Venue: the CJ CUP NINE BRIDGES (Media Center)

Venue: THE CJ CUP @ NINE BRIDGES (Media Center) Date & Time: October 19. 2017. Thursday. 14:00 KST. Player: Justin Thomas

Q: You must be pretty pleased with the round, with two eagles and birdies on the other par 5s. Talk us through the wonderful start. Justin Thomas: It was obviously a great start. A great day today. Getting a little tougher on probably the last five or six holes. I am a little disappointed. On that last 9 holes, I felt like, I had a really good opportunity to shoot something really really low so, that was a little bit of a bummer. Obviously, still pleased with the start. That birdie on the last hole was great, a good way to finish. I felt like I could have played the last 6 holes a lot better than I did. If I would have parred the my last hole, I would have had a pretty sour taste to my mouth walking off the golf course. I need to keep driving it well, keep my wedge game a lot tighter – it wasn’t quite a sharp as I would’ve liked today. I made par 5s 6-under, with two chip-ins. That’s pretty much my entire round so, that definitely helps.

Q: In the interview yesterday, you said that there are many uncertainties, since nobody has played this course before. You played very well today like you knew the course inside out. Was there anything special today? Justin Thomas: Not necessarily. With my length, if I drive it well, I’ve had so many birdie opportunities today with the wind being in the direction and how light it was out there. Driving it well, I have a lot of birdie opportunities. I feel like when you have a wedge in your hand, it does not really take course knowledge to play it that well. It may help if you get out of position. From 110, 120 yards in the middle of the fairway, most courses are pretty similar. The day was a result of a good play, good driving, and capitalizing on early opportunities this morning.

Q: What are your thoughts and impressions after your first day playing in front of the Korean fans? Justin Thomas: It was awesome out there. Playing with Sangmoon Bae today, you were going to probably get about the best crowd that you can. He is a great guy and a great player, glad to have him back. I was first coming out when he started serving (in the military) so, I don’t know him as well but, it was nice to spend some time with him out there. Pat and I were joking all day today that we were just trying to get the fans on our side a little bit because, being in hometown here and favored that he is, he was definitely getting a lot of cheers out there. It was fun to be out there with the crowds along with him.

Q: What did you think about the overall play today, in terms of the atmosphere and the field conditions? Justin Thomas: I pretty much touched on it with the last question. It was different but fun experience today. I’m interested in and excited to see how the crowds are going to be like on the weekend. It was a beautiful day out there at the start, getting a little dark and cloudy at the back 9. I’m sure there will be a lot of people out there, hopefully, I’m somewhere in the last couple of groups so that I will be able to see how big the crowd can get.

Q: You played very aggressive golf today. Was that because the course is relatively easy or because you are in a good form? Justin Thomas: A lot of it was the wind direction. Hole 13 being a little bit downwind today, I probably wouldn’t hit driver there to that pin usually because, I can get it far enough up in the bunker in the right or left to where I can chip off the green easily. I hit that driver about as perfectly as I could, and that definitely helps things. Drives like 18 is something if it’s into the wind, I won’t do. Again, being a little bit downwind I know that if I hit it solid at all, I just have to hit the right line and it’s a huge advantage to be able to do so. I think the big factor today was just the wind direction. Definitely I felt confident and good about where my game is as well.

Q: Would you play as aggressive as today for the next three rounds, regardless of the weather? Justin Thomas: It totally depends on the weather and the wind conditions. Just like any golf course, that totally dictates how you attack it, clubs you hit off the tees, lines you take. I will take it hole by hole, shot by shot, and round by round.

Q: You are known for generating power shots with ‘tip-toe’ swing, for example at the Sony open early this year. You seemed to have changed your swing today but, still generated enough distance. Was that something you have worked on? Justin Thomas: I literally haven’t tried to change a thing. I have no control over what my toes and feet do. I just swing about as hard as I can a lot of times I hit a driver. When I’m driving it well, it usually goes pretty far and pretty straight so, that’s all I’m trying to do right now.