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KITCHENAID SENIOR PGA CHAMPIONSHIP

May 27, 2018

Paul Broadhurst

Benton Harbor, Michigan

JOHN DEVER: Good afternoon, and welcome back to Sunday at the 79th KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship. Pleased to be joined by KitchenAid Senior PGA Champion Paul Broadhurst who posted a 63 today, the low round of the championship, and he won by four strokes. This is his second major championship on the Champions Tour. Paul, you literally got better every day you were here.

PAUL BROADHURST: Fortunately.

JOHN DEVER: What happened Thursday night and what kept getting better from there?

PAUL BROADHURST: Well Thursday night I rang my travel agent and checked what flights were available on Saturday, that was No. 1.

But, no, I didn't play too badly the first day, I just didn't make any putts. I just hit a poor shot there on number 14 and made double and that was it, 1-over. I guess you think you're out of the tournament, but when I won the Senior Open in Carnoustie I started with a 75, so you never are out of it. But I was playing catch up and it was important that I got off to a good start Friday, which I did, birdied three of the first four holes and I managed to continue that good form over the weekend. It's not very often you shoot 66 on a Friday, better it Saturday and then better that Sunday. So yeah, it's been a special week.

JOHN DEVER: You had the two low rounds of the championship on the weekend. You talked about your good form, was it primarily the putting? Your putting was sublime the last few days.

PAUL BROADHURST: I been struggling off the tee the last three weeks really. Early season I haven't been putting too good. I sorted the putting out obviously this week, but going into this week the driver was a little bit of a concern. Last week in Birmingham the driving was a little bit iffy. But I shot 10-under, so there was a lot of birdies out there. I just worked on the practice area and I don't know, it was basically completing my back swing, that was the thought this week. Completing the back swing. That helped my rhythm and I drove it, for me, pretty well. I didn't miss too many fairways. I put myself in good positions to hit some good irons and the putting was fantastic over the weekend.

JOHN DEVER: It really was. Questions, please.

Q. Your 7th win since turning 50, you surpassed the wins you got on the main tour. Where does this rank amongst those?
PAUL BROADHURST: It's obviously up there with the Senior Open. They're the top two. I couldn't choose between the two, they're both equal in my opinion. I just wish I was playing like this on the main tour 20 years ago.

(Laughter.)

I know more about my swing now, I guess you get that with age and experience, but when I was on the main tour back in Europe I did a lot of shopping and changing coaches and stuff, I met a guy back in the U.K., Tim Rouse and I spent seven years with him, sorted my game out really for when I turned 50 and he's doing a fantastic job and I can't thank him enough.

Q. The manner in which you won as well, an 8-under par round on the final day. At what stage did you know out there that it was yours?
PAUL BROADHURST: 18th tee. When I made birdie on 17 and I wasn't sure how Tim Petrovic was doing behind, but my caddie must have asked one of the TV guys and he said that he had made bogey at 16. So I stood on 17 tee or on the 18th tee with a three-shot lead and so we put the driver away and reached for my rescue club and thought, if I make five, that's fine. I know I can't reach the right trap with the rescue. Then from there it's only 8-iron, 7-iron front of the green and couple of putts that will do us. But finished in style with holing a 30-footer on the 18th green. But it was weird, I didn't even, I hadn't a clue what score I was shooting out there. All I was looking at was the leaderboard. I knew I was 4-, 5-under around 10, 11 and thinking I was playing really well, but I didn't seem to be making any progress against Tim, he was side by side. So yeah, it was a tough day. I kept my concentration really well I managed to keep my rhythm for the most part of the round, and to have a three shot lead down the last was great.

Q. You mentioned getting off to a good start. You birdied 1 and I think carded four on the front nine. How pivotal was that just to build that confidence early?
PAUL BROADHURST: It was massive. That was key. You bogey the 1st or 2nd hole and you're on a downer and I couldn't have afforded to be two behind to drop shots to have guys that have gone out early, are making progress on the course, already making birdies in the first four, five holes. So it's sometimes tough going out towards the end when guys are shooting birdies early on, so it was really important to get off to a good start and I birdied 1 again, I holed a 30-footer across the green. Seems like I holed, every green I holed a 30-footer today.

So, but, yeah, once I got into the round I started to relax a little bit and it was only, I guess when I finished the front that you, I wouldn't say tense up, but you know you got something to lose now. You're leading the tournament, it's not necessarily yours to lose because you got no control on what Tim or Scott were doing behind, but it felt it was not necessarily mine to lose, but there was something to lose if I hit bad shots.

So, yeah, it got a little bit tense, a little bit, but I was pleased that I hit a good drive off 16, really good tee shot into 17 and I played 18 as I wanted to, really, just try and hit it front edge of the green, give myself 30 feet and hopefully can 2-putt from there.

Q. You didn't 2-putt, could you have envisioned a better way to end the round and win this thing?
PAUL BROADHURST: Absolutely not. No. No. I mean, I guess it would have been a bit of an anti-climax if I would have 3-putted the last green, but that would have given Tim a chance of holing his second shot. But I actually spoke to my caddie about that going down the last, we don't want to 3-putt and give him the opportunity, because stranger things have happened in golf by people holing their second shots. And to see it go in the middle of the hole on the last was just a special feeling to finish a tournament off like that.

JOHN DEVER: You seem like a pretty easygoing guy. There wasn't a lot of stress for you these last couple days. I think you didn't make a bogey the last 24 holes. The one stressful moment perhaps was on the 14th hole. Maybe go over that and talk about that.

PAUL BROADHURST: Yeah, I are always trying to feed the ball left-to-right down 14. And I got it the wrong side of the slope. I mean I was aiming at the slope just hoping just to hold it off and I just flipped it, maybe because I was trying to hit a strong 8-iron, under pressure I prefer to hit a full shot rather than a soft shot, so I went with a strong 8. And I just turned it over a yard or two. I got the wrong side of the slope, and it just left me a really tricky third shot and I was looking at putting it you know do the right and playing six feet pin high, and then we had another look and thought, well if we can just play a little checky one and check it down the slope. So we went for that option, but it was probably the poor decision of the day. I should have just putted it down, used the right slope a little bit, probably get it to eight feet and give myself a chance. But it's a funny game, golf. Obviously I didn't expect to hole it for par, but I was just trying to make sure I didn't make double. If I would have made bogey then we could move on to 15 and thought I would make birdie there. But to hole a 30-footer up the hill for par to stay one ahead was massive.

Q. This is your second win in the last four tournaments and today you actually move to No. 1 in the Charles Schwab Cup. What does the last month do to your outlook looking forward to the rest of the season on Champions Tour?
PAUL BROADHURST: Well I think it gives me another two year exemption, I'm hoping, with a win today. So that's getting me through to 2020 at least, so that's important. I don't know. I mean four weeks ago I wasn't playing particularly well, I was lying 42nd In the Order of Merit. I mean, Kirk Triplett and I paired up in the Legends Tournament, managed to come through in a playoff there, which was massive and secured my card again. But I think that it's just that win has just helped me to relax a little bit more. Maybe early in the year I was putting too much pressure on my, certainly my putting, because in the back of my mind I'm thinking I need to finish top-36 to have full rights for next year. But the win at the Legends took care of that and that's helped me to reschedule a little bit, pick and choose my events more, more than I have been doing. I do an awful lot of traveling backwards and forwards across the Atlantic. I don't stay over here between tournaments, I go back to my family. So there's a lot of traveling involved and I think it was just taking its toll a little bit early in the year. So I can pick and choose a little bit more now and that's all good for the future.

Q. 26 birdies and then you match the all time 72-hole score. Did you feel that coming on or is that a surprise to you?
PAUL BROADHURST: No, you never are sure what's going to happen, I'm never sure what's going to happen with my game. I'm not blessed with a consistent swing like someone like Bernhard Langer, but when it's on, it works. If I'm putting well, then anything can happen, really.

I wasn't aware I made 26 birdies. That's pretty impressive around this course. But I know I made quite a few the last three days, having struggled on Thursday.

JOHN DEVER: I'm going to ask you a little extra curricular question here. In your career you've won I believe twice at Le Golf National in Paris and three or four months from now we'll see a little Ryder Cup action there. Maybe your recollections of that golf course, what the American fans here can expect and I would be interested in your, where your money might lie Team USA or Team Europe.

PAUL BROADHURST: Well, I mean I think that you'll really enjoy the golf course. It's one of my favorites in Europe. Obviously I have won on the French Open there and I won the Paris Seniors last fall. So it is a great golf course and it's one of those courses that if you play really well you can make a lot of birdies, but if you play badly, you're going to shoot some numbers. There's a lot of water, it really is, the last, certainly the last four or five holes, a lot of water. So it will be a lot of toing and froing in matches I'm sure, but it's a real amphitheater where the spectators are going to be high up on banking looking down on to four or five holes. So it will be a great course for spectators. So, yeah, it will be a special Ryder Cup. Looking forward to it.

As regards who my money is on, I've been told it's 25 years since the U.S. won.

JOHN DEVER: This is true. This is true.

PAUL BROADHURST: It breaks my heart to say, but I, if I have got to put $585,000 on, I would have to pick the U.S. But I think -- we have got home advantage, that's in our favor -- but I think you've got a really strong team, I think our team is possibly two years from peaking. There's a lot of youngsters coming through who are making their way in the world of golf and doing well when they come over here. It may be just two years too early. But I'm sure they will give it their best shot.

JOHN DEVER: Okay, maybe we'll talk about it next year when you defend your championship at Oak Hill in Rochester New York. Paul, congratulations again, KitchenAid Senior PGA champion. Please enjoy the spoils and travel safe.

PAUL BROADHURST: Thanks very much. Thank you.

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