U.S. OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP 2023

June 18, 2023

David Puig

The Los Angeles Country Club

Quick Quotes

Q. How would you sum up your first major start?

DAVID PUIG: I mean, pretty good. You know, I had two good days and two bad days I would say. It was a grind every single day. You know, I just fought hard and I couldn't have not any less than what I did.

So I mean, it's 4-over in total I think. A lot of birdies today. Didn't make a lot of birdies the other three days, but, you know, a lot of mistakes, too, that I need to avoid next time if I want to finish higher.

But overall, I mean, for a first major, pretty happy obviously, and it was very good round today to finish for sure.

Q. What was the one thing you learned this week about your game being in your first major that you can take with you?

DAVID PUIG: I mean, overall, I think my putting was very good, which I'm pretty happy about that. Obviously got to keep working on hitting more fairways probably and more greens. What I focus with my coach is just hit greens in regulation.

I think that's obviously the most important thing. If you're not in position, you somehow got to try to hit the green because it's very important obviously to hit greens.

And courses like this, if you miss the fairway you pretty much cannot hit the green which it starts off the tee. In other courses you can still miss fairways and hit greens.

Here, in general, hit more fairways, hit more greens. I would say that for sure.

Q. What's it like to finish on a high note, 67? Obvious obviously you found the putting stroke, especially on the back nine.

DAVID PUIG: Yeah, I mean, I think the last three holes yesterday helped me a lot. I played very good the last three holes. I mean, I made three pars but I hit three fairways and hit three greens with really good iron shots.

Didn't play my first two holes very good today, but I was pretty patient and, you know, putts dropped in the beginning a little bit and the back nine was fun.

I mean, I played very good except the last two drivers weren't very good. Made a very good par on 17 and couldn't make par on 18. But, yeah.

Q. Through that four birdie stretch, take us through that.

DAVID PUIG: Yeah, I mean, hit perfect shots and made very good putts. I mean, I made three kind of -- two long putts, one like mid-range, and I hit it very close in the par-3. So, yeah.

Q. Which one of those did you really like the most?

DAVID PUIG: Well, I mean, the first one, the birdie on 12 was probably the toughest one. I had like maybe like somewhere around 20 to 30 feet. I can't remember. But I was aiming like ten feet left.

That thing was breaking so much. I had the speed and the read and it went in. The other two putts were obviously more straight.

But, I mean, I executed them pretty good obviously.

Q. Does it feel like you took three and a half rounds to figure out the greens or did you have a good feel for them earlier?

DAVID PUIG: Yeah, I mean, again, I think yesterday I shot 5-over and I think I was like plus two something on strokes gained putting.

So I putted pretty good yesterday. Played obviously pretty bad. If you have +2 on putting and you shot 5-over, the other stuff wasn't going very good.

But, yeah, I think I putted pretty solid throughout the week.

Fastscripts by ASAP Sports...