WALKER CUP

May 8, 2021

Nathaniel Crosby

Seminole Golf Club

Press Conference

Q. You have a smile on your face, 7-5 after one day here. How would you assess the way your team has progressed through this first day?

NATHANIEL CROSBY: Yeah, a lot of ups and downs. It's just amazing that we're actually playing this match with everything that happened to us this past week. If it wasn't for COVID, we wouldn't be here with two alternates, and we were able to play one this morning due to three guys getting sick yesterday. So it's just amazing that we're playing at all. A narrow lead going into the second day.

Q. What does that mean strategically for you as you get your lineup set for tomorrow morning?

NATHANIEL CROSBY: I just whip them hard each and every morning and see what happens. A lot of insults. They take it well. They're getting callous getting used to the new approach.

They're a great bunch of guys, and the best part about this whole experience for me has been getting to know them over the last three, four years and watching them with their triumphs and tragedies in other tournaments and getting to know their parents because the galleries are scarce at these events. So getting to know the families and the players and really being an extension of their support network, and then ultimately when they get picked we're all familiar with each other. It's sad when they lose, but it's great when they win, and hopefully we'll carry the day tomorrow.

Q. You talked about getting to know the parents. For you this is almost like a parental experience. These guys are so young. They're just getting their amateur careers on the back end and hopefully for some of them the professional careers getting going here pretty soon. How do you know when to hug them a little bit and when to kind of get on them a little bit to get that motivation out there to come back here with a victory at Seminole?

NATHANIEL CROSBY: Well, I'm not a parent, and I offer hugs, but basically it's just win, baby. I try to keep it simple and get them to stay focused. But there's no Knute Rockne lingo in my repertoire, but just a lot of encouragement. They know that I'm behind them, and I think when John Pak was 2-down with three to play at Liverpool, I grabbed him by the ears and said, "You're gonna win this match," and he won the last two holes. I think that's my approach. Just grab them by the ears.