BMW PGA CHAMPIONSHIP

September 6, 2022

Billy Horschel

Wentworth Golf Club

Quick Quotes

Q. What's it feel to be back here defending champion and seeing such big images of yourself around these grandstands?

BILLY HORSCHEL: I've never seen this many images of myself before. They chose some really good ones and they used Photoshop to make myself look a little bit better.

It's great. I love it. I love it here. I really enjoyed my time over here. And to be back and to be the defending champion, and to see the support that I've gotten over the years and what I've already gotten this week, is really exciting. Like I said, it just putts a massive smile on my face thinking about it.

Q. Whenever American players come over here, I think the fans are always very grateful but you seem to have adopted quite a hard core fan base, and you're a West Ham fan. What do you make of that?

BILLY HORSCHEL: I just say thank you. I'm really appreciative of it. I can understand why some of the West Ham fans are supportive of me, but the non-West-ham fans, I can't thank them enough.

I felt I've tried throughout my entire career to play the game the way I felt like it should be played and represent myself in the right way and I feel like I've done that. Some people may have issues with certain things I do on the golf course; I'm a competitor and I want to win. But to see that the fans over here really appreciate that I travelled this far on numerous occasion to come support their tour, and I think over the years, I have always appreciated how they supported me and thankful for that as well.

Like I said, when I think about, it I can't believe I got this much support over here.

Q. In the winner's interview last year, you said you were at loss for words. What do you remember about that final round, final day?

BILLY HORSCHEL: Everything. I can tell you every golf shot I hit and what club I hit and the yardage I hit and every putt. I can remember everything in golf over the last handful of years.

But the thing I remember most is hitting an unbelievable shot in 15 and making birdie which tied me for the lead at that point which was massive because that's such a tough hole and such a tough pin location. So it brought me even with the leaders with three birdieable holes left to be played. That was the big tee shot and obviously making an unbelievable shot at 18 and having a tap-in to take the lead and that being the shot that decided the victory is, you know, at this point in my career, is the biggest shot I've hit.

Q. Tell us about Wentworth. What's your thoughts, given the history of this place and what makes it a special place for the BMW PGA to be represented?

BILLY HORSCHEL: Yeah, it's a hundred years of Wentworth, the club, itself. It's going to be a special week. I think the layout and the course is just an unbelievable layout. It's withstood the test of time.

Then when you think about it, it's in a beautiful area of Surrey and not far from Central London. It's very easy for a lot of fans around the London area to get to and you see a lot of fans around the U.K. itself come and I think people just love coming to this part of the world and they love coming to Wentworth and seeing a world-class golf course testing the best golfers in the world.

Q. Lastly, it's a Rolex Series Event, you spent a lot of time on the PGA Tour, but how important is it for players like you that we have these big, marquee events?

BILLY HORSCHEL: I think it's huge. I think it shows that the DP World Tour is doing something great and trying to bring more of the top players over here on a regular basis.

But at the same time, I think trying to support some of the non-Rolex Series Events is highly important, as well, bringing more recognition to that tournament, to those sponsors is another way tore the DP World Tour to continue to grow.

So that's something that hopefully in the future I'm able to do a little bit more of because like I said, I'm very appreciative of this tour and the fans, and the players out here have been great to me over my years of coming over here.

You know, I only have maybe another decade of playing a high level of golf and hopefully depending how things work out in the world of golf the next couple years, hopefully I'll be able to make it over here to a few more Rolex Series Events, as well.