KITCHENAID SENIOR PGA CHAMPIONSHIP

May 28, 2021

Paul Stankowski

Quick Quotes

Southern Hills Country Club

THE MODERATOR: Welcome back to the 2021 KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship. We're here at Southern Hills Country Club, Tulsa, Oklahoma. We're with Paul Stankowski who posted a 1-under 69 today. He is currently 1-over par for the championship at this very moment T-12. Not a bad position, Paul. Played pretty well. Pretty clean scorecard, I have to think you're pleased with what you did today in the second round.

PAUL STANKOWSKI: Yeah, I'm very pleased. I struck the ball well, tee to green, when I missed some fairways they were in the appropriate spots. I chose the right clubs today off tees. I didn't deviate from my game plan. I made a couple hiccups yesterday, so I stuck to my plan and had a 3-putt on one of the par-3s and I don't remember how I bogeyed the other hole, that was a long time ago, but, yeah, made some -- I made a nice putt on my 17th hole, the 8th hole for birdie, about 25 feet after missing about an 8-footer for birdie on number 7. So it was good to get in under par, it was a grind, my feet are sore, my hips are sore, like I probably shouldn't have come so early in the week, done a lot of walking, this golf course is beating me up. But I'm very pleased with the way I'm hitting it and looking forward to the weekend.

THE MODERATOR: The last two holes of the golf course, which were your 8th and 9th today, you struggled with yesterday, bogey, bogey, today you went 1-under, on 17, which is an interesting hole, and then uphill here at 18. And that must make you feel good. That's a little gain right there, isn't it?

PAUL STANKOWSKI: Absolutely. You know what happens one day, you got to hit delete, turn the page and move on. I've had a history through my career from junior golf of -- I remember shooting 96 at the Dunes Course in the southern California Tournament of the Club Champions, I was 15 years old. And about eight years later that was first stage of Q-School and I started on that same golf course. I actually started the day, when I shot 96, I made a 10 on the 10th hole. I hit a sleeve of balls in the water. My dad was like, oh, boy, it's going to be a long day.

Well, fast forward to Q-School, I shot 66 that day, I birdied that hole and that was the hole I started on. So it's been, it's kind of fun. I've had -- it's almost more of a challenge when you have a hiccup to knuckle down and press on. So I'm pleased with where I'm at. I'm assuming I made the cut. I didn't even look at the board. I've had a history of looking at boards and then getting lost in where I'm at and just really, you know, just try to focus on the process and it's fun strolling the fairways with my son and getting him involved in the game and trying to just talk ourselves through shots. So yeah, pleasing day.

THE MODERATOR: Your son's on your bag?

PAUL STANKOWSKI: He is, yeah.

THE MODERATOR: What's his name?

PAUL STANKOWSKI: Joshua.

THE MODERATOR: Okay. Great. So I won't ask you about your position at the 36-hole mark because you just kind of keeping your head down, but what part of your game are you pleased with right now?

PAUL STANKOWSKI: I'm really driving the ball well, I just switched to the new Callaway Epic Speed head and, man, it's just perfect. Trajectories are great, I'm able to flight it high and low. I put a new 4-wood in the bag this week which is 16.5, also an Epic, and super happy with that.

Iron play's been very solid, my putter, speed, it's just difficult to get the speed on these greens and I left a lot of putts short, aside from the putt I made on my 17th hole, the 8th, I really haven't made anything of outside of six feet. I made a bunch of four to six feet today, so those keep your round going. So very pleased there. But I would love to kind of match some speed up with some line and see if I can get some putts to fall in.

THE MODERATOR: Well rest up and get back to that tomorrow, best of luck and have a fruitful weekend.

PAUL STANKOWSKI: Thank you.