RBC CANADIAN OPEN

June 8, 2023

Matt Fitzpatrick

Oakdale Golf & Country Club

Quick Quotes

Q. How was your day out there today?

MATT FITZPATRICK: It was good. Just had a couple of loose drives early on. Got away with a couple as well. Feel very fortunate for. But, other than that, drove it well for the rest of the round and played well overall.

Q. Given what happened last year, obviously you played well here and then you went to go win the U.S. Open. Can you not help but think about having that sort of same game plan again this year?

MATT FITZPATRICK: Yeah, of course. Obviously it's one of those, I feel like the golf course next week and last year are very different, so it's not kind of the same in a way because this setup was fairway, thick rough. Brookline was fairway, thick rough. I think next week's obviously Bermuda. It's kind of a different game plan. You're not sure whether it's going to jump or you're not sure if you're going to get it out. It's very different. So obviously there's positive vibes coming into this week, going into next week, so I'm just looking to play well and take confidence going into next week.

Q. How was it playing with Ludvig today?

MATT FITZPATRICK: It was good. He's impressive. Drove the ball very, very well. And yeah, he's a good player. I'm very excited that he's a European.

Q. As one of the guys who stayed loyal to the PGA TOUR and certainly as a top-20 player who could have left like a lot of others, how did the news resonate with you on Tuesday?

MATT FITZPATRICK: Listen, I mean, there's a million one things going on right now. It's obviously a tough question to answer. I never really got a formal offer anyway. It wasn't something I was interested in from the start. I purely spoke to them purely out of being nosy as to what they're going to do, what they're going to, what's the setup going to be.

So, yeah, for me it didn't really make a difference. I was always going to be on the PGA TOUR. Obviously for the guys that did turn down significant amounts of money then that's probably a tough one to swallow and I feel for them.

Q. Do you have any opinion that you have or established in the last 48 hours on how reintegration should look?

MATT FITZPATRICK: No, obviously I knew this was going to happen. I knew I was going to get a million and one questions. I thought long and hard on how I'm going to answer them. And that's not really my job. I spoke to a few close friends of mine and listened to what they had to say, successful businessmen. All I can do is go and play great golf myself. Whether everyone comes back and plays in the field, I've still got to beat them in front of me. Everyone in this field, I've got to beat them in front of me. So obviously there's a potential sour taste in there for some guys coming back. But at the end of the day you're trying to beat the course and that's what I'm going to try and concentrate on.

Q. This is your third time playing in Canada. How is it different than playing in the United States or back home in Britain, what are the crowds like?

MATT FITZPATRICK: Yeah, I mean, the crowds are really good. Crowds are really good. Plenty of encouragement out there. I feel like they understand golf really well. Speaking to a few of the courtesy car drivers this week they said that everyone loves golf here. You definitely feel that. I like coming to Canada. The last two golf courses here and last year that I played I really enjoyed. So, yeah, I always find it a good week.

Q. There's an air quality advisory in the area because of near by forest fires. Did that affect you at all today?

MATT FITZPATRICK: No, no, no, no. I didn't feel it. But I've been reading about it. My girlfriend lives not far away from Manhattan. So she said it's like 303. Which is like really, really bad. I was reading that it's equivalent to smoking six cigarettes a day. So I've never had one of those in my life, so I can't even imagine how that feels.

Q. As a guy who won the RBC Heritage earlier this year I'm just wondering if you can feel some sympathy for the sponsor of this event, given how much the news of Tuesday has or did at least overshadow this week?

MATT FITZPATRICK: Yeah, totally. Obviously a lot of sympathy. Obviously, arguably the best sponsor for the PGA TOUR. They have done a fantastic job coming into Harbour Town. I remember when knowing that event so well and I know at times when it was looking for a sponsor and it was struggling to get a field. And RBC to come in and just take it over and pump the money that they have pumped in, like I say, pretty much second to none out here, in my opinion. So I think, I'm sure it was a tough one to take.

But at the same time part of me understands where Jay's coming from and that it's got to be confidential and that it's got to be quiet and secret. Because the moment of any news of a deal got out, the whole world was going to explode, like it has. So I also have to understand that side as well.