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THE PRESIDENTS CUP

September 28, 2017

Jersey City, New Jersey

MARK WILLIAMS: Branden, you've kept your undefeated record from a couple years ago, continued today, a 3 & 1 victory. Give us an overview of your match.

BRANDEN GRACE: We knew coming this morning when we arrived it was going to be a tough day with conditions out there and it was just a grind. But Louis and I, again, we stuck to the guns. We made the clutch things when we had to out there and you know, kept the momentum going.

You know, Scotty was very positive out there today, as well, and he came up and said to us before we teed off, you know, I need to keep the record at 6-0, and Louis 5 1/2-0. I'm happy the way it turned out and it was a good day for us.

MARK WILLIAMS: Your feeling being 3 1/2 to 1 1/2 after the first session?

LOUIS OOSTHUIZEN: It was a massive half-point for us on the last hole. Leish and Jason came back nicely, and you know, we needed that. We needed any points on that last match. Didn't look like we was going to get one but it worked out nicely at the end.

You know, we seem to be trailing every time after the first day, and then sort of find our feet and go from there. I think tomorrow is a big day for us being better-ball, and we need to win tomorrow's session.

MARK WILLIAMS: Just some thoughts on your match. You and Jason were down three after seven holes and turned it around in the middle and ended up all-square at the end.

MARC LEISHMAN: Yeah, very up-and-down match. Being 3-down after we win four holes in a row and we're up and we're back to square and up again and a bit all over the place. You know, it was a typical match play match, I guess, up-and-down, you know, to get a halve out of it was probably disappointing but also pleasing, kind of mixed emotions.

We could have easily lost it with Phil's putt there on the last. To get a halve -- we've just got to hopefully look at that halve as hopefully it will be very important at the end of the week. Look at all the positives that came out of today.

Q. Didn't seem like there was a lot of rhythm. Was it weather conditions or was it difficult to get a rhythm going, especially being alternate-shot and the conditions as they were?
LOUIS OOSTHUIZEN: I think the way that the wind was blowing, like you say, you could so easily make a bogey by hitting one bad shot and we sort of couldn't really early on get a nice rhythm. We started nicely with birdies on 2 and 4 but I hit two bad iron shots and sort of lost a bit of rhythm and made bogeys and lost the one hole, or lost both.

I think in the conditions it was today, it's tough. It's tough to have rhythm the whole way around. But the last six holes, we sort of picked ourselves up and I made a nice clutch putt on 12 for a halve and then we sort of just got the momentum going there.

Q. Was the turning point, 12, and to get the lead on 13?
LOUIS OOSTHUIZEN: I didn't hit a great second shot and I left him with a tough chip, and I sort of felt that it was a big putt to lose that hole, go 1-down, only having 90 yards in would have been a really bad one for us. But then I hit a good tee shot on 13 and Branden a great second. So we just sort of really played solid from there.

Q. You play so well together; is it your personalities are complimentary or your games? Which one do you think?
BRANDEN GRACE: I think it's a bit of both, really. We play similar styles of golf. We both hit it similar distances. You know, we actually both get very streaky at stages, as well. We are good mates. We live close to each other in Palm Beach and similar back home and things like that and we get along great; and being the record we have after the last one gives us a lot of confidence coming into this one. I know you can't ride on past success but it is nice knowing that you have done it and you can do it again. And it reflected today.

Our point was really important, and hopefully we inspire a little bit of the team, as well, and hopefully we can all just get in there tomorrow and get the win. We definitely need as much points as possible tomorrow.

Q. Who is the more talkative of the two of you, the more fiery?
LOUIS OOSTHUIZEN: I'm just pointing to him, yeah. I just do whatever he tells me do.

BRANDEN GRACE: (Laughing).

Q. Was there any discussion at all about maybe you guys not playing this week, and how did Nick sort of approach you guys, saying, you're in it 100 percent?
LOUIS OOSTHUIZEN: No, I think -- I spoke to Nick just saying foursomes I think we should play together because our games are pretty similar. We play the same golf ball. I think today was massive golf ball-wise, especially in windy conditions. You might have your partner's ball which spins different than yours, and in wind it looks a lot worse than what you're normally used to. Obviously it was both sides the same.

But yeah, I think better-ball, we might still -- something might still happen that we don't play together. But I sort of told Pricey, I want to play with him in foursomes.

Q. You guys have been in this hole before after day one. What's the team room chemistry tonight, and how do you get that momentum going into tomorrow?
BRANDEN GRACE: Listen, we're half a point better than last time, so that's a big up for us (laughs).

I tell you, the same thing. Our team, we've got a great team. The support from all the guys on the team has been great. You know, we all want it really badly. So you know, it's nice to see guys like Grillo and them coming out and see how actually badly they want it, when Leish had won the last hole.

So those things are going to come out tonight. I think it was an eye-opener for them today, because I don't care what anybody says. Your first Presidents Cup is nerve-wracking, it really is, especially when you come out to play in New York. But yeah, I'm sure we're going to have a good night and then going to come back tomorrow blazing.

Q. You mentioned it felt like a win and a loss; how do you turn it into being just positives going forward tonight?
MARC LEISHMAN: I mean, I'm a pretty positive person I feel like, so that will be reasonably easy. You know, the easiest thing to turn it into that is just think about what that half a point could mean at the end of the week; how much we would have paid for that extra point in Korea. You know, one match here and there, and that could make a difference.

We're very close to not winning with Phil having that putt on the last. He hit a great putt. Just putting in the wind is tough, and a halve is better than a loss.

Q. Did you feel sort of that you were in control at any stage of that match, because as you were down and got back, was there any point you thought you were in control?
MARC LEISHMAN: Not really. You can be up, but 1-up's really nothing. Especially on a course like this where there's a lot of water. You know, the pins, there's a lot of short-sided spots that are terrible and so you cannot hit that bad a shot, or you can hit a good shot and just misjudge the wind and you know, end up in a bad spot.

You know, you have to grind all day. It's who deals with the pressure and the situation best, and probably to be honest, the halve was probably a fitting result.

Q. What do you think worked well between you and Jason today and what would you have liked to have done a little better?
MARC LEISHMAN: I think we both play similar games. We're both very aggressive, and we're great mates. Basically the start of the day, we said just play your own game, and wherever you hit it, we'll deal with it then. I think that's a good way to play it.

Yeah, that's probably the best way to put it. We're just both pretty easygoing.

Q. Could you compare the team down by two points after the first session, can you compare that to a regular tournament, and how much is it within sights for a second session?
MARC LEISHMAN: What do we have, five matches tomorrow? A good day tomorrow, and obviously the Americans are a great team, but fourball, we've been stronger in in the past. If we have a good day tomorrow, there's no reason why we can't be leading at the end of of tomorrow, and that's what we've got to, that has to be our goal, I think. Most of the guys are playing well. Got some of the first-round nerves out of the way. Like the boys said, it's nerve-wracking playing your first Presidents Cup. On that first tee, I still nerve-wracking in your third.

Yeah, we've just got to play good. Got to drive it better than what I did today. But you know, hopefully the matches set up good for us tomorrow and we can make up some ground.

Q. Historically, obviously, after the first session, if you lose, the Cup has gone the other way. How do you see this group of 12 guys different than the other groups you've played with before?
LOUIS OOSTHUIZEN: I think there's quite a few of us that played now in the last three together. So it feels more comfortable around -- we feel more comfortable around each other. Yeah, and I mean, every time we have a good spirit, everyone's was awesome, the way we came back and tried to, or nearly done it at the end there.

We are playing well. We had some great momentum going into this week, and I think in conditions like it was today, I don't think we are really going to look too much at the score, although we are two behind.

You know, tomorrow is a different day, and the guys are hungry. You can see the rookies on the team are really up for it. They speak to us. They really are into it and that's great to see. My first one, I was just sitting in the corner and watching everyone. But these guys are really into it. We've got great team spirit.

MARK WILLIAMS: Thank you for your time and good luck tomorrow.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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THE PRESIDENTS CUP

September 28, 2017

Marc Leishman

Branden Grace

Louis Oosthuizen