What they said: Justin Rose

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Q. I remember your playing very well here in your final round a year ago and you started 2011 with a nice round here at Waialae, as well.

JUSTIN ROSE: Yeah, this is one of my favorite tournaments of the year. I really do enjoy it. And like you said, I think it was a 64 last round last year to get me up into a tie for 12th and make it a good week. It was my first week of the year last year obviously, this tournament, and it kind of got some good feels going straightaway. Obviously spurred me on to a decent year.

Q. 27 putts in this opening round.

JUSTIN ROSE: Yeah, I've been working hard at my putting. I felt like it got a little bit better every day at Kapalua. The putter never got hot, but today I began to see some 20-footers go in, which was awesome. I read the greens really well today and just been working on the rhythm of my stroke.

Q. Bermuda greens at the Plantation Course and here. Are there similarities? These must be slow with all the water they've taken on.

JUSTIN ROSE: Yeah, but they're rolling really well. I think they're grainy right now. There's a lot of moisture in them so the grain eats it up a little more, but they're pure. If you read them well you'll make some putts. I think that's been the benefit of me living in Florida now. I'm getting more used to Bermuda, which is good.

Q. How much does getting some of the rust off at Kapalua help you this week?

JUSTIN ROSE: A lot, yeah. I was really happy the way Kapalua worked out for me. It was a terrible first round, but I didn't panic, just really realized that it was a good week just to knock off some rust and start growing some good habits, and the week kind of evolved and I got better every day. It was nice to carry that on into this week.