Q. 5-under, bogey-free today. How would you sum up that round?
TOMMY FLEETWOOD: Yeah, I couldn't ask for much more, really. I did a lot of things well. I was actually just saying there, I felt like when I came back out after the break, I actually drove it quite poor. Didn't hit a lot of fairways. On 16 and 18 I went down to my mini-driver. I was just a bit more comfortable with it. I couldn't reach 16, the par-5, anyway, so that was a good club for me to hit and not force it. And then I felt like 18 was a bonus. That's such a tough finishing hole.
Overall just to have a day where I felt like I got almost as much as I could out of it, I was really happy to start the week with that.
Q. Just coming off of the disappointment of last week, how are you able to put it behind you and new tournament and everything?
TOMMY FLEETWOOD: Well, you just keep going, don't you. I said at the time, there's so many, I guess, layers to it when you are disappointed and recently especially getting myself into contention and into position and not being able to finish it off, I think the easiest thing to do is, yeah, let that get to you or be down about it.
What a huge week this is. What about next week? Just massive opportunities ahead of you.
There's really no point in -- yeah, it takes effort to see the positives and make sure you prepare properly for this week and you go into this with a great mindset, but like I said at the time, I said it at Travelers, said it last week, best possible scenario for me is I get myself back into contention and I give myself a chance again.
I'll keep learning, keep trying to put myself up there. That's all I want to do, really. Today was a great start to that, but it's only one round. A lot more golf to play around a tough golf course. But I just want to keep trying my hardest and playing good golf.
I've been a pro for -- I don't know how long. I'm not going to do the math. But I've had my fair share of playing rubbish. I've spent weeks playing terrible. So playing well and being in contention is a privilege. You've got to enjoy those times. So while I'm playing well, I'm kind of enjoying it as well.
Q. What are you doing well that you weren't last year? Why are you playing this well?
TOMMY FLEETWOOD: I thought I played okay last year.
Q. You're now the second player I've disparaged.
TOMMY FLEETWOOD: That's very harsh. What did I do wrong in '24?
Q. You're at that level of putting yourself there, which is what everyone wants to be.
TOMMY FLEETWOOD: Yeah, exactly, and it's where everybody wants to be. Sometimes the game is just going for you. I am playing well, putting well. And yeah, sometimes the game just flows and you really want to make the most of those times really. Sometimes you feel like you're doing everything right and you just look at the scores and there's guys that are shooting great scores and you don't understand how they're doing it because it's not happening for you.
Yeah, at the moment I feel like I'm playing some really good golf and I'm shooting some good scores.
I think I've had a really good solid season, and yeah, the one thing that it has locked probably is a win so far, but there's been amazing consistency, and I feel like I'm doing great work with great people around me. I just want to continue to do that and enjoy it while it's going well.
Q. You talk about playing well and someone shooting a great score. It was around 3:00, around 4:00 we had the rain break, you're playing a lovely round of golf and you look up. Did you see the man from Oban at 8-under and wonder what was going on there?
TOMMY FLEETWOOD: I don't know, I would love to see the highlights of his round, really, because -- for sure when we came back out, the course was a lot softer, so we did have a chance of shooting a score. But did he finish with quite a few birdies maybe?
Q. Six in a row, 29.
TOMMY FLEETWOOD: That helps.
Q. 60-footer, 40-footer --
TOMMY FLEETWOOD: He was only 2-under before that. He wasn't doing that great. Yeah, that's an amazing round of golf, and I think sometimes those just -- how tough this course is, I don't care when we came out, whether it's soft, whether the conditions have eased up or whatever. I think sometimes you see rounds where it really does show how good PGA players are sometimes.
For me, if you'd have played the course or walked the course this morning and then said somebody is going to shoot 62, ridiculous really. It just shows how good so many of these players are, and great stuff from Bob.
Q. Are you surprised that you're just one of two bogey-free rounds today?
TOMMY FLEETWOOD: I'm surprised there was any bogey-free rounds, including myself. I'm surprised at myself. So yeah.
Again, to go bogey-free around there is really, really good. I couldn't ask for much more in terms of -- I think I made like two or three really good par saves, but apart from that, I did a lot of things well.
I got away with it off the tee, as well, a lot. Coming out, the rain had made the bunkers so smooth, and I was driving it not great, kept hitting it in the bunker, but the bunker was arguably better than the fairways at times. There was no mud on my ball; it sat perfect. So I did get a bit lucky at times with that. But you make the most of that.
I'm very surprised at that. Who was the other bogey-free, Bob?
Q. Hideki.
TOMMY FLEETWOOD: Bob wasn't even bogey-free? Pathetic.
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