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U.S. AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP

August 14, 2018

Andrew Alligood

Pebble Beach, California

Q. So let's start off the way this round kind of started off where you make the eagle on 4. How did you do it?
ANDREW ALLIGOOD: So we had 150 pin, but obviously that whole green, you know, it's 48 paces long or 50-something paces long. So we were trying to land it 125, and it's just going to go down that slope towards the pin.

And so I hit it right on my line and it felt I hit my number, so I hit and just started walking. Once it skipped on the top slope and skipped down the slope I couldn't see it. I just knew it was going to be somewhere down near the pin.

I was just walking. Everybody started saying, Go in, go in, and then I see my coach raise his hand and everybody cheered. It was really cool. I knew I hit a good shot. I knew I hit it right where I wanted to. I just couldn't see it. I didn't know what it was going to do once it got over that slope.

But it was cool to do that, to kind of got off to that start.

Q. What club did you use there?
ANDREW ALLIGOOD: Pitching wedge. Just a little bit of a, you know, three quarter pitching wedge.

Q. And you kept the momentum going. You birdied 7, the par-5.
ANDREW ALLIGOOD: Yeah, so the hole after, so 5, hit a really good shot into there. Just missed the putt, but I knew -- like after my shot on 5 I knew 4 wasn't just a hoax. I knew I was swinging it well and it wasn't just a lucky hole-out.

So after that, that gave me confidence. Next hole I hit a really good shot in and lipped out the birdie putt, so I knew it was a matter of time before they start falling.

So, yeah, 5, we actually decided to lay up. I mean, we only had 220 pin, but it was an awkward number with the water and everything. So we laid up to a really comfortable yardage. We've probably hit two, three hundred balls that yardage on the range the past three days.

It was just a perfect number for that shot. It just landed just right of the pin. Let it spin to the left, and then I hit it to a foot, a foot and a half.

Q. And that club again was?
ANDREW ALLIGOOD: 54-degree?

Q. And that was on 7?
ANDREW ALLIGOOD: Uh-huh.

Q. And then you went to the back side, and again on the Par-5, 11?
ANDREW ALLIGOOD: Uh-huh.

Q. Did you go for that in two?
ANDREW ALLIGOOD: I did, yeah. So it was just a hybrid into that green. I hit a really good shot. You're not going to stop anything next to that pin unless it stops in the rough and just kind of trickles out, so we kind of knew we were going to be over the green.

Actually didn't hit that great of a tee shot, or, excuse me, a chip shot, but when it went past the hole I got a really good read on the putt. It was a very straight putt, and I knew no matter what speed I hit it on, it wasn't going to move too far outside the hole. So it was nice to have that putt, and then just to go in right where I saw it going in.

Then once that happened, that was even more confirmation that everything is kind of working today, so it was good.

Q. Then you go to the next hole.
ANDREW ALLIGOOD: Yeah. So next hole was just more of that confidence, stepping up on the tee knowing if I hit a good shot -- it was a perfect number for the club we chose, and I hit the shot exactly where I was looking.

Knowing that like -- I didn't feel like I had to stick it close today to make some putts which took the pressure off the irons which helped kind of hit them really well.

So I knew like -- and obviously that's a hole, like you'd take three and run. I just stepped up and we chose a good target and knew like if I hit it right where I was looking it was going to be 20, 25 feet. If I goosed it or flushed it it was going to get pretty close.

I stepped up and I hit it really well. Came out on the middle of the face and I knew it was going to be pretty good. Came down to six, seven feet and made the putt.

Q. When you made the birdie at 14, did you have any idea you were in the hunt for medalist?
ANDREW ALLIGOOD: You know, after we made that birdie, my coach, he's like, You know, obviously you're playing well. He didn't know obviously, but he said, You're playing well. You may start getting a couple people out watching, maybe a camera or two, so let's just stay focused.

There was only one camera guy or like photo guy that came out and followed us today once I started making a couple birdies. So I knew -- I didn't think I was leading, but I knew I was one or two back. We kind of felt like that.

Yeah, that birdie on 14 was kind of a steal. I hit 6-iron for my third shot on that hole and kept it up on that back tier and made the putt, which was the best shot of the day into that hole. To get a birdie out of that was nice.

And then once I made that I knew -- and I was correct. I knew I had to make at least one or two more coming in, and I actually made some good pars on 16 and 17.

I think at that point my coach knew that we needed to birdie 18, and that chip shot I was trying to make, and obviously right when I finished he was like --

Q. It was a nice up and down there.
ANDREW ALLIGOOD: Yeah, yeah, it is good. I mean, overall it's great to win stroke play, but like that's not why we're here. You're here to -- you can win the tournament being 64th seed. It's just a lot more confidence the higher up you finish for sure.

Q. Did you have an idea that you were playing well coming here?
ANDREW ALLIGOOD: You know, I took a week or two off after the Players Amateur, which is like mid-July. I was getting close to being pretty burnt out mentally. I was getting tired. Practice wasn't as fun.

I took that time off. Tried to reset. I still had confidence coming into this week, and me and my coach put in a lot of time, week and a half, two weeks coming up to this.

Confidence level was there. It was more, you know, getting the skill level there. It was good coming into this week. We got here and it still felt pretty good, but I knew like if I kept my head in the right spot I would find it even more, even if I was out on the golf course.

And yesterday I didn't hit it all that great. I think I hit four fairways total, but I stayed in it. I didn't let myself get ahead of myself or down on myself. I was as mentally strong as I have been in a while.

I did really well keeping myself in yesterday's round. Finished at even. I knew today the range session after yesterday was really good. Coming into today I knew that was taken care of. All I had to do was do the same thing: keep my head where it needs to be, and it took care of itself.

Q. Obviously everyone goes to zero now. We go to match play.
ANDREW ALLIGOOD: Right.

Q. How much match play have you played?
ANDREW ALLIGOOD: Not -- I'm sure there are guys that have played more than me. For sure.

Junior golf has a couple tournaments in Florida. We've played a couple like small things in college, nothing too big. We didn't make it to match play at NCAAs or anything.

But I like match play. I like that one-on-one. When you're playing at home against your teammates you're kind of playing that one-on-one type thing.

I like match play too because you're going out and you're being a little bit more aggressive. You make six birdies and a bogey or two bogeys, you know, six birdies is good, especially at Pebble. Like, you know -- or, you know, a guy that goes and shoots the same number with eight birdies, he's going to beat you. Even though we shot the same score he's going to beat you because he made more birdies.

So I think it's fun just because you can be a little more aggressive, and if you make a mistake you just go to the next hole and be aggressive again.

Q. Last question: Does Pebble let you be aggressive?
ANDREW ALLIGOOD: I think there is risk/reward, and it's off the tee because the greens are so small out there. If you're giving yourself a lot of wedges it's fine. Laying back on that course is tough because there are even greens you don't want 8-irons into.

I feel like it's risk/reward, especially match play. If you step up and hit driver down the fairway, that guy is going to feel a little pressure. Same thing. You know, if he steps up and hits driver I'm going to be like, Okay, he's going to have a flip wedge into this green. I kind of need to the same thing.

You don't need to drive it well to score out there, but I think in match play where you're trying to make a couple more birdies, I think driving it well is important, keeping it -- you know, getting as close to the greens, giving yourself wedges, and understanding that if you're not driving it well, you can still lay back and try to make some birdies, just make some putts, sneak a couple longer clubs close.

We'll see. It'll be a game-time decision on each hole, so we'll see what we have to do.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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