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ZURICH CLASSIC OF NEW ORLEANSApril 27, 2019Justin HardingBranden GraceAvondale, Louisiana Q. That was a good day, and you guys looked like you were having a blast. JUSTIN HARDING: It's definitely a good day. Look, when you post as many red numbers as we did in the course of -- I think we played 50 odd holes, so we certainly moved up the board. It's just a matter of continuing the momentum throughout the rounds. If it's Gracy making a birdie or me making a birdie, as long as something is happening, so to speak, giving yourself chances, and we played pretty good this morning, had a bit of a hiccup on 3. Other than that. We had a good finish to the round and carried that over into today.. Q. Branden, what was the key in the middle of the round there? You got very hot as Justin alluded to, and then there was a stretch of five birdies in a row. Was there just something that was clicking or was it all just making putts, you start seeing a couple go in and the hole gets wider? BRANDEN GRACE: Yeah, I think at the beginning of the round, I think it was crucial to make the birdies on 4 and 5, got the round going. A couple of stretches, a couple of holes you can really take advantage of the par-5s, 8, you can be aggressive. I think around the stretch there, around the turn, we both started giving ourselves chances on the greens, so it wasn't that there was any one in the hole. Obviously we know how Justin is very hot with the putter at the moment, so it was nice to get him in a position where he could free up and just knock the stuff in, and that's exactly what happened. Q. Alternate shot in the final round here, in a great position. Did you have a game plan or a format in your mind, how you would handle alternate shot coming into this event, and has that changed heading into Sunday considering you've already been through 18 holes of alternate shot? JUSTIN HARDING: We kind of decided what we were going to do on Friday morning because we basically talked about it. Both of our games are pretty much similar, so it's not like anyone has really got an advantage over either person. It's just a matter of picking which holes you like best and grinding through it. We played pretty good in our foursomes effort in round 2, so it's just a matter of maybe avoiding any more mistakes and see if we can string some birdies together. Q. Just some thoughts on your round today in general? BRANDEN GRACE: Yeah, obviously it's nice to come in with the low ones, a lot of red numbers on the score card, and it was a good day. I think we both played really solid golf, and it was nice that we both were in a lot of the holes, as well. We all know Justin is a very hot putter, and it was nice for him just to free up and allow him to be aggressive and have his back. I think it went both ways. He had my back on the front nine and I had his back on the back, and it was a good day all in all. Q. When did you guys first meet each other and how did you ultimately decide to play together? JUSTIN HARDING: Well, we've known each other for years, since we were juniors. It's been a long time. I think this might be the first time we've actually played together as a team or as a partnership. We tend to play against each other more. But look, both of our games are again similar, so we're a good match. We like to keep each other quite jovial out there on the golf course, lots of jokes and some banter which probably shouldn't be shared, but it's good fun. When it's going well, anything looks like it's good to be enjoying it. It's just a matter of seeing if we can continue it tomorrow. Q. How far did you guys live from each other growing up? BRANDEN GRACE: Well, he's four hours' drive, but we played a lot of junior golf together. Although he's a couple years older than me, I just want to state that, a lot of people are asking me, he seems to young, but yeah, we grew up together, we played a lot of golf together, and it's great to have him over here and playing where he should be playing. But it's nice to have him here and trying to help him out and try to get his card out here. Q. What's the best battle you guys had as amateurs? BRANDEN GRACE: I think we have a battle every day. JUSTIN HARDING: Yeah, we continue it just about every other week. I can't really think of anything in particular at the moment. It's the one we're having this week together, that's the important one for both of us, seeing if we can post a decent result tomorrow and seeing what happens. Q. Brandon, you've had such success, but Justin (indiscernible)? BRANDEN GRACE: Yeah, like you said, we have a very similar game. We both shape it the same ways. I'm going to give it to him, he's a better putter than I am. I get streaky, but he is definitely better. We have fun out there. We give each other hell, as well, and we take it the right way. We play, we gel together, as well and we take it the right way. Getting back to Louis, we gelled together, as well. I got fired, so I had to look for a new partner, but it was great. Obviously I made a good pick. Q. Justin, on the match play, your first Masters you had a great stretch of golf, and obviously you guys could win and have a great finish tomorrow and have TOUR status for the rest of the year. Was this the goal? JUSTIN HARDING: I wouldn't say it's a goal. I mean, it was more just a matter of coming over and trying to do what I've been doing and seeing if performances take me to where they go. Obviously I had a fantastic week down at Augusta, and having another one this week with Gracy. It's obviously on the horizon, but again, it's only going to happen if we play well and if I continue to do my job. So it's something that I'm really focusing on at the moment. I'm obviously sitting quite nicely in Europe, so I've got a nice reason waiting for me there towards the end. Things seem to be changing for me on a monthly basis recently, so we'll just see what happens. Q. Is it nice to be back on track? You played a lot of golf the last two days, it's finally nice to be caught up and did that help in the second half of this thing? JUSTIN HARDING: I actually mentioned to the caddies walking up the 18th hole, I hope they appreciate that we got them late tee times. It's been three 4:00 wake-ups in a row, but look, it's been rewarding, we've been playing well, and we'll see if we can continue. Q. Looking ahead to foursomes, there's probably not going to be a 61 or 62 out there tomorrow, may be a lot of fluctuation on the leaderboard. How do you manage that? BRANDEN GRACE: Yeah, I think we had a good game plan on the second round. It's more about picking the tee shots and picking the holes that you actually feel comfortable hitting more than anything else. But like you said, it's a little bit more on the -- stepping a little bit back, getting a little bit more defensive, but we got it going this morning, so hopefully we can get on that track again tomorrow and then stay aggressive, and as soon as you can stay aggressive and keep the bogeys off the score cards, then you can get it going. Q. You all have played together for quite some time. What's something you learned about him in foursomes play that you might not have noticed in the past? JUSTIN HARDING: I can't really say anything. I just like the fact that he doesn't get too upset when I hit a bad shot. Q. Justin is somebody you've known for a long time. Obviously in the States we don't know him too well, but that flash at the Masters put him on the map. For fans wondering more about his game, you mentioned the putting. What else should we know about him? BRANDEN GRACE: Well, he definitely hits it a lot straighter now than he used to. But no, he's a hell of a player, and it's shown the last few years. He's really stepped it up. He's changed on and off the golf course, and that's why he's here. He's putting the hours in and the hard work, and he'll be out here sooner than later. Hopefully I can be -- we can do a good job tomorrow and get him out here a lot sooner. Q. You guys were obviously out on the golf course today and haven't been on Twitter yet, but Eduardo Molinari tweeted out the slow play list of bad times and fines for the European Tour. Do you think that's a good move or not? And is pace of play really an issue on the European Tour and other tours? JUSTIN HARDING: Look, I think the guys can definitely probably play quicker. I'm not saying that anybody in particular is slow, but I do think that there is unnecessary time wasted. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports   |
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