THE 153RD OPEN

July 18, 2025

Justin Hastings

Mixed Zone

Q. A little bit disappointing today, but can you just sum up how it went and maybe where it didn't go?

JUSTIN HASTINGS: Yeah, that's probably a better way to put it. Yeah, I don't know to be honest. I haven't taken time to think about it yet. I feel like I've said this every time I've come off the golf course, but I feel like I did things well. The bad bounces from yesterday seemed to continue into today. I seemed to not be able to get it going until it didn't really matter on 17 and 18.

Yeah, I'll do some self-reflection and be better next week.

Q. Are you now going to Canada next week for sure; you're playing in that event in Ottawa?

JUSTIN HASTINGS: Yeah, 100 per cent.

Q. There's seven more, I believe, before the TOUR Championship. Are you planning on playing them all?

JUSTIN HASTINGS: Absolutely, that's the plan.

Q. Does this mean that you right now as of this moment are officially a pro golfer?

JUSTIN HASTINGS: I think that's what it means. I don't know what goes into officially declaring myself a pro, but yeah, right now.

Q. So this is a great experience, but now the new chapter begins. I realise you haven't had much time to think about it, but it's got to be pretty exciting in its own right, correct?

JUSTIN HASTINGS: I'm very excited. It makes kind of tough breaks like this feel a little bit better knowing there's a whole new chapter of life starting this week. Yeah, I'm excited for all the -- all the opportunities I've got lined up and hopefully make the most of it.

Q. Does the Bermuda event that you got the invite to not conflict with the Canadian event?

JUSTIN HASTINGS: It may. I'll have to do some schedule checking. It may conflict, so that would be the only reason I'd miss a Canadian event.

Q. In other words, if you were doing well enough to want to keep going, you don't want to give up the start maybe?

JUSTIN HASTINGS: Yeah, that's a bridge we'll probably cross when we get there. I think at this point in my career it's very difficult to turn down PGA TOUR starts. Those are invaluable. So I think having that lined up, I think I'd have to be -- I don't see a world where I wouldn't end up playing that tournament, the Bermuda event.

Q. Also, it's my understanding that the way the North America part of this thing works is, if you finish in the top 3 of that, you're exempt in the Korn Ferry or the top 10 overall. So that's obviously an opportunity to move up a level, or you've got Q-School, which I believe you're exempt in the second stage.

JUSTIN HASTINGS: I am. I didn't know that about the top 3 -- the top 3 of the Canadian swing, you're saying? That makes sense.

Q. I think they do that -- it was explained to me that you would be almost certainly top 10 anyway, but you wouldn't bump somebody out who played the entire thing. Then if you don't, you have the same opportunity in the Latin part next year.

JUSTIN HASTINGS: Yeah, exactly. There's a lot of opportunities to play good golf. That's just what we're going to focus on. I'm sure that, if it's meant to be, it will happen, hopefully sooner than later.

Q. I have to look a little bit at the last chapter. What happened here this week, and what's kind of the closing of what started with the Latin American Amateur?

JUSTIN HASTINGS: It was a nice close at least. After 14 it became evident we couldn't make the cut, so it was like, all right, let's enjoy the last few holes and kind of look around and smell the roses so to speak. I holed a ridiculous chip shot on 17 and made a 35-footer in front of the crowd on 18. It was a little bit of a slap in the face but also memories that I won't forget.

Q. Can you look back first at that luck and then all the majors, what this means not just for your golf, but for your family and everything this year?

JUSTIN HASTINGS: That's such a big part of it. I've got such big crews coming on all these trips. That's really what makes this all so fun. This week we've got two houses split between 12 people, and that's just our close circle. We've got maybe a hundred other people from Cayman having some sort of connection to me. Seeing the flags, hearing the familiar voices, and some of the yells that crack me up, it's cool.

Q. And the last thing is how much would you recommend or what are your thoughts on the Latin American Amateur being a platform for golf in Latin America?

JUSTIN HASTINGS: Yeah, absolutely, it's the biggest platform we have. It's marked on the calendar every year, and it is for a reason. You never get to play for the kind of prize that LAAC allows you to, and I'm just super grateful to reap the benefits of it.

Q. When do you head -- I guess you go to Toronto, correct?

JUSTIN HASTINGS: Yeah, that would make sense. I don't know if we're going to be doing any rerouting of flights. It might make sense because I was originally not going to get there until Tuesday night if we left on Monday. Yeah, we'll see. I'm pretty fresh. I have no idea.

Q. You'll work it all out. Good deal.

JUSTIN HASTINGS: Thank you.

Q. Are you staying the weekend?

JUSTIN HASTINGS: I don't know yet.