MASTERS TOURNAMENT

April 9, 2021

Bryson DeChambeau

Quick Quotes

Q. Do you feel like the golf course changed at all and do you feel like you're figuring this place out a little bit?

BRYSON DECHAMBEAU: Yeah, I don't think you can ever figure this place out. There's so many things going on around here. The wind makes it diabolical. It's flying around through these trees and bouncing off the trees and making it feel into the wind when it should be downwind, and vice versa. I don't think you'll ever be able to figure it out, but I've just got to be more comfortable.

Honestly for me it was just execution. There were times I didn't execute again. For some reason every year I get here, I'm playing pretty well coming in and I don't execute the way I want to. Today was nice to be able to get it back and shoot 5-under, get myself somewhat in contention.

The weekend, anything can happen if I go 5-under, 5-under, maybe even more than that, you never know. I view it as I've got eight great shots at some par-5s if I hit the driver well, and I think I make a couple birdies on some par-4s and take it easy on the difficult holes, I'll be fine.

Q. As difficult as it is to figure out, do you feel like today was a step toward being comfortable and solving some equations?

BRYSON DECHAMBEAU: Yeah, especially on the putting green. I finally felt like I was seeing lines out there for the first time in five years it feels like, or five times I've played it in tournament conditions. That excites me for sure.

I think if I could just ball strike it a little bit better. Felt like my iron play was great. We didn't hit it long too many times today. I was proud of that. If I can keep myself positive, in a positive mindset and towards making a lot of birdies, you never know.

Q. Did you hit driver as often today as you did yesterday?

BRYSON DECHAMBEAU: No, I don't think I did. I actually hit it a couple times more maybe -- no, I only hit it on 17 where I hit 3-wood yesterday, so it was about equal from yesterday, except No. 1.

Q. When a player goes really low like Justin did yesterday in the first round, how difficult and why is it so difficult to follow it up? Because it traditionally seems like guys have a hard time putting two of those together back-to-back.

BRYSON DECHAMBEAU: Well, I'll tell you, even my round today I had a lot of great things happen to me. There was definitely a lot of lucky breaks I had. For the most part whenever somebody shoots a really, really low score, you're going to have to have good breaks to go low, and sometimes golf is not friendly, and it can turn on you real quick. You may hit a great shot that's just going right at the flag and the wind turns or something happens and albeit you hit a perfect shot for the conditions at hand, it just didn't go next to the hole that time, and then there are times where you mis-hit a shot and it ends up right next to the hole. For example, 18 I mis-hit a shot way right and I had a clear shot to the green, hit it up there close.

I think that's why it's so difficult is that it's just variable. Golf is a variable game.

Q. Is there a psychological element to it, like maybe your expectations have risen a little bit?

BRYSON DECHAMBEAU: Yeah, maybe. Maybe there's a play to it. For me I've never thought of it like that. I think of it more as a probabilistic standpoint. Are you going to get lucky for 72 holes? Probably not.

Q. Is it a matter of the course being a little bit better to you or you being a little bit more understanding of the course?

BRYSON DECHAMBEAU: I think it's both. I think both are true. I've got to be a little more receptive to the golf course and the conditions at hand. I wasn't yesterday. I didn't understand the greens as well as I could have.

Just being more comfortable in general at this golf course and being able to execute better, I think that's what matters most to me and should matter most to me, and hopefully I can do that this weekend. I don't know. We'll see.

Q. People are so protective of this course. I'm curious if you had any funny comments or otherwise comments about saying par for you was 67.

BRYSON DECHAMBEAU: Oh, no. I even said in my presser, clearly the par was 74 for me last year. But I would say for the most part, I think this golf course is an amazing and spectacular, challenging venue and championship. I think one of the most amazing things about this place is that it can turn on you real quick when you least expect it. For example, last year in November you had a lot of guys going low, and this year it's not the case. Hats off to Augusta National for what they've done to the place.

Q. You pride yourself so much on solving problems and obviously you're very analytical. This place seems to be as much a match for you as any golf course you play. Is that a fair point?

BRYSON DECHAMBEAU: It's my biggest match for sure. I mean, not having the help that sometimes I have on the golf course at other venues with greens books and not having the calibration tools that I usually use, it's definitely a test and something I'm willing to stand up to and try and face the challenge and try and conquer it. It's an interesting challenge for me, and I love it.

Q. How important was today in regards to optimism for the weekend as you continue to educate yourself, making such a drastic improvement?

BRYSON DECHAMBEAU: Yeah, it's a massive help this week. If I barely made the cut or -- maybe I'm not thinking this way. Maybe I'm thinking, hey, I can get after it on the weekend and have a chance to win, but I've got to shoot low, and so I think that making that putt on 18, making the putt on 17, those were huge momentum plays for me where I feel like I can go out tomorrow and shoot a good number a little earlier than the leaders and put myself in a great spot for Sunday.

Q. Have you found yourself trying too hard here?

BRYSON DECHAMBEAU: Probably. There was numerous times where I feel like -- for example, No. 2 is an 8-iron right to the middle of the green and I block it right into the bunker, the one place you can't go to not make birdie. Sometimes I'm trying to force things in certain areas, and as time went on a got a little more comfortable saying, hey, over here is fine. I feel like as time goes on, I'll continue to learn those little things and make sure that I'm not making the simple mistakes that cost me having a chance.

Q. You've talked about distance control confusing you a little bit. Did you figure something out?

BRYSON DECHAMBEAU: Yeah, we played numbers -- my adrenaline goes up obviously on the golf course, and that helps me hit it a little farther, and on the range yesterday, I just wasn't swinging as fast as I usually do, and then I got out here and I was hitting it farther and we had accounted for numbers that were on the range and I was swinging it slower. I felt like I was more in control of the pace of my golf swing today on 10:30 shots, 10:00 shots, and we were able to dial in the numbers a little bit better.

Q. As a learner are you somebody who has to experience it to really get it through your head? This course, by experiencing are you getting better?

BRYSON DECHAMBEAU: You have to experience failure in order to understand what success is. If you have success all the time -- it's just not realistic to have success all the time. That's what's so great about this golf course.

Q. You don't have the greens book, calibration tools. How many things that you normally have do you not have this time?

BRYSON DECHAMBEAU: Just two, two things. Just two things.

Q. A big two things for you?

BRYSON DECHAMBEAU: Yeah, they're huge. Every tournament it helps me feel comfortable, how I'm trying to produce speed on the greens and how I'm trying to hit shots into greens and then just knowing what the greens are doing, too. Sometimes it baffles me, and that's the beauty about this place, by the way.

Q. Are you killing it with flattery today?

BRYSON DECHAMBEAU: Yeah, a little better than yesterday.

Q. Have you stopped searching for your greens book?

BRYSON DECHAMBEAU: Well, it's usually always in the book, and I'm looking, like 'where is it?' And I'm like, 'oh, my gosh, I'm here.' But yeah, for sure. Definitely I pull it out and I'm like, 'where is it?' 'Oh, wait.'