U.S. SENIOR OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP

June 25, 2024

Brett Quigley

Newport Country Club

Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: Welcome Brett Quigley to the interview area. Brett, leading up to the U.S. Senior Open here at Newport Country Club, how do you feel your game's ready for the course?

BRETT QUIGLEY: Actually, my game is pretty good. The results so far this year hasn't really shown that, but I'm very happy with my game right now.

I'm looking forward to this week. It's great that we're here in Rhode Island, being a Rhode Islander, but it's been a long wait with it being canceled. I know a lot of players are very excited to be here.

The history of this golf course and everything about Rhode Island is shining very well so far.

Q. When the tournament was canceled in 2020 with everything else, were you confident you were going to get it back?

BRETT QUIGLEY: I was very hopeful. I didn't know what the USGA and Newport Country Club had in store, but thankfully they pulled it off. It certainly was worth the wait.

Q. Just how much pride do you take in the fact that you, Billy, Brad are kind of hosting this. Ernie was in earlier and said that you guys were really talking this up. What pride can you take in that?

BRETT QUIGLEY: It's very obviously dear to our heart. To play a major championship here in Rhode Island, here at Newport Country Club, first Open, first Amateur, there's so much great history here, and the golf course is fantastic.

To see it -- today we played with some big winds yesterday and some different winds today. It's going to be a great challenge, and I'm looking forward to see how the USGA sets up the golf course and how it tests us.

But as far as Brad and Billy and P.H. Horgan and Pat Sheehan and all the great families of Rhode Island golf. It's a great -- I mean, I've had a smile on my face the last couple months, and I know I'm going to be smiling all week.

Q. Just the achievement of everyone, you just mentioned many of the names -- to still be playing at this age, and being here and being able to check this box in your career, that's one. And two, I know you've said this many times, you played here many times; never a competitive round.

BRETT QUIGLEY: I think that's correct.

Q. A bit of an odd thing.

BRETT QUIGLEY: Yes. Sorry, first question. Go back to the first question again.

Q. Just that you guys all came up together and you're still playing.

BRETT QUIGLEY: That we can -- we've had -- I feel like we've all had a -- been very fortunate to play some pretty good golf over the years, and now at 50, I know Billy and I talk about this a lot, to be so thankful and fortunate to still be able to play golf and be really competitive against the best players in the world is a lot of fun.

Then being from Rhode Island, such a small state, small area, short golf window for the golfing year that everybody knows.

But, yeah, I know Brad and Billy and I have all talked about how lucky we are and how proud we are to be from Rhode Island.

Q. Golf course?

BRETT QUIGLEY: Golf course is fantastic. Yesterday Member 1, which we're playing 10, I hit driver, 5 wood into the wind.

And today it was downwind, and I hit driver and gap wedge.

So it's going to play significantly different depending on the wind, and I'm looking forward to that challenge. It will be fantastic.

Q. What kind of pressure are you feeling just playing in this tournament just because it's here in Rhode Island?

BRETT QUIGLEY: I'll definitely feel that pressure of hometown, but I also think it's a positive where I know there's going to be a bunch of people pulling for me and pulling for Billy.

I love that. I love seeing everybody that I haven't seen in a long time and just feeling those good vibes and people rooting me on. It's fantastic.

Q. Brett, does it change any from any other major? Is there additional pressure, or is that kind of stuff that people like us bring up?

BRETT QUIGLEY: It's not additional. It's not any more than a regular major. I love it. I enjoy seeing everybody and saying hello to everybody. I know that, when I'm having fun, I'm playing better anyway.

Q. Have you had a chance to think what Sunday could be like for you, or do you not do things like that in preparation?

BRETT QUIGLEY: No, I think about winning. That's why we're all playing. It's part of my prep for sure. I'm fortunate this week to be on the third floor of the locker room with the former USGA champs being a U.S. Junior champ. It's cool to be up in that little area.

Yes, I would love to have another picture with the Senior Open trophy next to my name for sure.

Q. When Ernie was in here, he was talking about how playing the nine he played today, the wind was so much of a factor. How much have you heard legend of the wind, and how much does it really play a factor on this golf course?

BRETT QUIGLEY: We played -- today was a north wind, I think, which is a different wind than typical here. A lot of the members we had spoken to said right at noon it changes to a south wind almost every day. We were on the 7th green, and we played 7 into the wind. I know it was about 11:50. We get to the 8 tee, and the wind completely changed and came out of the south.

So it's going to play significantly different depending on the wind direction. That will be part of the great challenge.

Q. What's your earliest memory of playing?

BRETT QUIGLEY: I actually don't think I played here before I went to college. You know, you grow up in Rhode Island, if you drove 15 minutes, that's a long drive, right? I grew up in Barrington. I wouldn't go to Providence. That's too far to go.

I was fortunate, I grew up caddieing at Rhode Island Country Club, playing at Rhode Island Country Club. I worked at Dana's golf course at Crestwood, where Dana was the pro for a long time, picking the range and doing carts there.

I really don't have much early memories here, but in the last few years, a good friend of mine Tom Haggerty, is a member here, and I've gotten to play three rounds in the summer here in getting ready for this the last couple years.

So I've been trying to do my homework in those rounds. I love playing here. It's a great walk. It's a fun walk. It's just a great vibe.

Q. You mentioned playing here. What are one or two things that you've picked up in those rounds that's going to help you this week?

BRETT QUIGLEY: Normally the golf course is so firm. As everybody knows growing up here or being around here, this spring was pretty wet, so it's pretty green this year.

For me, the game is more on the ground than typically we play in the United States, and I think that obviously has something to do with them just irrigating the greens and the tees and not necessarily the fairways.

The place plays firm and you can bounce it around here, and I like that. You can play this game a little bit on the ground, and that's not typical of what we play.

You see that more in the USGA events where the greens get a little firmer, but I like that challenge. It should be, to me, a little bit more on the ground where you can bounce shots in, and there's plenty of areas to run it up, which I like.

Q. Is there somewhere around the world that you've played that has similarities?

BRETT QUIGLEY: It's funny, I was walking out with Westwood yesterday, and he looked at our 1st hole here and he said it reminded him of Sunningdale, kind of that same kind of feel there.

Just again, when you see in the summertime, from now on it's going to be brown, and you know the ball's going to be bouncing, and I like that. It's a little more -- not luck, but a little more balancing and playing golf instead of just mortar get golf.

Q. You mentioned Dana. I'm just wondering how much you'll think of (indiscernible) as home here at the Senior Open?

BRETT QUIGLEY: Home week for sure. We were talking about Devon today. A day doesn't go by that I don't think about Devon and talk about Devon, and Dana just unmercifully just gives me a hard time about everything.

It's not unusual for Dana to text me, call me, and give me a hard time about everything.

Devon will be certainly on my mind throughout the week, and he has been, and he will continue to be.

Q. Brett, is there a place that you need to go for dinner, coffee, something like that when you're home in Rhode Island that you just have to go to?

BRETT QUIGLEY: Probably not so much. We've been fortunate, my girls and Amy have been up here the last couple summers, and to spend time all around Newport, Middletown, Warren, and Barrington, so just the home vibe.

My parents are still here. Amy's parents, still here. My sister lives here, and we have a lot of friends in the area. It's a home week, and it's still my home.