U.S. OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP 2020

September 17, 2020

John Pak

Winged Foot Golf Club

Flash Interview

Q. John Pak, 1-under 69. John, can you walk us through your round?

JOHN PAK: Yeah, I got off to a good start. I was pretty nervous on the first tee, but I was hitting the ball really good. Started off with two birdies on 14 and 15, and I just stayed really patient out there. I was 2 under through nine.

Then on the 2nd and 3rd hole, I went bogey and double. I just hit a bad shot on both those holes. On 3, I three-putted for double, which was a pretty big mistake because it was a pretty simple putt. Then made a little turnaround and made like a 35-footer on 5. Then I almost hit the green in two on 9 and just had a little six-footer for birdie. Overall, a really, really solid round for me.

Q. Can you talk us through those birdies on 14 and 15?

JOHN PAK: Yeah, I actually had a divot over my ball in the right rough on 14 and kind of just hacked it out there and somehow managed to get on the green. Made about a 30-footer that, if it didn't hit the cup, it probably would have went seven or eight feet by. Then on 15, I just hit a gap wedge to about three feet and tapped that in for birdie.

Q. This being your first U.S. Open, how did it measure up?

JOHN PAK: This experience has been incredible. It's everything I thought of. I'm learning a lot, and I'm just really excited to be here.

Q. Any nerves on the first tee?

JOHN PAK: Oh, a hundred percent. I was really nervous. Somehow I hit a really good shot, so I'm pretty happy about that.

Q. John, it's almost like you're one of the hometown guys here, New Jersey guy, but you're Metro New York area. What's it like playing, obviously, not in front of the spectators that you would like to, but what's it like playing in your home area?

JOHN PAK: It feels great. I'm from this area, only an hour south, and I played here a few times. So I'm a little familiar with the golf course. It feels nice to play in the Northeast golf again. I think this is some of the best golf you can play. It's just my opinion.

Q. Any adjustments going into tomorrow? What's the mindset?

JOHN PAK: Honestly, I'm really just trying to have fun and learn. Obviously, I want to play well, but I don't think I really need to change the game plan. I hit the ball great. I felt like the greens were kind of firming up near the end of my round, so that's something I kind of need to take into consideration. Honestly, overall just keep playing my game.