Cognizant Classic

Friday, February 27, 2026

Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, USA

PGA National Champion Course

Nico Echavarria

Quick Quotes


Q. Nico, I know that was a tough finish, but how much more difficult was the round this afternoon than it was yesterday morning for you?

NICO ECHAVARRIA: Yeah, it was harder. Unfortunately didn't finish the way I wanted. Still, if they tell me I'm going to be in that position starting the tournament, I would take it. It felt it was harder to putt. The greens are getting crunchy, and with the wind it's harder to start the ball on line. That was kind of the struggle of the day for me.

Q. Was there a particular stretch of holes out there that seemed to play a lot more difficult than most?

NICO ECHAVARRIA: I think, yeah, on the front, it's 4, 5, 6 and 7, and on the back it's a lot. 11 plays hard. 15, 16, 17, and 18 is not a birdie hole anymore, as much as it was with the new tee.

Q. Were you surprised to see the separation there? You got in the lead there for a while, and then there was a little bit of separation towards the end, not so much with your two bogeys at the end, but were you surprised to see that?

NICO ECHAVARRIA: Yeah, a little bit. Austin is playing great. He's 12-under; that's golfing your ball out here because it's not easy.

I said, I still have a chance of being in a good position hopefully coming into Sunday afternoon, and that's all we want.

Q. Are you heading to the range now?

NICO ECHAVARRIA: I'm going to hit some putts.

Q. With the PGA TOUR looking to overhaul the schedule in the coming years, is there anything specifically you'd like to see changed or something that they should or shouldn't do?

NICO ECHAVARRIA: No, I think we have the right people for the right job. I'm excited for the future of the PGA TOUR. I like what Brian is thinking. I like the guys that are involved.

I think the quality of the TOUR in general is going to be very good.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports
164113-1-1002 2026-02-27 22:14:00 GMT

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