SENTRY TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS

January 7, 2021

Ryan Palmer

Plantation Course at Kapalua

Quick Quotes

Q. Interesting round. A little bit of everything there. I think you were just missing an ace on today's round. Just tell me about the roller coaster ride that it was?

RYAN PALMER: Yeah, obviously finished with a good score but that first -- start was a little sketchy, a little rough, a few quick swings with the driver. And then I kind of figured out something that Randy Smith and I talked about as far as in my setup. And when I got to 5 tee, I just kind of felt better over the ball, getting a little closer to the ball with my driver and just kind of started going from there.

And then I hit a great two shots on 5 and then the putt on, for eagle was kind of my jump start.

Then a great chip in on 9 for eagle as well. Hit some great shots coming in. It's kind of carrying over from the tournaments I played back in October, with those events, and the game's feeling really good right now.

Q. This would seem to be a difficult golf course to feel comfortable on given all the possibilities and the winds that could pick up. But for the way you flight the golf ball and the creativity you need to play this golf course, do you feel comfortable here?

RYAN PALMER: Yeah, there's a lot of shots I had to hit some flighted wedges and little choke-down shot I've got to hit and I'm able to flight the ball real easy. So winds were up and down but nothing really severe. But I was able to take control of my ball flight and I hit a lot of close ones on the back nine. A little misfortune on 18 not to birdie that hole, but after that start, to be 6-under is pretty great.

Q. Certainly is great. I did want to ask you about the third shot on 18. Just how many possibilities go through your mind? It looks like a straightforward shot, but everybody that's been here knows that's a very difficult shot to judge in that short distance, isn't it?

RYAN PALMER: Well it is. I mean, I know the speed, so that's not the hard part. There's that big mound -- you probably can't see, for the folks at home, but three feet right of the pin it goes 10 feet further right. Three feet left of the pin it goes 10 feet further left. So there's one little spot there you got to hit it perfectly.

And I thought I hit it where I wanted and it just kind of kept going left at the beginning on that slope. And I had an easy 8-footer up the hill and just hit a bad putt.

But, yeah, it's a delicate chip, you got to be pretty precise on your line to get it close to the pin, but that's the way it goes.