THE MODERATOR: Let's welcome Brooks Koepka, the captain of Smash GC, and also a birthday boy. Brooks, you're currently T2, sitting at 5-under. It was a great way to start out the tournament. Tell us a little bit about your round and what went right for you out there.
BROOKS KOEPKA: Yeah, I played pretty solid. Really didn't do anything other than a three-putt on 16. That was kind of disappointing. But yeah, just played really solid. I felt like it was starting to come around last week. The ball-striking was there. Just didn't make any putts, but made a few today. Definitely could have been more, but it's nice to see some go in.
Q. A lot has obviously been made about the heat out there today. How did you fare out there?
BROOKS KOEPKA: It's fine. You know it's going to be hot. It's all about your prep going into it and what you're doing the night before. I've got that handled.
Q. The leaderboard is pretty stacked. We've got a bunch of guys sitting at 5-under and 4-under with Seb leading at 6-under. What do you need to do to go out there tomorrow, play aggressively to try to break away from the pack or do what you did today?
BROOKS KOEPKA: Just go about it, see how the day goes. When you're hot, you're hot. Sometimes you don't have it and you're just playing safe. You never know what's going to come tomorrow. Playing good, just need to keep ball-striking it well. It's kind of the last prep I'm going to get for the PGA, so just trying to make sure everything is in order.
Q. You talked yesterday about your putting. Obviously it was pretty good today. Can you take us through the round from a putting standpoint, especially maybe on the 10th hole you were able to save par there basically from off the green?
BROOKS KOEPKA: Yeah, I thought I putted okay. Speed was off, but the ones that I needed to make, I felt like I made.
I think after -- that pin placement, I was just in kind of the wrong spot, 25 feet straight down the hill. Downhill ones I either left them four feet short or ran them by six feet. I'll just go work on that. But I made most of the comebackers. The only one I didn't make was 16.
Q. You said after your round that you were going to plan to work out. Given the heat, do you have to adjust your workout, your post-round workout, if it's hot like it is versus maybe some normal weather?
BROOKS KOEPKA: No, it's the same thing. I'm just going to go eat and then go work out. It's the same thing. It doesn't matter if it's hot, it's cold. It's all about your prep and what you're doing, what you're eating, what you're drinking. I feel fine. Yesterday was a little bit more of a cardio day, so hopefully today is a little more lifting.
Q. Do you consider yourself a really hot weather player? Obviously you won twice in Jeddah. Is that kind of a thing for you, that you like the hot weather like this?
BROOKS KOEPKA: I don't really care what it is as long as I win.
Q. How is the golf course playing in comparison to last year?
BROOKS KOEPKA: I think it's -- it was in great shape last year, it's in good shape this year. I think it's maybe a hair softer. The fairways are a little softer this year. I don't remember much of a difference from last year. I think the greens are kind of about the same. They're great speed. The greens are in great shape. It's nice to be able to putt on good greens. That would be the only thing. I think it's just the fairways are a hair softer.
Q. Yesterday you mentioned that you felt things haven't been going your way, but what does a round like this today do for your confidence?
BROOKS KOEPKA: To be honest with you, not a whole lot. I just look at it as like it's a process. Not trying to peak this week, not trying to peak next week, it's the week after.
My confidence is there. It's not -- it's just the results haven't been there. But that's the whole goal is to peak for major season, and that's what we do.
Q. Does winning around the world matter to you at all, or just winning, that's all you care about?
BROOKS KOEPKA: Yeah, winning. Winning matters. I pretty much have won all around the world. I don't care where I play, where I'm at. I just want to win. That's the whole goal of teeing it up. If I didn't want to win, I wouldn't be here.
Q. What is the birthday celebration going to be like today? Are you waiting for Sunday?
BROOKS KOEPKA: No, I don't drink during tournament weeks, so I'm not going to do anything, especially with the PGA coming up. I'm dry, so I won't be doing anything. Just like I said, it's going to be golf, work out -- I'm very boring in the weeks that I play. Try to go back, try to see if I can hang out with Jenna and Crew for a bit, but I'll be kind of busy. We're just going to go out to dinner tonight, and that's it.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports