U.S. OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP 2022

June 16, 2022

Aaron Wise

The Country Club

Flash Interview

THE MODERATOR: Wise, 2-under 68. You played great out there today. Can you talk us through your round a little bit?

AARON WISE: I felt like I was scrambling all day, to be honest. I think I hit it pretty good off the tee. I haven't looked at the numbers, but my iron play wasn't very good, and I had to get it up and down a bunch and made a couple of good putts from outside of seven, eight feet, which was nice, a bonus.

Just kind of birdied the holes I feel like are gettable and hung on when I hit a bad iron shot today.

THE MODERATOR: Obviously, you're in good position after round one. What are you going to have to do to replicate that tomorrow?

AARON WISE: You know, just more much the same. I'm interested to see how the course changes as the week goes on.

We got lucky. It stayed overcast this morning, so the greens stayed pretty soft, but the wind picked up and made it play tricky even though it was soft.

If it gets firm out there, I mean, I think only 3-under is the best score of the morning wave so far, and that's with the greens being soft.

We've got quite the challenge ahead of us. You're going to have to be on top of every part of your game, which is like any U.S. Open. Today I felt like my iron game lacked, so that's what I am going to work on a little bit and try to get sharper.

Q. When exactly did you switch to the long putter?

AARON WISE: I switched to it just before the playoffs of last year.

Q. Was that a tough mental thing for you to go there or did you try a bunch of other different -- what was your process of arriving there?

AARON WISE: Actually, it's something I kind of forgot about. I struggled with putting a little bit in college. I went through a bad stretch where I didn't putt well. My coach, obviously, uses a long putter, and he said, hey, try it. I picked it up, and it felt really natural. I kind of hung on to it since then and even forgot I had it. It was at my mom's -- in my mom's garage. I went back through a bad stretch, and I was, like, you know, I might as well try it. I had her ship it to me. I cut it down and started using it before the playoffs last year, and, again, it felt pretty natural.

I putted better with it, so I've just rolled with it since then.

Q. Is it here to stay?

AARON WISE: We'll see. If it keeps making putts, it's here to stay.

Q. Based on your score, you're amongst the leaders. You're right there. Do you always feel at a U.S. Open like it's a little precarious and you're sort of on your back foot?

AARON WISE: Every hole. Every hole. Even if you play the easiest hole out here, I promise you it's not that hard to make a double. That's what the USGA does so well.

I was in the middle of the fairway on 9 today. I tried to hit a chip 6-iron in there, and next thing you know I'm taking a drop in the hay grass from the grand stands and just trying to get out of there with bogey if I can.

Really any swing you make that's pretty far offline, you're going to get very penalized for it. Yes, I mean you got to be on top of all aspects of your game.

Q. How did you tackle the fifth hole? Did you just rip driver or -- the drivable par-4.

AARON WISE: I was in between on that, and I saw there was a two-group wait on the tee when we played today, so I was able to see a lot of people hit. No one else laid up, so I wasn't going to be the first one to do it.

I hit a driver in the green-side bunker and hit a great chip that almost went in and tap in birdie. I'm interested to see maybe this afternoon how people play it and see kind of what the vibe of that hole is because it's pretty interesting.

I don't feel like it's an auto go for it, but then the wedge shot is hard too being straight downwind and straight up hill. It's a tricky hole.

THE MODERATOR: Thanks, Aaron.

AARON WISE: You're welcome.