MASTERS TOURNAMENT

April 10, 2021

Marc Leishman

Quick Quotes

Q. Thoughts on your round today?

MARC LEISHMAN: Yeah, I played well. Hit some great putts and hit it really well on the back nine and just couldn't get them to drop. But happy with the day, 2-under, four back going into tomorrow. If I keep hitting it the way I'm hitting it and can just get the putter hot, you never know what might happen.

Q. Does four back not seem insurmountable on a golf course like this because of what we know can happen?

MARC LEISHMAN: Definitely not. Obviously if Hideki plays well, he can control his own destiny, I guess. But a lot can happen around here. I've seen it. I mean, I played with Scottie the year he won. I've seen what can happen. I've had bad rounds here myself and I've had good rounds. You can make up four shots fairly quickly, but you have to do a lot of things right to do that.

Q. Do you draw on those past experiences tomorrow?

MARC LEISHMAN: Yeah, definitely. Obviously playing with Scottie the year he won, I played with Patrick Reed when he won in the third round. I've seen what you have to do. I know what you have to do. It's just a matter of executing and doing it. Hopefully tomorrow I can do that.

Q. What do you have to do?

MARC LEISHMAN: Just got to make the putts, give myself chances, and then it's important to make the putts. Gave myself a lot of chances there after the rain delay and just wasn't making them. Those putts have to drop. You see whoever wins making putts, and it's as simple as that. You obviously have to give yourself chances. You're no good if you're making putts for par every hole, but yeah, just got to give yourself chances and make putts.

Q. When you think about Scottie and Patrick, what do you remember during their marches to victory?

MARC LEISHMAN: Well, you don't have to be perfect. You can make mistakes, but they just can't be big mistakes. I made big mistakes on those days or runs of little mistakes. You can't compound errors, and know where to miss it. Generally they'll have the pins in a little -- they'll be a bit more gettable tomorrow. You can feed them into them, which gives you opportunity if you are hitting it good to have birdie and eagle chances. Hopefully I can keep driving it the way I have been, let my irons do their work and get a hot putter.

A lot is going to have to go right, but I've been here before, and I feel comfortable in this position. I enjoy this. This is what we play golf for, so I'm excited for tomorrow.

Q. Besides the four shots, what's the hardest part of trying to catch a player like Hideki?

MARC LEISHMAN: He's generally pretty steady. He's a great iron player. You've just got to play good, it's as simple as that. I'm not going to catch him if I don't play well and make putts. I have to do my job. Whatever he does is up to him. That's all I can do is what I can control, so hopefully I can control a lot of iron shots and birdie putts.

Q. 7-under heading into the final round of the 2021 Masters, four shots off the lead. How would you describe your Saturday at Augusta?

MARC LEISHMAN: Yeah, it was pretty good. Played well, just didn't quite make the putts that I would like to have on the back nine, but I hit really good putts. Happy with the position I'm in. I think I'll sleep well tonight after a long day and be ready to go tomorrow.

Q. You've played in all conditions at Augusta. How difficult was it to adjust after the rain delay?

MARC LEISHMAN: Yeah, I spoke about that yesterday, how hard it is to adjust around here because things change so much with just a bit of rain like we had. It did soften up quite a bit, and the greens slowed up, but I'm sure that will be a different story tomorrow. It's a special place, and I know it'll show its teeth tomorrow.

Q. What do you need to do well tomorrow to put yourself in position to win a green jacket?

MARC LEISHMAN: Well, you've got to do everything well around here, drive it well, and then you've got to hit good iron shots, which I've been doing, and make putts. Winners make putts. I think that's the key tomorrow, if I can get a hot putter. A lot of my wins have come from a hot putter, and hopefully I can get that tomorrow.

Q. You've been in contention on a final round Sunday before back in 2013. What did you learn from that experience that you can take into tomorrow?

MARC LEISHMAN: You don't have to be perfect, but you have to do everything pretty well. You can make mistakes, but as long as they're only small mistakes.

Yeah, I think I'll take that out of it. Momentum putts are big. You can't lose momentum around here because it's so big.

Q. Your wife Audrey is here, so is your family. How special would it be to you to win your first major and first Masters in front of them?

MARC LEISHMAN: Yeah, it would be unbelievable. Hopefully I can play good and give myself a chance, but definitely not quite thinking about that yet. There's still a lot of things to do tomorrow that I have to do right, and don't want to get ahead of myself.