TRAVELERS CHAMPIONSHIP

June 27, 2021

Kevin Kisner

TPC River Highlands

Quick Quotes

Q. What a difference a day makes; 40 on the back nine yesterday; how about 29 today. You shoot 7-under 63. Rolling the rock like crazy. How much fun was that?

KEVIN KISNER: It was a lot of fun. I've been a struggle all year, and to feel the juices again was a lot of fun. To see those putts going in is always fun. It's amazing what good putting can change your whole life on the outlook of it.

Q. 150 feet plus worth of putts in this round. I John McGinnis told me you were one of the featured groups on live this morning, and I guess you went up to John on the front nine and said, This can be very much exciting. John said, Well make some birdies. You guys did that. What all of a sudden happened on the back nine?

KEVIN KISNER: Well, obviously it's -- you can take advantage of the back. There is a lot more birdie opportunities, but there is a lot of things that can go wrong, too. So I was able to kind of get rolling there at 11; made a long one on 12; and then got to birdie 13 and 15 and I was able to do that; cap it off with that nice putt on 18 always makes you feel good.

Q. Two nice up and downs an 16 and 17 as well. So for the guys going out right now, how would you describe the golf course today? Winds are pretty much the same and going to gust again.

KEVIN KISNER: Yeah, I'm hoping they gust a lot. It's not as strong right now as I thought it was going to be. It's not as strong as it was yesterday afternoon. Hopefully it will continue to rise.

Q. (In progress.)

KEVIN KISNER: Yeah, very weird. First day 18 pars, didn't feel great, didn't make anything. Felt like I made everything on Friday; couldn't get anything to go together on the Saturday; then get hot there on the last eight holes today was a lot of fun.

It's kind of been like a roller coaster all year, so good to be on the positive side.

Q. I don't know if it was earlier this week, you mentioned that you got into some bad habits trying hit it further on these major courses. I think people might think pros are above that, but I guess it's still a temptation.

KEVIN KISNER: For sure. We played six majors or five so far this year, including -- and then seven if you count PLAYERS Championship where all those distances is a huge advantage.

To go to these big long golf courses every other week or three weeks, it's difficult not trying hit it further. And then to be able come to a place like Hartford that distance doesn't really -- is not the ultimate goal, kind of go back to your roots.

Q. (No microphone.)

KEVIN KISNER: Yeah, absolutely. There is only a few of them left on tour, so you got to enjoy those when they come around.

Q. Do you think 10 has any chance? Will you stick around?

KEVIN KISNER: I don't. The leaderboard is so crowded and there are plenty of birdie opportunities on the back. I felt like just to finish Top 5 I probably needed to birdie the last hole. Glad to do that, and hopefully the wind blows like hell.

Q. Speaking of the wind, we feel it up here. Are there parts of the golf course where it's not hitting as much as we feel up here by the clubhouse?

KEVIN KISNER: You know, it's not nearly as strong as it was yesterday afternoon, but down in that hole and down by the river on the back nine it just comes and goes. I hit -- 16 I hit a shot that I thought would be 15 feet behind the hole and flew the whole green.

You catch lulls and gusts and you're just hoping you're on the right side of those.

Q. So it's not consistent, but if you can luck out and get it consistent you can take advantage of it?

KEVIN KISNER: For sure. You got to definitely have some luck on your side.

Q. This place has obviously such a reputation for guys making rallies on Sundays and stuff. Can you speak to is it all the birdie opportunities on the back? What do you --

KEVIN KISNER: Yeah, the back nine there is not a long, demanding hole, but there is obviously plenty of trouble lurking around. So it's kind of risk reward. I know it's cliche, but it truly is. It's how much risk do you want to take on to try to make birdies or even have an eagle opportunity.

I don't think the longest club I hit in on back nine was 8-iron. It's just not that difficult of a length, but it's a lot of eye candy, so you got to stick to your roots.

Q. Leishman was saying it's a golf course that you guys feel like you should shoot 65 on every time. I wonder if this plays into the head of leaders here, because the leader have not often held 54-hole leads traditionally here like the last ten or eleven years.

KEVIN KISNER: Right. I think one of the most amazing things is to come to a golf course that's not overly demanding length-wise, not overly tight, the rough is not that penal, and 10-under is leading after three days. It just goes to show you that modern architecture isn't length all the way around.

You can make it difficult by putting difficult hole locations with different risk around it that can turn your round upside down.

Q. One more question for those of us that can't comprehend shooting 29 on any side. What did that feel like and how cool is it to see that number on any nine?

KEVIN KISNER: Oh, for sure. After shooting 40 on the back nine yesterday I felt like I was shooting nothing. So it's always fun, and we always like to give the rules officials that set up the back nine when we shoot in the 20s a signed ball and tell he's terrible at setting up. So that'll be my gift for the day.

Q. So coming off a U.S. Open where pars are really good, birdies are really difficult, you come to a venue where there are a lot of birdies, you can take advantage of things. Is it in some ways gratifying to know, yeah, I still got it? U.S. Open can throw you off game in some ways and you come back to a venue like this and...

KEVIN KISNER: Oh, yeah, I told my caddie on Sunday at the U.S. Open I couldn't wait to make a birdie, and I came here and made 18 straight pars the first day and wanted to beat my head against the wall.

It's so much fun to be able to shoot a low number on regular tour events. It's a lot of fun and I think the spectators really enjoy it.

Q. Do you jump on a plane?

KEVIN KISNER: Yeah, I'm heading out. I'll watch for another hour or two and probably head out.