THE 151ST OPEN

July 23, 2023

Jordan Smith

Mixed Zone

JORDAN SMITH: Overall I'm pretty happy with 1-over out there. Could have shaved a couple of shots off here and there, but overall I'm pretty happy with that.

Q. Were there any particular holes that were a challenge?

JORDAN SMITH: All of them, yeah. They were all playing really tough. With the heavy air and the rain and the wind, if you miss the fairway and go in the rough, you were so far back that it was hard to even reach the green. A lot of time you were having to lay up.

None of the holes were easy.

Q. Do you enjoy that challenge when you have to dig in in these sort of conditions?

JORDAN SMITH: I don't mind it. I don't mind it. I've played a lot of it. Like you said, you've just got to think that everyone is in the same situation, same position. You've just got to go out there and give it everything on every shot. Yeah, you never know what might happen.

Q. The crowds continue to be impressive; they were out there with you every step of the way.

JORDAN SMITH: Yeah, yeah, it was quite surprising how many people were out there with how much rain there is, but I think everyone is out there enjoying themselves, cheering on Tommy and McIlroy and stuff.

Yeah, be interesting to see what happens the next few hours.

Q. I know you haven't played that many Opens, but do you learn from every experience of playing in a big championship like this?

JORDAN SMITH: Yeah, you learn quite a lot and obviously you get another Open under your belt.

Yeah, every year you learn something, get some more experience, and reflect on the week and find out what went well and what you could have done slightly better.

Yeah, you learn from every single major that you play in.

Q. How much have your family enjoyed being here?

JORDAN SMITH: They enjoyed it until today. But even with today's conditions, I think everyone is enjoying it out there. No one is getting too down, which is good.

Q. Tell us about your schedule coming up.

JORDAN SMITH: I've got four, maybe five weeks off now, so yeah, some much-needed downtime as the first half of the season has been very full on with a lot of flying, a lot of air miles. Yeah, it'll be nice to put the clubs away for a bit and chill out.

Q. Has the break come at the right time? Do you need a break?

JORDAN SMITH: Yes and no. Yes and no. I mean, I feel like I need a break, but at the same time I'm playing pretty well and swinging well. Just have to maintain it on the weeks off and come back hopefully stronger.

Q. Do you look at the schedule in advance and try and manage it more as the years go on and be a bit more selective?

JORDAN SMITH: Yeah, pretty much. Once we get a schedule we plan out what we're going to play and what we're not going to play.

And then there's a few tournaments that chop and change usually. Depending on if I get into a couple majors I might miss the week after or vice versa.

Yeah, it's always changing.

Q. You've got a few weeks off now; any plans?

JORDAN SMITH: Well, obviously I'm down in Surrey now, so we're going down to Cornwall for a couple of nights, so hopefully the weather is better than what we've got here. Yeah, looking forward to it.