What they said: Ryan Palmer

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SONY OPEN AT HAWAII: Transcript archive

MARK WILLIAMS: Ryan Palmer, thanks for joining us. 2 under par 68, 16 pars and a couple of birdies. If you can give us some thoughts and comments on your round today.

RYAN PALMER: If you told me I was going to shoot 2 under when I got out here I would have gone back to my hotel, had taken it and had a big day on the beach. I'm very pleased, very happy. I hit it good, I don't know how many greens I hit, but I feel like I hit a lot of them. I kept myself in good position. I never really got in trouble except for 15 and 16. But I drove it pretty steady, hit my irons great. I thought I hit my irons better today than I have the last two days. I just never gave myself chances to make a lot of birdies, I had a short one on 3 and 10 that I missed. I needed to make some 20 footers to shoot a low round, but I'm very happy with the 2 under.

MARK WILLIAMS: You said it, were you surprised when you got to the golf course and there were only a couple of guys that finished with pretty good rounds and the rest of them, no one was really moving much.

RYAN PALMER: When we get here, James, my caddy says the low round was 4 under, so I knew it wasn't easy. So that was a good thought going in, knowing they wasn't playing super low, and I would have to go shoot a low number. I just went out today, played golf, had a good day with Robert, we had a good time. I was laughing with Billy Brown, he was out there with Collin (inaudible) very calm, just played today and that's all I cared about and came away with a good round.

Q. Are you going to take a similar approach, even par tomorrow?

RYAN PALMER: I'm going with it. It's worked so far. But tomorrow will probably be a little bit different, obviously being the last round, 18 holes of golf to go. But that's all I'm out there to play is 18 holes of golf.

So I'm going to enjoy tonight and get up and enjoy watching the football game in the morning. But I'm going to bring the same approach. Again, like I say, I'm not going to lie, I'm going to be a little anxious, but probably a little nervous, a little nerve running considering the position.

But I'm excited about being in this position this early. I haven't lead, I guess you could say wire to wire, since I've been on TOUR after the first and second day and tied for the lead today. So I'm pretty excited about what's going on. Real excited.

Q. I wonder if you could talk about that bunker shot on 16.

RYAN PALMER: I was surprised where it ended up obviously. I had so many different things going through my mind, what to do, just put it in the middle of the bunker just to give myself a chance to get up and down.

When I first thought about it, I had a rescue out ready to try to hammer it through, and hope I got a good bounce out of it and just give myself a putt of any distance. Then went to a lob wedge, try to fat a lob wedge out and give myself a chip, or even in the bottom of the bunker. I took an 8 iron, and finally just took a 7, and shut it down as much as I could and just hammered it and got a lucky bounce, there was no doubt. To make the putt was even more special. Huge momentum boost.

Q. What was your initial reaction when you walked up to it?

RYAN PALMER: Where the ball ended up? I saw it splash. When we saw it, I said there's no way, that's the ball. James is like no, because we saw the sand splash. I assumed it would be in the bottom of the bunker. Some of these bunkers are so shallow. It just obviously hit and just took off and ended up unfortunately where it ended up. But the best par I ever made I guess.

Q. Why did you hit it there, just trying to show off?

RYAN PALMER: Sure. Yes.

Q. I'm going with it.

RYAN PALMER: I will take it.

Q. What club did you hit into the bunker?

RYAN PALMER: It was a 50 degree wedge. Little up the right. (Inaudible. I just kind of held onto it much. With the left right wind, I have a tendency to leave it out.

Q. What did you hit on 18 today?

RYAN PALMER: An 8 iron. 184 to the hole. I put a good distance on it.

Q. Where were you trying to land that, Ryan?

RYAN PALMER: Just short of the hole. I was trying I might have landed it on the front middle part of the green. I knew it was going to bounce a little bit. I knew the hole, too, it did, it released probably about 5, 6, 7 yards.

Q. Do you feel like that was a bonus when Robert ended up where he did after 2, it's pretty hard to get up and down in some of those places around 18?

RYAN PALMER: I think so. When I saw where his ball ended up I knew it wasn't going to be easy. And I figured, if I can make birdie, and if he doesn't get down, I'm tied with him. Or if I make a putt, I'm leading by one. He hit a great shot unfortunately where his ball ended up. I made a good birdie and I'm very pleased to be tied for the lead with him and looking forward to tomorrow.

Q. Almost as important as being tied for the lead, whatever that mean, you guys somehow managed to put a little bit of gap between everybody else?

RYAN PALMER: We did. Obviously three shots is not that many out here. If I can go out tomorrow, and keep doing what I'm doing, shoot under par, somebody has got to shoot a pretty good round to catch or pass us. If I can go out tomorrow, and stay in the moment, and not think about what's going on, it will be hard obviously, but just keep playing the way I'm doing, and just take tomorrow for what it is and just go play 18 holes of golf.

Q. It seems like it would help and this attitude you have going, not to have 12 guys separated by two shots and Lord knows what's going on out there?

RYAN PALMER: It's a big help having a little bit of obviously a 3 shot lead. And that's still a lot of shots to make up in one round of golf, especially if the wind blows again tomorrow.

I'm have ecstatic to where I'm at, and I couldn't be in a better place right now with my game and my mind out there. I'm just thrilled to, obviously, be here and be in this thing right now.

Q. You said when you got here that you had been glad to have a 68, you would have gone right back to the hotel. What made you think that, because of the wind? The conditions to us as we see it, we are sitting watching television and watching football, but the conditions didn't seem like they were so hard that we were a bit surprised that there weren't some other lower scores?

RYAN PALMER: Yes, I didn't think that coming out here at all. I wasn't thinking shoot 2 under and go. Obviously at the end of the day, the way it played, I felt obviously 2 under was a great round for me today because they had some tough pins.

I came out today just ready do keep doing what I'm doing and giving myself some chances to make some birdies. I knew I would make some birdies, it's a matter of limiting the mistakes, and I was able to do that and just played a great solid round.