THE 151ST OPEN

July 23, 2023

Sepp Straka

Mixed Zone

Q. Tied second at The Open; how do you reflect on your week here?

SEPP STRAKA: Very happy. I've not had a whole lot of success with links golf in the past and I haven't had a lot of experience, so being able to take kind of my best game into links golf, I was able to gain a lot of experience, and yeah, really happy to have a good week here.

Q. Felt like you were able to kind of quietly go about your business. You with Tommy Fleetwood and all the crowds screaming for him, you were able to stay under your umbrella and hit your next shot, go to bat quietly, unnoticed even.

SEPP STRAKA: Yeah, I think it may have helped me a little bit. Just kind of took the pressure off me. Everybody was worried about Tommy. It was just such a cool experience to be able to play with him on Sunday in such a good week in his home area.

Just really special to kind of share that with him.

Q. Surely now you must be nailed down for the Ryder Cup.

SEPP STRAKA: I don't know about that, but I feel like my game is in a good place. I've got a couple more months of tournaments to take advantage of the good play, and hopefully I can do that.

Q. Would you like to be there?

SEPP STRAKA: Oh, yeah, absolutely.

Q. How much would you like to be on the Ryder Cup?

SEPP STRAKA: It would be huge. It would be amazing. It's been a huge goal. Over the last year and a half really it's been on my radar, and really looking forward to having a chance.

Q. Have you seen Luke around this week?

SEPP STRAKA: Yeah, he was here earlier this week in the practice rounds. He came and saw me on one of the days. I can't remember which day, yeah.

Q. What was the nature of your conversations?

SEPP STRAKA: Just small talk for the most part. Scheduling, all that stuff. Yeah, nothing too substantial.

Q. You didn't try and nudge him in that direction?

SEPP STRAKA: That's not my decision. I think he knows that's not me -- I want to be on the team, and hopefully I can show that with my golf.

Q. The fact he's showing interest in your schedule, obviously that's a positive, that you're on his radar and he's thinking about you.

SEPP STRAKA: Yeah, he's told me I've been on his radar for a while now, and hopefully I can take advantage of some good play the next few months and make the decision easy for him.

Q. Did you enjoy the fact that everyone was talking about Rory or talking about Tommy or talking about whoever? Did you quite enjoy the fact that no one was kind of really mentioning you?

SEPP STRAKA: A little bit, yeah. I kind of like to fly under the radar a little bit. It's kind of my style.

Yeah, it was fun to be able to be a part of that. And today's round was really special with Tommy. I think it was a really special week for them, and I'm glad I got to be there on Sunday.

Q. Can't fly under the radar at the Ryder Cup.

SEPP STRAKA: No, I'll be front and centre there, unless I find some new tactics.

Q. Two top 10s in majors this year. Why do you think you tend to play so well at these big events?

SEPP STRAKA: That's really the first success I've had in majors in my career. I've had some decent finishes but nothing crazy good.

But I think my ball-striking has improved a lot over the last year. It's gotten a little more consistent, so I've been able to kind of show up with my best game a couple more times.

Q. Playing out there in these conditions, what's the most difficult part in navigating it?

SEPP STRAKA: Judging lies, judging how far the ball is going to travel. If it's raining heavier, it's going to go 10, 15, 20 yards shorter; if it's raining lighter it'll be back to normal.

On top of that you've got the adrenaline shooting it far, so just kind of judging distances and judging lies was the hardest part.

Q. You took your umbrella everywhere with you, in the toilet with you, you were reading your putts with it --

SEPP STRAKA: Yeah, I had my glove in there so I had to make sure it stayed dry.

Q. Under the Austrian flag, what does it mean to you to see it so high up the leaderboard?

SEPP STRAKA: It's cool. A lot of guys came before me. Marcus Fraser, Bernd Wiesberger, and it's kind of cool that carry that on.