MASTERS TOURNAMENT

April 9, 2026

Andrew Novak

Quick Quotes

Q. Just the first time out there, what was it like? What was your assessment of how you did out there?

ANDREW NOVAK: Yeah, I thought I played all right. Just couldn't avoid bad spots. Had a few shots that I don't think I've ever seen anybody really have before, and that kind of threw me off a little bit.

Just didn't really leave myself in some good spots, especially on the front nine. I had basically three three-putts, but none of them were really the putter's fault. You can't be leaving them in spots like that.

I think I played pretty well, but the results weren't great. Hopefully maybe some regression for the rest of the week. If I can continue to do some good things, it will result in some better scores. It just didn't really work out today.

Q. After the first couple of holes, did you get to sit back and kind of soak in where you are and enjoy this moment for the first time in your career?

ANDREW NOVAK: Yeah, I really thought it was going to be worse on the first tee. I actually felt somewhat okay on the first tee, but overall it was kind of -- I don't know. First time, like, it was really special to be out there. I mean, the fans were unbelievable. This place is incredible.

Honestly in my head I probably was thinking I was going to be a little bit worse today as far as just nerves and just feeling a little bit numb, but I really felt okay out there. I just didn't really score very well.

Q. What do you think about the course that surprised you that you weren't anticipating in the days prior?

ANDREW NOVAK: Yeah, I think typically -- I've never played here, but watching on TV, I would not have thought that this would be the firmness you would see on a Thursday. Kind of got me a couple of times. A couple of shots that I thought were pretty good just bouncing over, but I mean, there's no reason it can't be this firm. They have the conditions for it. The weather has been perfect.

I think they're absolutely well on their way to making it a pretty tough test. Nobody is really shooting too low. I haven't really looked at the leaderboard too much, but I would imagine it's playing pretty tough for most of the guys.

I think there were a few shots out there, though, that the bounciness definitely sort of got me.

Q. Quick turnaround to tomorrow morning. What do the next couple of hours look like, and what goes into the approach going into round two?

ANDREW NOVAK: I'm going to go work on a few things. There were a few shots that I didn't think I hit very well today, so I'm going to go work on that. I'm going to do some putting, try to lock in the speed of the greens. Hopefully no three-putts tomorrow. Yeah, some general work on that. Then physio and eat and try and sleep.

Q. Just in those two holes where you went 3-over and just those two alone, what did you see there? What was different that was a challenge for you?

ANDREW NOVAK: Yeah, I have never -- I've seen a lot of people have to go low and chase it up nine before, but I've almost never seen somebody actually scoot through the green doing that. So I hit a punch shot expecting it to just kill, and I was looking to be just short right, maybe up on the front of the green if it got there. It just got a very firm bounce and just scooted, scooted all the way to the back of the green.

From there you're dead, but that one definitely surprised me just with what I was expecting the second shot to do. Then on ten I was in the fairway left. I've had never seen somebody in the fairway left with tree trouble like that before. This is my first time playing, and I've seen coverage a ton. I've never really seen anybody there. I didn't realize that I could get blocked out like that.

I thought I hit a got a tee shot, and it just wasn't in a good spot. Tried to hit a good shot from there and left it in the bunker. Hit a bad bunker shot. Then hit another bad bunker shot. Yeah, it's a six.