Learn everything you need to know about the 2024 Travelers Championship during this unedited press conference previewing the event. Chris Berman interviews 2023 Champion Keegan Bradley and they even talk about the Patriots draft. #golf #golfer #golfing #golflife #pgatour #pga #travelers #golfswing #golftips #travelers #tpcriverhighlands #tpc #connecticut #subscribe #like #follow
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I love that every time I see that picture of his sons running up in his arms beautiful anyway um welcome everyone I’m Courtney noas I head up media relations for travelers and thank you for joining us and welcome to TPC River Highlands home of the 2024 Travelers Championship we have a great day in store for you today at media day in a few minutes I’ll be joined by Andy bassette and Nathan Gro to discuss the Travelers Championship from the perspective of the title sponsor and the tournament staff then we’ll have our reigning Champion Keegan Bradley join us and discuss last year’s win with our friend Chris Burman please get your questions ready because you’ll have a chance to ask them to Andy Nathan and Keegan we have microphones set up on both sides of the room we’re looking forward to the conversation today and I know many of you are looking forward to getting out on the golf course so let’s get started would you please welcome Andy betet the Executive Vice President and chief administrative officer at Travelers and tournament director Nathan [Applause] [Music] group no I was gonna I was going to introduce them as ying and yang or you know they call it call each other son and and father and a bunch of other names that I can’t say so um I but it’s all good it’s all good he could be my son right I could be his father but we’re more like brothers that’s fair right all right let’s ring this back we’re already off the rails I remember last year it went downhill quickly I’m surprised that I’m back here again so um and I think I was a last minute fill in so I don’t know if that bodess well for me so yeah yeah okay anyway um we here we go 2024 Travelers Championship signature event Andy the tournament was designated designated event last year and this year signature event what motivated travelers to secure the status with the PGA Tour you know Courtney it believe it or not it starts back in 2005 and 2006 when I started negotiating the deal to put this tournament together and how many how many of you remember that this tournament was dead buried gone not a part of anything on the PGA tour right it was dead it was gone I’ve heard some stories say well they were thinking about no it was dead it was gone and so we we negotiated to to when 84 Lumber went out of went out of the PJ tour title sponsor business we we jumped in and seized the weekend uh the week right after the P after the P PJ champion no US Open US Open and um it’s been history ever since so we started back in ‘ 06 we saved the tournament brought it back but since then you know Nathan and I worked really have worked really hard with our teams and our we really do have worldclass teams uh running this thing and building it and since then we’ve we’ve always wanted to be world class I mean right from the first day and I’ve said to Tim finchum who was the commissioner back then we want to be world class we want to be one of the top events on the PGA tour and when Jay Monahan took over I actually took Jay I think he was I’m not sure he was commissioner yet I had him come up here and look at the old Clubhouse if you remember what that looked like and I said this is unacceptable this isn’t world class this is like somebody’s house and he agreed and before that a year or two later we started construction on the on this beautiful new Clubhouse and so that’s the history of it and and so now to be a signature event with 78 of the top players in the world and no cut for four days that’s like this is what we wanted to be we’re one of the top four events I believe on the PGA tour and uh we’re going to keep growing we’re not stopping here we’re not done yet we’ll keep going I love it love the excitement nethan with a signature event status comes a new look what are some of the things that um that fans will notice this year at the tournament and what are you most excited for our our team has heard me say this a lot what I’m most excited for is I love seeing the pride on people’s faces when they walk on property and the fans and the corporate Partners go yes we are proud to bring in guests here to entertain them we are proud to um say that this is what we can do with a professional sports franchise basically um but I I think to Andy’s point we always try to get better every year somebody asked us the other day they said um I forget what the the context of the question was but they said oh did you guys think you were going to be a signature event one day and we kind of joked we’re like we have talked about being everything we’ve talked about what it would mean to host a President’s Cup here we’ve talked about what it would mean to be a playoff event back when there was world golf championships we said how do we become a world golf championship event so I feel like everything was always on the table like how do we get there and when this opportunity came up and travelers jumped at it we want to be the best signature event of all of them that are out there right I mean we’ gone to all the other Signature Events so far we’ve looked at what they’ve done how they treat the players the caddies um the media the fans and we’ve said okay we’re going to raise the bar in every single one of those places I mean the media you will notice a difference when you come on property this year caddies will notice a drastic difference players they will notice a difference our fans they will notice a difference walking on property from the viewing experience to where we’re building facilities to the work that was done to the property to kind of open up new sight lines um every single one of our constituents the volunteers they’re going to notice immediate differences right away too so we take that word very very seriously like it’s not just oh hey your signature we’re like no we want to earn that and we want to be the best one on tour and so I think we’re we’re on a path over the next 48 days to uh to get there to deliver that yeah you mentioned some course improvements um there were some comments made about the golf course last year after last year’s tournament um and I know you guys work closely with the PGA Tour since then on making adjustments um to P TPC River Highlands Andy can you why don’t you start um any updates or details you want to provide you know I think the comments that Rory made last year got blown out of proportion really because Nathan and I for 17 years have gone to every player every caddy every wife I even go to the kids I say hey how can we make this better more Cheerios okay good more Cheerios and so we go to everybody every year and ask how we can make it a better experience and a better tournament and that’s how we got to where we are today right Nathan and and and so we got it wasn’t just Rory last year’s comments it was we get comments from a dozen players about hey maybe this maybe that because we ask for it and we get it and I think the beauty of this is that we have such a great partnership with the PGA Tour and the PGA Tour is comprised I think the best Professionals in golf and the rules officials work with us Gary Young and his team phenomenal people the course designers and the course design team they all descended on this place last year but they’ve descended on this place almost every year that we’ve been doing this right and they and they come up with stuff and Nathan can tell you about the things that they’ve improved in this course over the last decade but so I just want to make sure it’s clear that you know what we did this past year actually shouldn’t say we I should say the PJ tour did this is their club uh but maybe maybe tell them Nathan a little bit about what was done so actually first of all Gary Young is here Gary raise your hand you’re here somewhere oh he’s a chief referee with the PGA Tour where he’s a New England guy he’s in charge of all competitions for the PJ tour and they do an evaluation um of the the property every year how did it play how did it compete you know what do the guys think things like that into Andy’s Point there’s been a narrative with this facility for the last Dozen Years new bunker renovation project new te box up on 17 new practice facility new Clubhouse new irrigation work like there has been a step made every few years to improve the competitive nature of the facility and so when last year obviously Roy made his comments it kind of put a spotlight on it and Andy and I kind of took a step back and went but this is what happens every year like things get evaluated things get looked at and to the tour’s credit I mean they did Andy was part of this project they they walked the golf course in the fall a couple months after the event and looked at everything like they always do hey what about this what about this what if we did this they looked at the shot data they look at how the course played they looked at how the rough grew in that that spring was it thick enough was it not how dry were the greens do we need to make tweaks here and so the competitive enhancements that were done to the golf course this year are part of that Narrative of how do we make sure River Highlands is competitively you know where it needs to be and I think I don’t think the fans or Pro my guess is I’m not sure that they’re going to notice at all but I guarantee the players are going to set up going that used to be 138 to get there now it’s 147 okay now I got to think through that and now the T box is here it moved over five yards now I’m going to hit a different shot into that and honestly that is what the players have said when we went over the um the changes with the players they’re like we like that as competitors we want to think our way around the golf course and these are things that are making us think our way around the golf course so um before they stuck a shovel in the ground or did anything they had sign off that these were the Right Moves but we wouldn’t have been able to get there without Gary and and and the team here at River Highlands and how accommodating they are but this is a narrative that’s been happening over 10 15 years that um some of the tweaks that were made so I’m excited to see what the guys what the guys think about it yeah will the media notice today how am I supposed to answer that definitely because the quality of play here is just like the Tour player so they will notice they will be standing on the ninth hole going I used to be able to carry that 320 now am I really going to yeah so 100% they’re going to notice absolutely all right guys thanks for setting me up for that one that’s good thing you don’t have to carry anything with a 200 yard Drive oh oh boy that’s what I play like um so we’ve mentioned this in the past a number of times um which we’re super excited about is The Travelers Championship is the only PGA Tour event in New England um for those who are unfamiliar with the tournament and and have never been why should they put it on their calendar why should they make the drive from the other states to come here I think the player field I mean the player field if nothing else and that the fact that they’re going to get treated everybody is treated very very specially here all the fans are you know and Nathan can expand on this too but we have four or five venues that are are no charge where fans can go up and feel just like they’re in a club and have a very special experience Andor you can just walk around and sit in the beautiful grass with your family and have a little lunch and walk around some more but you know I the fact that this is New England’s event this is the Northeast event it’s a PJ Tour event and we bring we are bringing this year the best 70 to 80 players who qualify for this EV that’s important because there are different rules around a signature event but we’re bringing the best 70 to 80 players in the world here to New England to be a part of this thing and if you don’t want to drive further or fly further my gosh you can come here and see everybody and you know we have all kinds of events during the week too we have women’s day on Thursday but we have uh the Charles CF outing on Tuesday over at Weathersfield and Charlie cfer if you don’t know right was our champion in 1967 Nathan wasn’t born yet I was no close really close close but you know but that Charles cfer event is very special to us and it means so much on tour and you know Charlie Charlie Jr his son uh and I have really befriended each other over the last couple years and he’s just a great guy and and his Dad tried it was hard for him as an African-American player back then are you kidding it was tough think about it in the 60s and and you know you think about the world and and everything and for him to accomplish what he accomplished I think was beyond world class and that’s why this will be our third annual Charles cord outing and we’re really proud of that we’re excited about it it’s going to sell out like it usually does and we’ll contribute another $100,000 uh to the Charles cfer Foundation which which helps kids who are going to historically uh black universities and colleges I always forget the acronym shame on me but and the kids that are going into golf programs at the schools that have golf programs so important I mean so so important and we’re so proud I get excited just talking about it so between the the Charles cord event on Tuesday the celebrity PRM on on on Wednesday and was was Matthew bordo where are you where are you just to be clear Patrick Rena this morning when I was talking to Meredith Gorman I said rener and but he didn’t understand that see I’m a Boston guy and in Boston we don’t put ours where they belong and we put them where they don’t belong got that Mak sense yeah so I called him Patrick rener right who else in Boston here anybody us Boston guys said do that we do we say rener so anyways so I just had to make sure sorry Matt but I want to make sure it’s clear so Patrick Rena is gonna be playing he was uh Sandlot right the little boy the chubby boy with the curly hair and all and he’s like 40s something now and he looks 40 something careful huh don’t pick on 40 somethings we’re still young well no me I passed that a long time ago anyways but I think Andy to your point I think the the pros I think what people can see according to your question we were down at the Players Championship and it was it hit me really I think that week in March when basically half the field of the players weren’t eligible for our event and we’re walking around talking to guys and for the first time they’re like yeah hey I’m hoping I get in I’m hoping I get in I’m hoping I get in and so just having a signature event and how the players look at Signature Events um is I think something that uh just the the status of how they perceive this golf course this the title sponsor the event it’s um you can see it on the players faces there there is something that has been created that they are aspiring to get to and you can see it on their face going Peter Milady was awesome when he wins he’s like I am so excited I’m now in Travelers like I mean that’s like these guys think about these Signature Events now yeah yeah that’s great Andy you’ve made a point um seeing how meaningful the tournament’s charitable efforts are because it aligns with with Travelers our approach to corporate giving why is that such a high priority every year for travelers and The Travelers championship and this community well Travelers as a company I’ve said this before as a company we give over $24 million a year to different non nonprofits and char organizations and it’s really important it’s ethos of who we are as a company we care about people and this tournament over the first 17 years that we’ve been together Nathan right we’ve raised over $30 million for over 900 charitable organizations that’s like real stuff right and all the net proceeds we have no there’s no wealthy owner I guess maybe the Charities of the wealthy owners but we have no wealthy owner working walking away with hundreds of millions of dollars we have the Charities and that that’s all net proceeds all net well not profits the net proceeds go to charity and that’s what turns us on it’s the it’s who travels is as a company and it’s who we are as a title sponsor of this event and we’re lucky to have Nathan and Tara and Kevin and their entire staff to put this on because I can say all those words but unless you have a worldclass staff putting on a world class event it doesn’t work and so Nathan thank you Tara Kevin the whole team you guys are great and we wouldn’t trade you for anything or anybody did everybody write that down I just want to make sure that was you said that publicly so thank you bonus time is over yeah dang it yeah next year we’ll write it down um I think you guys sort of alluded to this next question a little bit um in the beginning but um Travelers will match the tournament record with its 18th consecutive year serving as the title sponsor what does it meant to Travelers Andy to be the title sponsor of this event and and has it exceeded the expectations any expectations you had me yes but I’m only one of 30,000 plus employees right and I I think that many of you know Jay Fishman was very involved with this from the beginning until he passed in 2016 and Alan Schnitzer has been very very involved and engaged in this um since that time and you know we couldn’t have two better leaders uh over this 17 years 18 years of this tournament to be where we are and who we are and what this means to us I’ve already talked about but but this is a whole the whole company gets into this you should see our leadership and our women get into women’s day it’s it’s unbelievable I mean Matt and I just sit in the sidelines and say whoa okay fine we try to kind of steer the ship but everybody’s engaged and when you go to women’s day this year you’re going to see something really special it’s going to be really really cool it’s it’s going to be very entertaining I’m not going to let the cat out of the bag so to speak yet but but it’s be really good I’d really encourage you all to go to women’s day on Thursday but again you know it really exudes who we are and what we do and what we’re about yeah all right you ready for my zingers bring it okay I’m going to throw a couple zingers at you zingers Bo will Trav will a traveler Championship be a signature event in 20 25 I hope so yes I mean we our contract with the tour goes out to 2030 for this event and when we put that together last year where I was negotiating it we we wanted this to be a signature event through that time you know the but the thing to be careful is is I don’t know and I don’t mean this is a good thing everything that’s evolving in the world of golf as a sport right is is changing and so if if if there are Signature Events we’re going to be one for that period of time and it’s going to be very very special I just don’t know how the golf world is going to change as as all the things with the with piff and Liv and and everything else you read about but you know what the golf is a great game and I was saying this morning to Meredith Gorman that what’s really cool about golf is that you can go if you’re a Boston guy sorry uh David Ortiz right man nothing beat going to watch David Ortiz play baseball if you’re a Yankees fan you know going to watch any number they have a lot of superstars it’s like going to watch them and it’s like in the old days watching Babe Ruth and and all the it’s it’s going to watch the the very very best players on a team but what’s so unique about golf I think is that there’s nothing like there’s nothing like PJ Tour golf in the world that I can think of maybe tennis but but where you bring all of the best players together on the same week and you’ve got the best players in the world with you think about it I mean you can’t do that in professional sports that have teams so to speak because they’re all on teams this is a this is where they come out all the best players in the world come out to play against each other and compete against each other to prove like who’s the best and I think that’s part of the cool part and the interesting part of being a signature event yeah and you talked a little bit about the player field and having the best players come out to the event what about what about the exemptions and and the college amateur standouts and we been known to have them in the past um can you talk about the element of the tournament and what’s changed there do that so it changed a little bit so um we have our field size is going to be between 70 and 80 and we used to have eight exemptions and now we have four exemptions and to your point Courtney in the past it’s been um we’ve always kind of earmarked a couple from for some of the young guys right who is going to be the next uh generation of the PGA Tour and this is where I Andy and I haven’t talked about this so we might hit me and be like what are you talking about but I mean part of it you have to look at like the reason we did that right was to build relationships with the next generation of players you know who are the next top guys going to be we want to make sure we have the these relationships and and honestly if you look at the top 10 in the world I think we’re at like at least half of those guys were exemptions at one point with uh with our event and now they’re actually coming here so the relationships that we made are there now we still though going from 8 to4 we still made a commitment to I would say investing in that next generation and the PJ tour has a program called PJ tour University where they rank all the top college players and how they play and things like that it’s it’s a rolling ranking and we made a commitment to say whoever wins pj2 Oru we are giving them an exemption Into The Travelers Championship so we kind of are still holding on to Our Roots obviously the exemption program is different the field size is very different um but we thought that was very very important we didn’t have to do that but we thought it was very important to keep a tie to the young guys so we’re talking to those young guys who are like one two and three right now in PJ tour you going man come on grind out you got this you know there’s a spot waiting for you if um you know at our event if you if you win so still keeping that those relationships there um that was important to us so um that’s hopefully that will still keep still keep the still keep the tie agreed completely yeah so one last question from from me and then we’ll open it up to the audience so if anybody wants to start to make their way to either of the microphones please feel free to do that but um what else do you want to tell us that that I’m I didn’t ask Andy you usually like to leak something or you’ve been on your best behavior today very proud really yes no I never do that I no I I I really don’t I think you’ve you’ve answered a lot you’ve asked a lot of the right questions Courtney I think that the the most important thing to me and to Travelers is the pride that comes along with this event when I see the word signature over there I don’t see that I see the word pride and I know how proud the people in Connecticut were back in the in 200 6 s when we first saved the tournament and all but it’s still happening today and so the pride and you go out and watch you stand at the front gate coming in with families and the excitement in the the little kids faces to come in and the families I think is just Second To None it’s just so cool to watch everybody’s so excited about whoa what’s where we going it’s kind of like a carnival in some ways um but I think that that’s that’s really I would just really emphasize that and say that we’re in New England event we’re in Northeast event actually and as as much as I hope I hope everybody in the Northeast Embraces this and really understands what it is that’s going to be here from the 17th to the 23rd of June it’s going to be so unique and so different and so different did we say so so we’re giving caddies cars so you know the PJ tour players get cars every time they go to a PJ Tour event it’s not just us every one of them did I say something I should say continue I’m right behind you he’s gonna kick me in a minute no I already did he but so so this year one of the special things we decided to do Nathan said hey Andy we’re going to have 156 cars because we usually have 156 players but we only have 70 to 80 players oh so we decided that the caddies deserve some recognition and some help and we we’re giving them cars too that’s pretty cool right PJ T caddy right there is that is that what that was okay but I think that that’s that’s the kind of thing and then for the wives we’re going to convert the lady’s locker room in the the lounge into a massage studio or a treatment Studio I should say and and so the wives can go in during the day when they’re out here with their husbands and watching them if they get tired and they want to go sit down or whatever and so I said to Nathan other day we should give every wife a lock or two how cool would that be so they have a locker now the wives are going to feel like so engrossed and I tested it on uh Austin e Root’s wife uh Sally she’s like whoa that’d be super cool so I’ve been testing this to just make sure we’re going to get the right reaction to it they’re going to love it oh my gosh it’s going to be great it’s like a little Wellness type area it is it feel good thing kids we take care of anyway we give kids tons of Cheerios and cookies and candies and my my last story is last year I wanted to make sure the kids had a great experience and so I said to the chef which is who is world class here I don’t know he here here somewhere I think and I said hey we should bring out mac and cheese chicken fingers right what good food and tater tots what better that’s like good F that’s food that’s like I want that food you know who the first 60 people in line were for that kids food the players so they have a very healthy menu that they do eat most days but when we brought out the food the chef was so good and to have tater CTS mac and cheese and chicken fingers you kidding me and the first people in the 60 they said don’t you want to let your kids in no next year’s media Day menu yeah fingers sorry that’s my comment Nathan uh man I I think there is a general theme and feeling among everybody here that we don’t take this for granted from the staff to the volunteers to David GM here at the club like I feel like everybody feels like we have to earn this every single year and there is no bit of I mean to Andy’s point in our very very recent past we didn’t have this and I think a health that there is a healthy amount of we better do this better than anybody else because we kind of know like we have to earn this and so I think when when we treat it like that that we have to earn it I think the players feel that way we don’t take them for granted they they’re the whole Entourage the whole team um it’s it’s personal for us and I I think I I just saw him walk in and Chris is going to interview him here in a second we could not have a better champ than Keegan and how he how he won how he wore it on his sleeve how he won how he talked about it I mean we could not have a better Ambassador for us as an event for us as a region than having him as a champion and it was it’s been a phenomenal ride and I hope he I hope he wins this the next seven years in a row I mean he’s an amazing human amazing dad and uh we um were fortunate to have him as as our champions so um that’s uh that’s what I have to say about that yeah I couldn’t have said it better that’s awesome um is everybody being shy or are they full do we have there we go hi guys Pat E Rob with the Associated Press I understand every you said about you know tweaks being made every year but can you describe what some of the biggest physical changes to the golf course was and then I understand that weather has a lot to do with this but is there a score that you guys are looking at and saying if we hit this score every worked the way we wanted it to good question I Gary you can come up for the microphone please Gary Young no um so I would say this Pat it’s very interesting I am I’m not a rules official nor do I play one on TV but they have helped educate me on this to where like how the spring affects a score right if the rough isn’t coming in thick they start to look at that if the greens aren’t drying out they start to look at that and I I bet you they could probably say Advance week oh here’s probably a score that we’re going to hit because of X Y and Z factors so I mean there’s years where I think 12 13 under wins this event and the US Open shot lower than here you know because of our course will play super hard there’s other years where it’s softer whatever like I think there’s so many things that go into it but a couple of the things that Gary and the team kind of pointed out I mean uh I think you’ll notice today um you know number six they narrow that up a little bit uh number nine uh they move that t box to the right a little bit so that the the guys wouldn’t uh have the I would say the lure to drive over those homes um they Shrunk The Green a little bit but those just to be clear those aren’t things that normal human beings would care about or even or even be close to seeing yeah right Keegan does and his all his buddies but they I went out looked at him I I don’t hit my ball anywhere near where those things go anyway so um 11 Green they um shrunk that a little bit for a different type of approach shot um so they put rough on is it 12 13 12 12 12 on the down slope to kind of make the guys think about where to hit it so again I think what I learned and I don’t want to speak for any but I think what we both learned listening to PJ tour the rules team and the competitions they just want the guys to think think their way and the guys like to think they they they like to not just like stand up there and just ah whatever I’m just going to blow it to wherever somewhere over there they want to hit it to certain places they want to think about their next shot they want to think about what putt they want to hit to certain pin placements and so to see the tweaks that they did to make the guys think more was uh was fascinating but you’ll you’ll see those you’re not going to go over the houses anymore Pat so you’ll uh yeah but I think I I would just say to answer your question Pat no I don’t anticipate any changes in scores because we’ve had 15 under win we’ve had 22 23 win and you look at on the PJ tour this year look at how many there have been quite a few greater than 20 unders winning and so you don’t know there’s other factors and Gary would be the expert he is the expert but there are so many factors that come into play to to determine the final score I don’t know but I don’t I’m not looking for any changes in scores we just I think what the tour did and all the experts that they have was to make it just a little more competitive okay well thank you to you both thanks now I’d like to bring up Chris Burman for our Champions interview you all know Chris as the longtime voice of ESPN we know him as the close longtime friend of The Travelers Championship as Chris makes his way up we’re going to start by playing a short highlight video from last year’s Travelers Championship our champion Keegan Bradley thank you nice to see you that’s all we had I thought we were going to have every shot everything stuff how are you I’m doing great I’m so I was saying earlier I did a few interviews just coming home to New England just even for a little bit is so fun just going in the airport and seeing the the local sports and I just it’s just so special I just love it up here so the trophy you have and the trophy the kids have that we got on the 18th green are they all still in good shape at your house or what they definitely have seen some better days but they’re uh I I can’t tell you I I in my house I I have no golf stuff displayed I have an office and I put my trophies up there but the traveler trophy with the kids trophies we have right in our living room and uh just the other night two nights ago uh I caught my wife she was staring at the trophy and when I sort of uh I sort of we I looked at her and she and she just said it just I just can’t believe that happened and like we it’s was so surreal for us that like even now it seems like a dream and uh it’s just such a special thing for me to come back here as the champion and um remarkable I mean GF is always King the next round the next event Etc but to your point point you thought about this as a 9 10 year-old coming down from Vermont um so it does recur in your mind right like do you do you ever like have a glow yeah you think of what happened here what we just saw everybody that comes over my house they want to see The Travelers trophy they don’t want to see the PGA Championship they always say it and I bring them over and I show them the names and uh you know I I was looking out at this at the range right here the old range and back my first tournament I ever came to I waited right outside over there for David devald to come out and I watched him warm up and I watched all 18 holes and uh I it was such a far dream I mean I knew this is the what I wanted to do and I had no other no other dreams in my life than to play on the PJ tour but being out here it seemed really just a a fantasy to to and then to you know fast forward I don’t know how many years 20 30 years later I I’m going to be the winner here I mean it’s it’s uh literally what dreams are made of it’s really special yet last year and I know it’s 11 11 months ago but you said Saturday okay last group I have it I have it in my hands just play your game yet you said you you didn’t sleep well I was very nervous um I slept okay but I when you’re in the final group of a tournament uh at anything but especially a big tournament signature event but then especially this tournament for me your signature right you wake up as soon as you open your eyes it’s like you have electricity going through you it’s it’s a it’s a different it’s just something’s just different and I remember waking up and being a little bit scared of how nervous I was and it was different and then this is why I always call my family my secret weapon is my two boys have no clue about you know they know I going and come out and you do this but they don’t really care they want to do their normal boy stuff and uh I was renting a house at the basketball hoop and my son had me out and I was shooting Hoops with him playing our you know Pig and people are driving by honking their horns sticking their heads out waving to me and I remember thinking about how calming it was to this is like a normal morning in my life and what I’m about to go do is the opposi of normal and it helped a lot and also I mean some of you remember these stories but yet it’s now you know we’ve had winter although was pretty mellow but not only the basketball hoop but the Father’s Day the Sunday before this signature event you got an amazing tea time with your boys right and and maybe we should all use this to improve our game is what is where I’m going right yeah so I I played the US Open and I missed the cut and I missed the cut and sometimes you miss the cut and you play well and it’s it’s disappointing then sometimes you missed a cut and you’ve played awful and when you do that at a major it can really it can really shake you it can be a bummer you feel like okay I got to really start over here I played really really terribly and I came home and that that weekend that we I went and played mini golf with my with my two boys and it was so great we were in seab Brook Mass playing this tiny little place and you know I I had just come from the US Open and now I’m here with my boys playing mini golf and it was was really great it was really great and it sort of reset me you know in a lot of ways missing the cut at the US Open helped me play well here the windmill can be a tough hole it can be yeah you know the Clown’s mouth I mean I mean it’s it’s no cakewalking you know I mean um so to come here and we know what it means to you being a New Englander but as it was alluded to before there’s no major this year Boston New York Philly not even Upstate New York so it’s not only our hometown and New England event but this is you draw a circle of 500 miles and oh by the way it’s signature event does it get heavier to carry that that Crown a little bit or does your chest go out more knowing that around here this is it all year it got heavier on the weekend for sure I you what’s it’s interesting about my life is I went to school at St John’s in New York New York city so I actually get such extreme support in New York as well so when I’m in New York I’m from St John’s when I’m in New England and Boston I I don’t I don’t yeah smack uh SM I hartford’s normally the cut off anything south of hartford’s New York fans and so uh you know when I when I come here it’s I feel a lot of pressure I really do I I feel I think of the New England kid out here watching and looking at me and thinking this kid knows what I’m going through I I didn’t couldn’t play golf in the winter where I grew up this is this was the South down here this was like you could play here in the winter not not where I was and I felt like that Sunday and that weekend I I wanted to do that for the New England kids to watch and think like they can do this and I remember watching Brad Faxon and Billy andreid and the you know those those guys play and thinking like okay they they did this and and that means I can too do have you met any like younger ones I mean well I mean your your kids friends Etc that might even say hey I’m I’m in high school or I’m a ninth you know I’m in eighth grade but you show me I could do this have you run into any yeah so I have a place in uh just 30 miles north of Boston and uh we go there in the summer and after I had won here I noticed a big difference in in uh you know just how the local kids said I went and played golf for the first time because I saw you wi and um I can’t tell you how much that means to me I this this area uh is everything to me I something happened when I had kids I I was drawn back here I I never I live in Florida but I as soon as I had kids I just like I kept getting pulled back I wanted to come back and um I just love it up here what um broader base tell the folks what the players have have always thought about the players on tour about coming here even now that we’re limited field but before what was special about them coming here that that that you heard like through the years so I think that the Travelers well I don’t think I know The Travelers is is a model of how to run a tournament and and take a tournament that wasn’t a premier event necessarily on the tour and turn it into what it is today uh and what they did was they just did they made all the right decisions and you you you talk about how the caddies are going to have cars this year and that doesn’t affect that doesn’t affect the the viewers watching like they that’s not going to help their viewers that’s not going to help their uh you know their bottom line of the tournament in fact probably heard it but that’s just a small decision that they make that a fects the outcome of how we feel when we come here they’re on Thursday night or Friday night right over here they have a whiffle ball game for the players kids and they set up a fake uh green monster and my kids talk about it all year long so you know if if there was ever a time where let’s say I’m not from New England and I’m not going to come here no matter what but if I said to my kids hey we’re not going to Harford this year they’d be pissed because they don’t get to play that game uh and that’s just a these are just like small examples that the public wouldn’t even know and uh I was always so proud to convince players to come play here back in the day remember I convinced Luke Donald to come you got to come play Trav it’s so fun and after the week is done they go it’s one of the best weeks I’ve ever had in a tournament and I always felt the sense of Pride uh to show off this tournament and now to see what it’s become easily you know outside the majors you know one of the biggest events in the entire world well as the we a sense of pride a couple of broader golf questions then we open up and I got a couple more so Signature Events and in case we forget there it is in lights Andy good job um signature it’s three syllables um played well at Pebble although you know three days but he played well Masters how are they working especially the limited Fields only a couple of years a little different how do you players feel it’s working that the signature uh situation I think it’s great I think it’s it’s it’s really nice to know as a player I know I have to play I have to really play well that week I know that if I want to win the tournament I’m GNA have to beat Scotty sheffler on Sunday he’s going to be there that’s just an example um I think it’s really nice for the fans to know that all these guys are going to be playing I think it’s cool that they know how here at Harford they’re going to have a world class field uh I I think that that’s amazing I think that the tour has had to make decisions on the fly without really figuring anything out over the last couple years and I think they’re still doing that and I think that it’s been it’s been great I still don’t know if we know exactly which way the tour is heading or how we’re going to do this but you know they they have to choose tournaments like Travelers and make them a premier event which they already are and they can show off what a great product the PJ tour has I mean you don’t stand over the ball thinking about okay where’s golf headed this year but but a lot of us think of other things that we should be thinking like look at the ball but that’s a whole another story um what’s the talk of the place it looks like all year we don’t know you don’t know probably there not going to be a resolution we’re already almost May right ke so uncertainty look the great events the great players what’s the chatter on tour of is this going to go on for another year or two do we really know where the where the big ship is headed even though ships like The Travelers and the majors Etc exist so I’m going to preface this by saying I know nothing okay Sergeant Schulz yes I I hear a new rumor every for those of you who remember but I I think the the feeling amongst the players is that inevitably there we’re going to come together I have no clue if that’s when that is I think it’d be really fun to have tournament like The Travelers where you’re coming down the stretch against the PJ Thor versus a live guy I think that’d be fun I think that’d be fun for the media I think that’d be fun for the public I think it’d be fun to watch uh I don’t see a world where having those guys play on the tour is bad for golf or the PJ T I think that that you know a lot of the guys that left were big characters good and bad um and great players and I think eventually you’d see them come back but you’re still they’re still not going to you’re still going to the live guys are going to have to play on live it won’t just be an event here or there I don’t think any of them are going to jump over and play full time so it’s uh still a lot to figure out I have so much trust in J Monahan in the PJ tour I’m thrilled about F Sports Group coming on with the PJ tour and I uh I just think that they’re so smart and they and I feel lucky that I’ve come along this time exact time on the tour because we’re making way more money which is amazing and I think this so fun to come and see the tour growing and seeing you know changes to the tour and I think it’s it’s a great uh it’s a great thing to see you know it’s interesting you just mentioned that Keegan you know your PGA was what 2011 MH and you know here we are in last year winning here 2023 so that’s that dozen are you a better a much better player now that when than when you won notice how I’m saying this your first major yes I honestly I do I feel I wish I I if I if I think this is common for a lot of players but I feel so much more comfortable in contention now I you know my wins as young a younger player were always from behind and chasing and I felt the best in there but winning here my last two wins I’ve won from being in front which is a much different much different animal it’s it’s different from the moment you wake up like I said it’s different from you know being on the first hole with a lead to the last hole and so I feel like I can manage those situations a lot better uh and I think it’s I think it’s for me I think it’s more impressive when a player goes out and has the lead and wins the tournament I mean I think I think it shows a lot very much so easier to be the Chaser than the chasee it is for sure if that’s a word yes right if that’s a word um we got a couple more but why don’t we we have microphones we have maybe questions maybe we don’t have questions but ah back to the mic hi Keegan Pat Eon Rob from the Associated Press wanted to get your uh thoughts on the PGA Equity program are you part of it did you you think it’s going to help in terms of retaining players did they put you on the right tier yeah I think well I think it’s unprecedented in sports I think it I think if I played enough other sport I if I played in the NBA or the NFL and I saw the players gaining Equity into the league I think I’d have some questions I want that to be with me as well uh I feel very happy with with the way I was treated by the tour this is something I never expected uh I mean imagine you worked your whole life and were compensated great and then at the you know randomly they said we’re going to give you a piece of the company I think it’s it’s really special um I hope it stops players from going uh but you never know I I the the live has tons of money so they they can always come over the top but I feel very uh grateful for what the tour has given me Bill Oy from the Worcester Telegram Gazette Keegan as the defending champion and you set a tournament record are you familiar with the tweaks they made to the course and how do you feel about them yeah I was just told about him uh briefly when I got here they don’t sound like anything very major I think that I think courses are always trying to improve slightly and I just love the flow of this course I don’t think they need to do a lot I I love the the back nine here I love what can happen and I think that’s what makes this tournament unique do you think they made the changes you’ve heard of tiger proofing courses do you think it’s a Keegan proofing of this course uh well if they did we’ll see I I uh I would be very honored if they did that but I don’t think that’s the case thanks it’s a good one Keegan proof hi Keegan Mike Herer from WBC in Boston I was distracted this whole time cuz uh I’m just wondering when you mini golf do you use like the blue putter with the dinky little head or do you bring your own I know I don’t bring my I think that’d be a little strange if I brought my own but uh yeah no I use the regular uh Putter and when I’m out there I get some looks like geez you look like a golfer but surely that can’t be you here but I my kids I just went a couple days ago at Jupiter my kids love to go and it’s uh it’s really fun Robert garas remember was you like like about a three foot putter like the the opposite of of the big guy right hey uh boom uh Bob G WFAN uh condolences to the ESPN family on the loss of the Schwab great dude St John’s graduate that’s a tough and speaking of uh St John’s Keegan um it’s about 22 miles from Utopia Parkway to Beth paage black your thoughts yeah I mean I I I want to play on these teams as much of more than anybody uh what happened last year took so much out of me and my family and it was crushing I I I I really really was on my mind every second of every day and I can’t do that again so I want to be on these teams I want to do whatever I tend to be on these teams but if I start thinking about Beth Page right now because to me I mean winning at Hartford playing the US Open playing pretty well at Brook line that’s a that’s a highlight playing the Ridder cup at Beth Page would be one of the coolest things I could ever do in my life just as just alongside winning Majors I mean I played I played uh uh I used to play there on Mondays at when I was at St John it’s one of my favorite courses um I felt like when I played it Beth pagee I got some of the biggest support of anywhere in the world I’ve ever played including in New England so I I would love to play there and be a part of that team and that’ll be a huge goal of mine but I I got to try my best not to go through it I went through again you think it might be loud for the riter cup at P page just a question boy I’m pretty close with uh Luke Donald and I was saying to him you better be ready this is going to be a little different uh yeah we we we’ll refer to on that one any other nobody not even Brewster just so once upon a time you wanted to be a skier maybe you ate well you were a skier maybe you still do you still ski I don’t no CU yeah I don’t want to get hurt yeah M kinsky do they they haven’t been uh which is like horrible but I uh i w I haven’t skied in so long but recently I’ve been wanting to go back again really I really want my kids to to do that it’s s such a strange thing to have something be such a huge part of your life and then be done uh but soon I’d like to do that again well the only I mean this is far fresh Keegan but I mean imagine you know in the giant slalom compared to you coming down 18 like that was a dream of you once like to be a really good skier right you’re gr from M yeah I think my ski cre has been blown out of proportion a little bit from Vermont we go that far right I I was pretty good I was pretty good but I uh but I I equate ski racing and golf they’re very similar when when you’re in that starting gate at for skiing you’re there by yourself there’s no one else there’s no teammate there’s no one that passed the ball and when I was on this first tea on Sunday at 2:00 or whatever I looking down that fur with all these people cheering for it I’m like oh this is uh this is really serious the same same sort of feeling there’s a there’s a feeling of help the this where you know if if you’re playing for the Celtics and you’re Jason Tatum or whoever you have you have an off night you got Jaylen brown right there you know so when you’re when you’re out there here you have your caddy which is a huge Advantage but in skiing especially you’re all alone Nate and uh it’s very similar it’s a very similar sport you have to do it all all yourself and it’s um you know very mental and difficult not that look you want the PGA so the names on that and we we’ve done this before but it’s always fun because the names on this are they’re pretty good when you looked at them and you know who a lot of the winners are were there a couple previous winners of The Travelers SL Insurance City open SL G Canon G Sammy Davis Jr I mean I mean there I mean could yeah I mean AR yeah I’m I’m on it I I really I I’ve said this over and over and over but to win here is so incredibly special for me and it’s still I’ll be driving down the road or you know when I’m home and I’ll think about it and it like I said it still feels like f it still feels fake I mean so many times on the tour you can win and like my first PJ tour win I won in Dallas and I was there totally by myself and it was amazing and I went to bed and got up and went to the next tournament here I have basically every family member that I know is here these guys know they got to give me like 500 tickets a day um and you know we have these we have these Traditions now of just from Hartford you know my my mom cooks on Tuesday night she cooks her special meal and then the next night another family member it’s like we so so this has become sort of a family reunion for us and then there’s a tournament on the side everyone’s having a great time me well I’m nervous like freaking out uh but you know this is a it’s a really really special place for me and you know it would it would have still been if I hadn’t won but now you know I’m upstairs uh doing a few interviews and I’m the last time I was in that room I I had just one of my whole family was in there and we were hanging out so like I have these memories just even in this clubhouse that I I I re you know I have memories of uh my my nephew who’s now 13 is a little tiny baby here and they used to let us back in the old Clubhouse they used to put cones out for my sister to be able to park to let so Aiden my nephew could be there so I have these memories of you know decades decade of playing and then now to cap it off here I have this this trophy special how’s your year going why started really well Sony yeah it did it was uh I felt I should have won that I’ve never I’ve never it’s the it’s the one time in my career where I really felt I should have won and I and IID finished some a lot of times you finish second and you hear the guys in the interview and they’re bummed out but really when they leave they’re they’re they’re pumped this was a great week when I left Sony I I I was bummed I felt like I should have won and that was the first time that that’s that’s happened to me and the the golf in your career it’s es and it goes up and down and um it’s a it’s a tough sometimes it can be tough I I feel like I’m playing good but I’m excited always play better we grew up playing in the summer so I always feel like my game in it’s best in the summertime so I’m excited to some big events coming well I mean that’s that’s that’s our body clock right what do you uh think of Drake May that’s her huh what do you think of Drake May no no no no that I think that six quarterbacks in the first round whether they were one through 12 or all the way to the end three are going to the history tells us two or three are going to be really good one or two are going to be okay yeah we know that one or two are going to be below okay I’ll leave the initials out and so but it doesn’t mean that one he has potential to be one of those really good ones I he’s going to need a receiver or two this wasn’t a glowing endorsement he’s going to he’s going to need he’s going to need a receiver or two don’t you think yeah we’ve been saying that for 20 years AG well the last great receiver they drafted was a quarterback from K Stak that was Julian Edelman but um but we digress um your other teams are you’re your winter teams are doing pretty well your hockey team yeah I mean the Bruins play tomorrow night and I was flying up here going geez they’re if I just stay one more night I could I get a game in uh yeah I I I I’m on the road by myself now my kids are in school and Boston Sports sort of uh keep me saying I listen to but they fired up on the Boston teams too even for I just want to make sure they better be well I just want to make sure yeah my my son yesterday I told him to go get dressed we were going do something yesterday came down in a full Jason Tatum jersey with Celtics socks up to here in Jason Tatum shoes so uh Bruins tomorrow Bruins tomorrow so we the Sportsman a lot I always tell uh I tell this to athletes all the time that sports are important Sports mean a lot to people and like what sports do for me is when I’m missing my family and I’m watching the Celtics or it brings me I’m and I’m talking to my wife I always tell I told I told um bill bich this too I these sports are important what the sports have done my first Super Bowl I watched with my dad my La I went to two super bowls with my wife and my last Super Bowl I held my son so like there’s you know sports are sports are important Travelers is important you know this this does a lot for the community they give back and uh I just I I I live for this for these Boston teams well a lot of folks I think whether they’re Dads Moms daughters Sons you brought that to people last year I do want to give this in as side here we don’t get defending Champions very often showing up here okay not cuz they don’t like the cooking I mean uh but we just don’t cuz that doesn’t happen as much anymore but Keegan made sure that that he came back to visit with everybody today so I thought we should we should point that out you can applaud if you want all right this is an interesting tradition and I can’t wait to see where this is going to go with with with with Andy and Nathan but but Felix the Cat that’s a bag of tricks I’m looking at so far you want me to get out of here so you can you okay hello oh there you go so before we do this Keegan I Chris I have to say this to you because you you’ve accomplished so much in your life in your profession in your career but you know what from day one in 2007 you’ve been our un un uncompromised partner for this tournament and I’ve offered you all kinds of stuff to make you feel good no take maybe I don’t know why I offered it to you but I offered you all kinds of stuff and you said no I just like to keep it lowkey and I’ll keep being supportive but I just want to say thank you to you because you’re not only the Swami but you’re the Swami of the Travis Championship oh thank you so thank you for all you do Chris thank you do it so keeg is looking at me like what’s he going to do now what’s in that thing so you have to watch the video cuz we had this video made for you from some of your buddies and they’re like the guys I they’re my favorite band in the world so if we play the video first what’s up Keegan at your friends in the Drop Kick Murphy’s we just once again want to say congrats on your 2023 Travelers Victory as fellow new englanders you’re making us proud keep up the good work [Music] [Applause] is that great or what that’s amazing you’re going to send me that so every year we do something with our defending champion and we’ve given away pingpong mallets Nathan we’ve given away uh cricket bats fishing we’ve given away fishing gear right really good that’s really good stuff too I got Bo that’s really good anyways so this year Keegan we got you a special gift wow and Boston common golf was huge and a big part of helping us get this thing and friendway Sports Group and and all the guys John Henry and and and Sam and you know all the guys they were a huge part of this but we thought this you’re such a big Boston sports fan we thought this was just something you could really appreciate wow this is something and it would go right into your office and your study to house now your my wife might kill me but that’s okay but she’s into it just as much as I am wait this is something very special for you holy are you kidding me it is it’s from Fenway Park oh my God and it says on it travels Championship Keegan Bradley 2023 champion and it’s actually cut that came out of Fenway Park and are you kidding me this is the coolest capacity minus one is that it now holy CRA you can probably sit on it but I I don’t know what it’s on that’s not that’s not do oh wait hold on oh there we go that is look isn’t that great that is unbelievable I can’t thank you guys enough for this this is like the greatest gift I’ve ever got in my life I don’t know if your wife’s actually like it in she’s going to love this she this is going to go straight when we walk in the house it’s going to be right there wow once again amazing that is that is so special I can’t this was in Fenway yep that was in Fenway when they renovated it they pulled chairs out and I called I called Sam Kennedy I said hey Sam I need your help with something do you have any old like Fenway Park chairs left he goes oh yeah and so the guys at Boston common golf helped us and we they put it together and that’s it I uh when I after I had W I posted some videos and uh someone commented on one of my videos and said thank God I’m from New England and I it always stuck with me and this is just another example how cool is this this is thank you so much and some for the boys because I’m going to ask you to tell the story because I think it’s one of the greatest stories I’ve ever heard and it exemplifies who you are these are for the boys so Logan right Logan there has his name on it oh my God that is so tell the boys we missed having him here we knew he had to go in had to be in school I will but I got tell the story so Nathan Kagan and I were talking last year I can’t remember where we saw each other and you said Andy this is an embarrassing moment I’m going to tell you about but you know what but it made you so human I thought it was great it was a coffee shop story yeah I was in the coffee shop in the town that I have a house in and I just won here and I’m a pretty shy to myself guy I don’t uh I’m not looking for attention put it that way and I could I went into the coffee shop I could feel people sort of looking at me and uh I was just trying to mind my own business get my C cfee and leave I was in there with my six-year-old son and you know Starbucks and they said all right Keegan and then as we’re walking out Logan yell my yell youngest son loud yelled out Keegan Bradley Travelers Champion and I’m like Logan like I was pissed I was and as I walked out everyone started claing that’s awesome yeah it was I thought that was one of the best stories I’ve ever heard I mean what a great family moment right but also to embarrass his dad right yeah that’s pretty good too I had to after I I was in the car cuz I everyone was laughing and he thought it was funny and I said don’t like we had to have a serious chat like don’t ever do that again I don’t want any of that yeah well Keegan thank you for being here today we really appreciate it we hope you enjoy the seat the chair and the boys will enjoy their jerseys and we’ll see you here in 48 days right yes can’t wait thank you thank you thanks [Applause]
