LIV GOLF MAYAKOBA

February 25, 2023

Talor Gooch

El Camaleón Golf Course

Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: Welcome Talor Gooch from Range Goats GC, our co-leader in the clubhouse at 9-under. Welcome, Talor.

TALOR GOOCH: Thank you. It was cool hearing Range Goats, by the way.

Q. Absolutely. We were just laughing because we just had Pete up here, you guys are co-leaders and you two switched teams. Are you sensing any rivalry out there tomorrow when you're playing with Pete?

TALOR GOOCH: I think we know the situation.

Q. Tell us a little bit about your round today.

TALOR GOOCH: Yeah, anytime you can go bogey-free on a course like this, you've played some good golf. The wind wasn't quite as strong out there today, so I think the scoring conditions were a little bit more doable.

67, 66 to start the week, it's tough to beat.

Q. It's your first tournament as a range goat and you're obviously showing up for them very well. How has it been practicing with them and playing with them, and has that contributed to your success so far this week?

TALOR GOOCH: It's been a blast. Obviously had a great season, a great time with the Aces last year, so it's a new scenery, new guys, and it's a blast, and we all love hanging, being together, practicing, playing. It was fun getting Thomas acquainted with everything, and obviously fun for Bubba to actually play his first LIV Golf.

It's been a great start to the year.

Q. What do you need to do to keep the momentum going tomorrow?

TALOR GOOCH: Just hit a bunch of fairways out here. There's trouble everywhere along this golf course, and you're one swing away from your round breaking down.

You've got to avoid the foul ball off the tee, and if I can hit a bunch of fairways tomorrow, we're going to have a chance to do something good.

Q. I asked Pete this and I'll ask you, too. Do you think tomorrow's outcome will determine who got the better end of the deal?

TALOR GOOCH: I think we need a little bit of a bigger sample size than that, but I think it is telling that both -- listen, Pete played great last year. He beat me last year. He's a great player. He was a teammate of mine at Oklahoma State. The Aces didn't falter whenever they got Pete. They're a great team and they're going to continue to play well, and hopefully we can start playing like the Aces, and I think come the end of the season, I think there's going to be some good battles.

Q. DJ told us the other day that when you told him you were going to go, he said, well, you'd better have enjoyed that podium in Miami because you're not going to get back there. What's your reaction now?

TALOR GOOCH: I prompted texted Bubba and Harold and told them what DJ told me. I said, you guys don't need any bulletin board material, but he basically just said you guys suck, so y'all better get your butts in gear because we've got to go chase down some titles.

Q. You guys are pretty close, being from Oklahoma State and all. Have you talked specifically about the whole team transfer and that you guys were basically swapped for each other?

TALOR GOOCH: Yeah, so once I knew last season -- once I knew what was going to happen and I was going to go to Bubba's team, Peter was one of the first guys I was like, hey, we might be needing a fourth, don't go signing anywhere, don't go doing anything.

Obviously with his play last year, us and 11 other teams were volleying to get him. We kind of had been in talks all season, and we played together in London the first tournament, so like I said, we go way back to college, and we've played a bunch since then. We've kept in touch the whole time. We got paired the first round here yesterday.

It's fun, but also, it's business. We're out there to win, and we want to step on each other's throats, so that's what we're going to try to do.

Q. Did you feel the need to make a good first impression for the Range Goats?

TALOR GOOCH: Not really. They opened their arms, and we all know what we got. We know that we have a lot of potential, and we know it's a long season. Again, one tournament is not a great sample size, and that's why we've got a full season's worth of tournaments. It's going to be fun to see how we progress and how we start to gel as a team, and I'm really excited, obviously, to see Bubba play and really get sharp, and to see Thomas out here.

He texted us in our group -- Range Goat group text yesterday, and he said, this team thing is a lot different and a lot cooler than I expected. I was looking at the scoreboard every time I could to try to see where we were, and we all laughed because we're like, every single player said the same thing. We know what you feel like, and you're just like the rest of us. We all want to see our team on the top of the leaderboard.

Q. After two days, your opinion about the Mexican fans here and El Camaleon?

TALOR GOOCH: I was walking off the 17th tee with Carlos, and I said, I always loved coming to Mexico because it's such a vibrant group of fans, and it's always super fun playing with Carlos or someone from Mexico because the fan base just supports their own so well. It's super cool. I actually said, I hope -- I'm from Oklahoma, we're going -- LIV is going to Oklahoma in a few months, and I said, I hope the Oklahomans support me just like the Mexicans are supporting you here.

It's been really cool to see, but it's like it always is here. The people of Mexico support the golf and support their people really good.

Q. Do you think El Camaleon fits some kind of game?

TALOR GOOCH: Yeah, I've played here when the PGA TOUR was here in years past, and it's a little bit different now, the condition of the golf course. It's firmer, it's faster, but the wind is still there. I personally like it. I think it's no coincidence that Peter and I are playing well because this actually is somewhat similar to the college golf course that we played when we were in school at Oklahoma State. Off the tee, it makes you uncomfortable, and then there's wind, and there's just a lot of similarities to the course that we played in college.

Like I said, I think there's no coincidence that both he and I are playing well here, and also Charles Howell. There's a lot of Oklahoma State guys that played well at our course in college and are playing well here this week.

Q. What's the name of the course?

TALOR GOOCH: Karsten Creek.