|
|||
|
|||
|
 |
|
|
JOHN DEERE CLASSICJuly 13, 2013Patrick RodgersSILVIS, ILLINOIS Q. Patrick, you just finished signing autographs. It's been a great experience. How would you assess today's round? It had to be a lot of fun. PATRICK RODGERS: Yeah, I got off to a great start. My game felt really good and kind of got over the mental hurdle of making the first cut on the PGA TOUR, and it was really good being out there today, kind of pressure off me and just go out there and try and make a bunch of birdies, and got off to a great start. It was fun. Q. You rolled in a long one at 12. Did you realize you had taken a share of the lead at that point? PATRICK RODGERS: I was kind of looking at the boards, but I was just trying to shoot a low round. I knew the leaders were behind me so if I could just post a good number I would have a good chance. Disappointed with the way I finished but really happy to go out there and play well today. Q. You played with Zach in a practice round. Has that helped you this week? PATRICK RODGERS: Absolutely. What a great experience to play with one of the greatest players in the world and a guy who's had a ton of success out here. He was really nice, he's treated me really well and he set a great example of how to have success out here, so it was really good. Q. What's the game plan for tomorrow? PATRICK RODGERS: I'm just going to go out and try to shoot another low one. That's what it's going to take, so hopefully I picked up a few shots on the leads, but it's still going to take a lot of birdies out there. Q. Does success this week change your game plan for the future in any way or do you already have it mapped out? PATRICK RODGERS: I feel like each time I play out here I gain more experience, I get more and more comfortable, so this is all just part of the learning process. Q. How much fun is it to have family and friends following you around? PATRICK RODGERS: Yeah, I've had unbelievable support here this week, and I have had unbelievable support for my whole career, and it really means a lot to have the people out here cheering for me and rooting me on, it really does. Q. 65 here on Saturday. How pleased are you with your effort? PATRICK RODGERS: Yeah, I played well out there today. I got off to a really great start, took advantage of all the birdie holes on the front nine and was hitting the ball well and converting on the putts. A little disappointed with the way I finished but kind of a new experience for me so it was nice to be in the mix for a little bit. Q. How comfortable are you moving up the leaderboard in a PGA TOUR event? PATRICK RODGERS: Yeah, I'm getting more comfortable each day, each event. Kind of got a mental hurdle off my back yesterday making my first cut in a professional event, so today was pressure free. It was good. I could just go out there and make a ton of birdies, and I did that at the start. Q. Probably some more to do on Sunday. What is the game plan for the final round? PATRICK RODGERS: Yeah, just kind of the same as today. No pressure on me, I'm just an amateur, I'm just out here having fun. If I can just go out and try to shoot a low one, we'll see what happens. Q. You had a practice round on Tuesday with Zach Johnson and you were picking his brain. What have you learned from him and others out here that you were able to implement in the course of competition? PATRICK RODGERS: Yeah, it was great to play with Zach. It was just great to see what it takes to have a ton of success out here. He drives the ball really straight, has a great wedge game and he putts it well. I think that's why he's had success out here. He's treated me really well and he's a great guy, and I hope to compete against him down the road. Q. Did you know that for about 15 minutes you were actually winning this tournament? PATRICK RODGERS: Yeah, I saw that, but I knew that the leaders were a couple hours behind me, and the course is there for the taking, so they're going to make a lot of birdies. I just tried to keep pushing as best as I could. This is a new experience that I'll learn from and I'll be better tomorrow for it. Q. You had a good first round here last year but then you missed the cut. Was there any determination to make the cut and see how low you could go? PATRICK RODGERS: Yeah, it was a little mental hurdle I had to get over. Friday had been a tough day for me in professional golf, but it's a learning experience, and each time I've felt more comfortable, and today I kind of went out there real stress free, the pressure was off me, I could go out as an amateur and just have fun. Q. What's it like to see your name on top of the board? PATRICK RODGERS: Yeah, it's cool to be on top of the board, but I'd rather be on top of the board at the end of the week. Q. Tuesday we got to see you play with Zach. Did that help this week looking back at it? What did you get out of Tuesday? PATRICK RODGERS: Absolutely, just seeing how Zach has had so much success out here, obviously he's one of the best players in the world, he drives it really straight, he hits his wedges great and he putts it really well, and he's a great guy with a great demeanor. He's treated me really well, and I took full advantage of being able to play with him and try and learn from him a little bit. Q. What's the mindset for tomorrow? PATRICK RODGERS: Kind of the same thing as today. The pressure is off me. I can go out and be stress free as an amateur and try to have fun. Try to make a lot of birdies and hopefully get in the mix. Q. Did you realize today they call it moving day, and how much did you want to make a move? PATRICK RODGERS: Yeah, my game had been really good. I shot a 62 back home on Sunday and I had been playing really well, so I knew if I could go out and play stress‑free golf that I could shoot a low one out there. Q. You're definitely going back to Stanford in the fall? PATRICK RODGERS: Yeah, obviously all the guys I've competed against, the young guys who made the transition from amateur to professional golf are kind of guys I look at. There's a lot of guys that have come out here and had success that are pretty young guys, so it gives me confidence to come out here and play well. Q. Does it accelerate your thoughts about getting out here? PATRICK RODGERS: No, I'm my own person and make my own decisions but it's nice to come out here and gain some experience and see other guys who have played well, as well. Q. Are you hoping that they'll notice how well you've played here with the Walker Cup coming up? PATRICK RODGERS: Yeah, that's kind of the big goal for the summer is to make that Walker Cup team again. That's one of the highlights of amateur golf and it's probably the most highly‑esteemed event, so really hoping to make that event. Q. Are you going to play a heavy amateur schedule? PATRICK RODGERS: Yeah, kind of the meat of the amateur schedule this year, toward the end of July, beginning of August. So I'm going to try and have a great amateur summer. Q. Do you play the Western Amateur? PATRICK RODGERS: Yeah, for sure. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
About ASAP Sports •
FastScripts Archive •
Recent Interviews •
Captioning •
Upcoming Events •
Contact Us
FastScripts | Events Covered | Our Clients | Other Services | ASAP in the News | Site Map | Job Opportunities | Links |
|
ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297
|