PNC CHAMPIONSHIP

December 22, 2024

Bernhard Langer

Jason Langer

The Ritz-Carlton Golf Club

Quick Quotes

THE MODERATOR: Congratulations. I couldn't help but overhear, you made the comment that this is like the fifth major for you, and you obviously made good on it a number of times, six and four. Is that correct?

JASON LANGER: Four.

THE MODERATOR: Congratulations to you both. Comments on getting the win.

JASON LANGER: It was a special day. I mean, what a treat to play with Tiger and Charlie. Charlie is an awesome player. You know, amazing to witness that hole-in-one on 4. A real honor for me to play with Tiger.

It was tight all day. We were within a shot either way from the very beginning, and he (Dad) really played well. I put a little bit of pressure on him in certain spots, and he made a bunch of putts and was so consistent. It was a special day. Won't forget it.

Q. Have you ever played a final round with Tiger before?

BERNHARD LANGER: Maybe not the final round. I played with him probably a dozen times. I was one of the first to play with him when he turned pro. But that was a long time ago. He's come a long way and won a lot of tournaments since.

But they couldn't have been nicer.

JASON LANGER: Yeah.

BERNHARD LANGER: Both of them, truly very gentlemen-like. Fun to be with. Competitive. You could see they wanted to win this, and they played awesome.

I mean, 15-under, that's hard to do in windy conditions. They played really great. I'm just so proud of him. First time playing with Tiger on the spotlight. It's not easy. A lot of people are moving. They are really not always interested in what we do, and sometimes we hit good shots, and we heard like, you know, (indicating soft clap) so we never really knew whether we're close or not at times.

But very proud of him the way he handled himself. He hit a couple of fantastic iron shots into 18 to give us the opportunity to make birdie and then eagle.

Q. Could you talk a little bit about how the added pressure affected you guys out there with having them there with the huge audience and the whole buzz around it and the movement and everything?

BERNHARD LANGER: For me personally, it just makes me focus even more so. I seem to enjoy that challenge to be the underdog or to play in tough circumstances. It just helps me to zero in even more.

But I was very proud of how he handled it because, you know, the first time you do that, it's a bit of an out-of-body experience, for many of them, and he didn't seem to be fazed by it. So it's pretty amazing.

JASON LANGER: It helps when he's hitting behind you. It was really special to be able to be out there with Tiger, and yeah, the crowd was more than anything I've ever played in front of for sure. I'm not that competitive these days. I play a couple amateur events a year. But definitely today was not something that I am used to.

You know, I think being able to be out there with Dad and my brother caddying and my brother-in-law caddying, as well, definitely made it more comfortable. And knowing that we've been out here before and made some good memories and hit plenty of good shots out on this golf course, definitely made me feel a little bit more at ease.

Q. It's an event about family and enjoying the experience together, but it's also a competition. What was the intensity like coming down the stretch here compared to what you see on a typical Sunday on Tour?

BERNHARD LANGER: It's similar. It's in our DNA. Tiger plays to win and they needle each other, him and his son, and his son is playing to win, and so are we. It's what we are out here for, right.

But the cool thing here is obviously you want to win but you have so much fun just whether you win or not. You could finish 10th and have a great time just because what the tournament's all about, family and friends; and this time of the year, and it's a great venue and great sponsor and everything.

Having my other son, Stefan, caddie for him, and my son-in-law, Chase, caddying for me, and then have my wife here and my daughter, Jackie was here. It's truly a family affair, and that's what makes this event even more special.

Q. A lot has been made about your dad, now the all-time winner with six of those belts but you also now are in the record book as the first four-time amateur winner. What is the significance of that?

JASON LANGER: John that. That's great. You know, I think like I said, we've had many good tournaments here. We finished second a couple of times and always feel like we are competitive. That's great that we're able to make a couple new records this week and hopefully we can continue to be in the mix in future years as well.

Q. You work in New York City, not the easiest place to play golf and keep your game up.

JASON LANGER: No.

Q. How do you do it?

JASON LANGER: I don't play a ton of golf. I make an effort in the summer to get out and play maybe once every two weeks, and then when I'm home visiting family or home for the holidays, I'll play and practise a little bit.

Before this weekend, I had not played for three or four weeks since Thanksgiving. I think my ball-striking can kind of hold up with some time off. So just spending some time on the greens and getting used to being on a golf course again, and I'm able to at least contribute a little bit, especially when he's playing so well.

Q. What's it like to go back to the office?

JASON LANGER: Thankfully with Christmas in a couple days, I've been able to stay down here and be with family. In years past, I would having to go straight to the airport and be back to the office on Monday morning, which would be pretty painful. This be will nice for sure.

Q. What is the reaction from your investment banker colleagues to something like this?

JASON LANGER: You know, a lot of them are golfers themselves, and definitely love to watch this event, as many people do. It's a special time of year. There's not a lot of golf on TV.

So definitely have gotten great reception from some of my coworkers over the past couple of years and got a lot of comments this week in the office before flying down. I think there are plenty of my friends and colleagues watching. I think we hopefully put on a good show for them.

Q. The last putt, what did you see there? Pretty quick at the end there for your son, and curled that one right in.

BERNHARD LANGER: I thought he made it. When his ball was six feet from the hole, it was supposed to break a little left and it didn't. It just stayed there. I was almost in shock that he didn't make it because he hit such a pure putt.

I was the benefactor, beneficiary of seeing what his ball did. So I played less break, and mine was able to bounce in there, roll in. It was, yeah, a lot of excitement at that point.

Q. Just wanted to ask you, you seemed extremely automatic coming down the back nine, if he gave you a look, you were going to make the putt. Is there anything that surprises you at this point or did you feel like it was going to be automatic as well?

BERNHARD LANGER: No, no, you never think it's automatic. Yesterday, I didn't feel like I was making all the putts I wanted to make. But today was a lot better. And so you just never know. Every day is a little different.

And certainly there's nothing automatic about me putting. I've had some terrible times putting in my life, and even lately, there have been days when things were not that great.

Just very fortunate the last two tournaments I've won, I made two good putts on 18 from a fairly good distance. It gives me a little confidence, so that's nice.

Q. And for us mere mortals, what is the feeling of leaving the golf course having beat Tiger Woods?

BERNHARD LANGER: Great question.

JASON LANGER: Oh, man, I've got to be careful what I say here (laughing).

I think it was an honor to play with him and to compete with them. You know, I think that's all I can say. It was a great day. I really enjoyed being out there with them. And you know, we got it done today. But I'm sure they have many wins in their future in this event.

BERNHARD LANGER: Yeah, I'm convinced they are going to win this thing in the next few years. They are just too good.

Q. As you guys continue to collect belts, where do they go?

BERNHARD LANGER: Good question, too. They don't want to keep them for some reason. I end up with all of them, and I don't have enough room right now. We'll find a spot.

JASON LANGER: I think they are all around the house. There's a few that are out, a few that are in many closets, spread out. We have to call one of the rooms the Willie Park Suite.

Q. You came back from Achilles injury earlier. How are you feeling?

BERNHARD LANGER: It was a tough year. I never had a severe injury like that, and I was laid off for three months. Couldn't even walk. Couldn't stand properly. And just the first few weeks were pretty grim.

But was able to recover and then actually get out on the course pretty quickly. Three months later, I was playing competitive golf, and I'm a functioning golfer. I haven't recovered fully. Walking is still difficult. I walked the last two days but it wasn't much fun. The back nine, I could feel it.

So I'm hoping to improve a little more the next few weeks and months. So I would love to walk next year on tour and not take a cart.

Q. Does it give you some new appreciation for all that Tiger has been through?

BERNHARD LANGER: I can't even imagine what he's been through. I've had some back issues. I had a stress fracture in my lower back and a bulging disc, and it's bothered me many a time over the years. I know the pain. Back pain is some of the worst, maybe together with tooth pain.

He's been through a lot, and just thrilled -- he's working, rehabbing hard, and he says, Yeah, I want to stay somewhat fit and play a few more years so I can keep up with Charlie.

Q. What just about the fact that he's 13 weeks removed? I guess it was minor back surgery, but nothing is minor at this stage.

BERNHARD LANGER: Well, there's minor and major, but yeah obviously this one wasn't as severe as a fusion would have been or something else that he's done. He said he's got a fused back and a fused ankle, and you don't want to have any more of those.

Q. Just some of the ball-striking, driver off the deck, some of the shots.

BERNHARD LANGER: Yeah, he was world No. 1 for years and years. He's got a lot more game than most of us. Even when he's 70 percent, he's still a force to be reckoned with. He was moving fairly good. I was watching his swing and he was going after it. Just playing everything with a cut for most things, but he felt pretty comfortable out there, I thought.