U.S. OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP 2020

September 17, 2020

Brandon Wu

Winged Foot Golf Club

Flash Interview

Q. Brandon, you got off to a great start today; talk us through that front nine.

BRANDON WU: Yeah, I think the front nine was playing tough, but I definitely hit good shots. I think I had a couple good birdie looks. Made one long one. That was my first birdie of the day, then hit it to maybe three, four feet on the short par-3 and took advantage of that.

Those were good birdies, and then, yeah, good birdie on 9. I think I hit the green in two and two-putted from about 50 feet, so that was nice.

Q. Can you talk about hitting the first shot of the Open and what it's been like to be back home and getting ready for this?

BRANDON WU: Yeah, I think the first shot was going to be quite memorable. I think when they said Scarsdale, New York, my heart skipped a beat. I was pretty excited, and I hit the fairway, so that was a good start, too, and I think that's one I'll remember for a long time.

Q. What's your routine been like back at home?

BRANDON WU: It's just kind of business as usual. It's nice to go home have dinner with my parents and a couple friends and keep it pretty easy even though it's a major championship week.

Q. The British Open experience, did it help you at all kind of maybe nerves starting today?

BRANDON WU: Yeah, I would think so. I think both the U.S. Open and Open Championship from last year. I think Portrush is pretty similar to this in that any shot, any bad shot can be punished pretty severely. I think I found that today. I hit a couple bad ones, and it's really tough to get back into position and kind of play from there.

Q. How often have you played here over the years?

BRANDON WU: This was the first week I've played the West Course actually. I've played the East a couple times before, but West Course first time.

Q. How did it get away from you a little bit on the back?

BRANDON WU: I think I hit a couple bad shots, so I was in the rough on the long par-5 on 12, and then hit it in the rough again, had a chip-out, and then had a good two-putt from about 40 feet just to save bogey, and then I hit a pretty bad iron shot on the next hole, was way out of position, tough to make even a 4 from there, so made double there. Yeah, just kind of a couple loose shots in the rough, missing fairways, missing greens, and then it's just really tough once you're in those spots.

Q. What do you take out of the overall day today? Obviously the number isn't what you were looking for, but positives?

BRANDON WU: Yeah, for sure. I think I was playing pretty well on the front and I hit a lot of good shots on the back, too, just a couple loose ones. The course is playing tough, but I feel like if I play well I can manage it and do okay. That's kind of the thought process going into tomorrow.

Q. Did anything surprise you out there? Was it pretty much what you expected today?

BRANDON WU: About right. I mean, I thought the course was set up perfectly. The greens are getting a little bit quicker, but it's tough. There's so much slope on the greens, I think it's at a perfect pace where you've got to be pretty careful on a lot of the putts. It was pretty fun out there to be honest other than searching for our balls in the rough.

Q. The early-morning start, did it bother you?

BRANDON WU: I think it's tough. Any time you're playing -- I think we were warming up under the lights basically, so that's pretty interesting. But yeah, it was good to kind of get out there before everyone else. It's cool to see the course in the first group, as well.