UTAH CHAMPIONSHIP PRESENTED BY ZIONS BANK

August 7, 2022

Andrew Kozan

Press Conference

Q. All right, Andrew, in your 20th Korn Ferry Tour start you can now say you're a Korn Ferry Tour champion. Walk me through how this feels.

ANDREW KOZAN: Yeah, it's insane really to think about, especially what we've gone through as a team the last few months.

To come out on top week is really special, and it just means a lot to have my wife here and everyone back home supporting me the whole week.

Q. You came from T13. That's the largest comeback we've seen on the Korn Ferry Tour this year. What does that say, do you think, about yourself and how much you're fighting for this out here?

ANDREW KOZAN: Just got a lot of the grit, you know. Just got to leave it all out here. Me and my friends been saying all week, fight or flight. When your back is against the wall what are you going to do?

Went out there today with nothing to lose and left it all out there.

Q. I talked to you on Thursday and you quoted, it's only a matter of time. You can say that this is your time.

ANDREW KOZAN: Yeah.

Q. Walk me through how it feels to finally be able to say the time has come now.

ANDREW KOZAN: Yeah, the time has definitely come. My coach has been really instilling that to me this whole year, just going out every week knowing that you can win that tournament.

When it's your time it's your time, and this was it.

Q. Walk me back to second stage. I know you think about that putt that you made to get in on the number a lot.

ANDREW KOZAN: Yeah.

Q. How much do you reference back to that and how important in hindsight that was moment?

ANDREW KOZAN: Yeah, that was great. If I don't make that putt on the last hole, who knows where I would be right now.

There is so many different stages in life, especially in a golf career, that you really get good at pulling out of. So just learning when you go through the good and the bad and learning what to get out of that is a huge help at this stage.

Q. You went from 153 to 41, up 110 places in the standings. Walk me through how that feels knowing you are officially inside that top 75 number.

ANDREW KOZAN: That's a relief. We were talking earlier -- a week ago we were trying to plan out if we had to go to Q-School or not, and now we have chance to get a tour card next week.

It's very special.

Q. And then mindset going into next week? You told me earlier this week trying not to think about it, not play that line game, but how are you feeling?

ANDREW KOZAN: It's the same thing. I came into this week with the same mindset I came in ever week the whole season. Nothing changes next week. Just go out there with a good plan and put in the hours and the preparation, and then leave it all out there again.

Q. Can you talk about how good the guys you're playing against are. It's the 20th event; you got your win; you struggled?

ANDREW KOZAN: Yeah.

Q. It just goes show that any week could be your week, and it happened for you, so talk about the competition and what you're facing out here.

ANDREW KOZAN: It's crazy. I mean, everyone out here can easily play on the PGA Tour. It's insane the level of play these guys have out here, so to say I'm a champion out here is very special.

I've had so of many weeks where I've left, I've been talking to my coach and been like, I feel like I played well this week and I missed the cut by a few.

So it just shows you how good these guys really are out here.

Q. Obviously was important to get married.

ANDREW KOZAN: Yes.

Q. But did you ever worry like, okay, missing an event adds stress on that you weren't foreseeing?

ANDREW KOZAN: Yeah. So I was supposed to take -- obviously we got married during the BMW and the then the Rex was the week before. I was going to take that off to help get ready with everything and be home for a few days beforehand.

I wasn't playing too well at the time so I was kind of like, I'm sorry, but I got to take the week off before. She was super supportive. She totally understood. She wanted me to go play and not look back and say I wish I would've done that.

Just take every opportunity and every chance you can.

Q. And then having her here now, what does it mean that she got witness your win?

ANDREW KOZAN: Oh, it's awesome. Words can't describe it. Been a hell of a ride; a lot of up and downs.

Yeah, we got married; went straight to Kansas.

Q. Honeymoon in Kansas?

ANDREW KOZAN: Yep, honeymoon in Kansas, and it's been a great few /months and we're looking forward to what we have in the future.

Q. I mean, I'm just going to talk about this emotion right now. Why does this win on the Korn Ferry Tour mean so much? It's showing.

ANDREW KOZAN: Just shows we belong out here. I think everyone goes through these stages at every level, junior golf, amateur golf. Didn't play that well in the beginning of college and we pushed through that, and the fact that we pushed through so much this season, a lot of downs, and to push through on top is amazing.

She's been through every stage so she knows how it feels.

Q. I know you said it was a grind, but you've only been pro for a little bit over a year now. Getting a win out here that quick is not easy for somebody.

ANDREW KOZAN: No.

Q. I mean, that's got to feel good to you knowing that you can do it and you did it so soon.

ANDREW KOZAN: Yeah, feels great. It still hasn't really hit me that we won this week. But, yeah, like you said, it's a grind. Yeah, it still hasn't really hit me.

Q. At what point does to hit you?

ANDREW KOZAN: It will when I'm trying to drive to Wyoming tonight.

Q. Walk me through the back nine. Obviously you came into today not holding the lead. At what point did you look up and say, oh, my goodness, this could be my win at the end of the day?

ANDREW KOZAN: When I finished 18. Yeah, I didn't really start looking at the leaderboards until the very end of the round. I knew going into the week, especially into today, it was going to need to be at least 20-under or more.

So I get a birdie, it's like all right, let's get another one, let's get another one, let's get another one, keep pushing through. I didn't really know how many under I was until 15 or 16. I had to go back on my scorecard and start counting.

But then once I saw it was 21, once I made the birdie putt on 16, I knew just give myself two chances on the last two, and if one goes in it happens; if it doesn't, we still have a decent chance.

Q. With hindsight that putt on 16 was big.

ANDREW KOZAN: Yes.

Q. Could have gone into a playoff.

ANDREW KOZAN: It was very big.

Q. Talk about that.

ANDREW KOZAN: That was a huge putt. My putter was fantastic today. It really was. I made a lot of really, really solid putts. A lot of other 30-, 40-footers that were right on the edge that easily could have dropped, too.

So the putter definitely bailed me out today.

Q. Do you have any idea that there was like 20 guys within three shots of the lead?

ANDREW KOZAN: I did when I was sitting inside. We were like, If he does that and he does that and he does that, oh, okay. But, yeah, it was crazy. A lot of guys right there, so lucky to be one ahead.

Q. Let's talk about the outfits.

ANDREW KOZAN: Yeah.

Q. Had you planned to match?

ANDREW KOZAN: Well, I kind of had the Sunday outfit ready to go. She asked me yesterday, Should aware this or should I wear that? I said, Well, you got to save the pink for Sunday because I'm wearing pink. Now I guess it's a Sunday tradition.

Q. Has that been a permanent thing your whole career?

ANDREW KOZAN: No, not since this morning.

Q. Is it going to become a thing now?

ANDREW KOZAN: I think it has to now, yeah, definitely.