VALSPAR CHAMPIONSHIP

May 1, 2021

Abraham Ancer

Innisbrook Resort (Copperhead)

Quick Quotes

Q. How much ground did you think you needed to make up today and how did you do?

ABRAHAM ANCER: I played pretty well. I don't know if I made enough ground, I haven't looked at the leaderboards that much. There's some birdies out there, but this golf course if you're not in the right position man you can make some bogeys quick. So just a good solid round. I wanted to have at least 4- or 5-under today and move up and tomorrow hopefully for a big one.

Q. What did you finish at?

ABRAHAM ANCER: 5-under today.

Q. I saw your only bogey of the day was on 7. I heard you mention it hit the flag stick?

ABRAHAM ANCER: Yeah, no, I played really solid, I hit pretty much every shot like I wanted to and, yeah, that one sometimes we got to aim a little bit, you can't aim right at it, it was like 102 yards, perfect number for me, and I was just coming off from a nice birdie and hit right at it, hit the flag stick and ricocheted back to the rough and unfortunately couldn't get it up-and-down. But other than that, I played really well.

Q. How long have you been known as El Turco?

ABRAHAM ANCER: It's been awhile. Right after when I turned pro, my buddy Rudolfo Cazaubon, I played with him growing up, he, in an interview, he just said -- it's a long story to get to El Turco, but he gave me the nickname.

Q. In a couple weeks at the PGA they're going to allow lasers. Is that something you look forward to having that ability to use that?

ABRAHAM ANCER: I think it will be nice when you're way off line and there's like no sprinkler heads or something and usually you take a long time to find the sprinkler head and get your number. I think that's where it will come a lot or very handy at that time. But when you're on a tee box I feel like everybody's going to use it but also double check, so I don't know if it's going to help that much, but definitely for off line shots, if there's no sprinkler head close by I think that would help tremendously.

Q. When you hit the ball as well as you do with your irons, has that always given you confidence that you can contend?

ABRAHAM ANCER: I think so. Definitely. Especially on golf courses like this where you know you have to be extremely accurate with your distance control. I feel like I do that very well and, yeah, I wish the golf courses we play would be like this or Harbour Town or targets that are really, really small and you have to shape your shots. I just find that to be very fun and enjoy that kind of golf, for sure.

Q. Do you ever feel like you're at a disadvantage when you're in a big, wide open golf course, Torrey Pines kind of course?

ABRAHAM ANCER: Absolutely. I know it's going to be tougher, but I just got to hit those 4-irons and 5-woods really well and I mean it's definitely tougher, but I mean from the fairway, if I'm on the fairway the whole time, then it might be not as tough. But, yeah, like the U.S. Open's going to be quite the challenge, but I love grinding out some pars, so a U.S. Open either way is going to be tough no matter what.

So, yeah, I wish I could hit it 20 yards farther, but that's not the case so I got to make more putts and get up-and-down when I don't hit the green.

Q. When you turned pro if you look back to when you turned pro, what do you think was the one area of your game that was really weak that you've improved on the most?

ABRAHAM ANCER: Well when I turned pro I felt like my wedges weren't as crisp -- or not as crisp, but my distance control with my wedges wasn't that good. In college I felt like I hit my long irons and mid irons really well and my driver off the tee I was fine. So probably just my distance control from my 8-iron and in. And my putting was, it was very, it wasn't bad, but there were some really good days and then just there's no consistency. So I think just more consistent putting and definitely from 150 and in.

Q. What took you so long to start working on that?

ABRAHAM ANCER: When I got on TOUR and realized how precise you have to be with these greens and where they put the pins and just how awesome they set up the golf courses, you have to be so precise and it made me realize also that middle of the green is not that bad sometimes. So just your perspective changes a little bit once you start growing up and realizing that you got to aim sometimes away from the pin and it's completely fine. So, yeah, that definitely, I'm glad I realized that kind of quick and improved on that, for sure.