U.S. OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP 2024

June 13, 2024

Akshay Bhatia

Pinehurst Resort & C.C. (Course No. 2)

Quick Quotes

Q. 2-under, you're tied sixth in the clubhouse after day one. What are your overall thoughts after day 1?

AKSHAY BHATIA: Yeah, it was a good day. I think anything under par here is really good. Didn't feel like I swung it great, but I managed to kind of just work my way around the golf course and hit a lot of good shots. I'm looking forward to some fresher greens in the morning and get right back to it.

Q. You mentioned working around the course, sticking to your game even if you're not swinging it well. Do you lean on any experiences you've had from playing here before in competition?

AKSHAY BHATIA: Not really. It's a different animal this week for the U.S. Open. But you kind of know where you need to hit it, and I feel like I did a nice job hitting it to 20, 30 feet all day, and hopefully some putts go down tomorrow.

Q. You played pretty well around the greens and shot a great score. It seems to be a recipe for success for the guys that are pretty high on the leaderboard. Was that a point of emphasis for you?

AKSHAY BHATIA: Yeah, I hit a lot of putts from off the green. I pretty much just got them up to tap-in and hit a couple good chips. Other than that, it's only going to get harder and harder, so a nice score today is going to help for the week.

Q. Speaking of getting harder, you're one of the last ones on the course today, one of the first ones out tomorrow. What are your initial thoughts about tomorrow now that you're off of 18?

AKSHAY BHATIA: Yeah, hopefully pace of play is a little faster. It was a long day today. Overall the greens will be a little better. It's going to be softer. There's a lot of things that can go in my favor tomorrow and try and get a low one.