Q. You mentioned it's been a minute since you've done an interview, but do you feel like you've been struggling lately with your game?
AKSHAY BHATIA: No, it's just building up to something good. I finished -- I had a nice finish at Pebble last week and brought some momentum here. It's been a little bit of a hectic week for me. I had some media or sponsor stuff on Tuesday, so I flew to Vegas Monday night, came back Tuesday night from Vegas. It's been a different way of prepping, but it's a solid start to this tournament.
Q. Was there anything in your prep -- I know you mentioned a different way, but that either clicked or something you changed or anything that you feel gave you some confidence?
AKSHAY BHATIA: I think it's just more being a little more specific and mentally aware of what I'm trying to do out there. Obviously it's a hectic kind of day. People are loud and always talking. So if you can try and kind of focus on what you have, that's all you can really do.
Q. Is this a tournament that growing up you were like kind of specifically aware of in terms of that's a rowdy tournament, that would be one that's fun to play?
AKSHAY BHATIA: Yeah, I think it's gotten louder and louder. You don't really know what to expect until you play the event. Last year was an event where it was just -- the weather was terrible, and I never really thought I would come back and play. But once I saw the weather was good and I really like this golf course, I thought might as well just come back, and I think it fit pretty good in the schedule.
Q. What do you like about the course?
AKSHAY BHATIA: It's a good kind of test. You've got some birdie holes and then you've got some holes that you've really got to step up and hit good golf shots. Greens are so pure. There's a lot of good things about this golf course that makes it a championship golf course. It's enjoyable, but it's a good test.
Q. Was it literally a week or two ago that you looked at the weather and you were like, okay, I'll come back?
AKSHAY BHATIA: Yeah, I was going to play Torrey Pines a couple weeks ago, but I came back from Dubai, the time change was too much for me. I felt like -- I play a lot of events in a row, so four in a row didn't scare me, so that's why I added this event. I'm just not used to not playing a lot of weeks in a row, so I figured this is good to add to the schedule.
Q. Did today feel significantly different out here than last year with the sunshine?
AKSHAY BHATIA: Oh, yeah. People were buzzing, and it's a lot more fun. Last year I was freezing and ball was going nowhere and it was playing really hard. Just kind of wasn't prepared for it, I guess. This year it's just so much fun. You never step up to a golf shot feeling tired or anything. It's go, go, go. So it's fun.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports