ASCENSION CHARITY CLASSIC

September 6, 2023

Boo Weekley

Norwood Hills Country Club

Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: Boo, first event out here in St. Louis, the Ascension Charity Classic. Just overall thoughts on the course. Obviously I know you haven't had a chance to explore, but just coming here, the atmosphere. Excited to be here?

BOO WEEKLEY: Oh, it's awesome to come here. I've got a lot of friends and support around this area. It's good to get to be able to see them and be able to hang out with them and then be able to play this golf course. I've heard a lot of good things about it, and like I said, I haven't gotten to see it yet. I'm fittin' to go play in the pro-am here in just a minute, but I'm curious to go see how good it really is.

Q. Boo, this is your fourth PGA Champions Tour event. What's the transition been like for you? What are the things you've been surprised at?

BOO WEEKLEY: How far I fell off with the competitiveness, I'd say. I kind of lost touch of really how hard I need to practice, how hard I need to work at it. Actually coming out and -- more of the grind again, where the last couple years I've been playing on the Korn Ferry and it's been kind of goofing off, playing against the kids out there, trying to find new equipment, trying to find ways to hit it further and still having just little nagging injuries here and there that kind of sets you back, but it really don't set you back, but it's just kind of knowing when you're out there walking -- my foot is hurting right now pretty bad, and then my wrist goes to hurting a little bit.

But overall, it's just like it's unreal how good these guys really still are. That to me was the most shocking thing.

Q. Does that give you inspiration to put a lot of work into it and maybe try and get to that next level and elevate your game a little bit now?

BOO WEEKLEY: Oh, yeah. Yeah. To be able to come back and out practice, I do want to get to the next level. I wouldn't say to the next level, it's just more like get back to competitive form.

I mean, I felt like the last two weeks -- like the first week I was kind of jittery and kind of figuring out what I'm doing, and then the last two weeks have been pretty good. I've hit the ball a lot better. I just ain't putting the ball very well.

Putting on greens now that are a little quicker than what I've been used to playing on, and I go home and it's like putting in your front yard versus putting in your bathtub. It's been a little different in the transition of trying to figure out, all right, you've got to slow your pace down, just got to do little different things, work on my shorter putts. Kind of get myself back into that feeling again.

Q. You mentioned some injuries, too. As we all get older, we deal with some stuff like that. You mentioned some foot problems.

BOO WEEKLEY: I've got some bone spurs in the ball of my foot, and just trying to deal with that. Been working with two doctors back home and just trying to figure out what we want to do. One of them wants to do surgery and another one wants to do something else. I'm like of like, I'm done with these surgeries. I'm tired of having to kind of get cut on and then take three or four months off and trying to then heal yourself back up, not being able to play golf.

I'll fight with it. As long as they make medicine that I can take that can help me, I'll be fine.

Q. What's been one of the satisfying things? I know your personality lends itself to being around people, people that you're playing with and against now, you grew up playing with. What's that experience like for you now?

BOO WEEKLEY: To me, it felt really good to be able to come back and still have a little bit of appreciation that they gave me. They still think, Boo Weekley, he played on TOUR with us out there, he's still a good guy. I'm still the same person I was when he first came out on TOUR, and to be able to sit there and talk with the guys and eat lunch with them, hang out with them, ask them questions about different things, it still feels good to be able to be acknowledged, not just being a rookie again, because when you're a rookie out there on the PGA TOUR, it kind of like -- they look at you because they don't know you yet. Now they know who I am, so it feels good to be able to come back out and still talk with the guys.

Q. Anything in your game in particular that you're focused on this week?

BOO WEEKLEY: Main thing, like I said the last two weeks, has just been putting. Like I've been hitting the ball pretty good, top 15, top 20 in greens in regulation if not lower, and driving the same way. It's been just kind of match up the putting right now.

Q. What has surprised you the most out here, besides the guys being good?

BOO WEEKLEY: It's playing. I reckon the golf courses being as good as they are. Thinking usually the golf courses -- when I was on the PGA TOUR, oh, they're playing golf courses 6,400, 6,500 yards, but now that's not the case. They're playing golf courses 7,000, to 71, 72, to -- 69 to 72, and the golf courses are in good shape.

I reckon I never thought I'd make it this far in my career anyway, but to be able to stand here and play on like championship golf courses, it's still awesome.

Q. It's interesting, you said you never thought you'd be standing here. If we look two years in advance from now, what would make Boo Weekley satisfied in the next two weeks?

BOO WEEKLEY: I'd say just keep my card, stay out here and play, because I still want to compete. That's the whole thing. It really don't even matter what it is we're doing. If we're sitting on my back porch shooting .22s, little dingers down there, me and my kids, I'm going to compete doing something or something somehow with either my kids or my friends back home.

To be able to come out here and do it at this level, it's pretty awesome still how that feeling -- still have the grind and still have the will to do it that the Lord blessed me to do it, to be able to have that chance and opportunity.

Q. Sounds like you're having fun again.

BOO WEEKLEY: Oh, yeah. That's like my ma said. My ma said when you've made it a business, you're changing your whole perspective of what you're really doing in life again. Go out there this time and just play, have fun. What's the worst thing that can happen? What is the worst thing? Nothing. You go home, you've made a good career out of this. You can always go back to holding a shovel and digging ditches and you can run equipment. So just have fun and enjoy it and see what happens.

Q. Mama is right.

BOO WEEKLEY: You got that right. Mama is always right.

Q. A little off topic, but you played in the Ryder Cup. All the news coming out with the teams just being selected and the Ryder Cup coming up in a couple of weeks, how much attention will you pay to it? What was that experience like for you, and how involved or engaged are you still with that?

BOO WEEKLEY: I ain't involved, engaged with it. I don't watch a whole lot of golf anyway. Just never have.

It's just one of them things, I hope the U.S. wins, but I don't even know who's all on the team. That's how much I'm involved in it.

Q. Will you pay attention to the matches?

BOO WEEKLEY: I'll pay attention. Once it's out there and they start playing, I'll probably watch it because it's still going to bring back memories of how good it was for us and the fun that we had as a team as we bonded together, and to be able to look at like Justin Leonard is out here and like Chad Campbell will be out here next year, I think, just to be able to look at that and say, hey, guys, you remember the time you did this or remember the time I said this? It's just fun.

Q. Was there one particular thing that stood out from the Ryder Cup you played?

BOO WEEKLEY: No, I mean, it really was all a blur because it kind of went -- it happened so fast. I can tell you every shot the last day I hit, but like the match where me and J.B. is playing against -- I know it was Westwood but I couldn't even tell you who the other guy was. It's like that. I can't recall everything that went down.

Q. The broom riding --

BOO WEEKLEY: Well, the broom riding, that was -- I rode the horse off the -- Happy Gilmore to ride off the tee, but that was one of the things I already had a game plan for it, but I kept forgetting about it, and then all of a sudden I was sitting there when they announced my name to play the singles matches, I took my practice swing, then all of a sudden it clicked, and when it clicked -- if they show it in slow motion, you can still see the video of me smiling, like I'm like, oh, there it is. All I had to do was -- I said, if I can get it over that tree on that corner there, I'm going to ride the pony. I did it, and of course I rode the pony. With black pants on and white socks. I was a pinto.