March 22, 2012
MEDIA DAY
JULIUS MASON:
Good afternoon,
everyone. I'm The PGA of America's Julius Mason
and I would like to welcome you to the 94th PGA
Championship Media Day here at The Ocean
Course on Kiawah Island. Before we kick things
off, I would like to turn your attention to the TV
monitors for the history and tradition that is the
PGA Championship.
(Video played).
94 years of history in about five minutes,
also cool to watch Keegan Bradley watch 94 years
of history.
Like to recognize a few guests in
attendance, if I could, ladies and gentlemen. First
the mayor of Kiawah Island, the mayor, Steve
Orban. Thanks for joining us today. From the
Carolinas PGA section, president, Michael Casto,
and Executive Director, Ron Schmid. From The
Ocean Course at Kiawah Island, PGA Director of
Golf, Brian Gerard.
Several members of the 2012 PGA
Championship executive committee are also
joining us. PGA head golf professional, Stephen
Younger; superintendent Jeff Stone; from the PGA
of America Vice President, Ted Bishop; Chief
Executive Officer and PGA Honorary Member, Joe
Steranka; Senior Director of Championships, David
Charles; and the Director of the 94th PGA
Championship, Brett Sterba.
And now let's hear from former PGA of
America President and the general chairman of the
94th PGA Championship, ladies and gentlemen,
Roger Warren.
ROGER WARREN: Thank you, Julius.
First of all, Keegan, congratulations on your win
last year and we are happy to have you here today
to get a first look and opportunity to play The
Ocean Course and hope it's a good first-time
experience. I know you'll talk about it in a bit.
It's hard to believe it's almost here. We
have been talking about it a long time and spent a
lot of time with the experience of getting there, and
it's almost here and we are proud of that. Proud of
the golf course and proud of the support of the
State of South Carolina. Charleston County, City
of Charleston, town of Kiawah Island, the support
we have been getting is just wonderful and we look
forward to welcoming the world to this event in
August.
We want to talk, also, that as many of you
know, we have sold out tickets on Friday, Saturday
and Sunday, and the Wannamaker, but we do
have tickets Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday,
and Thursday, and we want to assure people know
that and can get involved with those tickets. We
don't want anybody have to talk about the fact that
this great event happened and they couldn't get
here. We want to make sure that people have the
opportunity to get those tickets.
The Ocean Course has been recognized
as the toughest golf course in the United States.
We are looking forward to having the greatest
players in the world play this golf course, and be
able to demonstrate -- Mr. Dye, you can't complain
about who put those bunkers there, and we kept
telling you, you did. At 86 years old, Mr. Dye hit
the ball right down the middle on just about every
tee shot and played well.
It's a great golf course. Every level of
player can play it, and we are looking forward to
the challenge that it will be to these great players,
and we know that we will have another great
champion of the same caliber of as Keegan, and
we thank you for being here and we thank all of
you for being here and we look forward to the 94th
PGA Championship in August.
Thank you, Julius.
JULIUS MASON: It seems appropriate
that we recognize two individuals. These two
individuals played the golf course today, and they
are closest to the hole on No. 8 and No. 17. On
No. 8, nine feet zero inches, closest to the hole,
Tom Carapoli (ph). Tom, stand up and wave to
everybody. You have 25 years free membership at
The Ocean Course. (Laughter).
On No. 17, ten feet, right on the dot, Tim
Dominic. You get front row at news conferences.
Now, ladies and gentlemen, from Delray
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Beach, Florida, someone who knows virtually
every inch of the property that we played today
and someone that is going to get a reception close
to what Jeff stone got today I'm guessing. He was
the 2004 PGA Distinguished Service Award
recipient and 2008 inductee into the World Golf
Hall of Fame.
Ladies and gentlemen, Pete Dye.
PETE DYE: I had a nice time and I got a
ham sandwich.
JULIUS MASON: Ladies and gentlemen,
welcome to the Pete Dye Show.
Pete is 86 years old today, plus 77 days.
He parred ten holes today and shot below his age.
Am I right? So Pete, I guess some people are
thinking out there, what in the heck were you
thinking when you designed this golf course, and
you've seen some major championships come
through here already; what's your anticipation of
what it will be like this August?
PETE DYE: It's great to be here and great
to see the golf course, the ambiance and
everything. I have no idea what will happen in
August. Hope it's good, though.
Do you know what's going to happen here
in August? (Laughter).
JULIUS MASON: Ladies and gentlemen,
we are going to come back at the end for Q&A, so
load up for questions that you might have for the
diabolical Mr. Dye himself.
Now, ladies and gentlemen, all the way
from New York City, the executive vice president of
programming for CBS Sports, Mr. Rob Correa.
ROB CORREA: Thank you, Julius and
Joe, Ted, Allen, Roger, Keegan, Pete, Kerry. This
will be CBS's 22nd consecutive year of coverage
of the PGA Championship since 1991, and we
have seen, really, unbelievable golf history made.
We have seen John Daly come out of
nowhere; Tiger's four PGAs, including his
incredible bat well Bob May in Valhalla; we've seen
rainbows with Davis; shadows with Rich Beem;
Keegan's terrific come back last year. And those
are just a few of the highlights. It's really been an
incredible, incredible golf championship for CBS.
Over 25 million people watched all or part
of the PGA last year on CBS, which really, that's a
lot of people. Great way to exhibit your sport. We
have had a terrific partnership with Turner who,
joined us -- who joined them in 1991; thank you,
Gary, and all of the terrific people you work with.
We will be on the air at two o'clock on August 11
and 12. Hopefully we will not be on the air August
13, but if we have to, we will be.
Our talent, which we humbly consider our
golf talent the best in the business, will include
Peter Kostis and David Feherty walking the
grounds here. Peter Oosterhuis, Ian Baker-Finch,
Gary McCord. We have so many, I have to look at
notes. Verne Lundquist, Bill Macatee and of
course Jim Nantz and Nick Faldo anchoring the
18th hole.
Our production will be led by our producer
Lance Barrow and our director Steve Milton. Bill
Macatee and David Feherty will do the late night
highlight show. We are really looking forward to it.
It is absolutely one of the biggest events CBS has,
and we look forward to it every year. This year
should be no different. It's going to be terrific.
JULIUS MASON: Speaking of Turner,
ladies and gentlemen, from downtown Atlanta, our
television and digital media partner Turner Sports,
it's their senior director, business operations, Gary
Turner.
GARY TURNER: Thank you, Julius, good
to be here. Just to add a few comments to what
Rob mentioned.
This is our 22nd consecutive year of
televising the PGA Championship, and we have
enjoyed two great partnerships throughout that
time. The one with PGA of America is one that we
truly, truly treasure at Turner Sports. And special
thanks to Allen, Joe Steranka and his staff, David
Charles, Julius, Una Jones, Casey Morton, all of
the staff at The PGA of America that frankly make
our job that much easier.
And of course our friends at CBS with
whom we have collaborated all these years, and
special thanks to Rob and Harold Bryant and all
the team at CBS Sports. We really enjoy working
with them.
Last year, we broadcast 19 hours of live
coverage on TNT, primarily on Thursday and
Friday, as well as morning coverage on the
weekend leading up to the CBS broadcast. Again,
we expect our expert announce team of Ernie
Johnson, Ian Baker-Finch and Billy Kratzert to be
back and to bring all the action to our viewers.
Of course, we will miss our colleague and
good friend, Jim Huber, who passed away in
January. Jim was a fixture on our telecast. He
entertained fans for years with his eloquent story
telling and essays of the championship and he will
truly be missed.
Finally, we look forward to, again,
providing a very comprehensive multi-platform
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coverage of the PGA Championship here at this
spectacular event. In addition to our broadcast, we
also partner with the PGA to operate PGA.COM,
the official online home of The PGA of America
and destination for the PGA Championship.
So, whether viewers are viewing the
broadcast, watching live, streaming video on
PGA.COM in the office, using one of our mobile
apps to catch up on all of the action while they are
on the go, or even here at the event, or within the
last couple of years now a new thing, using their
tablet to enjoy a multi-screen experience; fans will
be able to enjoy the event wherever and whichever
device they choose.
So really excited about coming back for
the 22nd year. Look forward to seeing everybody
in August.
JULIUS MASON: From Hillendale Country
Club in Phoenix, Maryland, it's the 37th president
of The PGA of America, Mr. Allen Wronowski.
ALLEN WRONOWSKI: Thank you, Julius,
and thank you everyone for taking time to be with
us today.
It's exciting to be here at Kiawah Island
and return, and it's certainly an incredible setting
and majestic golf course and set up for world-class
play.
To me personally it means an awful lot
because in 2006, this is actually where I began my
journey as an officer of The PGA of America and I
was elected secretary at that time to serve the
Association.
So it is my privilege now to return as
president and represent the thousands of men and
women professionals around the country who go to
work each and every day not only to grow the
participation in the game of golf, but to really work
hard to enhance the experience of those that play
the game.
Certainly, Kiawah has had other chapters
with our association and has been incredible
through history when you think about, I'm sure a
Ryder Cup that most of us will never forget in
1991; our Professional Championship in 2005; and
you think about the Senior PGA Championship that
was played here in 2007. We know that this will be
another exciting and dramatic chapter that we'll
add coming this August.
Certainly we know that The Ocean Course
will provide not only an outstanding test of golf, but
the scenery and the beauty around it, it's just a
majestic island and fun to be here.
We certainly know that our championship
has the strongest field in championship golf,
according to the Official World Golf Rankings last
year at the Atlanta Athletic Club. We had 98 of the
Top-100 world-ranked players. Last year we also
set a championship record with 73 players
representing 22 countries, the most of any U.S.
major.
It's the only championship to also have 20
PGA club professionals. Those individuals will be
determined this June 27th on the Monterey
Peninsula for the 45th PGA Professional National
Championship at the Bayonet and Black Horse
Golf Courses in California.
The excitement of the PGA Championship
commands not only a national audience but a
global audience. In addition to the millions of
viewers who watched some 28 hours of
high-definition coverage by CBS and Turner, the
presentation will be in more than 200 countries and
territories with a household reach of more than 450
million people who will be able to tune in to the
season's final major, Glory's Last Shot.
PGA Championship has been fortunate to
produce some of the greatest drama in
championship history, and it will be exciting to see
who captures the Wanamaker Trophy.
We
certainly can remember some of the greatest
highlights as we move forward through our
championship season.
Last year was no doubt one of the greatest
finishes that we have seen, and certainly added to
those magic moments in history. As you recall our
defending champion made a rally Sunday late in
the evening at Atlanta Athletic Club, and in the
process, became the third person in nearly a
century to capture his major in his first appearance
in a championship, which is pretty incredible.
He's also the sixth PGA Champion to have
a father who is a PGA member, and one of those
professionals I talked about at the beginning that
works so hard and dedicates himself to the
promotion of the game of golf.
He had a near disaster during the final
round when he made one of the most remarkable
and incredible comebacks to win, and won in
certainly a dramatic playoff fashion. Playing with
him today, it was easier for me to understand,
because we know you learn an awful lot about a
person when you spend time with them on a golf
course. I know he's got every one of the tools that
is needed to win major championships and golf
tournaments, great striker of the ball, amazing
around the greens and great putter.
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But beyond that if you look up class and
character in a dictionary, you might see a picture of
Keegan. He's one of the finest gentlemen that I've
ever been around and a great representative of the
PGA Championship and The PGA of America.
So if anybody is a little fuzzy, and I'm sure
you're probably not, but somebody might be of
what happened last August, please watch this
video.
(Video played).
KEEGAN BRADLEY: Thank you very
much. I just want to thank The PGA of America for
having me out today. I got to play with this guy
here and Joe and Rob, and they showed me some
places not to hit it during the PGA. So that was
the biggest help of the day so far (laughter).
But thanks to all for coming, and that was
a cool video. It still gives me a panic attack
watching that stuff, but thanks a lot.
JULIUS MASON: Let's talk about what
happened on the golf course today. My count is
one, two, three, four, five birdies out there today.
Let's talk about each one.
First birdie on No. 2, what did you hit?
KEEGAN BRADLEY: Yeah, the second
hole is a nice par 5. I hit it right up in front. Pin
was tucked front left. I got it up-and-down. In the
tournament, I don't think that will be possible. The
greens will be a little faster. But I was able to get
that up-and-down for a birdie.
JULIUS MASON: No. 7.
KEEGAN BRADLEY: No. 7, another par
5. Kiawah has amazing par 5s, and 7 is a good
one. I hit it up pin-high, right, and chipped it up
there to three feet and picked it up. Didn't putt it.
The guys gave it to me. (Laughter).
JULIUS MASON: No. 11.
KEEGAN BRADLEY: No. 11, let's see,
another par 5. That's another one where my
length is helpful on this course and I was able to hit
it up right near the green and chipped it up. They
might have given me that one, too. I tried to tell my
playing partners on my off-weeks, I don't like to
putt 4-footers, so they probably gave it to me.
JULIUS MASON: No. 12 for birdie.
KEEGAN BRADLEY: No. 12, that's the
drivable -- yeah. I did the play-up/lay-up. I hit
driver over in the back bunker and got it
up-and-down for birdie. That's going to be a
crucial hole in the tournament, and I love how the
PGA is doing something like that.
They did it on Sunday at Atlanta, too, and
it's just going to be a really exciting hole and it's
going to be probably where the winner is going to
pull ahead or hit it in the water. It's going to be a
great hole.
JULIUS MASON: And 13?
KEEGAN BRADLEY: 13, let's see, long
par 4 with the water. I hit driver, 9-iron to two feet
and picked it up.
JULIUS MASON: In August, I don't think
you're going to be able to do that. But ladies and
gentlemen, Keegan Bradley and the rest of the
head table are happy to answer any questions you
might have.
Q. Watching the video with all of the
champions that this tournament has, and what
it means to be one of those champions.
KEEGAN BRADLEY: It's an unbelievable
feeling. It kind of hits home what I've done really,
is times like this. At the Grand Slam, also.
But you know, seeing those names and
knowing that these guys have held this trophy -the first thing I did was go over and check to see
my name on that thing. And it kind of let's you
know what you've done; that you're part of history;
seeing Tiger, Ben Hogan. Sometimes, it kind of
sounds cliché, but it seems like a dream that it
happened and it's awesome to see it in real life like
that. Because I can't watch highlights. I literally
have a borderline panic attack. You guys forced
me to watch it there and I enjoyed it.
Q. This is a big deal in this area and in
this state that one of golf's four major
championships is coming here. I guess your
thoughts on coming to South Carolina in
August and I guess what it's going to take to
win here.
KEEGAN BRADLEY: I love this area,
South Carolina. This golf course is going to be
spectacular. If the wind blows, I think that the
winning score could be over par. I'm not sure what
the greens are going to be like, what the rough is
going to be like, but it's going to be challenging no
matter what the weather. But if the weather is
tough, I think the winning score could be over par.
But I know talking to a lot of the players,
everybody loves this area.
Everybody loves
coming down here. We are looking forward to
coming to South Carolina for this tournament.
Q. What kind of a player do you think
will have an advantage on this course come
August?
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KEEGAN BRADLEY: I think that it's going
to be a complete player that wins this tournament.
I think you need to drive it well. And also, you
need to hit it in the correct area on the greens and
stay away from these collection areas that my boy
over here put it in. (Chuckles from top table).
I think you need to be an all around good
player. It's going to take every ounce of your
game, because if you do miss a green, you're
going to be chipping up or in a tight lie, and it's
going to be very important. So obviously any
major you have to drive it well and hit the ball well
but it's going to take a complete game.
Q. How has life changed for you since
August, or has it changed?
KEEGAN BRADLEY: It's changed. It's all
been a lot of fun. I've been able to do a lot of really
special things. I'm a big Boston sports fan. I've
been able to throw out the first pitch at a Red
Sox/Yankee game. I've been able to drop the puck
at a Bruins came. I got to flip the coin at a Patriots
game. Still waiting for the Celtics.
I've just been able to do a lot of stuff that,
seriously, you dream about as a kid. Some of the
stuff that I've had to deal with is a little more media,
a little more attention, which I'm getting used to
now and I think it's the reason why I'm playing
better this year than I did at the end of last year.
It's just an adjustment.
But now it's becoming normal, and you
know, it makes me appreciate what guys like Phil
Mickelson and Tiger Woods have done because
of the attention they have gotten, shows what type
of players they are.
Q. What had you heard about The
Ocean Course before coming here today and
how has what you heard about it compare to
what you saw out there?
KEEGAN BRADLEY: I heard it was really
hard, and they were right. It's brutal. It's a good
test. It's very fair, which is nice, but it's going to be
tough.
You can play as many practice rounds as
you want around here but if the wind switches
around -- today, if the wind switches to where it's
with on the last couple of holes, it's a different golf
course. I think that your tee time, you could get a
good and bad wave on the tee times. That's just
luck of the draw.
But I think that it's as hard as they say it is,
and I think during the tournament, I was talking
about how high the rough's going to be -- there's
not much rough, so it's going to be a definite
challenge.
I know when you come to a Major
Championship, I have only played in one of them,
but this is what I hear, they are all really tough.
(Laughter).
We are all expecting a tough test, which I
think is going to happen.
Q. I was wondering if you could talk a
little about the rising controversy over the belly
putter, and what you think the PGA's role is in
controlling development of technology.
KEEGAN BRADLEY: I get that question a
lot. I think, you know, my job is to follow the rules.
I can't make the rules. So if they tell me I can't put
with a belly putter, obviously I'm not going to.
There is part of me that I've put years and years of
my life in practicing and playing with the belly
putter; it would be disappointing.
But if somebody told me I couldn't use it
anymore, I'd be fine with it. Like I said before, my
job is to follow the rules, and unfortunately I don't
make them. Whatever the PGA or USGA or
whoever makes the decision makes, I'll be fine with
it.
Q. Phil has been really good about
showing you around and using his yardage
book and Augusta and stuff; are you going to
play with Phil at Augusta and show him what
you learned today out here?
KEEGAN BRADLEY: I'm going to see Phil
soon. I'm sure he'll be asking me about this place.
I know we were talking about it the last time we
played. You know, he's very meticulous in his
preparation for majors, which is something that I
admire about him and that I'm trying to copy as
much as I can.
You know, he's very good around the
greens, charting them, which I think will benefit him
at this course. I'm sure we'll sit down and talk
about it. He'll be really interested.
Q. Let's talk about the length of the
course for just a moment.
7,600 yards,
championship tees, seems these majors are
getting longer and longer. Do you think that's
fair for the game?
KEEGAN BRADLEY: I do think it's fair for
the game, as long as it's a fair setup. You know, if
we are playing a hole that's 250 yards par 3 and
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the wind switches around, that's going to be brutal.
But the PGA has done an unbelievable job of
setting the course up.
On Sunday at Atlanta, they set the course
up unbelievably. I know as players, we don't have
any worries. The PGA does a great job. The
courses are getting longer because the players are
getting longer, but this course I don't think needs to
be that long to be tough.
So whether it's 7,000 or 7,600, it's a hard
golf course.
MAYOR STEVE ORBAN: I just wanted to
thank the PGA for selecting Kiawah and the Ocean
Course as this year's tournament venue. We are
very -- at Kiawah here, we are really looking
forward to it. Most of our residents, as you know,
we have seven golf courses here, so we are a
golfing community. We are really looking forward
to it.
Also wants to thank Bill Goodwin and
Roger Warren for bringing the tournament here
and Bill making the financial commitment to bring it
here. So we do appreciate that.
Keegan, you never said how many bogeys
you got today. I know you got five birdies but did
you get any bogeys?
KEEGAN BRADLEY: They only asked me
about the birdies. I definitely made some bogeys.
I definitely made some bogeys. But I was happy
with the way the course set up, and I know the
players are so thankful that Kiawah is on the
schedule. I know a lot of the guys -- talking to
some of the older guys that have been out here,
they love this place, and we are all thrilled and I
know the PGA is.
MAYOR STEVE ORBAN: Well, good. I
do have a question, though, probably to the
broadcasting folks. Are we going to have the blimp
here so we can show off our ten-million beach and
homes along the ocean front and so forth?
ROB CORREA: Yes, we will.
MAYOR STEVE ORBAN: I think we all
appreciate that.
Q. Can you talk to us about No. 17 and
17 is going to be -- it's just like Atlanta
where I was four back, five back with four to play,
and came back to win; the same thing could
happen here with 17. It's a brutal hole. If you bail
out left, you've got a really tough chip or bunker
shot.
And then 18 today played into the wind,
and I hit driver, 3-iron, hybrid short. So I know
there will be a lot of guys on TOUR today that
would have hit driver, 3-wood and probably come
up short of the green. It's going to be a good last
few finishing holes, nine holes, really.
Q. You're going to hit balls off the
Yorktown this afternoon; can you talk about
what you expect that experience to be like?
KEEGAN BRADLEY: I'm so excited. As
soon as I found out that I was going to get to do
that, I was really pumped. I love being out there
with the guys. It's going to be an interesting -- they
didn't give me an easy shot. From what I hear, it's
20 yards over water, buoys, fish jumping out. So,
we'll see.
But I'm looking forward to it a lot, and
looking forward to getting near Charleston and
seeing the city and all that stuff.
Q. How does a Boston guy go to St.
John's?
KEEGAN BRADLEY: Well, I honestly, it
was weird how it worked out. It just seemed to be
a good fit for me. Coach Darby at St. John's is a
great coach. The team was a great bunch of guys.
We got to play, they still play some of the best
courses in the country there in Long Island,
Westchester, Hamptons.
And I'm so thankful that I went to St.
John's, because there's no guys out here from St.
John's, it sticks me out from everybody; and my
teammates that I went there with are still my best
friends today. They basically all sleep on my
couch back in Jupiter.
So it was a great decision for me to go
there, and I'm just so thankful that I ended up
there.
18?
KEEGAN BRADLEY: Yes, you know, 17
is like Atlanta, but harder. It's a brutal hole and I
think that -- it seems like in all of these tough
courses that we play, 17 and 18 are always
difficult; whether it's Doral or PLAYERS
Championship, and it's no different with this
course.
Q. Can you talk a little about some of
the changes that you made to the course,
specifically for this championship? I noticed a
lot of those tees are way back, but is there
anything that you can tell us about the changes
you've made?
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PETE
(Laughter.)
DYE:
Very
little
change.
Q. Can you elaborate a little?
PETE DYE: Well, there's a few small
changes but very modest. Mr. Goodwin, when he
came here, Roger and all of us, he just told us not
to make it any easier, that's all, and left. I think
we -- I don't know if we made it any easier or any
harder. We'll find out.
But the players are playing so great today,
they will get around. They will find a way to get
home somehow or another. I don't think the
changes made much difference to tell you the
truth.
Q. This tournament, would your father
ever play in the PGA? Did he ever try to qualify
as a club professional?
KEEGAN BRADLEY: He never played in
the PGA Championship. He never got to play in
the club pro, either. But he's more proud of his
PGA Class A status than anybody I've ever met.
So winning this Wannamaker, I got to have him
hold it recently and take pictures with it. It's pretty
special for him and me. But you know, it's kind of
fitting that this was my first one, and makes it even
better.
Q. I remember reading where he had a
bag tag saying, "I'm Pat's brother." Does he
have a new bag tag saying, "I'm Keegan's
father"?
KEEGAN BRADLEY: We joke around
because my uncles and my dad used to have a
bag tag saying "Pat's brother" and now they say
"Keegan's uncle". We are going to get one for Pat
saying "Keegan's aunt." It will be a good joke. It is
funny how things change, but Pat is still my biggest
fan of anybody and we are having a great time
together.
Q.
Here at Kiawah, there are no
bunkers, they are waste areas, and I don't know
if there's any major championships that have
that. Do you have any thoughts on how that
will affect the championship in any way?
ROGER WARREN: There has not been a
determination at this point as to how all of the sand
areas on the golf course are going to be played
that will be done in the next few months.
It has in the past for the Senior PGA and
for the Club Professional Championship that was
here been played as all waste area. But there is
some consideration in consultation with Pete to
look at some of the closed-in natural bunkers
around the green complexes to make some of
those bunkers, and then the rest of it will be waste.
But that will be determined and will be
clearly defined for all the players as they go out
and play during this event, which I know they will
appreciate.
Q.
I know there were issues with
plugging during the Senior PGA. It looked like
there's been some grass grown in around the
bunkers.
Can you talk about how the
configuration of the bunkers may have
changed in the last four years?
ROGER WARREN: Well two, things. At
the Senior PGA Championship, we did have some
issues with balls plugging high in places that
looked basically unplayable.
In consultation with Pete and talking about
it, we determined that it was an unfair playing
condition frankly. So we did alter those faces, and
we have sodded them with paspalum; and the
intent to be that if you hit it in that area, it will go
down to the bottom of waste area or the bunker
and play there. Although today I hit one in the face
and it plugged, so we'll have to talk to Jeff about
that before we get to the event.
But there have been some changes on
some of the bunkers on the golf course, on 2, the
complexes were changed a little bit; on 5 they were
changed; on 12 they were changed; on 13 there
were bunkers added around the fairway and
around the green the configuration was changed.
But all of it was done to define the
bunkers, also, and to make sure that when a ball
hit into that area, that it would wear down the face
and then the sand, and not get embedded up in
the face.
I think that's some of the changes that
Pete made when he came back and I think it's
really enhanced the quality of the golf course
without changing the challenge that I think the
players face there.
Q. You've been here a long time. Any
thoughts, concerns about logistics, getting
people out here, getting people back? It seems
like a difficult in and out.
ROGER WARREN: I think that we have a
good plan. I think the logistical challenges we face
getting people to and from the course, we have
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known from the beginning that it was a challenge.
And I think in conjunction with the county, the
sheriff's department, fire department, Charleston,
Town of Kiawah, we have come up with a very
effective plan to get people to and from the island
and once they get to the island, how to get from
the general parking area at front of the island back
down to the Ocean Course, and a bus system both
internal on the islands and one external off the
islands.
We are going to be able to park between
10,0000 and 12,000 cars on the front of the island
on acreage we have cleared and prepared there.
I would tell people, wherever you're
coming from, coming out to Kiawah, you are going
to have to add ten or 15 or 20 minutes to get out
here, because there's going to be traffic between
7:00 and 11:00 in the morning when we anticipate
the highest traffic congestion. We will have a very
effective method to direct people where they
should go and get them in and get them out. We
also have a system that we believe all of the
players will be staying on the island, so we can
make sure that they at least don't miss a tee time,
which is important.
So we have gone through a lot of planning,
and I think we have a great plan and we'll execute
it. We want the story of this event to be the great
play of the players and nothing else.
JULIUS MASON: Just adding on that,
ladies and gentlemen, the plan is really, really
good, and managing spectator expectations is a
part of that plan.
So for you, for your viewers, for your
readers, thank you for helping us communicate
that logistical plan to all of the ticket holders.
FastScripts by ASAP Sports ...
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