ARNOLD PALMER INVITATIONAL

March 6, 2021

Jordan Spieth

Bay Hill Club and Lodge

Quick Quotes

Q. Walk us through the ace.

JORDAN SPIETH: Oh, yeah. I hit a 5-iron, it was 205 front, 220 hole, and the wind wasn't blowing very hard, so I was trying to peel it left to right to hold the wind and land it a little right of the hole. I hit it a little thin but it was right on the line I wanted and knowing that the grass was wet, you get some skid, I thought in the air it was going to be pretty good. Certainly not as good as it was. But I just wanted kind of one hop, because I just mishit it slightly -- and a lot of times those are the ones that that happens, your perfect shots don't go in, but then sometimes the ones where the unexpected. So that was cool. That was obviously a really cool moment.

Q. When you have to play 15 holes by yourself do you try to slow down or do you kind of just accept that you're going to have to wait all day?

JORDAN SPIETH: The pace was really good for awhile until we got into kind of the middle of the back nine, I want to say like 12 we started to, I started to kind of catch up and then I think it really -- I have never been in this situation before so I didn't really know what to do -- but it's kind of hard when you, to get to a spot and wait a long time.

So I probably should have walked a little slower and really as I got through kind of 14, 15, 16, 17 there -- and I did on 16, I really started to -- I had 40 feet every hole and just took my time, because these guys were, it was a little, took a little longer when you have 40 feet every hole. And I must have had 12 putts from the exact same putt, 40 feet, broke two feet right-to-left, go he's uphill and then flat at the hole. I mean, it was just ridiculous and I was so annoyed and frustrated with having that, but I missed the green and I wished that I had it on 17.

So it was just, it was a new situation, I kind of tried to walk slower at certain times, but there's only so much you can do.

Q. It seemed to us watching it was kind of a crazy day, you had the ace and you had Bryson going for it on 6. Inside the arena did it seem crazy to you just all that was going on?

JORDAN SPIETH: Yeah, it was just another round that, unfortunately, wasn't boring for me. I'm trying to have boring rounds and I, today was -- I felt better on leaving the range than I did yesterday on the range, but I hit it a lot worse today than I did yesterday outside of obviously the one shot that was, a couple shots, on No. 2.

But man, I just, after that drive on 2, I was so pumped up and just so much -- I just was having a really hard time controlling the ball. Luckily I made some putts to make up for that, but it was almost like kind of first shot at the Ryder Cup kind of feeling, where you're just so amped up it was almost like kind of that first shot that, you have to hit so many controlled shots here and when it gets a little windy it's so hard to hit the fairways and I really struggled on the front nine with that. With the holed bunker shot, again, but I parred both the 5's, you hit those fairways, they're reachable and they're birdie holes. So looking back I would have signed up for 4-under to start the day, but it was an odd one.

Q. When is the last time you played by yourself at all? Do you play by yourself at home?

JORDAN SPIETH: Yeah, I can't stand it. I'll go out on the course to hit shots sometimes at home, but I end up throwing two balls down and trying to play a game but then I just end up kind of bailing on it. I don't enjoy playing by myself. This is different, you're in a tournament so that made it a little bit easier.

Q. 3 and 5. Why do you think you make so many par putts from 20 feet?

JORDAN SPIETH: I mean, I don't look at them any putt as whether it's for par or birdie or eagle as any different, I'm trying to see the line, trying to hit the right speed, those just happened to go in there.

The one on 3 was a long one.

The one on 5 I had probably 12 or 13 feet.

But, yeah, I'm just, I'm trying to get the right speed and if it happens to fall, great, and that was the case today. I had the speed dialed in.