KITCHENAID SENIOR PGA CHAMPIONSHIP

May 23, 2024

Richard Green

Quick Quotes

Harbor Shores

Q. Richard Green is with us now at the 84th Senior PGA Championship. Richard, 7-under today in round one. How did it go out there for you?

RICHARD GREEN: It was an exceptionally good day. You know, it's a very challenging golf course, and one that can really bite you at times.

So the start of the day it was to go out there and treat it with as much respect as possible and play good golf shots, and I was doing that, which was nice. Got off to a great start.

Made the opportunities when I needed them and scored on the difficult holes really well. Yeah, just kept the round going.

Q. Cun you take through the early eagle, what you hit in, how long the putt was, and then you had that birdie stretch from 9 to 11?

RICHARD GREEN: Yeah, I hit a great drive down 5 and left myself about 250 yards to the flag I think I had, something like that. I knew my hybrid carries around the high 220s.

Hit it just perfect and just shaped it in there nicely and it was tracking towards the hole. I think it ran across the edge of the hole and finished about maybe seven feet past the hole; then hit a really nice putt and made it.

So that was obviously one of those exceptional holes at the right time and get the round going really well.

You know, the little run through 9, you know, 9 was set up as a really nice hole for me. Hit a really good drive down the fairway. Left myself another hybrid that I'm feeling very confident with at the moment. Hit it right by the edge of the green on the right; chipped it down to two feet and made the birdie.

Momentum is building obviously through your round.

The same on 10. Had another hybrid into 10. Hit it in the right position up on the left side. Gave myself a fairly easy chip and made birdie there.

Hit a really nice wedge shot into 11 and set up the birdie there. That was nice. That was about maybe a six-foot putt from behind the hole.

Q. Looks like you came in on a run of like four top 20s, so the game is in pretty nice shape coming in you feel?

RICHARD GREEN: Yeah, it's been okay. It's obviously a work in progress all the time. Golf, you're ebbing and flowing all the time with form and your belief in what you're capable of with everything in the bag.

You know, I was just pleased at my preparation this week. It's been really nice. I feel really good about my game. I feel everything that I'm using in the golf bag is what I've been using for most of this year and I'm feeling good with it, so it's nice.

Q. I wonder if you could talk a little bit about how you feel about this Jack Nicklaus golf course and how it lends to your game?

RICHARD GREEN: Yeah, I've always liked his designs, wherever it's been around the word that I've played on a Jack Nicklaus course. This one also, there always seems to be a way to play it. It's just a matter of whether you can execute the correct shots around the golf course to get it right.

Fortunately I've done that today.

But he designs fantastic golf courses and sets an unbelievably good challenge. By no means found it easy out there. It was quite challenging and difficult to hit the ball in the right spot. It's a big test off the tee.

This golf course you've got to hit the driver really well. You've obviously got to putt and read the greens well. They're very slopey. The pins were fair today and we were able to strategize and make the most of it.

Q. And the weather conditions for the golf course today?

RICHARD GREEN: Yeah, good a day as you're going to get really this close to Lake Michigan. You know, it's always -- can be variable with wind and temperature here. I think we've had as good a day as we're going to get this week. Hopefully it hangs in there. We'll see.

Q. And the people chasing you, going to be a pretty strong week.

RICHARD GREEN: Yeah, absolutely. The guys are all playing good golf on the Champions Tour. Everybody that's come here, I'm sure they're working their game up to top form. Just got to keep doing your best.

Q. You played the full season out here last year. The guys kind of just waiting for Stricker to kind of -- he had some nice finishes but hasn't won.

RICHARD GREEN: Yeah, always got to watch out for him. He played pretty comfortable golf last year and won a bunch of tournaments. We're all thinking, how are we going to beat this guy? We've got do it better than him, and that's really hard to do.

You just got to roll with the week and see what happens, keep doing my best every shot, and see what happens at the end.

Q. Curious, do you have any changes that you'll be making for your game tomorrow?

RICHARD GREEN: Nothing at this stage. Just go and keep working on things on the range this afternoon. Just keep working on my putting and just keep tuning it. That's all you can really do from this position.

I'm comfortable with everything that I'm using, and I'll just get out there and read the weather conditions and see what there is. It might be a matter of if it's windy playing a couple different shots. Grew up playing in windy conditions so I know what to do, so we'll see.

Q. Also was hoping if you could talk about how you're feeling as this is the last time we're here at Harbor Shores.

RICHARD GREEN: Yeah, yeah, I only found that out this week. I came here my first time was the last time it was here in '22 and found it quite difficult, a real test.

But pretty thankful I've had that year under my belt of playing a here. It's a shame to not come back. The PGA of America will put on another great tournament next year somewhere I'm sure and we'll see.

You never know. It's a golf course that will stick in I don't you are memory for sure.

Q. How tall are you?

RICHARD GREEN: 6'4".

Q. Did you play amateur golf?

RICHARD GREEN: I did.

Q. Play over here?

RICHARD GREEN: I did a little bit in -- I remember just before I turned professional in '92 I played in this area at the Western Amateur.

Q. Western Amateur, Point O' Woods, I was wondering.

RICHARD GREEN: Yeah, it was great. It was one of my great memories from amateur golf. I think I did really well there. I think I got to the quarterfinals.

Q. Yeah, sweet sixteen.

RICHARD GREEN: That's right. Went back and visited the course last year just to see it. Yeah, it's nice to come back to an area I've played well before.