RBC CANADIAN OPEN

June 7, 2025

Lee Hodges

TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley (North Course)

Quick Quotes

Q. Lee, got off to a good start and a great finish with the eagles and a lot of good stuff in between. How happy are you with the round today?

LEE HODGES: That was one of the better rounds I've played in a while. Kind of haven't played that well in the last two months or so, it feels like. It feels nice to be back to where I feel like I should be.

Q. What did you do particularly well out there today?

LEE HODGES: Stayed patient honestly. I hit a lot of really good shots, I hit a lot of really good putts that didn't fall there in the middle. Just stayed patient. I knew I was playing well, but I hit a lot of quality shots. Nice to see a couple putts there fall at the end.

Q. How much has the course changed from day 1 with the rain?

LEE HODGES: Very different. First day, Thursday it was so soft balls spinning back like crazy. They're still not -- I wouldn't say they're firm, but you can't really rip it back anymore, which is good. It's definitely drying out and getting faster.

Q. How much has it changed from -- I believe you played here a few years ago in a PGA Tour event. How much has it changed since then?

LEE HODGES: Quite a bit. Honestly, I don't remember a ton. 18 is the one I remember the most because I think 18 is the exact same. Similar. I had a vague idea of what was going on, but it's a great golf course.

Q. Do you think having played here and coming to a venue where the location is and stuff like that makes you feel more comfortable?

LEE HODGES: It's got to. Yeah, I kind of knew what I was getting into this week. I kind of knew the shots I was going to have to hit or thought I was going to have to hit. Yeah, it helps out knowing where you're going.

Q. What was the atmosphere like for you playing out there with one of the Canadians?

LEE HODGES: That was actually really cool. I told my caddie walking up the last, that was a cool day. I bet I heard the National Anthem 77 times. It was really cool. They love Mack. I think he's in the Canadian Hall of Fame, which is cool. It was cool being out there with him.

Q. Lee, this is your second made cut in a row after a really tough stretch. What have you been working on that you've now kind of ironed out in your game to get some form?

LEE HODGES: I think I'm just getting comfortable. I got hurt. I broke a rib. I hate to say it, it kind of still was affecting me. Maybe I was afraid to go at it like I had been.

Just getting comfortable with what my body was feeling. I finally feel really, really good, and whether that threw my swing off or threw my feels off, I'm not sure. It feels good now, so that's been nice.

Q. Started the day with an eagle, finished the day with an eagle. A few birdies here and there between, but just describe the challenge of being patient when you get off to such a hot start and not trying to -- and seeing, of course, it's gotten a lot more gettable.

LEE HODGES: It's easier when you know you're playing well. I was hitting good shots and hitting good putts, and they kind of just weren't going in. It's easier in the sense of I wasn't getting up-and-down for par or anything like that. I was just fairway, green, two-putt for a while. It's easy to kind of do that.

Q. You mentioned you broke a rib. When did that happen, and what was your rehab like?

LEE HODGES: I broke it the Monday of Cognizant at the hotel, and then I had six weeks off. It was unfortunate, but I've tried to view it as everything happens for a reason. I got off to a pretty good start and got hurt. It's the first injury I've ever dealt with in my entire life. So I feel myself lucky in that sense. It is what it is.

Q. Lee, what happened?

LEE HODGES: I was running up some stairs, and I tripped and fell. I had my bookbag on, and I had my hands on my book bag, so I couldn't really brace myself. When I reached out, it was too late. The stair caught me right here and fractured my second rib.

Q. How would you describe the level of agony?

LEE HODGES: Terrible, terrible. Only a kidney stone is the worst thing I've ever been through. So that was number two.

Q. Which one is more painful?

LEE HODGES: Kidney stone.

Q. Is that the longest stretch you've had away from the game since you started playing?

LEE HODGES: Yeah, it was awful. It was awful. Six weeks without really doing much of anything. It is what it is, though.

Q. You said you were running up the stairs in the hotel, right? Like to your floor?

LEE HODGES: No, it was out front. So the valet was right here, I went and parked the car, and I was coming back. Honestly, I really wasn't paying attention. I've gone up the stairs a million times just running. There was only like three of them, so I was going to jump all the way to the top, and I caught the bottom one, and just smack, yeah.

Q. When you hear O Canada, how are you feeling as an American?

LEE HODGES: It was super cool. Me and Andrew were talking about it. You don't have to be Canadian to get chill bumps out there when they're singing the National Anthem to Mack. You could see how much it meant to Mack. He's got his hat off, covering his heart. It was really cool.