LIV GOLF ORLANDO

March 29, 2023

Bubba Watson

Brooks Koepka

Patrick Reed

Orange County National

Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: Let's welcome Bubba Watson, the captain of Range Goats GC; we have Brooks Koepka, the captain of Smash GC; and Patrick Reed on 4Aces GC. Welcome, guys. Obviously we have you guys all here because you guys are going to the Masters next week. Very exciting. I just want to ask you guys what's your preparation like going into the Masters this week while you're playing in Orlando?

PATRICK REED: I feel like it's kind of the same as is while I'm leading in every year; it's to kind of just work on different kind of golf shots before this week, and then try to have that same kind of prep while I'm playing on the golf course here. Just really focusing on course management because at Augusta that's key. You have to know where to leave yourself and things like that, so I kind of prep the same way I do here as I would any other event going in.

BROOKS KOEPKA: Yeah, it's really no different. Just keep doing the same thing I've been doing. I think P-Reed kind of touched on it, course management, discipline a little bit, trying to be a little bit more disciplined on where you miss it, make sure you miss it on the correct sides, and just make sure -- I mean, to be honest with you, most of the prep we've already done for the last, I don't know, I'd say month, month and a half. I know these guys have. I have, as well.

Just about going out and playing.

BUBBA WATSON: Yeah, same thing. I normally don't play the week before, so this is new to me, but it's good. Get some reps under my belt. Taking so much time off last year with the knee surgery, just get some more reps, get grinding, get going.

Obviously this course is going to be way different than Augusta, but try to get some good thoughts in your head going into next week.

THE MODERATOR: A question about LIV. It doesn't seem like there's any clear player or team that's dominating, not like last year three events in --

BUBBA WATSON: Charles Howell is doing pretty good.

THE MODERATOR: He is doing pretty good. Do you guys feel like week in and week out it's really anybody's tournament to win and any team has the potential to win this week?

BROOKS KOEPKA: Yeah, I think so. Our team and myself have not really played very well, but the beauty of it is we're only two events in. Just started the season, so we can turn that around pretty quickly.

I feel like I've been trending in the right direction, just the course management has been a bit of an issue. But yeah, I'm happy with it, and we've just got to go out and play, go have fun.

BUBBA WATSON: Same with us. Last tournament was in Tucson; I played No. 3 5-over; that's a double bogey, a bogey and a double bogey, a par-3. Yeah, it's pretty good. And I lost the tournament by six shots. So I lost getting into the playoff by six shots, so there's five right there. The winner played it 1-under, so he beat me by six on the one hole.

It's just little things like that, and again, that's course management, but getting back into the flow of the game again after so many, what, nine months, eight months off. Again, that's where I'm at. I'm just trying to keep getting some practice, keep getting the skills going and getting the thoughts going in the right place.

But yeah, I think our team is in the right spot. This is the third tournament; we've just got to get some breaks going our way like the other teams have, and then it's a battle.

THE MODERATOR: Patrick, as the defending champion with the 4Aces.

PATRICK REED: Yeah, even though our team has finished second the past two years, it's awesome to see Pat and Pete playing the way they've been playing because Cap and I haven't really been doing our job. We've been finishing third and fourth on the team the first two weeks.

I feel like for me it's a little bit more of an adjustment considering I've always played 31 to 35 events every year, so playing less, just trying to find that balance of being course ready and tournament ready.

It's been a little bit of an adjustment, but I feel like I was able to change some things to kind of get that going, and kind of looking forward to the rest of the year.

Q. For Bubba and Brooks, since you guys are captains, I'm just wondering how much you're leaning into the business side of things. Are you enjoying that aspect of it in addition to playing golf?

BROOKS KOEPKA: Yeah. I mean, I've enjoyed it. It's definitely been fun. I'd say probably the last seven, eight months is kind of what -- a lot of time has been devoted to that, especially with an off-season, you're not playing, so you can devote more time to that.

It's a lot different than what we're used to. Yeah, we are involved in some business stuff outside of just golf. But I've enjoyed it. Just it's nice to put on a different hat every once in a while.

I've really enjoyed it, getting to meet a lot of great people, so it's been fun.

Q. Were you instrumental in the Smash logo change?

BROOKS KOEPKA: Yeah, kind of. It wasn't very good; put it that way, last year. To put it nicely. But yeah, I would say -- I think my mom was actually the one, we were sitting around the table and then it kind of evolved from that to Taylor Stern to -- yeah, it worked out. It's a lot better, we'll put it that way.

Q. Bubba, in terms of the business side?

BUBBA WATSON: Yeah, I love it. I've always said, if you define me as a golfer, you're limiting who I am as a person. There's other things that I want to do, other things I want to accomplish, not only from the business side but from charity side, from growing, helping a city grow, helping a city get better.

Yeah, this is one of the things on my belt that I've always wanted to do, be part of a franchise. So having the opportunity to spend time with guys that you care about, guys you want to see succeed, from picking colors to picking hang tags to picking name changes, yeah, it's been a blast.

Obviously last year my situation being able to commentate, being able to see from the other side of the business, like I've said before, across the air, I never thought about what went on to put on a golf tournament, to put on an event each week, so seeing it from that side, all the people behind the scenes, the thousand people that are putting up the microphones and making sure the visuals are working, I've gotten to see it all and while they were playing last year I got to be in the meetings to be right there with the managers and the GMs to see how the league is going to work and how we're going to make it go forward. They were battling trying to play but I got some time off where I could be in the meetings even last year.

I'm probably a little bit more caught up than some of the guys just because of the golf side, but it's been a blast. It's been fun. This is something we've all wanted to do. To say you're part of a franchise is a dream come true.

Q. Patrick, question for you. You mentioned that you guys have a couple second-place finishes, but you're in first place in points. Just wondering what kind of the mindset is right now and especially adding Peter to the lineup.

PATRICK REED: Yeah, I think the mindset is to go out, and because of how well we played last year as a team, it's to go out and try to get back on that podium and winning golf tournaments. It starts with all four of us playing well. I feel like that's what happened last year. Even without Petey, Petey played great last year, finished tied for second, so finished third in the standings on individual points list.

Yeah, there's no reason why if we go out and play how we're supposed to that we're not only competing but being able to get back to winning golf tournaments. The problem is all these teams are great. Every team is getting stronger. You have to run down guys like these guys next to me.

You just have to go out and not only play hard for yourself and individually, but you've got to go out and play hard for your team. I feel like with this team aspect, if you're not playing that great, you always have to know that hey, a couple birdies here go a long way for the team.

I think that's the biggest thing here is you're playing for something more. Me, I've always loved team aspects, so I need to kind of get my head out of my you-know-what and start playing some good golf.

Q. Brooks, is it fair to say this is the first time you're going to Augusta healthy since maybe the year Tiger won when you were right in the mix that week? The last three maybe not feeling so good? If that's true, how is it different this time for you? How is your mindset different?

BROOKS KOEPKA: Yeah, I would say yeah. I would say that was probably the last time I was healthy.

I mean, everything is different, right? Like if I can move -- I'm able to move how I want to move, get the swing in positions that I want to get it in, everything becomes a lot easier, and the game becomes a lot easier than it's been over the past three years.

Yeah, I'm looking forward to it. It'll be nice just to get up there. I've heard about the changes. I haven't seen them. I haven't gone up at all. So we'll see it on Monday.

Q. Bubba, I think I heard you were there, that you've been to Augusta. Could you talk about what it was like, especially 13, and even just being back?

BUBBA WATSON: First of all, it was amazing. I didn't know that they changed the par-3 course. When I drove in to go to the cabin, I was over there by the par-3 course, and so to see the first six holes change was crazy in what they did in that amount -- I think 150 days to change that was crazy.

13 I thought was good. It looks beautiful. But I think there's going to be -- the score is going to be the same, the average score, but I think there's going to be a lot more laying up just because the water is now into play, the little creek there is into play. You think about it more.

I hit two good drives and I had 230 -- I had 231 the first day and then I had like 227 the second day, and I hit two drives, so I hit a 3-iron one day and a 4-iron -- the day I hit the 3-iron the pin was up front, 14 on from the left, close to the left over there, and I hit 3-iron, but in the tournament I probably would have laid up. So it was just one of those things. I think it's going to be more laying up just because it's going to be questionable.

But a lot more pars, I believe, but yeah.

Q. Do you feel in any way responsible for them having to do that? You personally, given --

BUBBA WATSON: No, nobody has ever Bubba-proofed a golf course. All they've got to do is keep putting the greens out there and I'm struggling. No, they're good.

Q. Patrick, have you been?

PATRICK REED: I have. I was there last week. It was good. Like Bubba said, on 13, there's going to be a lot more laying up. I played with DJ and Harold over there for two days, and I went in there with hybrid for two days off of that lie, and if the greens firm up at all and get to kind of tournament speed, with the ball that far above your feet, that hybrid isn't coming in that high.

DJ laid up both days. I laid up. Tournament time I would have laid up, but since we're out there seeing it, I of course went send for it.

With adding that extra length, you can't cut as much of that corner. You can't get far enough down that left side that -- I've always had where if it's 4-iron, no, I can't turn it around that corner. If it's a 4-iron or less, I'll send, but after that it's a lay-up.

Q. Is that going to make the hole not as fun or not as exciting do you think?

PATRICK REED: Well, I think it'll take a little bit of the excitement out of that 13, and then adding -- 15 being 550, if it's into the win, guys aren't going to hit 3-woods into that green because it's hard to hold that thing, and long is so dead at tournament speed.

Unless you get the right wind conditions, you could just start seeing lay-ups on both of those par-5s, and now you're taking -- where it used to be you could make a 3 but you could also bring 6 and 7 into play, now a lay-up where it's a 4 or a 5.

Q. Patrick, they used to say that -- well, probably still do, that the Masters doesn't begin until the back nine on Sunday, but because of all those shots you can make up it doesn't sound like that will be the case now.

PATRICK REED: Well, the reason why you can make up shots is obviously because if you can get hot on 13 and 15. But now with the length on 11 and lowering that right side on 11 that they did last year; 12, you don't have to do anything to that, that can be a bear just because of all the different wind directions, and you still have a ton of danger on that back nine. It being the back nine at Augusta, especially on a Sunday, now you add nerves into it. Greens have gotten more crusty, it gets faster, firmer on that late Sunday. A lot can happen.

I think what it's done is just put more premium on course management, shot making, and wedge play. When I was out there last time, I realized that every wedge shot you have into that golf course, if you give yourself 60-, 70-, 80-yard wedge shots anywhere else, they're easy because it's all flat lies. Every one of them is either ball above feet, below feet, uphill lie, downhill lie to a green that's elevated and running away half the time. So everything gets a little bit more complicated.

If you have any butterflies or anything kind of running through you, it just makes those shots that much harder.

Q. Obviously the big storyline next week will be LIV v the Tour. That's just the way it will be. I know it's an individual competition, but do you feel like you go in there as a group, almost like a team with 17 of you?

BUBBA WATSON: No, I'm trying to beat them all. Just saying.

PATRICK REED: It's one of those things, obviously the media and the storylines are going to be obviously LIV versus PGA Tour and all that kind of stuff, but really at the majors, that's all the guys that come in, top players in the world are going and playing against each other no matter where they come from. It doesn't matter what tour they're on or anything; it's the top guys going and trying to play for one of the most coveted events in the world.

For us, at least for myself, it's going to be business as usual going out and playing. Of course would I like to have LIV be up at the top? Of course. But really at the end of the day, it's all of us going in there and just trying to play the best golf we can and be ready for the four biggest weeks of the year.

Q. It would be a big statement for LIV, wouldn't it, if they did have the Masters champion and the Open champion?

BROOKS KOEPKA: Yeah, I would say so, right? Anytime you win the Masters or the Open, that's usually a pretty big statement. Yeah.

Q. But for LIV as an entity --

BROOKS KOEPKA: For anybody. If you win a major, that's a pretty damn good statement.

Q. You've won four, so you'd know.

BROOKS KOEPKA: I know. I know. I've got four of them.

Q. March usually, when you guys were playing on the PGA Tour, was such a busy time, the Florida Swing, The Players Championship, heading into the Masters. How have the three of you kind of rearranged your schedule to maximize the best way for you to go into Augusta?

BUBBA WATSON: You've got to think, we didn't play all the events. Not everybody -- just because it's busy on the schedule doesn't mean it's busy for us, so you're asking a question that's irrelevant really.

But practice is what -- I never played the week before the Masters, so -- and to follow up on other question you asked him about -- when he asked about the par-5s, the tees were all the way back when I played it, so they can move the tees up 30 yards on 13 and 15, so you never know where the wind is going or where the tees will be set during the tournament. Sorry, that was a follow-up to your question.

Yeah, we don't play every tournament -- well, P-Reed does. He played 35 of them, so he was --

Q. But Brooks, you're a Florida guy, so you would be inclined I would -- I don't have the record in front of me --

BROOKS KOEPKA: Yeah, I played Honda just because it was right in the backyard and they'd given me a spot years ago so I always just played as a -- and then Players really. That was it. I didn't play Bay Hill most of the time.

I think Tampa I played the last year. But it wasn't a huge stretch for me. I wouldn't say I was playing everything.

Q. Patrick, the question falls to you. How have you changed?

PATRICK REED: Honestly, so I would play Bay Hill, I would play Valspar and Players, but I never played the week before Augusta. So you look at those events and I've played Tucson, I'm playing this week kind of leading in, so what, maybe one less event? But I also get tournament ready by playing the week before.

For me, honestly I don't feel like it's going to be much different. If anything I just feel like I'll be more rested, have a little bit more prep and be ready to go.

BROOKS KOEPKA: Three events before Augusta, it's definitely a lighter schedule than what we normally would --

Q. Playing the week before, does that make -- none of you guys played the week before --

BUBBA WATSON: I hope they keep focusing on Augusta and I win this week.

BROOKS KOEPKA: What were you saying? I lost my thought.

Q. None of you typically played the week before the Masters, now you are. How does that change what you're doing?

BROOKS KOEPKA: Well, I usually play the week before the U.S. Open and the PGA, so yeah, that's done all right for me.

PATRICK REED: So why haven't you played the week before Masters?

BROOKS KOEPKA: Listen, I wasn't a big fan of where they were playing.

BUBBA WATSON: He didn't get in that event.

BROOKS KOEPKA: Yeah. Listen, it's always like a tune-up the week before. You can really kind of assess where you're at and figure out, hey, this is what I need to work on, this is where I'm looking. That's what you try to use this week for, just try to figure out exactly where you're at, and then Monday to Wednesday grind your butt off.

Q. Brooks, sort of a viral clip from last week at the Panther game, I was just curious what's your beef with Aaron Ekblad, and did you bring the cone from home?

BROOKS KOEPKA: I did not bring the cone. He gave up a bad goal. It was a bad pass in the third. I'm a die-hard P's fan, and he gave up a bad goal.

BUBBA WATSON: What sport is this?

PATRICK REED: Hockey.

BROOKS KOEPKA: Really?

Yeah, it's all right. Yeah, he gave up a bad goal I think midway through the third, and I just felt like if they didn't win that game they weren't going to make the Playoffs. Dedicated fan, man.

BUBBA WATSON: What is that cone he's talking about?

BROOKS KOEPKA: There was a cone. There was a cone that was just outside, so I --

BUBBA WATSON: Were you hydrated that night?

BROOKS KOEPKA: Yeah.

BUBBA WATSON: Now we're getting to it.

BROOKS KOEPKA: Absolutely. Listen, I'm a die-hard fan.

BUBBA WATSON: Is your shirt on or off?

BROOKS KOEPKA: It's on.

BUBBA WATSON: I ain't gonna look at it then.

BROOKS KOEPKA: But I'm a die-hard fan, man. When they do something good, I'm the first one to cheer them, I'll text these guys.

BUBBA WATSON: Did you not text him?

BROOKS KOEPKA: I didn't text him, no. I did not.

Q. A lot of people have asked, there's three major champions right there in front of us. For one of you guys or one of the 18 that's going to compete next week in Augusta, if one of those guys wins Augusta and brings, quote-unquote, a green jacket back to LIV, what does that do for your teams? What does it do for the 4Aces, what does it do for Smash, and what does it do for Range Goats because there's so much branding going in with your teams' logos. Can you talk a little bit about that?

BROOKS KOEPKA: Yeah, it would mean our team would have five majors, so that's good. Look, anytime you win the Masters, it's going to be a big boost off the golf course for you. I don't care who you are. Look at anybody that's won it, I guarantee they would say the same thing.

Yeah, I can't speak for what would happen because I don't know the future, but I'm assuming that would be a massive, massive boost for any team, player, individual, whatever, it doesn't matter what it is, it's going to be a big boost.

BUBBA WATSON: Yeah, feeding off of that, I don't care where you live in the world, if me and you are friends, I'm going to celebrate for you, maybe with you. I don't get as hydrated as some people, though, so I won't party that late. But I would definitely support them whoever it is. It doesn't matter what league, what tour, what part of the world you're from. It's a friend, then you support them.

Obviously that goes a long way to confidence for me if I win. It'll give me confidence whatever tournament I'm in. If it's somebody on my team, hopefully it gives them confidence and we can get on the podium one time at LIV.

PATRICK REED: Yeah, I'd basically second what both of these guys say. At the end of the day, it's one of the -- those four events are the hardest ones to win. If you're able to go out and win, it brings a boost not only to the league, to the team, but also to yourself kind of going forward as well as just shows and validates all the hard work that you've put into it to get to that point.

Now it's just not sharing it with yourself and your inner circle team, you get to share it with these guys out here. You get to share it with your team. I just think it's huge for the morale around your team, especially if your team is playing well at that point. Just gives them a little bit more boost going forward and hopefully trickles down into the rest of the season.

Q. Orange County National is not the most difficult golf course --

BUBBA WATSON: You're pretty good around here then? So it's difficult for you...

Q. Okay. Just your thoughts on the golf course, and then using a course like this to prepare for next week, also?

BROOKS KOEPKA: I haven't played this place in maybe 15, 20 years, so junior golf was the last time I played it, so I don't -- we'll find out today, today and tomorrow when we go play it.

BUBBA WATSON: I played Q-school here I think it was second stage either in '03 or '04, so it's been a while since I've been around here.

I got here on Sunday night, so I played the last couple days around here. Greens are in perfect shape. You couldn't ask for better greens. Wind is what the defense is around here, fast greens because there is some undulation on them. Fairways were good. Rough is short.

So there's the ability to play good golf around here, but it's all dependent on pin selections, wind, and how fast the greens are. But it's a great course. It's a fun course. There's a couple holes on the back nine; the par-3s and No. 12 tee shot got me a little nervous. No. 2 is a long hole. Yeah, there's some tough holes --

BROOKS KOEPKA: You got nervous in a practice round.

BUBBA WATSON: Dude, I get nervous every time. I mean, I'm standing next to Brooks Koepka.

BROOKS KOEPKA: Facts.

BUBBA WATSON: And you're angry at a hockey game, I know.

BROOKS KOEPKA: Almost cost us the Playoffs.

BUBBA WATSON: I like how he said "us," like you helped the team.

BROOKS KOEPKA: I did.

BUBBA WATSON: Did you get water for them? Wipe the sweat off -- the official water boy of -- what team is it again?

BROOKS KOEPKA: Come on, man.

BUBBA WATSON: I don't know hockey, man.

Anyway, the course is going to be great.

Q. Obviously there's been this narrative that next week might be awkward. Are we past that yet?

BUBBA WATSON: I'm going to be honest, man. It's only awkward in the media. I've talked to people that are going to be there. I'm going to sign up with Jason Day and Cam Young in the par-3. Some guys have already asked me to play some practice rounds.

Media is the only one that is pushing it. I have nothing against anybody. If you change jobs, I'm not mad at you. If you start reporting for somebody else, hey, man, it's a better decision for you and your family. Have at it.

BROOKS KOEPKA: I think that's one of the big things. Down in Jupiter, we see each other -- I was just with Rory and J.T. yesterday, and I think Keegan was there. We see each other quite a bit. I mean, there's a lot of conversations.

I was talking with Rory for probably about 30 minutes just about the ball and all the other stuff that's going on.

No one is angry at anybody from what I've seen.

Q. You know Rory himself has been pretty outspoken --

BUBBA WATSON: Protecting his entity, man. He's protecting his business, which is fine.

BROOKS KOEPKA: But I also don't think that means anything personal with any of us. I've had relationships with them for -- I've known J.T. since maybe 13, 14 years old maybe. Rory for, I don't know, the last 10 years. It's not anything we don't see each other normally on a normal basis.

Q. Bubba, you talked a little bit about how you kind of were able to be behind the scenes, be in those meetings to see the future, how to grow this. Can you talk a little bit about what those meetings were like and how do you continue to grow LIV and just expand to make it not have the awkward conversations of what it goes along with the PGA and just growing it from there?

BUBBA WATSON: Yeah, I mean, I was in the production meetings, how they were going to film, what they're going to talk about on air, how we're going to get that message across, how we're going to get the teams going. This league is about teams. It's not about individuals.

High school golf, college golf is all about team golf, and individuals take care of itself, but we want to be there for the team. We want to be up on that podium.

When I wasn't playing, I got to see the production side of it. I got to be in the meetings with all the people with LIV and talk about colors, where we're going, talk about charity, talk about golf course venues. I got to see all the stuff that we normally don't see. We're out there grinding playing golf.

I got to see it before these guys did, got to hear about it, got to talk about name changes, got to talk about where we want to go in the future, the 10-year plan.

Now these guys are caught up. Every team is caught up. During that off-season -- we finally had an off-season in golf, so we all got to go to meeting, like winter meetings in baseball. We got to go and talk and do photo shoots and talk about what's best for the league, not best for one guy but best for everybody, 48 guys.

I was just ahead of the curve just because I was injured. I got to see it all before. Everybody is caught up now, but yeah, it's interesting and fun. It's like Brooks said, it's just fun to do. It was just put on a different hat and grinding in a different way instead of on the golf course.

Q. What were those meetings like to continue (indiscernible) where you guys see LIV going?

BUBBA WATSON: Well, it's team. It's going to the team. At some point, the dream would be to put all the money that we're playing for to be all team money and then have a venue that we call home. The Range Goats, we want a home ourselves. We want to have our own venue, maybe host an event there, just like any sports team has a stadium. That's kind of what we would call it, have an academy out of there, start some junior golf out of there. We all have foundations, but now our team gets behind those foundations and what we're trying to grow for the charity side.

Yeah, there's a lot of things we're looking at, our team kits to get our outfits to look right when all these contracts kind of run out for clothing deals and everything so that we can all get together and look the same and be a team.

But the big one is having our own venue to call home and start from there and our team be based out of there so we can practice there and sponsors can come there, junior golf players can come there. Yeah, those are the real key ones that we're looking at. But it's really just -- it starts with getting this truly to a team league and everybody understands that individual is great, but without the team succeeding, it doesn't really amount for anything.

BROOKS KOEPKA: That is pretty much exactly what happened. I'm going to be dead honest, I was involved in a lot of these meetings, and it's quite interesting. I think Bubba just hit on pretty much every topic that we've talked about, from 5-year, 10-year plan of where we want to be, and I think that was actually a really good summary.

PATRICK REED: I get to just play golf, so I let everyone else make those decisions.

Q. You mentioned talking with Rory about the golf ball. Do you have any thoughts about the proposed change to the golf ball?

BROOKS KOEPKA: I'm not a huge fan of it, but I could see we were kind of talking about how I think it could distance -- the better players are just going to come to the top, and it could be a bigger gap between the top guys and the rest of the field.

I don't know, I'm not exactly for it, and he kind of is, so it was just an interesting -- it was just interesting to hear the other side of it.

Q. Bubba, do you have any thoughts on the proposed rule change?

BUBBA WATSON: I don't agree with it, but what he -- I never thought about that, but that makes sense. The top players are going to stick out more when they limit things. It's going to stick out more, the top players, the people that have the short game, the people that have the ability to hit shots. It's going to stick out more. The best players are going to be that far ahead. They're already that far ahead, but now they're going to really be that far ahead. Long hitters are going to be long hitters; short hitters are going to be short hitters; it doesn't matter what you do to the equipment.

But we forget that we're just entertainers, man. It's the people outside the ropes that are spending -- we get stuff for free; I don't know if you all know that. But they're the ones spending the money. They're the ones spending the commercial dollars and these organizations that are changing, making them spend more millions to redesign a ball. I don't see why we're spinning our wheels to reinvent a wheel.