MASTERS TOURNAMENT

April 11, 2024

Neal Shipley

Quick Quotes

Q. This feels a little bit like a 36-hole day in a college tournament. It's after 7:30 at night. How are you are why legs holding up after your first round here at the Masters?

NEAL SHIPLEY: Good, good. We're 23, still young, so we got a lot of energy still. Hope get to bed -- get a quick dinner, get to bed real quick and get some rest for an early morning.

Q. Masters rookie. Your caddie is a Masters rookie. Played a lot of practice rounds by yourself or with other first timers. Kind of against normal convention and what you would do in your first Masters. How are you and Carter doing this in this crazy wind no one really saw coming?

NEAL SHIPLEY: I feel like you get a lot of wind like this in college golf, so it's nothing we're aren't use to. It swirls around a lot down in Amen Corner. It's just about trusting what you feel.

Biggest thing I've been stressing is just committing to every shot, and I think we've done a really good job of that so far.

Q. Any extra steps that you and Carter are taking? Again, seems like every shot you have to double calculate all the numbers taking this wind into consideration. I asked Carter and he said he's never worked harder caddieing in a round of golf. Is that what you're experiencing as well?

NEAL SHIPLEY: Yeah, tough to get the numbers and really pick a club sometimes, especially when you're in between numbers. We had a few situations -- like on 17 we had three or four different options we could chose and types of shots. Just trying to figure out which one gets the best outcome the most times.

So, yeah, it's been a lot of the work for both of us. Feel like we've done a really good job and trying to keep it simple and just play golf.

Q. A course like this, can you really end up like (indiscernible.) And kind of being able to calculate what's going to happen?

NEAL SHIPLEY: You know, a day like today I feel like just a lot of feel and trying to figure out and just having a really good understanding of how your golf ball is going to come off and what it's going to do up in the air.

So I feel like today it's a little bit tougher to calculate things and a lot more about just feeling it out.

Q. You're a 23 year old bomber who is still in college. You played with a Masters champion today from 203. What does that say about this golf course and the challenge of the Masters where you both are competing on the same level and both experiencing the is a challenges?

NEAL SHIPLEY: Gosh, I mean, that's a good question honestly. I think it's really cool to be able to compete and be with Mike and to be competing with him and doing really well against a lot of champions. It goes to show how good college golf is right now and also just where the amateur game is at.

I don't know how the other ams did today, but I am sure a couple of them did pretty well too because there are a lot of good players here from the amateur side.

Q. Did you happen to hear any of your gallery shouting a little you today by any chance?

NEAL SHIPLEY: Yeah, got a few friends and family here so a lot of, Ships and things I can that. Been a lot of fun.