbrella because it's so soaking in the wind that the umbrella doesn't really help. Q. You are going to have some tough conditions it looks like on the weekend. Is there any shift for you mentally now heading into the final 36? STEVE FLESCH: I just think I can play more aggressively out there. I mean, with the conditions, you couldn't play aggressively, I wouldn't think. I hit driver on a few holes where most guys may be laying up. I'm driving it well and I think I'll be a little more aggressive if it dictates on the weekends with some of the pin placements and whatnot. I want to play a little more aggressively. I don't like playing back so far on some of the holes. Although you have on a few. But I think to really be in the mix, my personality is to play a little more aggressively. So maybe on the weekend, I'll get a few more opportunities. Q. How hard was that? STEVE FLESCH: It was tough. Tests your patience quite a bit because it's easy to pack it in and be pretty frustrated out there. But I just kind of hung in there and chipped and putted very well, which is the key to me playing well today. Q. Was this one of the toughest conditions you've ever played in? STEVE FLESCH: Most definitely. You know, I don't mind wind. It can blow 40, 50 miles an hour and I don't mind it but I can't stand rain. I don't mind the rain. I don't mind rain but playing golf in it is no fun to me. Today was pretty tough but I'm a little surprised at how well I hung in there because usually my attitude kind of gets the best of me in conditions like this. I'm pleased with how I made. Q. Mental toughness the key then today? STEVE FLESCH: Yeah, I was just patient. I kind of was just looking forward to getting to the 18th hole all day. I just kept plodding along and you know, one hole down, and just kind of kept going. So I'm glad to be finished. I'm not happy with kind of how I finished but that's okay. I'm in a good spot for the weekend. Q. You're soaked and you're cold. What do you do tonight? STEVE FLESCH: You know, pizza sounds really good. Just a nice hot shower and a good sleep, and just a nice, hot pizza sounds good to me. Q. You're well placed. Do you fancy your chances this weekend? STEVE FLESCH: I do. I'm putting very well and I'm a good scrambler, and on a links course, you have to be able to scramble because you can get some funny hops. I'm just looking forward to hopefully maybe playing in some drier weather, although I'm not sure it's going to happen. Q. What's your favourite pizza? STEVE FLESCH: Just cheese. I just like a plain, cheese pizza. Q. Toughest conditions you've experienced on a golf course? STEVE FLESCH: Yeah, I've played in a lot of wind, and I don't mind wind. But when you throw the combination of rain in there, it's hard to stay dry. Really, the umbrella isn't much help at all, so you kind of abandon that. If you have a good pair of rain gloves, that helps. I had those with me this week. That was kind of first priority coming over. The rain really adds -- makes the elements exponentially tougher I think. It's hard enough playing links golf in high winds, but when everything is wet, too, your patience wears thin. It's just tough. And the ball doesn't go very far. It doesn't fly right. It's a tough day. Q. Level par 70, you must be delighted with that score. STEVE FLESCH: I played great. I made a couple blunders at the end, but I hung in there well all day and scrambled very well. So level par today, I knew it was going to be tough; I would have taken it before I even started. Q. Early/late, do you think you had the best part of the draw? STEVE FLESCH: You know, I was actually talking with Eamonn Darcy on the last couple holes; I mean, I don't know we got a great end of the draw, but I don't think it blew as hard on us as it maybe did on the late/early guys. I know they had a tough day yesterday and they had some really high winds this morning. So we might have gotten a break on, you know, a little less wind, but I think they had less rain. So hard to say. When you're teeing guys off from seven in the morning to three in the afternoon, that's kind of one of the elements of the draw. I'm happy where I am and I'm actually just really glad I'm finished. Q. One of the highlights of the round, the birdie putt on 16. Talk us through that. STEVE FLESCH: That was like an eagle, that hole. I'm sure the scoring average is well above four on that hole. I hit a nice 4-iron in there and kind of had a good read on the putt. My speed was right and I somehow made that 35-footer. It was nice. You know, it was kind of a surprise because I kind of really had not made anything outside of ten feet all day and I really didn't have a lot of chances. But that birdie putt on 16 was nice. It was nice to kind of get that going. But you know, two tough holes ahead of me still. Q. How long is it going to take to dry out, do you think? STEVE FLESCH: Well, considering I don't have a dryer or a washing machine, it might take a little longer. But we'll have that A/C cranked tonight, maybe get the humidity down and maybe use the blow dryer a little bit. Q. What's the plan now? STEVE FLESCH: Nice dinner. Nice hot pizza maybe. Just kind of dry out, warm up and get a good sleep. Ready for tomorrow. Q. Looking forward to tomorrow, being in contention for a major championship, must be exciting. STEVE FLESCH: Absolutely. It's going to be fun. It wouldn't be a major if it wasn't tough. So they are giving us a nice, tough test this week. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports   |
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