Mackenzie Hughes Interview: U.S. Open debrief + state of pro golf

This week, Smylie Kaufman sits down with PGA Tour winner Mackenzie Hughes! In this episode, they recap the thrilling U.S. Open finish at Pinehurst and dissect its dramatic ending, preview the upcoming Travelers Championship, discuss the current state of LIV vs. PGA Tour merger, and share stories on what it’s like to travel with family on tour.

Highlights:
– U.S. Open Recap: Rory vs. Bryson showdown
– Current state of LIV and PGA Tours
– Family on Tour: The joys and challenges
– Traveler’s Championship Preview: Course insights and strategies

Don’t forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more golf insights! #golf #pgatour #progolf #golfpodcast #golftrip #justinthomas #scottiescheffler #bryson #rory

#TravelersChampionship #ProfessionalGolf #GolfAnalysis #GolfPodcast #ProGolfInsights

CHAPTERS:
0:00 – Intro
1:06 – 2024 US Open at Pinehurst
3:27 – Putting discussion
8:08 – State of Golf Today
16:51 – Signature Events Player Count
19:57 – PGA Tour Points System
28:20 – Losing to Lashley at Rocket Mortgage
30:08 – Contending in Canada
38:15 – Traveling with Family on Tour
49:20 – Presidents Cup Aspirations
55:29 – Travelers Championship Preview

[Music] Smiley caufman for 61 wow I’m Smiley caufman and this is the Smiley Show all right welcome back everybody to another episode of the smiley show super pumped to have McKenzie Hughes I mean McKenzie I feel like feel like we we got paired together a lot right like this I mean we I feel like I saw your pop up on the t- sheet like more often than I was like me you and Peter Mady got paired together often for like that entire like 2016 year yeah I I I feel like uh at least a handful of times we played together that year um yeah I definitely remember that and uh we uh we had some good times for sure heck yeah well you’re up in Cromwell for the Travers championship and I’m heading up there tomorrow and uh excited to get up there for the I guess the final signature event of the year the year is just absolutely flown by uh faster than any year that I can remember and McKenzie we just came off the cusp of maybe one of the most entertaining television golf experiences we’ve had uh arguably in the last decade at the O at the US open at Pinehurst you played you you were at Pinehurst number two you know exactly what this golf course is all about what were your impressions of pioner number two um and then just also maybe just what we witnessed on Sunday yeah I mean that was my first time uh to Pinehurst uh playing any of those golf courses there um so playing number two for the first time Monday um it was a bit eye opening around some of those greens uh there was a few shots that you’d get around that property where you were just like I would love to make bogey here um which is uh very weird to say when you’re around a green um especially you have a great short game you know yeah and there were just a few spots there I’m like wow this is going to test everything that you have this week and I mean I think it was like a a not so typical Us open in the in the sense that like you didn’t have to Fairways I think you you go to most us opens and you feel like that’s what it really requires of you is to just like hit the fairways hit the greens and this week uh in Pinehurst it was quite a bit different I mean you watch Bryson hit I don’t know two fairs in the back nine maybe and uh you know still win so you know a lot of luck involved there but around the greens man it just it required so much precision and touch and uh and then to watch that finish with Rory and Bryson going at it um and to see Rory I I hate to say like I feel like Rory kind of lost it as much as Bryson hit a great shot there in 18 it kind of felt like Rory kind of gave it away a little bit and you kind of feel for him but I mean the TV itself was was great and um I feel like these Majors have kind of given us given golf kind of what it needs a little bit is that kind of injection of just excitement and um all the best players playing together and competing so um hopefully that’s a sign of uh things to come you know going forward for gol but um I mean incredible TV absolutely and and it’s been a while since I’ve kind of had the shaky hands over a putt that really mattered so I’m going to have to defer to you somebody that’s a fantastic Putter and just kind of take me through maybe what Rory was going through on the final couple holes on those putts you know when when you have everything on the line and just trying to run a routine did you what do you kind of rely on when when the when the moment is so big and everybody’s watching and like the 16th green seemed like a more of a hiccup than anything but the 18th green you know what what are some of the things that you like to do to get yourself in the right frame of mind to be able to make a high leverage P like that even though your mind and your body just doesn’t feel like it’s working yeah I mean you know to me and again I’m not inside Rory’s head but I’m sure that a lot of the near messages that he’s had and the fact that he hasn’t want a major in 10 years you know coming down those last few holes you know I’m I’m I’m certain he was quite nervous and those putts to me you know maybe showed a little bit of nerves and it’s it’s hard to get across the line when you’ve been you know expected to do so for so long I think that that that weight of expectation is you know on his shoulders and it has been for a long time and um but I just think that like the when I think back to the the big putts I’ve had to make in my career which you know I haven’t had to you know make a putt like that he had to make on 18 to try and get into a playoff at a major but you know winning PGA Tour events and and all that still requires you know a high level of uh focus and you know I had to make a putt to win the Sanderson Farms and 22 and a playoff and like for me I think it comes back to like I try to focus on the things that I can control in that moment so I might have like one or two little process keys for me that when I’m over the ball I’m like hey I’m just going toy try and control this one thing or this other thing and that’s all I’m going to try and do you know whether it be like you know I just want to hit this ball solid or I just want to hit this b ball solid and and hold my finish like something like that to me gives me like a little mini goal that’s not so outcome oriented I’m not trying to think like oh I have to make this putt I have to make this putt um and I mean the putt that R out 18 I don’t think people understand like how hard that putt actually is I mean I know it’s only 4 feet but I mean thing broke a cup um uh I said it was left Center Mckenzie it was a left Center putt If he if he hammered it it was a left Center putt smashing back yeah left Center um it was a tough scene I I got behind the green and and you know how hard it is to read putts from 30 feet away but I I didn’t see enough to to make and that’s the thing about Pine her number to when you got above the hole even when you’re inside of four feet you had putts that were outside the hole and I think as a player if I would have got over it I would have known that yeah and it was just it was a putt that you couldn’t you couldn’t hit hard um now if that had been a putt to tie and like force a playoff maybe you would have taken it tighter and just like hit it but I mean at that point like he’s not sure what Bryson does behind him so if Bryson makes bogey he can still be in a playoff so you’re not trying to make that putt with a bunch of speed and I mean yeah it might it might not have been his best putt but it didn’t seem like a bad putt either um it was he liked the left Center read and just like and when he heard maybe I said it on air he’s like you know what I got to push it over there next thing you know he’s it’s missing right oh man I just like that’s just like the last put you want to have to hit to you know in that scenario I mean like what Bryson what Bryson had was ideal I mean up the hill probably right Edge you know you’re just like oh this is a dream um but Rory’s part was nightmare fuel um and yeah again just you hate to see it go that way at the end I mean you want to see someone I mean obviously Bryson still hit you know a great shot and made a great putt to win but yeah you hate to see a guy that played so great all day lose it the way Rory did but um I’m I’m quite certain he’ll he’ll bounce back and he’ll he’ll win one soon yeah definitely he’s got the talent too and it’s it’s I just wish we had more Majors so more guys had opportunities to uh to win it’s just it comes you know around so little in during the year but I think um where I want to kind of go next is on on Twitter today I’m just kind of scrolling on Twitter and and I just happened to see you know Bryson showing up to the live golf event in Nashville and all of a sudden all of the the feelings and and the excitement and the likability that I had for Bryson at the US Open it it suddenly just it just kind of reverted back and ADV vanished and and reminded me of of of just where we are in the game and that I was like man it just like it’s so nice to have all the players back and having Bryson in the mix he’s so fun to watch and and and you know what what Bryson as he was heading out the door towards the Liv golf tour he wasn’t as well-liked and he had issues with the PGA Tour and other players like struggled to get along with them there wasn’t very many players on on the Ryder cover president Cup team that wanted to play with him and that was just the reality of where Bryson was at the time but here we are now a couple years later the maturity from Bryson just where he has just in the game and how many eyeballs he’s bringing I think for the most part he’s somebody that I I genuinely really cheer for now and it wasn’t maybe that way a couple years ago but he shows up now to nationville M McKenzie and you had a really great quote back in December just talking about the state of the game and that we are far away and that this the fans are not really being rewarded in what is to be you know a huge division between the PGA Tour and live and really it all has come down to money but I just kind of want to hear your thoughts now compared to where they are in December as we are supposedly kind of getting closer to a deal yeah I mean you know to your point on Bryson I mean I think there’s no doubt that you know he’s good for the game um he does things in a different way uh he’s an emotional emotional guy he plays to the crowd uh I think golf needs those characters and I think for a long time he was maybe so different that people couldn’t accept him for the for how different he was but um you know when you’re different and you’re different produces wins like that and excitement like that I think that people start to you know fall in love with that and uh get behind it so I think you know certainly he’s become way more popular than he was I think maybe four or five years ago and it’s as a player I think it’s pretty impressive what he’s done um you know transforming his game and his body uh hitting it incredibly far but also still having an incredible short game uh he’s like I watched a lot of the golf on Sunday and he h some incredible chips and great putts and it’s just like chip on 10 was so good yeah like a little 60 yard wedge with a lob wed just like the length of a seven hour and you’re like how how how do you do that um and um but as far as like the state of the game and where we are now versus December I mean I think my thoughts are still or my feelings are still very much the same I think that uh it’s really unfortunate where we are cuz it’s still you you watch Bryson go back to live and you’re so reminded of the fact that like a bunch of guys kind of turned their back on the tour took a bunch of money and guaranteed payday to go play what I think is pretty meaningless golf over there uh and I I hate that you know you leave such a high and then you go ahead and just like divide divide the golf world again you go you know some of the great players are going to live and playing in Nashville this week and some players are going here to you know Connecticut and playing here and uh I think it’s unfortunate um that that’s where we are but I’m hopeful that we’re closer you know to some sort of resolution and um what that looks like I have no idea um I used to try to get my nose in there and try and figure out what was going on now it’s just like I hope that the guys that are in charge are are working hard at this and I’m hopeful that it’ll be done soon but yeah it’s just again the fans the fans lose uh golf loses um I think you look at Bryson you look at some of these top players and Leander I mean they’re still seeing great success and they’re still doing great things and it’s not really affecting them so much it’s just that the fan ultimately wants to see the US Open they want to see like Bryson versus Rory you haven’t seen that in what three or four years I mean it just it doesn’t I me Bryson’s playing somewhere else Rory’s playing here on tour so to me the golf fans that love golf want to see that more and hopefully going forward um you know we’re getting closer to that and selfishly I mean you had to be kind of excited that John Ram went to the live golf tour right I mean I it’s funny I I I hated that I hated that for golf I really did I mean I’m not you know just saying that but I I think that him going there sucked um because it was just like another blow to the tour and to golf uh but you got to remind you got to remind everybody exactly what happened here cuz you were 51st in the FedEx Cup standings John Rob goes to live and so somebody’s got to be number 50 just happened to be McKenzie Hughes so you’ve gotten into all seven Signature Events this year because of John R I’m leaving yeah yeah and um you know that was obviously you know a huge bonus for me but again I I think it was like it was better sweep because you’re like you know the tour is wors off without John ROM and the game continues to suffer when you have things like this happen um but yeah I did get a little carrot thrown there for me uh at the end yeah that’s a big old carrot man take that you dip that in some ranch and whatever you want to dip it into yeah so no it um definitely benefited me and um you know I’ve done a decent job taking advantage of it so far this year I’ve played I’ve played decent in a few of these uh Signature Events but um yeah uh I have John R to thank for that and I was going to get him something but I was like what do you get someone that just signed for $400 million I mean I don’t think he wants my uh my wine basket with some you know I don’t know whatever you know what you should get him you know what you should get him you should send him over a better team name and a better logo for whatever the for team Legion it’s the grossest one of the entire bunch and they had all the Time in the World to potentially come up with the new slickest logo the slickest team name just a total Miss by the new uh Team John ROM I mean is there is there one good team name over there though I mean to be fair um do do you like do you like any of them like which one is your favorite I’m a c guy uh wow it’s kind of it’s kind of a bit and if you didn’t know the ceks just actually won in Houston and I I it may have been the first top uh three finish in the franchise history for somebody who’s been a a fan of the franchise since day one there there’s a long long there’s a long history there in that franchise it was bittersweet you know we’ve been hanging out with the iron heads we’ve been hanging out with the Majestics and all that all those teams have been going out hanging out teeing off on the 16th 17th and 18th hole every tournament and boy was it sweet to finish up on the 18th with somebody from somebody from the cleaks team uh finishing up I don’t I don’t know who’s who it was but who plays for the clicks can you can you tell me who the players are um all right Richard Bland um he’s he’s been isn’t ker the captain of the c k Ker’s Ker’s the captain his play has been helpful um Richard Bland I think samua uh has been recently added I’m not sure exactly okay um who samua is or if that’s his name and then yeah and then there’s another guy okay another gu um on the ceks I’m not sure you see you see how much I love the ceks yeah you’re a big you’re a big CS guy I can [Laughter] tell oh gosh well let’s there was there was something I was about to kind of get you into on this which is you’ve just played the new format on all the Signature Events this year with one more left to play at The Travelers last year the Signature Events were I believe they were around 120 guys with cuts this year closer to 70 guys is give or take yeah and some Cuts but mostly no cut events for you um you’re finished at the Wells Fargo this year you finished six place and for somebody that I would imagine that you would argue that there should be more players playing but I also want to ask you that you’re finished at the Wells farger finishing sixth do you feel like because you beat a higher quality field do you think you deserve to be paid what you were paid and do you think the Signature Events moving forward should have more guys or do you think it’s a reward for playing really well the year before and then if you go out and play against the best players in the world and play well hey like this is this this is me this is what I get because I beat the best guys I think the um the intent of those events was good I just think they they’ve kind of missed a little bit I think so back to your point like the field sizes last year were actually like Wells Fargo last year was 156 it was 156 okay I I I was just thinking in my head believe and I believe Travelers as well was a big field like 156 as well like full field um cuz once you get to the summertime you can you can go 156 and so and I don’t think 156 is the answer but I think like if you went let’s say to 100 or 120 man Fields like I think 120 still feels Elite to me like when you go to play Memorial there’s 120 that way too beill was always that way you know I and I think that to me again I I I just think that the PGA Tour is kind of Pride itself on like you kind of you know eat what you kill right and you have to go out there and earn it and I think that Thursday Friday and going out there and playing well to make the cut is part of professional golf and so I kind of I kind of like a blend of what we have right now in last year so like maybe the fields aren’t quite as big as last year but they’re not as small as they are now like I don’t think 70 players players is the right answer like this week in in Connecticut you know 70 players with no cut to me you know it’d be a better field at 120 I mean there’s there’s no doubt if you added the next 50 players which would include guys like you know Mark Hub and some of these guys have play played great this year yeah um you know those guys you have those guys to this field and the field becomes way way better and to win becomes a way bigger accomplishment and to your point about like me at the Wells Fargo like I don’t think that like yeah I played really well on a really tough Golf Course against great players but did I earn all of that all those points and that money by finishing that in that high in that tournament I mean it’s probably a little bit inflated uh I think the points are overdone um so much right yeah like I think they just they had the right intent for those points and they I know what they were trying to do but they just they they missed the mark and went way too high to me um like you finish 20th you get 100 100 points you’re just like that doesn’t seem like I earned 100 points which is like right you know going and finishing fifth at like I don’t know valbar and to me like you finish fifth at Valar or 20th at you know the Wells Fargo I mean they’re not even close to the same thing I mean they’re just not the numbers are going to be the same right like the the score to relative to par for the most part doesn’t change that much you know what I mean like a a fifth at valpar and a 20th at Wells Fargo if you have 70 guys versus 120 it’s going to be relatively pretty close to the to similar numbers maybe a shot or two difference maybe at the top with the guys that win you might find some guys that really jump up but as far as just like the the number that doesn’t necessarily change that much well and I think that with the smaller Fields like I finished six that Well Fargo at I want to say it was I I think I was six underpar maybe five underpar and I mean Rory won at 17 Xander was second at like 12 then it was like nine and then it was like six you just had this huge discrepancy at top of the board with scoring and I just if that field was 120 guys you might had some there certainly was going to be more guys sprinkled in there that would have kept things a little more interesting now Rory was still going to win that tournament at minus 17 like that golf course I don’t see seven under if I play there for the next week um but you know I just yeah you get a small field like that there’s that chance that you get that that separation in that in that spread where now it becomes like nause ex slighting down to stretch because someone’s kind of taken it and run away um so I again I I think that there’s there’s somewhere in the middle you got to find between last year and this year where it’s like you know there’s there’s probably more guys uh there’s probably a cut every one of these tournaments because to me that’s what makes the PGA Tour the PGA Tour and like yeah you got to go out there Thursday Friday and earn and earn your keep and um but I don’t I don’t see that part of it changing but man I think that like adding some extra guys to these fields I mean at the very minimum like you should be filling these fields you know like if someone pulls out like Rory like someone should get in Chris going out for a single it’s just so dumb like and like let me go play with him and there’s gonna be um you know like guys this week that probably played poorly the first couple days and almost want to go home you know what I mean like they’ be like oh man I’m in last place and it’s like right right there’s no there’s no cut to save me it’s like just I actually want to leave now you know and ‘s I’m not getting I’m not getting better playing this weekend I’m just getting worse and um but I don’t know what’s going to happen next year but you know I I I do think that there needs to be some adjustments made and I know that there’s been some you know people unhappy with the format so I’m sure but like I said the tour right now is trying to keep those top guys happy so if they if they like it then it’s probably sticking around I think one of the best arguments I’ve heard I’m I’m curious if you kind of agree with this is that the PJ tours Marquee biggest event that they have and own is the players championship and if you anybody knows the PLAYERS Championship it ain’t 70 dudes it’s 144 players so if if your biggest event on the PGA tour has 144 players why do six of your other Signature Events have just 70 so I think that’s where I tend to agree it’s like is this the best place for competitive professional golf to continue to shrink and shrink it because I tell you what some of the best events this year have not even been the Signature Events it’s been the you know it’s it’s been the the events that you know there’s been a you know a David versus Goliath type of uh matchup and some of the events are slipping my mind right now cuz I mean even D Davis Davis rileyy St stairs down Scot you know Davis talk Davis Riley’s not playing the other events but he’s in colonial and you go wow this guy ran away from a PGA T field by five shots stared down Scotty shefford last like this guy is that good and he’s not playing the other tournaments you know and I think that like I like the I like to use the example of uh in 23 we had um the waste management was an elevated event and Nick Taylor played in last group with John ROM and Scotty sheffler and he took those two guys right down to the wire and just about won that tournament but he’s not in that tournament with the current structure like if that if that in 23 if we had the 24 structure he wouldn’t have played in that tournament so to me it’s like you take away that like you said that Underdog Story that that you know the Nick Taylor or Davis rally and like these are incredible players that don’t get a chance to play if we keep shrinking and shrinking it and um I know it’s supposed to be really competitive and it’s the most competitive two in the world but you know 70 guys or whatever we have right now is probably just a bit too small yeah you’re exactly on it and we’ve lingered a lot enough on this I know you don’t want to talk about this the whole time and really I I love doing podcasts and talking to players mainly because I love talking about their games like it’s just like sitting at a bar you and I talking about hey what are you working on what um what are what are the things you’re doing well what are you not doing well and some of the the events this year for instance I got to watch you this year at Sea Island and it just reminds me every single time I watch you play it’s like if this guy just if he has a good week ball striking and I don’t think I’m not I’m not betting on any other guys I just think your putting is is that ridiculously good um and do you do you feel that way like when when you when you’re really striping it do you feel like there’s many guys that can beat you out there yeah like um one of the things I talked about with like my mental guy and my and my coach is that if I’m just like for the year if I can be sort of in the middle if I can be an average ball Striker on tour which basically means I’m not losing I’m not gaining off of te or approach and then my short game is my short game um I’m going to contend to win multiple tournaments and yeah probably win one or two um and that’s kind of where I feel like my game is at and I feel like I’m slowly bringing that ball striking out to a point where I’m quite happy uh I’ve had some some nice weeks this this year where I felt like it’s shown some really nice signs and I’ve had some weeks where it’s not been great and uh that that’s kind of my my mission right now is to is to is to make that ball striking a bit more of a reliable weapon and um yeah no I definitely feel like when that’s the case like at se Island um and I’m hitting it nice uh and putting it nice then uh yeah I’ve got a pretty good chance unfortunately lud Vio Berg just happened to be here that week I mean he was that dud was like a robot yeah that was one of those ones where you’re just like you’re you’re kind of pissed you didn’t win but at the same time you’re like I just shot 123 on the weekend and I lost by four so you’re like I don’t even know what to to say I mean I just I lost shot 63 on the week you shot 123 on the weekend yeah I shot 6063 I started the weekend I started the weekend like I want say two back and I lost by four I me it doesn’t even like make sense saying it out loud like that’s even possible I mean and I remember I went out and on Sunday I was two back and I shot five under on the front yep I birdie 10 and I was still two back and I’m like what are we doing here I’m like this is this is I’m I’m winning 51 out of 52 weeks of the year if I’m playing like this and this one time I’m playing this dude that’s just also going banana ice man yeah and uh yeah it was nuts but it was almost like it’s one of those tournaments again where you lose and you’re like I didn’t really lose I just I got beat I mean someone was just better than me this week you know and like sometimes you you finish second and you lose the tournament and you feel like man that was mine it was never really mine I just I I was just always behind and I was always trying to catch him I never did so you don’t walk away with that one with a sour taste in your mouth you’re just like man I played great and didn’t win yeah so you had another great week at the Valar you finished third that week and that’s that’s a really tight golf course you get to stripe your nug around that place so that had to be really nice to to go to valbar and have a top five finish and and I think the one that that needs a little bit of discussion is the RBC Canadian open I mean you were right there the thick of it man and and this is a place that you grew up very close to if I if my memory serves you correct from our conversation I had with you in the range at the memorial so had to be special getting into into contention and I was kind of flipping through Twitter and I was seeing a video of O Canada being sung at the rink while you’re about to tea off I’m not sure exactly what hold the rink uh hole was this year but just talk about what it was like being in contention um in your home country and you know just just memories from that week yeah yeah that was an incredible week and I grew up 10 minutes from there uh my coach when I was a teenager Tau out there so I got to play there a little bit growing up and whenever I did it was a real treat I was always like yeah this is going to be a fun day I get to play Hamilton and um so I remember the first day of the tournament just when they announced me on the te and they announced my hometown and just it kind of gave me a Goosebumps a little bit because it was just like man I’m so close to home uh I’m doing this you know I’m doing this now for my my job and for a living and you know as a teenager I could only have ever dreamt of stuff that cool and and so then you know fast forward to the weekend and and Sunday and to be in contention to win uh that golf tournament um was really special and I unfortunately just didn’t uh keep it going on Sunday but yeah I mean there was just some moments that I’ll never forget as far is just you make a putt and the the the the the loudness of some of the cheers and just like being on that wrink hole on Sunday and being seren with OK Canada and just the the overall noise and energy of that whole crowd it was unbelievable uh it was so so so fun and you kind of get that sense that this is what it feels like to be a Roy mroy every week you know that that’s what he’s feeling just what every single tournament he plays in which is kind of mindboggling cuz I was just like the hair on my neck was standing up when some of that stuff was happening it was just that cool for me and uh so you know as a guy like myself I don’t get the opportunity to have that kind of crowd support very often and um it was really cool to have that and to be so close to home with friends and family around uh yeah just a really special week and it would have been kind of like the ultimate Cinderella Story to get it done but um hopefully we go back there sometime soon and I’ll be able to uh do a little better and and Charlie Hume is a co-host and producer uh of the Smiley Show and and he’s listening in and and he’s somebody that’s kind of been struggling with the shanks with his wedges and correct me if I’m wrong because I I was I was trying to find it didn’t you have like a pretty sick little shank at the RBC Canadian open this year I I did it was uh I was like I was on the side of this like bunker and I had the bowl I was like it was on my back foot the ball was like just out of the bunker and I had to like put it basically off my right foot and I like tried to this I had this manufactured swing and the ball was so far back and it was like kind of on a big UPS slope and yeah I just hit this thing dead right and then so like give me like a a degree angle you know what 45 degre as far as as far as Shanks go was a pretty good shank it was like I’d say it wasn’t quite 45 de it was like 30° right and I and I got it pin High which was which was pretty good but under a tree in some Fescue but then you know tournament golf being tournament golf there was a scoreboard right in my way so I was like baby yes yes so I got this drop into some Fescue that was like not nearly as long and I was not under a tree anymore and then I hit this like unbelievable flop to like 8 feet and then I lipped out but I almost that would have been like a DOT oh it would have just been unreal that part even n on the call was like you might see one of the best bars I’ve ever seen here and he’s like I and then he like I hit the shot and I almost like made the Chip he’s like I I swear to God I did not know this was happening um but yeah it was it was a shank um don’t do them too often but uh sick sick shank yeah sick shank actually now now that I have this my my shank brain turned on is that the best shank you’ve hit on tour and how many Shanks you think you’ve hit on tour and what’s the best shank you’ve ever seen on tour so anything come to anything come to mind thankfully I don’t remember oh oh you know what you know what no I do I do remember it the Masters the Masters I’m hitting my third shot on 15 and oh God off the down slope down down I chunked it in like I had a ball roll into the water I chunked it so bad in the practice round on Monday so I I can’t wait to hear this so I’m playing uh with Luke list and Matthew wolf and this is the first round pins back right on the down it’s not a practice round it’s during the tournament no no this is a tournament this is a tournament and so picture the bunker the bunker short right yep and there’s a tree like just behind that bunker like kind of right of it and I’m like in between clubs and I’m not sure what to hit and the wind’s kind of in but like you kind of know how that green is like if you’re if you land it like in the middle green with a bit too much spin like you can hit the water still even with the back pin and so I’m kind of trying to decide what to do and I’m like I’m just going to back foot a 60 and kind of drive it in there but I’m kind of not decisive and I just hit this wicked wicked shank now talk about angles this thing was like 60 de I mean this thing was going dead right uh right off the hosle and also low like like a screaming low hle rocket and Luke list cadd are standing like by the bunker and they they have to like hit the deck and like Duck to dodge it and then it like it hits the side of the tree and like kicks forward to like almost be like pin high right I mean it was it’s not like a worse spot is it oh my gosh like I was I was thrilled for it to be there I mean I could have hit it anywhere I could hit the Train on the water it could I mean if I had hit that wed shot again oh my gosh nightmare nightmare so at least I got it like up by the green somewhere but it was like the the quickest right low shank oh man and as far as shank on tour I don’t know if I’ve ever seen one as good as that one I’m trying to think of anyone else I’ve seenit like hit a wicked shank that’s probably the best that’s probably the best shank I’ve ever seen and I you know yours truly uh I did it so um yeah that’s uh I’ll have to send you the video when we’re done here but that was oh sweet yeah please send it over yeah it was wicked it was wicked I mean who who doesn’t love a good just a good little H uh it just keeps us humble keeps us coming back yeah oh my goodness man that is awesome uh thank you for sharing because that you didn’t have to do that for us that’s that’s really that’s really really good stuff wear that badge of honor brly well I’m not sure if your family’s with you this week are you are you solo Doo I’m solo this week okay good for you and and correct me if I’m wrong three kids now three kids I got two two boys that are six and three and a oneyear old daughter yeah and how many months uh she is uh 18 months yeah because Anna Carter is 17 months I felt like they were right around the same age so we’re kind of in that same spot at least with our your third and my first so I I we’re kind of I kind of know what you’re going through but you got two other ones so I don’t really know what you’re going through so I’m gonna have to get some insight from you on when when Anna Carter eventually gets to to I guess keeps it continues to get more and more busy and more crazy but yeah three three kids is a three kids is a lot but whenever I think about that I think about like the fenals or the web his family I’m just like how do you do that I don’t I don’t understand yeah I think there’s a lot of people that that don’t know what it’s like traveling with your family on the PJ tour I think people see McKenzie Hughes on the TV and they just say oh you know playing uh Wells Fargo this week or he’s playing in Tampa this week and they just expect that you’re probably just there with either yourself or just your wife but I don’t I don’t think that most people realize that a lot of tour players travel with their families and so just kind of like walk us through a little bit what it’s like how much stuff do you have to pack how many like are you just the amount of plane tickets how much that cost uh the hotel rooms uh what’s the most difficult part of the day you finish the day after a long day and you come home and you and you got to go be dad so just kind of just give us like a life inside McKenzie Hughes when the family is on the road yeah I mean I think it’s one of the it’s one of the perks of the job for sure is that you know we do something that we you know we’re able to bring our families around for and along for which you know if you if you work for you know some forun 500 company and you’re the CEO or you’re some high up executive and you’re going out for business you know some weeks you know you’re not like oh let’s bring the family and let’s go do some fun stuff in New York City you know like I’m going to do work and I’m going to do board meetings and that’s all I have time for well you know again that’s sort of the benefit of what we do is we can bring our families around there’s like as you know there the the tour Child Care is phenomenal and that stuff is uh a godsend I mean we couldn’t do it without them um what are hours what are like a typical Child Care starts on Wednesday and you can bring your kids for up to 6 hours a day uh usually runs from like 8 to 5 8 to six that’s nice uh so you can bring your kids there for six hours a day um which gives you know the wives a nice chance to decompress and you know put the kids down and away for a bit and go watch you play golf like they’ll go watch a lot of times or like you watch or maybe you watch nine holes and you go like have lunch with your friends or you go watch nine holes and go out whatever um but I think traveling with kids the hardest part is is the travel and I wish that when they did the Netflix series and the Netflix uh full swing they had done a better job of maybe telling the tales of someone like myself or like a yeah a Peter Mady or someone like that that like is traveling with their families but not on a private jet every week um flying commercially or driving between tournaments at times like showing what that’s like because that to me is while it’s fun and it and it has its perks is also very exhausting at times and and difficult and you know to your point of like how much luggage we bring I mean it’s it’s much much how how many bags I mean typically say like if my family’s out with me um we have my wife will do she’s my wife is a wizard packing so she’ll pack herself and my daughter into like one suitcase wow she’ll pack my two boys into one suitcase and then I have my own suitcase and I have my golf clubs then we have booster seat two car seats um and by the time you’re like you know I have my backpack and like we’re going through the airport and we look like camels I mean we’re just carrying so much stuff pull I’m I’m training all three bags training all three bags my wife has my golf clubs I’ve got kids draping off my golf clubs I’ve got you know my daughter in the stroller and like people look at us in the airport and they’re just like wow like nice work like good job you really have this down pat I’m like yes this is like this is a bit of an operation here and we’re expert level uh at this but it’s just it’s so much but like I think once you get to the tournament and you get get unsettled or you get like unpacked and you get into your hotel room or your house like then it’s all becomes quite quite normal but like getting there like you said the flights the flights are you know rather expensive now we got two two kids I have to pay for on the plane you know not you know the lap Childs anymore and uh you know soon to be three butts to pay for but um I still think it’s it’s a it’s a luxury to be able to do that though because as you know I mean kids get old quick and they and the time goes by quick and if I was gone for two or three weeks at a time I didn’t see them um that’d be tough so having them out with me even if it’s just like you know if I do a two we stretch they do one week um just so I’m not away too much uh from them but yeah it’s a it’s a big it’s a big production um and you know I think that as you do it over time you get better and better at it and you learn the the the different tricks and the different things you have to do um but yeah I um you know and this year is my first year with my my son started kindergarten this year so we’re not okay so things we’re not doing it much yeah the schedule changed a little bit we’re not doing it quite as much and um so that’s been a little different and a bit of adjust an adjustment but um yeah I still think it’s one of the one of the perks that we have is that we able were able to kind of bring our crew along with us and and kind of you know share the moment and and you know come home to them after a day whether good or bad and just be a dad I think there’s probably a lot of dads and moms right now that are listening and just trying to process like how how difficult that actually is and and and you have a job to do because you have a job to do and you have to keep your body healthy you’re always in the gym I mean I feel like you and I were early adopters of of being in the gym and and how important it was warm up our bodies before the round there was probably only 25% of us of the field in the weight training uh facilities back in 2015 and 16 like you and I were but now it’s like I mean there’s not a guy that’s not warming up before the round so there’s just a lot that goes into being a professional golfer and and I think you just said it perfectly yeah I mean it takes a lot of energy I think that people don’t realize how hard it is and again uh I could cry River here and I’m sure I’d get absolutely roasted for it but just like the fact that you you know if you play golf and you have a long day in the course and you know let’s say you played early and you had a 7:30 tea time so you’re up at 4:30 you’re in the gym you’re getting warmed up and you have a 5 hour round done at 12:30 you eat lunch practice after maybe get some some work done some treatments and you’re home by let’s say 2:30 or 3: so you’ve had a pretty long day you know you put a lot of effort in and then you come home and your kids are there and it’s like Dad let’s let’s go play Let’s go to pool let’s go you know I want to go to the the zoo or I want to go to the park and you’re just like you’re just I would love to I would just like also want to sit on my butt for like 30 minutes and just like decompress a little bit and watch golf and listen to me call seven hour and see there you go that’s where that’s where you’re heading you just you just don’t get to like you can’t really explain to them and and reason with then they’re just like well Dad you’re here like let’s let’s play and you know like you said professional golf requires a lot of energy a lot of focus and I think that um that’s the tough balance that you have with your with your family being on the road um a little bit but um it’s a good problem to have and um certainly thankful for for them yeah I know everybody just enjoyed that in the last 101 15 minutes because it’s something that we don’t ever hear talked about and how how fun it is and how difficult it is and um how amazing it is to have a family but you get you’re a pro golfer so um and I know you have lofty goals too McKenzie I mean you’re a PJ tour winner and you’ve had plenty of success being a professional golfer you’ve had your UPS you’ve had your downs and I’ve seen your downs and I’ve seen your ups and it’s been a lot of fun to watch but I think where we got to finish this conversation right is is it’s it’s a big year to be a Canadian golfer you know it it really is and I know how important it is for you to represent your country and the president’s cing in Montreal I know that has to be at the Forefront of your mind not not just you I’m I’m sure Nick Taylor Adam hadwin Adam senson and Nick you know and Taylor pendrith I mean these are all guys that all want to be on that team and Mike Weir being the captain and I’m not familiar with royal Montreal but I’m I’ve heard Montreal is just a fantastic city um is going to be an an incredible venue but with all that being said how difficult is it like how how hard is it to not think about future things that you want to be a part of yeah I mean I it’s hard um and I think that more so now than earlier in my career I might have like tried to like spend a lot of energy trying not to think about it you know or now it’s just like you lean into it you embrace it you be like wow this would be amazing it’ be a lot of fun it’s going to be hard to make that team uh I’m going to be feeling the nerves as I try to make that team but that’s that’s kind of like the fun part of what we do we get to try and do hard things and we get to get to try to overcome things and and battle through thoughts and like to me that that’s that’s a fun a fun challenge a fun battle uh and I look at it more that way than I I think you know I made the mistake when the president cup was in Charlotte um of like I think trying too hard and forcing that issue a little bit and as a result I didn’t play well and in like the six or seven weeks leading up to the picks and I think that was kind of my downfall was I just I hadn’t played good enough leading up to it um to Warrant a pick and so I think that’s something that I’ve kind of learned from uh last time was just that hey look you know trying to force things or trying really hard to make that team um and maybe exerting extra effort isn’t really the answer uh you got to find that right effort right like you I want to make that team more than anything but I can’t force I can’t force the issue uh so I think for me uh like you said that’s probably like my biggest goal of the year was to make that team uh I still think I’m in a pretty good position to do that um you know and you look back at some of the the close calls like I had a close call at the bort close call at the Canadian open and like you know if you get the job done in either one of those tournaments like you know I’m pretty much right there you know as far as like an automatic pick probably but you know you have to get those things those tournaments across the line and um I’m hopeful that I can get myself back in that position this year uh before that President’s Cup and yeah um but yeah to play for Mike uh to play in Canada for President’s Cup uh would be would be fairy tale stuff for me um and just like a huge feather of my cap and uh yeah I have had had a hard time not thinking about it but at the same time it excites me to think about it and it and it motivates me a lot and keeps me um you know working hard towards those goals what about the golf course in the city just give me a little um just a little feel and a Vibe of what this golf course and and just that part of the country is like so I wish I could give you uh any kind of golf course knowledge i’ have never played it um so I don’t know the golf course is like I’ve heard it’s great um I know they were there in 07 for the President’s Cup um the city itself was a lot of fun um I’ve heard that I’ve heard it’s amazing yeah and I think if you were like a a young person and and single you would love to spend time in Montreal as a family man now it’s probably not my scene but um I feel that buddy I’ll I’ll see you at the uh I’ll see you at the the the 5:30 dinner I’ll see lights out at 9 900 PM but um the the city itself is fun it’s uh it’s I I just think that it’s a great City for the president to be in I think the the fans and the the people there will be uh really passionate behind the event um there’s like some logistical difficulties I think the event is a bit of the golf course is on a bit of an island um and whether it’s an island or Peninsula I’m not really sure but there’s a basically one Road in one road out of the golf course that sounds like traffic yeah and it just like and it’s apparently just a huge headache for the tournament Ops to kind of get that sorted out I have no idea how they’re going to do it how they’re going to get people in there how they’re going to get Spectators in there but they’re going to figure it out I know that there’s smart people doing it and they they’ve done it before so they’ll figure it out but um I think guys will have a lot of fun there I think the American guys coming up there will really enjoy the city they’ll have a lot of fun there so um yeah hopefully hopefully I’ll be there and hopefully it’ll be uh you know time for the Internationals to get one well Mike Weir if you’re listening which I’m sure you are I’m sure Mike we’s just a huge Smiley Show fan because why would he be like and Mike make sure you like him subscribe while you’re here and and and what and while you’re here also just reminder McKenzie Hughes is going to be a guy that makes the 10 inside 10- foot putts which is so important in match play so let’s not forget about that key component put that man with a partner he’s going to be absolutely killing it making putts getting the Canadian uh fans rled up so there’s our there’s our push for McKenzie Hughes to Montreal so hopefully we see you there and I I know there’s plenty of other events throughout the rest of the year that you say that you know plenty of opportunities to go and get a win or you know put on a good impression for the captain and with your good play at the RBC Canadian open finishing t7 you’ve made it to the Open Championship but uh what’s what’s the rest of year look like uh calendar outside the Open Championship and The Travelers this week yeah um so I’m playing yeah I play this week I then I’ll take two weeks off and I’ll play the Scottish and the British um back to back and then I will take a week off play the Windom most likely and then it’s playoff time which is kind of crazy to think like it just seems fast it seems so fast I feel like we just started and we’re like we’re done and i’ I’ve only played I’ve played 16 events so far this year and I’ve got four more um and then we’re in the playoffs and it just seems like I’m like that just seems like such a I mean I haven’t played as much as some other guys but I’m like I’m used to making the hitting the playoffs at like 24 events 25 events and playing you know 28 and now without the without the fall series being kind of included in your season it just seems like we’re just like I mean very slim on the number of events you you’ve played and um yeah it just kind of wild to me that like we’re already at that point where like talking about playoffs and yeah yeah uh so that’s kind of what my my schedule looks like so I’ve got um I guess four more events before the playoffs and then uh I’ll be in Memphis and then I’m working on uh you know the last two sweet man well I look forward to watching you the rest of the year um and before you go can you just give us a little bit of feel of what the Travis Championship looks like how’s the golf course weather conditions expected for the week just to give us a little uh feel for what we’re expecting in Cromwell Connecticut yeah so they they’ve made um a few changes to the golf course um yeah like very subtle um so the ones I can take you through that I know of right now so number nine the par 4 dog leg right they actually took that T from like the back left corner of the property there to like a a little bit of a shift like 20 yards to the right uh and AC like across the cart path there is that keeping guys from going hitting driver yeah so now it’s more of a layup to the left and hit it on uh so you know you won’t see guys taking it over the corner quite as much I think you can still do it potentially with a Big Slice but you know there’s not many guys long enough to hit it with a Big Slice over the corner so there’s that and then uh number 11 they like took out like downhill part three 140 yard right yeah like the left side of the green they took about 10 ft of green off the green so they kind of like just basically shrunk that green so a bit of a smaller Target and left of the green like kind of kicks off into some like mounds and swes and stuff like that so you you miss that green youve got some stress and then uh number 12 you know number the 12 the always a really good yeah that’s a it’s kind of like a sneaky hard hole like can like if the wind’s in it can be a hard t- shot um but usually you run over that hill and there’s Fairway all the way down into the bottom well now the Fairway stops where it where it crests that hill so now it’s rough in between there and then the Fairway starts again at like 50 yards but all that stuff on the bottom is rough now so you’re either going to play up top or you’re going to hit it all the way I yeah so it’s it’s yeah I don’t know it’s weird that doesn’t any sense to me if you get caught on the down slope and the rough through the F you got no chance so an elevated green no chance yeah it’s boey that makes zero let’s see what else um what do we doing there that’s pretty that’s that’s pretty much it um uh golf course is in phenomenal shape always typically is around here greens are fast uh rough is actually quite up so they’ll be a premium on hitting the ball in a fairway and and hitting the greens uh it’s it’s it’s thick um but again this is one of those courses where you feel like if you’re hitting it well you know you’re going to go shoot five under uh but if you’re off you can shoot two three four over uh you know pretty quickly so um certainly feels a lot easier than last week um it’s got to be nice showing up to like just yeah nice to like just like chip it on the green and now it’s not rolling off the other side um so yeah it’s been uh it’s been good so far and I think the the forecast this week is pretty hot uh so unusual for Connecticut but yeah should be a great week and uh I’ve had some pretty good sucess success around this golf course so um yeah looking forward to uh to a good week it’s always been one of my favorite back nights on tour until I just heard about this change at 12 and now I’m just my head’s in in a TI yeah I don’t I don’t know if I agree with it either but uh that’s what it is that’s what it is this week so yeah it’s it’ll be interesting to see what guys do because I think it’s going to play into the wind all week I think so you know guys are going to be laying it up up top and hitting a shot in from 130 140 yards basically so um which is fine I mean that’s a lot of guys end up hitting it there anyways but I don’t I don’t understand that but whatever all right we’re we’re wrapping up this is it McKenzie go crushes this week Trel is going to be cheering you on the rest of the Year hope to see you uh get that dub uh throughout wherever we see it get it done we know you’re G to get it done because you’re a balla uh we’re always gonna be cheering you on man and I appreciate you coming on all right appreciate it thanks smile you know I listen to this podcast it’s really cool and all of our fans and subscribers but make sure you like And subscribe it’s cool to see what you guys are doing I know golf fans appreciate it but we we do too so please keep it up for all the good people of YouTube like And subscribe you guys have some good takes so I’m happy to come on and and shoot the