THE 152ND OPEN

July 19, 2024

Jasper Stubbs

Mixed Zone

JASPER STUBBS: It was a very awesome day. Obviously the conditions were testing, but I felt like I handled it pretty well. Very happy with the day. It's a nice end to the week.

Q. Nice start with a birdie today?

JASPER STUBBS: Yeah, it was a lot nicer. I didn't really expect it until the putt was a few feet out. Then it just dropped, so it was a much better start than the lost ball off the 1st.

Q. What did you hit yesterday off the 1st?

JASPER STUBBS: Same club, it was the same 3-iron that I hit today.

Q. Just left it too far right?

JASPER STUBBS: I mis-hit it a little bit. We've played that in practise with the wind off a little more to the right. I was just expecting it to get up and the wind help it to the left and it just never really did yesterday.

Q. How difficult was it for you mentally to come back from that? It's got to be tough, right?

JASPER STUBBS: Yeah, it was. To start like that and give yourself a two-shot buffer on the rest of the field after one shot is a bit difficult. I tried to hold my head high and stay in there a little bit. I just didn't have my best ball striking yesterday.

I just said to myself last night that I was going to have a much better day today. Yeah, I think I did that definitely.

Q. What were the differences today from yesterday? Did you change anything?

JASPER STUBBS: No real changes. I just felt like yesterday I wasn't driving it real well, so I just went and hit a couple of drivers in the left-to-right wind trying to see what it's like. Obviously that back nine for driving is pretty tough with it straight off the left to right end. I felt like I drove it a lot better on the back nine today, and I felt like that was a big difference as well.

Q. Now you're reflecting a little bit, is there some regret? You played so well today, you could have made the cut.

JASPER STUBBS: Yeah, I mean, there's a little bit, but at the same time, I've just played in a major championship for the second time in my career. I'm over the moon that I got to share it with my family and friends.

I feel like I put myself in a good position after nine holes to still make the cut despite my round yesterday. I'm only taking good, positive things away from this week, and I hope I've showed the golf that I can play.

Q. Just how difficult is that 11th hole tee shot? It looked impossible from our seats in the house.

JASPER STUBBS: It's really challenging obviously. The wind is down off the left. It makes you want to aim further left, but the more club you hit, the closer you put it to the gorse bush, and it pushes you trying to hit towards the train tracks. I did that a little too much today, and I had to take an unplayable back to the tee.

It's super tricky not being able to see where the fairway is and where it starts and where it stops as well. So that's another added difficulty to it. It's probably one of the most difficult tee shots I've played ever.

Q. When you step up on a hole like that and you're nervous and you have to hit a provisional, do you have to tell yourself anything or to just -- how do you approach it basically with a shot that difficult?

JASPER STUBBS: I basically just agree with a line with my caddie, and from there you've just got to tell yourself not to be scared. I think it's pretty easy to step up there and think about where the ball could go, but you've got to think about where you want it to go.

I think on that 1st tee shot, I was thinking a little bit too much about where it might end up, and it landed there. You've just got to tell yourself not to be scared and then commit to the shot.

Q. Do you get annoyed when in retrospect, like I was thinking -- my mind was wandering over the shot. How do you evaluate that, and is it annoying looking back and being like I should have backed off?

JASPER STUBBS: Yeah, definitely, it's annoying, but I think that's why most guys have a mental side of things coach. I work with a guy back home as well. I'll take that back to him, and we'll just learn from that. It's just a learning experience, whether it's a major championship or nine holes with your Buddy. If you hit a bad shot, you can always learn from it. So I think that's what I'll do.

Q. How do you -- like what is the art of putting a score together when you said you don't have your best ball striking and you're making a mental error in the wind? What is the art to getting your ball around in conditions like that?

JASPER STUBBS: It's finding a shot that you know on the day that you're going to be able to play with it. Normally if you're not feeling confident on the range, you've got to find something before you go out. Otherwise, it's not going to end too well.

So just finding one shot that you can play for the day and also just around the greens is pretty critical. If you can get it around the green in two, still a good chance most of the time to get up-and-down for a par. So that's probably the case.

Q. Been an amazing year for you. Can you talk a little bit about the similarities or the differences between the Masters and The Open?

JASPER STUBBS: Yeah, obviously the similarities are the field is a top field, like one of the two best in the world obviously. How the tournament is run is amazing, compared to what I've played on the amateur circuit, we get treated like kings here. So it's amazing to see the other side of it, which is really cool.

The differences from amateur golf to here, the spectators they're awesome. I love playing in front of a crowd and feeling the energy off them, and they've been pretty similar between the Masters and The Open as well, so it's pretty awesome to see.

Obviously the crowd was barking for Rosie a bit today in my group. So we were hitting it to the same spot, and he was getting a bigger cheer. Yeah, that's pretty cool still.

Q. One thing you'll remember most from this week?

JASPER STUBBS: Probably the birdie on the last there. That was a pretty nice way to finish off the week all together. Also a birdie on the Postage Stamp this morning.

Q. What did you hit there?

JASPER STUBBS: Into the Postage Stamp? I hit a gap wedge, 50 degree gap wedge.

Q. Just want to take you back to the Asia AAC and Royal Melbourne and that win and what it's opened up for you. How do you reflect on the performance that week and the playoff with the two Chinese lads and everything? Could you imagine what you've achieved since then as a result of that?

JASPER STUBBS: Yeah, it's been really nice. Obviously that sort of kickstarted it, so it's nice to see that that tournament was the first of a good stretch of golf for me. I think it was sort of the confidence boost that I needed. I was struggling a little bit before that.

Since then I feel like my game's come a long way. Yeah, looking back on that, it's been an amazing experience looking towards two majors. So, yeah, it's awesome.

Q. I've been hearing that you're going to stay amateur and go to Japan and defend the title?

JASPER STUBBS: That's the plan at the moment, yeah. Hopefully we can defend the title and come back next year as well to The Open and the Masters. That's the plan.

Q. Have you ever played in Japan or been to Japan?

JASPER STUBBS: No, I haven't, but my caddie has caddied there for quite a long time. I'm going to be getting some inside knowledge from him before I head over. That will be awesome.

Q. What about America? Are you playing in that one?

JASPER STUBBS: I've got two amateur events in the U.S. I've got the Western Am and the U.S. Am now.

Q. Have you played at all in the States, or will that be a first as well?

JASPER STUBBS: I played a late am series there last year. So I've got a few events under my belt, and obviously the Masters. Those are two events that I haven't played before and I've heard a lot about. So I'm looking forward to getting over there and seeing what those ones are about.

Q. I know you're getting asked about turning pro. Assuming you do play in Japan, if you didn't win, would that be the time to turn pro?

JASPER STUBBS: At this stage, I think so. It also depends on how I'm feeling at the time and what me and my team decide after this week. Some doors might open up in the coming months, and I might just hold off a little bit. Yeah, we'll just see what happens, I guess.

Q. So you're back to Australia from here or straight to the States?

JASPER STUBBS: Straight to the States. That event is in about a week and a half. Not really enough time to head back home.

Q. When were you last in Australia?

JASPER STUBBS: I think I flew out of home May 30. I've been away for quite a while.

Q. And all your friends in Australia following you here?

JASPER STUBBS: Yeah, I've got a good support team here, my family and a couple of friends here as well, and it's been really awesome to see their face in the crowd. I'm getting lots of messages from back home, probably too many that I can't reply to all at once, but I've been trying my best.

Q. Can you talk about Justin Rose? He obviously is an amateur, he was low amateur, and what he's gone on to achieve, and he's just a nice guy obviously. Did you get a chance to talk much? Any tips from him?

JASPER STUBBS: Not too many tips, just general chat about what's coming up. He played an amazing round of golf today and even yesterday. I said to my caddie walking up on the 18th that I knew that putt was going to go in before he hit it. It was just one of those things.

Yeah, he was a great guy, gave me some good information about -- he left most of that for off the course because no one wants to give you the competitive edge.

Q. And you played practise with Cam and Adam Scott as well. You feel comfortable now obviously playing with all of these guys?

JASPER STUBBS: Yeah, that's the ultimate goal to feel comfortable playing with the word's best. The more I'm able to do it, the closer I'm getting to feeling comfortable. I've never stood on a 1st tee at either the Masters or The Open and felt like I'm at a level above where I'm meant to be. It's a pretty nice feeling.

I just need to get more of that competitive practise under my belt, and I've come a long way.