Q. Seven birdies, just one bogey. You've got to be happy with that.
JUSTIN ROSE: Absolutely. Well, it was my first time on the golf course this week. Funny how that can work sometimes. I didn't feel my best. Had to pull out of the pro-am. Was just sort of suffering with a little man flu. You know how that goes.
Really kind of made sure I took the last couple days to be ready for today. I guess maybe sometimes expectation drops in those scenarios. Yeah, came out really and had a good warm-up on the range, felt fine this morning, felt well. Was able to take that good warm-up from the range on to the golf course, and really felt like I played really solid golf today.
Q. All year you've played solid. Of all your top 10s, they've all either come in majors or Signature Events, all but one. Why are you playing so well in the big events with the best fields?
JUSTIN ROSE: I guess motivation maybe. I guess that's the only thing I can probably attribute it to. Majors I definitely focus on; always have done. But obviously, yeah, some of the -- Bay Hill is a tough golf course; played well that week for sure. Pebble is a place I've done well at in the past.
Listen, obviously now is a great time to try to string it together for three important weeks, and maybe we can make some inroads on this at the end of the season.
Q. Your resume is so long, so many impressive things. You've missed the Playoffs only one time, and the year you missed it you were just points out, back when it was 125. That's longevity; that's pretty impressive.
JUSTIN ROSE: Definitely. I pride myself on that for sure.
I think it's bugged me a little bit that I haven't been back to East Lake in a few years, so that's definitely a goal of mine. We all know how important top 50 is. Top 30 is a little bit of a cherry on top of everything. That would be a big goal for me.
Obviously if you play well in these tournaments then you can start to think about obviously the bonuses that are in place the next couple weeks, but East Lake is a great golf course for me, so if I get there, I feel like I have a great chance there.
Q. Battling a little bit of sickness but first time you're seeing the course this week. How are you feeling after round 1?
JUSTIN ROSE: Yeah, obviously delighted with the start. Felt well today, felt good today. Got a lot of rest yesterday, which was the focus. Must have picked something up traveling over to the States and maybe it took a couple days to manifest, but yeah, Monday night and Tuesday wasn't really feeling great.
In some ways, it's kind of a good golf course to not have -- even though it's completely redone this year, I feel like the course is one that you kind of know how to play it really. There's certain holes you've got to play to certain positions.
I felt like I knew how to get around this golf course without having played it. That was good.
I think the greens are new for everybody this year so it's not like I've really suffered on the learning side of things. I think they're very subtle. The breaks, it's very hard to learn them at the moment, new greens. I don't really think there was much of a detriment to not having played much practice rounds this week. I think come Sunday maybe it's a good thing; less time in the heat.
Q. Why didn't you get a practice round in?
JUSTIN ROSE: I felt a bit under the weather Monday and Tuesday. So that was all.
Q. Talk about that putt at 16; that was kind of funny.
JUSTIN ROSE: Yeah, it was a bit of a miserable putt actually. Well, I struggled early on in the round with the speed of the greens because obviously historically these greens are quite quick. I think they're a little slower this year just being brand new. I don't know what it is, but they can look quick in places, and the one on 16, historically down that back section of the green is a quick putt.
I tried to read quite a bit of break into it as well, so I was playing it out high, and I feel like it came off slow and left, and somehow it kind of caught the left edge and went in. I thought it had no business going in.
Q. It was just a funny reaction, that's all.
JUSTIN ROSE: Yeah, it had zero business going in the hole, but that was a bonus.
But yeah, there were a couple other opportunities out there that I could have taken as well, which is always the way. I felt like it balanced out nicely today. I felt like I did play a good round of golf, so nice to come off with a good score.
Q. You called the 63 in Scotland the cleanest round of the year. You played well at The Open. Was there something you found overseas that's carrying over?
JUSTIN ROSE: Yeah, a couple little sort of posture changes. I feel like I'm a little bit more over the top of the ball which has given me a little bit more maybe stability. I feel like possibly I was kind of backing away from it a bit too much and then throwing the arms at it. Yeah, just a slight posture change I felt like I clicked into at the Scottish Open which has carried through a theme for me.
Q. Does it feel like it's been a little bit of an up-and-down year?
JUSTIN ROSE: Yeah, absolutely, yeah, which I don't mind, as long as I know my good is good enough. I think that to feel like your good is not good enough you feel like you're wasting your time out here, but I know when I play well I can compete with the best of them any time on any golf course.
That's kind of all that matters to me I suppose. I love consistency; don't get me wrong. I'm striving for it, and it's a mark of obviously your skill set being really sharp if you can play consistently well. But at least I know it's sort of still there or thereabouts.
Q. Seems like it's coming at the most important weeks as well.
JUSTIN ROSE: Yeah, I do try to focus. I've got a busy life. A lot of travel back and forth, I live in England, I've got a family, 16 year old, 13 year old, got a lot of pulls on my time. Can't be completely selfish to the game. So I do have to work my spots where I can give it everything and try to peak for certain weeks.
Q. Is there any thought in the back of your mind, you're trying to play well here because you want to show some form for Ryder Cup?
JUSTIN ROSE: You always want to show form. I can still qualify for the team by right, which would always be nice. I'm in eighth position. I'd like to be top 6 to not have to rely on a pick. But I feel like I'm in a good spot. I'm not really putting pressure on myself with the Ryder Cup.
I feel like that's never the way to play well. So no, I'm not really thinking about that at all, if I'm honest.
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