Q. Shane, 69 to open here at Wentworth in defense of your title. How did you find it out there today?
SHANE LOWRY: Not bad. I got off to a great stat start, was 3-under through seven. Love this place. See my way around here quite nicely. A couple of bogeys around the turn which wasn't great. But finished all rate. I would have liked to birdie one of last two holes. I think the course is playing a little bit more difficult this year. There's a lot more rough and a little bit firmer. So 3-under is not a bad score.
Q. Pretty as it's looking, it's definitely a little bit tougher with the rough in some areas.
SHANE LOWRY: Definitely.
Q. Does this have to do with preparation of what's around the corner?
SHANE LOWRY: You'll have to ask the captain and Edoardo Molinari about that. I don't know to be honest.
It's thicker in Rome than it was there today, so yeah, I don't know. Obviously playing a golf course like this, your game needs to be sharp. It is a great course to play on and such a big tournament.
Q. Is it difficult to concentrate on the job at hand with what's around the corner?
SHANE LOWRY: Yeah, there's a bit of Ryder Cup chat between us but it's enjoyable. We all played pretty nicely. It's nice to be in the sun around Wentworth in big crowds. Tommy being the hometown hero, it's so nice. It was a nice treat this morning and look forward to tomorrow.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports