U.S. AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP

August 15, 2022

Luke Gutschewski

The Ridgewood Country Club

Quick Quotes

Q. We were talking to your caddie, said the course was playing pretty tough.

LUKE GUTSCHEWSKI: Yeah, it's hard.

Q. Did you manage to find a lot of fairways then?

LUKE GUTSCHEWSKI: Yeah, I kept it in the fairway for the most part. When I was in the fairway I did a good job of not being too greedy and getting it back out in play for sure.

Q. Did you have a game plan for stroke play? Obviously match play you can be a little bit more aggressive but stroke play you want to get into the 64.

LUKE GUTSCHEWSKI: I take the opportunities, really, with anything. Off the tee I'm a pretty good driver of the ball, so kind of use driver to my advantage when I can. Other than that, just smart targets into greens and give myself a lot of chances for birdies.

Q. Seemed like the conditions out here today, it's not super windy and it's not super humid. Was it pretty comfortable playing out there today?

LUKE GUTSCHEWSKI: Yeah, it was great. Not really much wind for the first nine holes or so. It was soft enough, but it got pretty firm the last couple holes and the wind is picking up, so I imagine it'll get a little tougher in the afternoon.

Q. Any particular holes stand out today, a long putt or a key save that kind of kept the momentum going?

LUKE GUTSCHEWSKI: On 8, I think it was 8, I made about a 15-footer for par there. I hit it in the rough and had to -- hit it about 50 yards short of the green, got up-and-down there. That was really nice. Then I kind of got on a roll the last 10 holes or so.

Q. How many birdies did you have coming in? I think you birdied 17?

LUKE GUTSCHEWSKI: Yeah, I birdied four of the last 10.

Q. Obviously your dad is a pro. How much of an effect does that have on you? How much do you learn from him? How much does he give you advice?

LUKE GUTSCHEWSKI: Yeah, he's taught me about everything I know about golf for the most part. He's just a good role model more than anything. Just kind of watching him be a professional, I think that's kind of what I wanted to do my whole life, and watching him doing it since I was five years old has been pretty cool.

Q. Gives you a different perspective, doesn't it.

LUKE GUTSCHEWSKI: Yeah.

Q. How many events have you gone to? You said he qualified for the Open in '09.

LUKE GUTSCHEWSKI: I was here. I don't remember it that while, but I would have been here, yeah. Yeah, so I've been to quite a few. I've had a good opportunity to caddie quite a bit, too, so had an opportunity to see how they do things.

Q. How he thinks?

LUKE GUTSCHEWSKI: Yeah, and it's definitely helped my golf game for sure.

Q. I would think that kind of thinking really helps in this kind of setup for sure. When you're out there playing, do you kind of think what would my dad do in this situation and how would he play this shot?

LUKE GUTSCHEWSKI: Yeah, for sure. You have to be really smart here. Like every single shot you hit it's a double bogey waiting to happen if you're not smart, so yeah, definitely.

Q. This is your first Amateur, correct, your second USGA? You played last year's Junior?

LUKE GUTSCHEWSKI: Yep.

Q. Did you make match play?

LUKE GUTSCHEWSKI: No, I did not. I had a tough finish to miss by a couple.

Q. Any different mindset for tomorrow? Obviously a great score today puts you in great position.

LUKE GUTSCHEWSKI: Yeah, I don't know what the scores are like. I would imagine Arcola is playing a little easier, but more than anything, just keep doing what I've been doing. There's no reason to change what I've been doing basically this whole summer, just keep it up.