Q. 6-under par 64, what pleased you most about your play today?
RORY McILROY: Yeah, thanks, I think putting more than any -- I got off to a great start, a really fast start, 5-under through seven and held a couple of really nice putts. Probably the one thing I was not worried about going into today. But more so like I was questioning, it didn't feel like I had maybe had enough time to adjust to links greens, and I didn't putt very well in the Pro-Am yesterday.
But I got my eye in early and that was nice to see.
Q. How do you adjust to greens slower than you're used to?
RORY McILROY: I think just trying to stay really positive. I think more so than anything else is focusing on the strike. Just making sure you strike the putt solidly and get the ball rolling. If you can do that on these greens, it's going to hug the surface a little bit more and at least be rolling at the hole and my tendency, especially when I get back over here is to leave the putts short. So just try to make good, positive strokes.
Q. Your approach shot to the fifth, talk us through.
RORY McILROY: The ball was in a divot to I had to dig it out, pick it up pretty quickly and get steep on it. It was one of those, it was back into the wind, so at least I felt like I could be aggressive through impact, and again it was nice to hole the putt after that shot.
Q. Heading back to Hoylake next week, how does it feel going back being defending champion on that course and how valuable to play this week before going there?
RORY McILROY: Yeah, very excited. I've only been back to I think one major venue that I've won season since, which was Kiawah back a couple years ago.
Yeah, every time I see this, it gives me goosebumps. Yeah, it will be really cool. It will be really cool to go back there.
So I think playing links golf this week as well, definitely just helps me get acclimatised to conditions and the grass type and everything else. There's a lot of golf to be played before going down to Liverpool, and I want to play well the next three days.
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