PGA CHAMPIONSHIP

May 23, 2021

Brad Marek

The Ocean Course at Kiawah Island

Quick Quotes

THE MODERATOR: We are joined by Brad Marek, who finished his championship today with a 76. Brad, maybe just the totality of it all, the moment that the week was. Tell us about everything that you felt in a few thoughts.

BRAD MAREK: Pretty exhausted. I've been here for 10 days now, so there was a lot of prep that went in with my coach and my caddie, my wife. (Tearing up.) Sorry.

Just really proud.

Sorry, could you give me a minute?

Q. You played some good golf. How did you feel out there, one last spin around the old Ocean Course?

BRAD MAREK: I think it played harder today. It will be really interesting to see what happens late in the firm, but the firmness of this golf course has been by a wide margin, even early on. I hit lob wedge into 1 and it landed 15 stops short of the pin and released all the way to hole high.

It's a really big challenge for me. This golf course I don't think suits me all that well, and then when it gets baked out a little firmer, it's hard. I'm not long. I don't hit it super high. So it's just a challenge for me to get a lot of birdie looks, and I didn't hit it that well today.

Just probably out of energy. It's been a long week. Fun week but long.

Q. Did you experience that reverse wind that people have been talking about for most of the week that was coming for the weekend? Did it happen?

BRAD MAREK: Yeah, it was totally opposite. Yesterday on 4 was probably the best example. Yesterday I hit a driver and a 3-iron into 4, and today I hit 3-wood, pitching wedge. So you guys can do the math on that, how much longer than playing.

It's just tough. When it gets this firm, holes like 5 where you've got to land it on the downslope, holes like 14, I needed to be a little bit softer, I think. It's just not -- it's really hard for me when it gets like that.

But I battled. Too many loose shots today. Putted pretty well again, but just a few too many loose shots. I can think of five right now that I'd like back that were just kind of silly bogeys, just bad swings. That's it.

Q. You made a great birdie at 15. Is there a bit of an internal fist pump when you get through 17 with a par today?

BRAD MAREK: Well, I thought I made the birdie putt. The first day I had I think a 50-footer and I don't know how I did the exact same thing today. It has to turn in on the right, and it somehow stays out there. Both of them ran over the -- first day and the last day ran over the right edge where I thought they were just going to turn into the middle.

Yeah, I mean, it was -- 17 does not hold a fond place in my heart, but yeah, I take a lot out of it. I was hanging with some of the best in the world for 53 holes, 52 holes.

Q. As much as this is your dream, obviously it's a shared dream. What's it mean to share it?

BRAD MAREK: The support is awesome. I get off the course and my phone has too many messages to count, on email, Instagram, text message, stuff like that. You know, texting with one of my juniors the other night, he has aspirations to play out here, and if I can make the cut in this, he can -- I think it should help people understand that if you put your work in and put the time in that anything is attainable.

Q. I just was curious after four rounds of the PGA, any lessons you think you'll bring back to those juniors in California, explain to them the process and what you went through and what they could learn from it?

BRAD MAREK: Yeah, I spent -- honestly a huge goal of this week was to talk to a lot of the coaches. I planned to talk to a lot of the coaches, watch a fair bit on the range. Wanted to try my best and try to make the cut. I thought I was going to have some more time to do some of that stuff. I did talk to a lot of the coaches. They were all super, super helpful. I learned a lot from them. Learned that a lot of the stuff that I'm doing with them and a lot of the drills and the way that they're practicing are what some of the best in the world are doing.

From a teaching perspective that gave me a lot of confidence that I'm doing things right. Picked up a few things that I'll definitely add to my teaching repertoire.

From a playing standpoint, I don't know where I'm going to finish in strokes gained putting, but I know going into the day it was pretty high. Strokes gained around the greens, if you throw out that 17th hole yesterday, I think I'm in the top 10 there in strokes gained around the greens.

For me as a player, just need to get better with the stuff that I know is my weakness, but really proud of the fact that I could come out here and represent for the PGA, myself and all the people that are rooting for me.

Q. When you go back home now and you see and talk with your juniors and the kids that you were talking about this week, how do you tell them about your experience here, what they can learn from this besides being able to show their emotions?

BRAD MAREK: I mean, everything is a process. I think that in this day and age, there's just so much -- everybody only posts the highlights on Instagram and Facebook and social media. Man, you look at Alex Noren out here, you look at Bryson, these guys are the best in the world, and these guys are -- Alex Noren, I don't know how he's still standing. That guy was on the range for hours and hours and hours every single day, and Bryson is the same way.

I mean, that's the biggest thing is there's no -- there's no quick fix. There's no magic formula that's going to get you there in a week or a month, it's just, I think, kind of sustained effort over time that's going to get you to that place.

I was just absolutely stunned. I feel like I'm a hard worker myself, just in my own game and my teaching, as well, but man, some of these guys, it was really impressive to see. Really impressive to see the amount of work that goes in at the highest level.

Q. You've been playing mini-tours and stuff like that. This was really the first time at any kind of Tour event, right?

BRAD MAREK: Yeah.

Q. Does it whet your appetite to go out there and do it again?

BRAD MAREK: Yeah, absolutely. I played with Adam Hadwin today and we were walking down the 18th fairway and he's got to go to Open sectional qualifying, I guess they call it final qualifying now, as well, so he's going up to Columbus, I'm going up to Washington and he was asking what else I was playing in and right before that sectional qualifier I'm playing in a mini-tour event where first place is $10,000, so it's going to be a little bit of a culture shock to go back to that.

Q. What tour?

BRAD MAREK: It's a little thing up in Spokane. I'm just kind of playing it because it's just right before final qualifying for U.S. Open. Obviously need a few days off after this, so I wanted to kind of get some reps in before -- I'd like to try to obviously qualify for the Open.

Q. Not quite $11 million next week?

BRAD MAREK: No, it's not. A little different purse.

Q. The thousands of PGA professionals around the country, I know you've had support here from friends and family but you also have their support watching you all week. What's it mean to you to represent all those professionals on a stage like this?

BRAD MAREK: Yeah, to be honest, I didn't know how many people were watching. Pretty honored to represent those people. The amount of messages that I've received from people that don't even know me, just randomly kind of Googled me and looked up my email and things like that, it's been incredible. Yeah, totally unexpected. Can't thank the people that have been supporting me all week long. It means the world to me.

THE MODERATOR: It's been a joy to get to know you a little bit this week. We wish you the best moving forward as you try to qualify for the U.S. Open and all those events you've got lined up.