SONY OPEN IN HAWAII

January 15, 2021

Daniel Berger

Waialae Country Club

Quick Quotes

Q. Good bounce back in this round today. You've put yourself in a good position?

DANIEL BERGER: Yeah, I think the scores probably will be a little lower this afternoon. Yeah, the middle of the round there was a little bit of wind and the greens are a little firmer than they were in previous years, so that just makes it tougher there.

But it's nice to finish off the back nine with a few birdies and put myself in a good position going into the weekend.

Q. The contrast of last week to this week is one of the greatest in all of golf. What about the style of play this week do you have to adapt to and that you like maybe for making the shift from Maui?

DANIEL BERGER: Yeah, you've got one course that plays extremely long and lots of uphills and downhills, you come here and it's a completely flat walk and the tee boxes are right next to each other.

I think this place probably suits my game a little bit more, choosing when you want to be aggressive and when you don't, and when you hit it in the fairway, you have to make birdies and when it's in the rough it's extremely difficult.

I feel like if I can drive it better on the weekend and continue to do the same things that I've been doing, it will be a good week.

Q. If it gets firmer, what does that do to this golf course and how do you have to adjust?

DANIEL BERGER: It's going to be so much more difficult to hold the greens when you're not in the fairway. That's the hardest part. I was telling my caddie earlier, I've played this event six times and I've only seen it firm and fast once and that's the best I ever played here. I'm excited to see it a little more difficult where 20-under par is not going to win. I think if it stays like this, 15-, 16-under is a good score.

Q. How would you assess the round?

DANIEL BERGER: I got off to a good start, birdied the first hole which is probably the toughest pin position of the whole day. But those middle stretch of holes played difficult and made a few bogeys on 11 and 12 and rebounded nicely and came in with a few birdies and put myself in a good position going into Saturday.

Q. Why do you feel like this course suits you better?

DANIEL BERGER: Well, there's a lot of bermudarough, and I grew up on bermuda and that's comforting for me. I think my short game probably lends better than most people here out of the bermuda.

But I think I'm a player that likes to pick his spots and hit 3-irons on tees and hit the little bullet driver, and this course has a lot of that. Last week is more of kind of a bomb-and-gauge course, which is not necessarily my strength.

Q. What does that say about your game and where you are with your game that you can play well on that type of course but also come here and play well the first two rounds?

DANIEL BERGER: Yeah, I think it speaks to the preparation leading up to this week. Obviously if you're playing well, you can play well anywhere but I think I've got a lot of good memories here.

Like you said, the bermudarough thing is really key for me. I think a lot of guys come here and get a little shellshocked with hitting a pitching wedge 180 yards. But for me that's what I've been doing since I was 13, 14 years old, so it's not uncomfortable.

Q. Is that why we've seen guys from the Eastern part of the United States do well, like Patton Kizzire and Matt Kuchar, because they are so used to the bermuda?

DANIEL BERGER: Yeah, it's a huge advantage to know what the ball is going to do and to judge the lie. Even the first couple years I was out on TOUR, I wasn't good on those northeast-style courses, but the more you play them the better you get and that little bit of experience can be helpful.

Q. Is driving the ball in the fairway the key to continuing success?

DANIEL BERGER: For me I would say yes, but statistically it would point more to putting. Guys that putt the best out here seem to have the best chance to win. But if you're not in the fairway, you can't be aggressive. For me the ball is to put the ball in play first and foremost and if I have a decent putting week, I'll have a chance to win.