Q. How would you characterize that round today?
COLLIN MORIKAWA: Just very, very solid top to bottom. I hit a lot of good shots. Last few holes the greens are firm, they're tough, and out here you just can't let up or you can't not -- you can't lose any focus. I feel like I did a really good job of that. It was nice to -- bad tee shot on 16, hit the fairway second shot, hit a great approach and make birdie. Just felt like I whenever I did put myself out of position I always got back and was able to make par today.
Q. Is that the key around Bay Hill though is when you're out of position get yourself into position?
COLLIN MORIKAWA: Yeah, it's tough because even when you're chipping out or you're trying to lay up into the fairway or lay up close to the green, you hit a little bit off line and you could be making double in a heart beat, right. So it's just being really, really committed with what you're doing and just trusting that that's the correct shot for the time being.
Q. Lead the field in strokes gained tee to green right now. You've had kind of the last couple years fits and spurts where the swing feels really good and then maybe you'll need to adjust something here or there. Obviously started the year well. Has the swing felt consistent all year long thus far?
COLLIN MORIKAWA: Yeah, I mean, I felt really good going to Hawaii, obviously played well. Got pretty sick around Farmers, so then I kind of went into AT&T at Pebble and then went into Torrey Pines, even at Genesis, still just kind of fighting the bug. It was like a month-long sickness where you just couldn't get the work in, didn't feel great, didn't want to, not grind but just things you knew weren't right. Finally I was able to get over that and get back into rhythm and start seeing the shots that I was seeing leading up into the beginning of the year. So it still feels really good, you never know because you work at home and home's a lot different than out here, especially on a golf course like this. You just, it's nice to see two days of just control and just kind of keep going with that.
Q. Just like a persistent cold?
COLLIN MORIKAWA: Yeah, it was just annoying. Like it was never like awful, like other than the first few days, but it was just never went away.
Q. Early small sample size, but putting-wise at least, strokes gained inside the top 30. Anything in particular you've been working on or you felt has been really good with the putter?
COLLIN MORIKAWA: No, look, Sweeney and I have done amazing work, and it's always, we know what to do, week-in, week-out, show up, do the stuff I need to to make sure everything's right. Just comes down to me freeing up. Even on the last hole, I didn't feel like I hit that bad of a putt, it's just these greens, like there's no friction with the golf ball, so if you do miss it, which I probably just pushed it a little bit on a left-to-right putt, it looks a lot worse than what it probably was, right. So everything feels really good. Speed out here is just really, really key. Second hole, I think I've, yesterday I hit my putt eight feet by and today was 16 feet by. So we're doing really well on speed the first few holes (smiling).
Q. Is there anything that -- I saw Rick is with you this week -- anything in particular you guys are working on or kind of more fine tuning?
COLLIN MORIKAWA: No, it's just going out and having a game plan, committing to my shots. Like I said, the swing felt really good coming into the week, kind of the last five days of prep I had at home. But after the past couple starts, you just don't know if it translates, right. You want to see it on a golf course like this, because it is demanding. So we've been able to see that. Just got to keep doing the right things for the next two days.
Q. Obviously this is a big event, a Signature Event and a great event with Mr. Palmer's name on it. Does it help with THE PLAYERS championship next week playing a difficult golf course like this going into another difficult golf course like Sawgrass?
COLLIN MORIKAWA: Yeah, I wouldn't want to play it every week, but I do like these difficult golf courses because it challenges you. They're obviously great to play when you're in control of your golf ball. Sucks when you're not. But it really gets you sharp and focused. It's just like any major championship, like THE PLAYERS -- and like THE PLAYERS, you just have to be on, and you can't go into it assuming it's going to be easy and you're just going to cruise through. There's no cruising this week, it's only going to get tougher, so we just got to be ready for that.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports