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MASTERS TOURNAMENT

April 8, 2018

Doug Ghim

Augusta, Georgia

Q. Some dramatics on 18 again.
DOUG GHIM: I can't believe it. Every single day I've been here I've been feeling a little bit better about my game and controlling the nerves and being able to perform the way I wanted to and I was a little frustrated at a certain point, I felt like I was playing better than what my score showed and I knew that I could have done better and I made some mistakes that I usually don't make. But then again I'm here on Sunday at the Masters and just the opportunity to be here alone was good enough and to be able to make the cut and have the honors of winning the low amateur trophy this week, I was just trying to make sure that I appreciate the moment and then don't let my emotions get in the way and I got to 18 and it was close to hitting a really good 5‑iron, I think I had like 195 in, just pulled it a little bit and got over the bunker shot and I just, Tyrrell just made it and I was thinking, well, let's see, I mean, I had a pretty good line, I had a good lie, I had a lie which I felt like I could spin it and it came off well, it was on a good line and I was like, just, please, give it a chance, and it went in. I heard it hit the pin and then I heard the crowd just go nuts again and it was pretty cool to give them a show and the end the week on a positive note.

Q. Later today you're going to be in Butler Cabin, you're going to be out here for the awards ceremony, what's that moment going to be like for you and your family considering all that your parents have done for you growing up and just your whole golf journey, all the close calls, to have this moment tonight?
DOUG GHIM: It's going to be crazy. It's going to be emotional, of course. This whole week has been emotional. I felt like this week, among other amateurs as well, that we have had it harder than maybe some of the pros, because just the emotional aspect of it, it's a family week. I think any people playing for the first time they have got that extra factor. When you played it once and you kind of know what you're getting into and it's like, mom, dad, just go eat over there, I'm going to go eat in the locker room. But it's just, being mindful and understanding that it's as special of a week for my family as it is for me and I understand how important it is to them as well and to be able to celebrate with them this week and tonight is going to be something that I'll never forget. I can't say exactly what it's going to be like until it's there, I mean I've always dreamed of being in Butler Cabin, at that ceremony. It's a very exclusive bunch that are in there. And to think that I could just stand next to greatness and be inspired is incredible. And it's also motivating, because I want to be one chair over and when I get back I'll be motivated as ever to get better and hopefully be back here very soon.

Q. Speaking of family, your dad indicated that at some point you might opt for a professional caddie. What's that decision going to be like?
DOUG GHIM: Well, it's just, it's tough. It's nothing on him, he wants the absolute best for me and he loves me so much and I want to do so well for him and at times it can become difficult because it's already difficult enough that my ball is 194 from the pin and there's trouble everywhere. And to want to do well and to have that extra desire to hit the shot makes it a lot more difficult to just focus on the shot itself. I really wanted to do well this week and I wanted to be in contention, obviously, like every other player in the field, but hopefully he's happy enough that we made the cut and we are going to Butler Cabin.

Q. Will he be on your bag at the U.S. Open?
DOUG GHIM: He's going to be on the bag at the U.S. Open. It's Father's Day weekend and hopefully we'll make another run at another low amateur honors and maybe even furthermore, but it was an absolute blessing to have him out here and to get a firsthand look at what the Masters tournament is about.

Q. When do you graduate? What happens in the rest of April, May, what's next?
DOUG GHIM: Well, when we get back my school's actually playing right now, they're at Pasatiempo in California‑‑ sorry to not be there‑‑ but they were doing pretty well. I think Scotty was tied for the lead last time I checked. So the guys are really making the most of their opportunities this week and again, sorry for not being there, but very excited to see these motivated group of guys. We have conference championships coming up, we have regionals to qualify for national championships, and then we have the national championship. So this week will be a huge confidence boost, I would say, going into those events. Those events feel so big when you're a collegiate player and I feel like this week will make it ‑‑ it still, it's not so much the people or the golf course, although the golf course is magnificent, but it's the significance that you attach to it and this week is probably the most difficult I've ever had just because it meant so much to be here, all the close calls and the heart break from the Public Links a couple of years ago, but having this under my belt and being able to perform even under those circumstances I feel like it will get easier from here on out and those levels of, level of expectations and then at this point it's just getting better and learning a lot, as much as I can from these weeks.

Q. When do you leave Austin and go to Chicago or wherever you go?
DOUG GHIM: Well, from here or?

Q. Well like do you graduate in May?
DOUG GHIM: I graduate in May and then I'll probably go home to Chicago, there's going to be a transitional period, getting ready for the U.S. Open and also getting ready to turn professional shortly after. So there's a lot of logistics and obviously just trying to figure out what I'm going to do and where I'm going to live and all that stuff, but I'll be back in Chicago for the two weeks between national championships and the U.S. Open and I'll enjoy a little bit of time off and to be able to digest whatever has happened in the last month or two, which will be nice. And preparation for the exciting things to come.

Q. Question about your round, were you pushing it on 13 and 15, trying to get some more eagles there?
DOUG GHIM: Yeah, I mean, at that point we were just having fun. The low amateur wasn't going to change, as long as I sign my scorecard correctly.
(Laughter.)
But I was just ‑‑ you know, there's no point in laying up when you're in the fairway, it wasn't like an ill‑advised shot, I just didn't hit them as well as I would have liked, but it's, again, it's good practice for years to come because I'm hoping that this is not my only Masters, I'm hoping to be back here some day and definitely, again, as motivated as ever to be back here, now that I know what it's like. I saw my coach the other day, we were watching it after my round yesterday and it's funny, because usually with when I'm watching on Masters weekend I wonder how fast that putt is like because I've never hit it before, I can only imagine, and to think Rory was hitting a putt on 10 and I was like, that putt is not as fast as it looks, he's got to hit it a little bit harder, and he left it short and my coach was like, wow, that's funny, right? Just to know that, to be able to say that I was a participant and to have experienced it was really cool and I'm just, I'm, I really hope to be back here some day and this is a tournament that I would rather ‑‑ I mean I really hope that I have a chance, if not a couple, at this tournament, and I'm going to work as hard as ever to make it back here and hopefully contend one day.

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