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February 3, 2023

Bubba Watson

Royal Greens Golf and Country Club

Quick Quotes

Q. It's been eight months or so since you played in the U.S. Open. How did it feel being back playing competitive golf again?

BUBBA WATSON: It was good. It was scary, though. You think about the last time I played, it was the PGA Championship. You think about the leg, you think about is it going to feel that way again? What if you have one of those weird lies in the desert, on the grass or on a hill, will it happen again?

For me -- I can't speak for anyone else who has an injury, but for me personally, it was tough. It was nerve-racking.

Then the wind was really, really tough yesterday afternoon, so it was just double hard. So I knew that my score didn't equate to how I hit it or how I can hit it. It was just knocking off the rust, trusting my body, and then difficult conditions. So it was, I guess, three strikes that went against me.

Then today, less wind. Now being able to trust a little bit more in my golf swing and my leg, it was a better score. It was 4-under today. It was night and day.

Conditions were obviously easier with the wind, but then every round I play is just going to give me more and more confidence, trust that we're good.

Q. And looking ahead to LIV Mayakoba, what's the next couple of weeks going to look like ahead of there, and what's it going to be like to play with your team?

BUBBA WATSON: Go home, and you just grind. The more rounds I can get under my belt, the more practice I can get, the more trust I can gain.

Today was a big step in that direction, pulling off shots, trusting shots. But I got to just keep practicing, keep grinding, keep getting rounds under my belt, different conditions, different lies.

I can't wait. The reason why we all signed up is easy. The biggest reason is team golf. That's a no brainer. We enjoy it. We want to hang out with our buddies. Like the last two days I played with Harold, being able to spend time with him, it's fun. So me and him getting to battle together with our other teammates, can't wait.

He told me how fun it was. I had to commentate. Even though I was with the team, I wasn't. I couldn't battle with them. I can't wait to be able to battle, good or bad, right? You play a good round or play a bad round, it's going to be fun trying to win.