PGA CHAMPIONSHIP

August 6, 2020

Martin Kaymer

Harding Park Golf Club

Flash Quotes

JOHN DEVER: Welcome back to the 2020 PGA Championship. Pleased to be joined by Martin Kaymer who just opened the championship with a 4-under 66 that included an eagle on the 4th hole. Maybe tell us about that hole and your round in general.

MARTIN KAYMER: I mean, that eagle was very special. I hit a good tee shot and then I thought I needed a bullet with a 3-wood to get to the green. I thought if I maybe placed it in the right bunker I'd have a good chance to make birdie and then I pulled off that bullet and it got on to the green, but it was still quite far away, so you're thinking maybe two-putt birdie would be great, then it went in.

In general my putting today was really good. I think my ball-striking was okay, a bit -- I think I need to improve a little bit on the strikes. It's not so fine-tuned yet after such a long break that we had, but I was very pleased with my putting. That really saved the round today.

Q. If I read this correctly, last week, Barracuda, was the first event since the pandemic. What did you do between then and last week?

MARTIN KAYMER: I was trying to help my dad at the house. We built a terrace, stuff like this.

. I didn't play much golf because we were not allowed to play golf for two or three months, so. I had to keep my mind occupied with different stuff, living life like a normal person if you're not an athlete.

And then fortunately six week, seven weeks ago I was able to start again properly on golf courses. I played a little bit in Germany. Then I wanted to come over to America two weeks prior to the PGA Championship because that's -- the quarantine thing, and then obviously the White House lifted the travel restrictions and then I was able to play Barracuda, which I thought was a good preparation for a week like this.

So it was a mix of a normal life and practice in between.

Q. What was the atmosphere like at a major without fans? And when you made that eagle, was there any reaction -- when Tiger and his group was introduced on the first tee today there was just silence, which seems so strange at a big event like this. What was it like for you?

MARTIN KAYMER: I mean, it felt a little bit like a practice round in terms of people. Obviously that is what we knew will happen. It didn't really make a big difference in a negative way.

Obviously you miss that positivity, that energy, especially if you get on such a nice run that I was on, birdie 1, birdie 3, eagle 4. So you were waiting for the energy, but you need to create it somehow yourself. So I just thought, if I could just keep going and enjoy that ride that you're on right now. But it's definitely a very awkward situation that we're not used to. But all new things, they take time to get used to, and hopefully the spectators will come out, are allowed to come out very soon for us.

Q. Can you describe your feelings on the first tee. What were your expectations for the round actually?

MARTIN KAYMER: Expectations were very low, to be honest, because I didn't really know where my game was at. Obviously I knew I was playing okay, but on a golf course like this, okay play doesn't really get you far. Knowing this going into this week, I needed something.

So last night I was watching the U.S. Open actually from 2014, the back nine, trying to get some kind of positivity in my game because it hasn't been much recently because of no play.

But being on the first tee, I was thinking, obviously this is one of the easier holes right away with a par-5, if I can start off nicely with a birdie, that would be great. But definitely that video from last night me winning the U.S. Open, that helped me to believe that my putting was good enough; that my ball-striking was good enough, even though it's a few years back, but it's always nice to remember those moments and feel the same that you felt that day.

JOHN DEVER: It's also your 10th anniversary of winning our championship.

Q. Off of that U.S. Open that you watched, did you just happen to have a VHS of that in your attache case or do you keep that with you?

MARTIN KAYMER: No. I was going for some dinner yesterday. I was trying to find a place, and on the way home, I didn't feel that good. I was not that happy for some reason. I don't know, sometimes that happens. And then I thought I needed to lift my spirit a little bit. And I went on YouTube and I found that video, I think it's an hour and 45 minutes or so, of us playing the back nine. I just watched it last night. I mean, there's not much to do right now other than hanging out in your hotel room by yourself.

Q. When was the last time you watched it, and how many times have you watched it?

MARTIN KAYMER: Last time was a long, long time. Maybe four, five years maybe. I haven't watched it much. I watched it in the pandemic. I watched the PGA Championship, also, because of the dramatic finish that we all saw.

So I like to go back to those moments. I know you shouldn't live in the past, but if the past can help you in the present moment, I'll take it.

Q. We haven't seen much of you, obviously. What's been up with your form? You haven't really been --

MARTIN KAYMER: I just haven't played well enough. I mean, it's very simple. My priorities, they've shifted a little bit. I didn't practice as much as I should have. I didn't feel as motivated as I maybe should have, also.

But coming out here, it's a huge motivation again, seeing the guys, the way they play, the way they play golf, the type of golf has changed so much, and it takes a little bit of time to get used to that and getting into a similar groove without losing your own game, and that is something that takes a little bit of adjustment.

Q. Do you have any idea where this round came from? You obviously didn't make the cut last week, and as you said you didn't have any expectations.

MARTIN KAYMER: I mean, last week was very strange. It was one of those weeks where you go and you don't know what to expect. I played a few rounds in Jupiter a couple weeks ago to get ready for the PGA Championship, and I played well there, but if you have a scorecard in your pocket, it always feels different. I know it was not a huge tournament compared to the PGA Championship, but it's still a golf tournament.

The key for today's round was definitely my short game. My putting was great. I didn't have many -- I didn't read many putts poorly, and if I read them well, they went in. So it's very rare to have days like this, but something to build on to.

Q. Obviously the first major in Harding Park history. Any one example of where the course played particularly tough, and maybe one example where it was vulnerable where you took advantage of it?

MARTIN KAYMER: Yeah, you had four or five holes on the golf course obviously that are par-5s, and then 16, 17, 18 are really about -- 15, 16, 17, they are chances, but then there's a tough stretch with 8, 9, 11, 12, 13, 14 that's very, very difficult. So if you keep those bogeys off the scorecard on those tough holes, then you have a chance to shoot a different -- maybe even under-par score.