LIV GOLF JEDDAH

February 29, 2024

Scott Vincent

Kieran Vincent

Royal Greens Golf Club

Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: Welcome to the latest press conference at LIV Golf Jeddah 2024. I'm delighted to be welcomed by Scott Vincent of Iron Heads GC and Kieran Vincent of Legion XIII GC. Let's get going and just talk about how the last few weeks have gone, of being back playing together on the same tour and how it's been playing against some of the best players in the world here.

SCOTT VINCENT: Yeah, incredible. Seems like I can't get rid of this guy, so whichever tour I go on, he seems to follow and do pretty good. That's annoying at times, but at least from a family perspective it gives us something to talk about.

KIERAN VINCENT: Yeah, I think it's fun. It's enjoyable. It's cool to travel the world and do some pretty cool things together. I've enjoyed the experience so far, and hopefully it continues to be like that.

Q. Scott, you secured your spot for 2024 in Jeddah last year in October, and Kieran, you qualified through the Promotions event in Abu Dhabi. Do you have any specific memories of those moments, of when you secured your spots individually but also when you found out your brother was going to be playing, too?

SCOTT VINCENT: Yeah, I remember when Kieran was doing the qualifier. Of course the time zone is completely flipped over, so it was about 4:00 or 5:00 in the morning Denver time, so my wife loves checking the scores all throughout the night and I like sleeping.

When it got towards the end and it was very close, she was waking me up, like you've got to watch, you've got to watch. We phoned a friend in Singapore, and they had us on FaceTime and we were able to watch Kieran play his last few holes.

Talk about an exciting tournament where there was just so much action and so much on the line, and it could have gone any way, and for it to be -- it was a three-person playoff for two spots. Just super exciting. I think really cool for golf, and what a great way to start the Promotions event for LIV, and I think it's going to be a great success.

Q. Kieran, your memories of when you found out you qualified through the playoff; what was going through your mind?

KIERAN VINCENT: I think it was tired emotions more than anything. It was what seemed like a very long day but kind of flew by at the same time. Just kind of wrapping your head around what just happened and what is to come, I think were some of the biggest things, but also obviously putting in perspective that my game was able to shape up that week. It was awesome. Gives me encouragement for what is to come over the next couple of months.

Just excited, the fact that it flipped in my favor, but as Scott said, it could have gone any way. But just super grateful to be out here.

SCOTT VINCENT: Were you nervous?

KIERAN VINCENT: Depends who's asking.

Q. What's the dynamic like between you during a tournament week? What's the competitiveness or are you just cheering for each other?

SCOTT VINCENT: What would you like it to be?

Q. Whatever you say.

SCOTT VINCENT: What writes the story better?

Q. You tell us.

KIERAN VINCENT: Well, he hasn't challenged me in ping-pong yet.

SCOTT VINCENT: Not much of a challenge, that's why.

Q. Especially being on different teams, does that add an element of competitiveness?

SCOTT VINCENT: It gives us a break from each other because sometimes it's a bit much.

KIERAN VINCENT: I wouldn't say we're too competitive, the fact that we want to wring each other's necks. I think that kind of happened in the early years of our life, and I think we've gotten to a stage now where necks have been wrung enough, and we're just out here to support each other the best we can.

So whether we're on different teams or whatever it might be, I think family trumps everything, so the fact that we can be out here, be one family, I think that kind of steers us in a way to motivate and help each other the best we can.

SCOTT VINCENT: Do you believe that, Joy?

Q. The last three starts obviously you guys have finished in the same position each of the tournaments. How do you explain that, just kind of a brotherly connection?

SCOTT VINCENT: We don't want the family to have favorites so we try and play it equal so they can cheer for both of us knowing that we're going to finish the same. It's been good so far.

KIERAN VINCENT: Nailed it. Nailed it.

Q. Scott, can you just take us back to last year going into here at Jeddah and kind of your mindset knowing that there was a lot on the line that week for you and how you dealt with it throughout the week, the pressure?

SCOTT VINCENT: Yeah. We always try and treat every single week pretty much the same. We don't want to elevate something higher than it needs to be because it just adds unnecessary pressure on things that we can't control. Like of course we know what we would like, but how much of that can we control? Very, very little.

We just kind of came back to -- it's what we had practiced all year. It's just trying to be present, trying to be in the moment, trying to learn something. Every week is an opportunity to do that.

That week probably more so than any other, like can we really, really stay present this week; can we really just focus on what's in front of us; can we be fully engaged in the shot; can we not get caught up in the results because that's what everyone is preaching. That's what all these interviews are about: Oh, you're in this position. That's great. That's for everyone else. But for me, what's the best I can do and what's going to help me play the best.

It's just being present, being right there, being grateful for this opportunity. Like how cool is this that 10 years ago we were in Zimbabwe playing golf together on a random golf course just having a great time, and 10 years down the road there's two of us on the best tour in the world or one of the best tours in the world right next to each other competing and encouraging each other on.

In a way it sounds like a dream. Like it's so cool that this is what we get to do, and our families and friends get to follow that and support us.

We've got so much to be thankful for, and being out here is certainly a huge plus to both of us. We just want to use this opportunity to just become better people and train ourselves and what we're working on and the people we're becoming.

Last year this time was an incredible week. I learned so much. And I get to do it again this week.

Q. Kieran, you were here cheering on your brother. What was that like?

KIERAN VINCENT: I remember we got asked as reserves to do like -- like teach some guys some golf inside the big marquee tent there on the 18th, so it was getting close to when Scott was finishing because I was watching the guys come down 18, kind of peering, one head, one head back, and all of a sudden I was like, hey, guys, I've got to go, like I've got to see what's going on because I heard so many rumors about the little stretch down the end there.

To really kind of see the shot coming down 18, understanding all that was on the line for him was key because I've obviously seen how much hard work not only over this past year but previous years that had passed, to see how much effort he put into all his training, being diligent to everything that he did. So to kind of see it all pay off -- everyone kind of thinks that one moment dictates everything, but I think it's the many little things that you do on a day-to-day basis leading up to that one moment.

I think he was able to achieve what he could achieve because of the little things that he had done in the past. It was just awesome that it all happened here when I was here, when the team was -- it was just such an awesome experience, so I was happy to be part of it.

Q. How did you celebrate?

KIERAN VINCENT: By jumping on a flight, I think. I think it was a quick out of here. I actually don't remember.

SCOTT VINCENT: I think there was another tournament next week. That's the thing about life and especially golf. There's just always a carrot dangling in front of you. It's like you have the most amazing week, but there's something next week.

Really there was a couple moments I'll never forget calling my wife after that where she watched it and we were both in tears like about what had just happened, and then from there, it was like, right, next week is Miami, next week is the team thing. I want to be the very best I can for my team, and you kind of prepare for that.

It's just weird like that, where there's always something, and it never fully satisfies. You win a tournament, now the next week you have to justify your win. You do all that, you've got to justify -- it's just weird. That's kind of this life that we live in.

KIERAN VINCENT: Never ending.

Q. Kieran, I wanted to ask you, we talked a little bit about this in Vegas, but just about your power off the tee. Scott told me that you had an injury in college and that helped maybe fuel some of your power. Can you talk about that development while you were in college?

KIERAN VINCENT: Yeah. Growing up I --

SCOTT VINCENT: Used to be shorter than me. Didn't like that so he changed, and it's flipped a little bit.

KIERAN VINCENT: Yeah, I was never the biggest person growing up, and so it was never really a strength of my game. I'll never forget, I was in college, and I kept going through the same cycle of feeling sore, getting injured, sitting out a couple of weeks and repeating the same process, until I eventually came to a point where one of the guys sat me down, and he says, you do know there's a mindset that plays into this. He says, you can mope about it and feel like you're injured 24/7 and stick in that kind of lifestyle, or you can do something about it and wake up one day with a positivity that this can be all healed and you can get better.

So I had a lower back injury, but hearing those words really kind of motivated me, and he was like, you've just got to go into the gym and change the mindset. I think I became a little bit too much of a freak where I loved going to the gym way too much, and we had a good group of guys around us that challenged each other maybe a little too much at times, but we just enjoyed the experience of being in college, having that close-knit group of people.

But as you kind of hinted on there, the fact that something was so negative back in the day, this is probably seven, eight years ago, that probably looked at maybe putting a damper on my career, if even having a career at all, is now kind of flipped the script and has given me a strength week in and week out.

I'm just fortunate for the opportunity that people are good at what they do. Lean on people. So I was able to lean on that guy back then who helped me change my mindset of I don't really need to be mopey and sad about this 24/7. I can actually do something about it, and it's in my hands. So the mindset shifted, and I guess I like the gym in the meantime.

Q. I think there was a drive in Vegas in the final round that was like 377 yards. If that was your regular drive, I think you'd be leading the league in driving distance. What happened on that drive, for one thing, and how is it to compare yourself to some of the really big bombers out here, obviously Bryson, Wolffy, those guys?

SCOTT VINCENT: Are you sure you've got the right brother here, maybe?

Q. Are we talking about you?

SCOTT VINCENT: That's what I want to know.

KIERAN VINCENT: Yeah, I think there was a K. Vincent next to that name. I don't think there's many S. Vincents leading that on many leaderboards.

SCOTT VINCENT: They get us confused all the time.

KIERAN VINCENT: Obviously these guys hit it so far, but I think what separates them as being some of the best in the world is they understand their strength and they use it effectively.

Coming out of college, I was kind of a little bit willy-nilly knowing that I could hit it far, so I kind of just pulled driver wherever I could, but now working with a great guy in Dave Phillips, he's told me, hey, you've got to understand that it's a weapon when it needs to be a weapon, but you also need to understand when to dial it back.

Yeah, I'm fortunate that I can get out there if I need it to get out there, but just adapting and being on this tour and seeing how some of the best do it in the world, it's not something you need to push out on every single hole. I'm just fortunate that we do have it in the tank if we need it.

Q. Scott, you might not admit it now, but last year when we were talking in Singapore where you again played fantastic golf, you said that Kieran is actually more talented than you, but the question is was that supposed to be a secret?

SCOTT VINCENT: Next question, please. (Laughing.)

Q. Are you surprised how fast he has risen right within that one-and-a-half year period?

SCOTT VINCENT: Honestly, no. I think like being five years older, you see a few things earlier than maybe he did, and obviously you can see the level that he's at and maybe the level some of the top players are at, and it's like, it's very easy to see how he would fit into that.

To me, it doesn't surprise me one bit. I think there's many qualities about Kieran that fit perfectly into this level of golf. The amazing thing is he's still young and he's got so many years ahead of him and how he can learn and how he can use that going forward, really it's up to him.

Like I've said, I do feel like the level of talent -- that's not to discredit anything that he's done because he has done a lot. But I just think the potential there is really, really high.

That's not to put pressure on him, it's just the way it is. He's just got to go about his business the way that he does.

I think if you look at us, we're close but we're very different in our approaches. He's just got to continue to believe in his processes that he's developing over these next few years and months and really stick and hold true to that, and I think he'll be just fine.

Q. Kieran, how is it being part of Jon Rahm's team, probably the best player in the world right now? What have you learned in these two weeks that you have been together for the two tournaments? What kind of things has he spoken to you guys? Being a new team, as well.

KIERAN VINCENT: Yeah, I think I've mentioned this many, many times, but he's such a good guy, not only on the golf course but off. It's not just full Jon and then you don't see Jon at all. Jon is such a great guy off the golf course, which I think makes him such a great guy to look up to for a lot of youngsters.

Obviously he can dial it up on the golf course and we've seen it many, many times, but I think what struck me a lot is what happens off the golf course. Like a simple text: Hey, I'm going down to breakfast; anyone want to join? When I was signing up, I didn't think that was going to be a possibility.

Just the closeness, the really "relationalness" of Jon is I think what's separated him. He's so good to want to talk about anything and everything, share a little bit of insight of what's kind of got him to here, but also just really be alongside you and be your friend, knowing that if you're in a dark place, you need some help, he's going to help you.

I think that's just really a great thing to idolize, not only just from him but also from the rest of the guys. Obviously Caleb is a youngster but he brings so much to the team, as well, and obviously Tyrrell is Tyrrell. He's fun. He's energetic. He brings a newness to the team. So I think the whole team dynamic just works super well, so I'm very fortunate to find myself in that situation.

Q. Who has got better hair?

SCOTT VINCENT: Why are you asking us? Why don't you tell us? Depends what you like.

KIERAN VINCENT: Apples and oranges over here.

Q. Being brothers growing up, did you guys ever think one day that you'll be playing together, touring the world and playing professional golf against the best in the world?

KIERAN VINCENT: Did we want it to be a reality? Yes. Did we think it was going to happen? Possibly. But I don't think -- everyone has these big dreams and these big aspirations, and it's just about finding out the small little things that can help you get there.

We were very fortunate enough that we had a lot of people around us to surround us and give us the good insight that we needed, but I think it was just kind of very lucky, very thankful, very -- there's a lot of adjectives that you can put in there to describe what the journey has taken over the past many years to get to here, but I think we're just grateful for the opportunity and just grateful for where we were and what we're doing today, being able to use this platform as brothers together.

SCOTT VINCENT: Kind of like what I said a little bit earlier, but it was a dream. You get to dream big dreams, and you never really know.

Of course it's a reality now, and looking back, it's like, wow, how did this all happen. Was it my doing? Was it his doing? Was it someone else's doing? We're in a very religious part of the world, and that plays a big part in my life. I do believe that, yeah, there's higher powers, higher power, and I think that played a huge part in where we are today.

Like I said, we're just trying to be the best people that we can be, and this just so happens to be golf for us. Just amazing how we get to do that together on a tour like this in Saudi Arabia of all places. Just very special and very cool.

Q. I want to ask you guys about Royal Greens, your preparations. How did it feel out there? Scott, you've recently been here in the previous event, and now it's a different time of the year. The weather is a little bit different. Can you tell us a little bit more about how it felt out there?

SCOTT VINCENT: Yeah, thank you for welcoming us. I've been very fortunate this is probably my third or fourth time coming to play here, and we've got to play it at different times of year, and I definitely prefer this time of year. It's a little bit cooler. We like that. The wind is still strong, which again is great because it just creates a different level of difficulty that we get to practice in.

The course is playing great. I think it's changed so much since the beginning of the week. It felt a little bit softer, and the greens were a little bit slow, and today I definitely noticed that they felt a lot quicker and they were firming up and speeding up. You can see the course changing as the week is going on, which is kind of what we expected.

But yeah, it's a wonderful place to come and play golf. It's still mindblowing how they can have such a good golf course in this part of the world, when without coming here, your expectations of where you're going, you're like, it's just going to be sand everywhere and there's nothing, and you come here and it's some of the best-looking grasses in the world.

Just the whole experience is really cool. The food and everything that we do while we're here is really cool. I've really enjoyed coming here. I think it makes me a better player.

I look forward to the challenge that this week is going to bring.

KIERAN VINCENT: You've also got to factor in the Red Sea. Standing on 16 tee, I think I kind of get awestruck every single time I'm out there, just being able to take that all in. It's not every day that you get to see that view. It's pretty spectacular.

Royal Greens itself, I think it's an awesome course. As Scott said, the wind is obviously going to play a bit of a factor, but at the same time, I think it's so unique to have such a prestigious place, course, out here, and yeah, obviously grateful for this opportunity to be able to come out here and showcase what we've been practicing over the last couple of weeks and months for.

Q. Scott, obviously throughout the year you guys play in different places, different courses, different weathers. How is it easy for you guys to just adapt to different situations, and how will it be difficult for you guys in Royal Greens in the coming three days to perform compared to what you guys did in the previous event?

SCOTT VINCENT: I think the word you used there, which is something that I think is what I'm trying to get better at is adapting. With golf, you just never know what's going to happen, so you're always having to adapt. As well as in life. Things get thrown at you from different directions, so adapting is a key part of just doing life.

With golf, even more so. There's so many different lies and winds and grasses and course conditions and weather. You're always having to do that.

The great thing about LIV Golf is that you start on Friday, so you get an extra day of practice if you want to use or you can take it as rest. There's so many different ways to get prepared for a tournament.

We've been here since Monday, so we've got to spend a good quality amount of time on the golf course just adapting, getting used to what is going to be required and the shots that we think we're going to need and to work on that.

Yeah, we get a few days to do that, and that's what we do to the best of our abilities, and some weeks it works amazing and some weeks it doesn't. We'll see what happens this week.

Q. Apart from the weather, talk about the one factor in your play that is going to make you perform well in the coming days.

SCOTT VINCENT: Do you know what that is yet? It might be the coffee. It might be the coffee.

I'll tell you what, best coffee in the world right here. Thank you. Thank you, Brew 92. Big shout-out to you guys.

KIERAN VINCENT: I think it may not even be on the golf course. I think it's the mindset and being able to stay patient. I think it's a golf course that you might find yourself in a little bit of trouble as time comes, and just being able to stay patient, stay motivated and stay positive to yourself knowing that you've done a lot of work out here and just remain patient enough to know that there are going to be some birdieable holes and see what you can do to the best of your ability.

I think it's about game planning, and as Scott was saying a little bit earlier, adapting and staying patient out there.

SCOTT VINCENT: I'm going to say courageous. Like are you willing to be courageous this week and take on some risks and some shots that maybe feel very uncomfortable. Are you willing to fail? You have to be courageous and willing to fail in order to take on shots.

Who knows; it's a journey, right? There's so many different factors that could go into whoever is going to hoist that trophy at the end of the week.

For me this week, that's going to be something that I'm working on. It's just can I be a little bit more courageous this week.