Justin Lower posted a bogey-free 9-under 63 with nine birdies, including all four par 5s, for his career-low PGA TOUR round on Day 1 of the Fortinet Championship. Excerpts from an interview:
We’ll start off with comments about the opening round of the season with a 63.
Justin Lower: I’ll take it. I birdied half the holes, so that’s always a good start, I guess.
I’m honestly just happy to be in the position I am having I guess full status for once. I actually get to play events I wanted to play this fall. Last fall I only got three starts, so looking to get off to a better start this fall for sure.
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What was the rollercoaster ride of emotions?
Lower: It’s kind of the nature of professional golf these days, it’s kind of toxic in some ways and kind of unpredictable. But no, it’s worked out for me. I’m very grateful to be here and very grateful to be in the position I am. Obviously with Wyndham and everything, it
sucked honestly, like I said, but it turned out for the better. I learned — I kind of learned that next week what can happen, so it worked out, worked out the way I thought it would. And it benefited others as well, there’s the whole trickledown effect. I feel like everyone who is here deserves to be here and just kind of so on and so forth.
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How life changing is this for you?
Lower: I don’t know if it’s life changing. I played well in the first two Korn Ferry
events to where I would have had a card locked up either way, so I don’t know if it was life
changing. I feel like I would have been here either way. Just nice to have the security
blanket, I guess of, quote unquote, full status.
Second time at this course. Conditions, what are they looking like for the week
and what do you like about this course?
Lower: I left this course last year kind of in shock, honestly. I was like, God, if this
is how the Tour is, I need to get a lot better very quickly. Yeah, I feel a lot more confident than I did at this point last year just being the last card last year and then being where I am this year, I feel a lot more confident with my game and a lot more comfortable, for sure.
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Have you gotten a lot better?
Lower: I don’t know if I’ve gotten a lot better. Maybe just a little more trust in
myself. I just know if I can play the way I know how to, I can definitely do some damage.
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