LIV GOLF GREENBRIER

August 2, 2023

Joaquin Niemann

Kevin Na

Danny Lee

The Old White

Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: We are joined here today by Joaquin Niemann, the captain of Torque GC; Kevin Na, the captain of Iron Heads GC; and Danny Lee from Iron Heads GC, as well.

We are joined by three previous winners at Greenbrier. Danny won here in 2015, Kevin in 2018, and, Joaco, you won here in 2019.

Joaco, you had your first professional win here at Greenbrier. What does it feel like to be returning this week, and do you feel like you have a leg up on the competition?

JOAQUIN NIEMANN: Yeah, I think there's so many good memories from the Greenbrier. Yeah, I think I take it like my first defending title of my career, so yeah.

THE MODERATOR: Danny, you started out the year hot with a win in Tucson, and you are also a returning champion at Greenbrier. Do you think you have a chance at being another double LIV winner?

DANNY LEE: Hopefully. Me and Kevin were thinking about it, and we've been working hard on our games, and hopefully I can repeat it.

THE MODERATOR: Kevin, you have two previous Greenbrier winners on the Iron Heads team. Do you think this could lead to an Iron Heads victory this week?

KEVIN NA: I think this is a golf course that suits our game. Danny and I have won here both, and I feel like this is a golf course that we could make the podium on.

It's really nice to be back here. Greenbrier is a beautiful resort. I really enjoyed coming here back in the days when I used to play the Tour, and to come back and play a LIV event is very exciting. It brought back a lot of good memories. Enjoyed our practice round yesterday and really enjoyed it.

Q. Greenbrier has a lot of off-site activities for you guys and the family to do. I think Torque did an ATV tour yesterday. Tell us a little bit about all the fun things there are to do at Greenbrier and if you're doing team activities when you're not on the golf course.

JOAQUIN NIEMANN: I think this is one of those weeks when you have so much to do out of the golf course. It makes it a lot more fun, the week. And yesterday we went into the mountains with the ATVs, and we were like two hours out there, we got muddy. So it was a great start to the week.

KEVIN NA: I used to always go to the shooting club and shoot clays, and I really enjoy that. And it's really cool, you go up in the mountains and the trees, and you see how accurate you are. I used to enjoy -- I haven't done it this week yet, but maybe if we find some time, we'll do it.

Q. Danny, are we going to see you whitewater rafting?

KEVIN NA: Horseback riding.

Q. The Old White has yielded rounds of 59 during professional events. What do you need to do to make that happen this week and is that attainable?

JOAQUIN NIEMANN: I think they make it a little tougher now with the 16th hole being a lot harder. I don't know which one else is different, but yeah, you've got to play really good golf. We've got to see how the conditions go from the golf course, if it gets firmer or not.

KEVIN NA: I was here I think one of the years that one of the guys shot 59, and it's got to be soft. The greens were soft that year, and right now I think the greens are slightly on the firmer side. Not super firm, but it's firm enough where a 59 is a bit of a stretch.

But LIV guys, any guys could do it on a certain day, on one given day, and if the greens are a little bit soft, I think guys will shoot some low numbers.

Q. There are only four events left in the regular season before we crown the individual and team champions in Miami. Joaco, Team Torque is hot on the trail of the 4 Aces currently. Are you guys surprised how well your team has done this year considering you guys were a totally new team and you guys also are the youngest team. The average age of your team is 25 years old.

JOAQUIN NIEMANN: I mean, obviously we're not surprised that we can do well. Obviously it's a new team. We are four great players.

I know that the team to beat was the 4 Aces, and I think they're still leading the season after how good they did last year.

Obviously that's the team to beat, and obviously the goal at the end of the season is to be inside the top 4.

Q. You have two people on your team that are both within the top 10 on the individual standings, both Seb and Mito. Do you talk about that as a team, and what do you do as a captain to motivate them?

JOAQUIN NIEMANN: Yeah, they are probably going to ask for an increment salary at the end of the year (laughing).

No, I mean, it's great. They've been playing great. Obviously they tried to be inside the top 3 to get that bonus, and yeah, I think everybody is doing that, too.

Q. Danny and Kevin, you guys both recently went on a little trip to Korea and did a little PR tour over there. I'm curious on the impact LIV has had in Korea and if the people of Korea are Iron Heads fans.

DANNY LEE: I mean, Kevin has been working really hard behind LIV's back, and sponsor-wise, he really wants to have an event in Korea. If it happens, I think Kevin is one of the reasons to have it over there.

It was actually fun to watch right next to him.

KEVIN NA: Yeah, we had a good time. We did some PR, some TV, some photo shoots together. There was a cute photo of us together.

We really enjoyed it. We enjoyed a lot of I guess you could call it somewhat of corporate lunches we did and all the media did stuff. We really had a good time. We had some great, amazing food. We hung out together. One night we all went out to dinner, and we went out to a club one night. Veno just missed the cut, and we were texting, hey, get your butt over here. He couldn't make it.

But we had a great time. I think the Korean fans are learning more about LIV and about the Iron Heads. It's still new to them. And right now they're only translating what is all the articles and the media that's been posted, they just translate it. There isn't someone that is a direct source of LIV information.

I think we're going to address that, and I think LIV will address that moving forward.

Once we have an event over there, I think you'll get the whole golfing fans in Korea. I think golf has really grown in Korea over the last 10-plus years, and we've created a lot of great golfers that play well around the world, male and female.

I think once they see the product, if we do end up playing there next year, I know for 2025 most likely it'll happen, and hopefully next year it does, and I think it'll be a game changer.

Q. When you guys look at the list of winners here, do you notice a common thread?

KEVIN NA: We're all good looking. (Laughter.)

Q. Anything from a playing ability?

KEVIN NA: Oh, okay.

DANNY LEE: Probably they're all great ball strikers.

KEVIN NA: You can take me out of that exception.

DANNY LEE: Come on.

Q. I guess my question is does this course favor a particular style of game?

KEVIN NA: I think you've just got to play well. You've got to do everything well. You see Angel as one of the winners is a bomber. Xander is obviously a solid ball striker. Him, he's a bomber and does everything well. I'm a little bit of a shorter hitter but great short game. Danny does everything well.

I think it doesn't suit one kind of player. I can tell you that it doesn't just favor the bombers, which I think is great. I think when you have a golf course that all different kinds of players can win, it tells you it's a great golf course.

Q. Danny, you won here eight years ago. How much can you pull from that victory in terms of good vibes this week?

DANNY LEE: I mean, it's not given. You still have to go out there and play some good golf and hit some great shots and make great putts.

I definitely have a lot of special memories here and good memories. I think that definitely helps my confidence.

I feel like I know where to miss it, and whenever I miss it, it seems like I miss it on the right spot somehow here. Hopefully I can pull through.

Q. You're kind of used to winning four-man playoffs evidently.

DANNY LEE: Yeah, last victory here was also a four-man playoff, same as Tucson. I don't like the playoff part. It gives me too much pressure. But I don't mind it to be in that situation again.

Q. How would you describe your season since winning in Tucson?

DANNY LEE: A little frustrated. There's always this one round that's just -- it's either average or below average. It's not -- it's only a three-round event.

If you play one average round out here, it feels like unless you do something great next two days, it's really hard to be inside the top 24. I think top 24 only gets through half points.

Finishing 25th through 30th is also not that easy. They're all great players, and they all came here to play some serious golf.

I've just got to make that one average round to okay round, I think.

Q. Joaco, you mentioned this earlier, but you didn't get a chance to defend here since you won the last event here. Is that something that's kind of been in the back of your mind at some point?

JOAQUIN NIEMANN: Obviously it would be nice obviously to be back, return and defend a title, but yeah, Greenbrier didn't happen after I won it, and then at the Genesis, I didn't think that tournament was going to -- a few things happened after that, so I was not able to be there.

That's why I'll say I'm playing this tournament as kind of like a defending title.

Q. When you won here in 2019, it was by a pretty healthy margin. What can you take from that week for this week?

JOAQUIN NIEMANN: Yeah, like Danny said, you've still got to go out there and play great golf. It's not easy. Just if you win before, it doesn't tell you that you're going to have a good week. You've still got to go out there, do the work, have fun out there, hit the golf shots and see if you can beat all of them.

There's so many good players here that you've got to have your "A" game, and hopefully I can have it this week and see where I can finish.

Q. As Jane mentioned, you guys have won three times this season, but you're still 39 points behind the 4 Aces. Is that frustrating to a certain degree?

JOAQUIN NIEMANN: Yeah, it is. It tells you how good they play every week, and yeah, it's not only just winning. I don't think it gives you enough points to take an advantage. You've got to be up there every week just how they do it. Just got to play better.

KEVIN NA: Beat the old guys. Come on. (Laughter.)

Q. Kevin, when you won here, I was watching some of the highlights. You seemed to be holing everything that week. What do you remember about 2018, and what can you take for this week?

KEVIN NA: I have some great memories. I also remember playing with Joaco on Saturday, and I was very impressed, and he was probably like 14 at the time. (Laughter.) I was like, wow, this kid can really play.

He obviously became a stud, and we all knew he was a stud at the time. I really enjoyed that round.

I remember making a lot of putts, and I remember --

JOAQUIN NIEMANN: I remember, too. (Laughter.)

KEVIN NA: Yeah, just it was one of those weeks that my putter gets hot, and when my putter gets hot, I make a lot of putts.

To win, you have to putt well. It's a golf course and a green that I feel like suits my game. No added pressure this week.

But I really enjoy coming here. It sets up nicely for me.

If I have my game, then I feel like it's a golf course I can do it again on.

Q. I did want to ask one question about the 18th. We don't get many courses that finish on a par-3. What are your thoughts?

KEVIN NA: I think it's exciting. You think of -- I think there's no better hole that you could have a two-shot swing. You could be one back and without going into a playoff, you stuff it in there, make a birdie, and the guy hits not a very good shot, just misses the green and walks away with a 4, that can happen very quickly.

I think it's a great playoff hole. I saw Danny win in a playoff. I know they both made birdies and went on an extra hole, which is incredible, but it's an amazing finishing hole with all the fans and the clubhouse right in the back. I think it's really cool.

Q. Joaco, what do you think about 18?

JOAQUIN NIEMANN: Yeah, obviously if you start on No. 1, it'll be the last hole. But yeah, I think it is a really interesting hole. You've got to hit a really good shot if you are contending, and you've got to hit a golf shot there.

LIV Golf obviously we have been starting on different holes and doesn't make like a big difference now, but obviously if you're in the last couple groups, having 18 is a good finish. I think this course has a great finish. You have 15 -- all the back nine holes, like the last five, six holes are really tough holes where you can birdie them or you can also bogey. It's a nice finish.

Q. Danny, can you tell us the story right before the playoff started in 2015, I think your caddie put something in the wishing well?

DANNY LEE: No, it was before the playoff they give you the number. They write down one through four. It was a four-man playoff. For some reason he just put it in the Greenbrier trophy.

Is that a bad thing?

KEVIN NA: It ended up being a good thing.

DANNY LEE: He's not with me anymore, but yeah, I think some reporter made it sound like he put my name on the paper and then put it there to have like a better wish or better luck.

JOAQUIN NIEMANN: It worked.

DANNY LEE: I'm telling you one thing, it's got nothing to do with that.

Q. So it wasn't as good of a story --

KEVIN NA: You're ruining the story. Come on.

DANNY LEE: I'm not really good at these things, so...

Q. If I could just get your thoughts on the 18th?

DANNY LEE: Back then I was just blacked out, trying to hit a good shot, trying to hit it closer than anybody else. David Hearn hit a good shot, and Strebby hit it long, and Kisner hit it left to that back left pin, which is impossible. We were there and practicing, Kevin and I yesterday, and it was a pretty hard shot.

It was just between me and David, and I putted first. I think I holed a 16-footer for birdie, downhill left to righter, and I thought I had it, and then he makes his.

Second playoff hole was at the 17th, and there's water on the right, so we both hit it in the left trees. We were thinking the same thing, obviously. Then he hit a great shot, great second shot, but it just didn't cover the middle right bunker and caught the lip and rolls back down, and he ended up making a bogey and I made par.

It wasn't that interesting.

Q. We started the fantasy game this week at LIV. Would you encourage people to put you on their fantasy team?

KEVIN NA: I'd put some money on Joaco and Danny.

DANNY LEE: And Kevin.

JOAQUIN NIEMANN: Smaller bet.

KEVIN NA: I don't know, it would be cool -- I haven't seen the pairing, but are we playing together? That would be awesome.

Q. There's a lot of discussion about movement within tours, and I don't want to say discussion, there's a lot of negotiation. But you guys talked about Korea, and I'm wondering if you want to play somewhere else, if you can expand and be active in making that happen. When you brought that up, I'm wondering if that's kind of a way forward, if there is a place you want to play and currently it's not maybe on your schedule? Is that something you can actively make happen?

KEVIN NA: Countries?

Q. Or anywhere.

KEVIN NA: I think that's more LIV. I think that they are the ones who make that decision. Korea was just -- LIV was always wanting to have that happen in Korea, and they asked me if I can try to help out.

And that's all I'm doing. And I'm using all my connections and, over the course of my career, the people I've met and my former sponsors and just network.

I've met with a lot of people that were interested, and obviously the people that are interested right now were my sponsors for many, many years. I've met with them a bunch of times while I was in Korea, and just trying to give them the idea what's going on and what to expect.

I've told them about this before it happened and I told them when they were sponsoring me, look, the new LIV league is starting up, and I told them almost a year before the first event, and I said, hey, look, it looks like I'm going to go this way. I just want you to know.

I think that's where the interest started, and he likes the product, and he wants to be a part of it.

Now other places, I don't know. Jane would know better.

Q. My question is for really all three of you. You've worn the green jacket, the Greenbrier green jacket I should say. What do you think it's going to take this week to get resized for that jacket?

DANNY LEE: Get blacked out and hit some amazing shots.

JOAQUIN NIEMANN: Do you think you would wear the same size of jacket?

DANNY LEE: Probably not. One size up. Maybe two.

KEVIN NA: I think you and I would be the same size.

Q. With all the recent press that's come out with the framework agreement and everything that's happened, how do you feel about your decision to make the move to come and play on the LIV Golf League?

KEVIN NA: I just have to go (smiling). I actually got a lot of phone calls and texts when that happened, and they're like, yeah, congrats.

I think it's good for the whole game of golf and all the players. I think it's just not us that decided to come to LIV.

At the end of the day, I think everybody is benefiting from LIV Golf, directly or indirectly, and I mean, haters are going to say whatever they want, but at the end of the day, it's making golf more interesting. It's making golf and the golfers richer, and there's nothing wrong with a little bit of competition.

Everything in this world, a little bit of competition, makes everything better, and I'm happy to be a part of it.

Q. What is it that makes this course kind of unique for you guys? We talked about the 18th, but what do you remember from your wins? What makes this course so special for you guys?

JOAQUIN NIEMANN: I mean, for me, this course is great. You've got to hit every kind of shot. It favors a lot of different type of players, too.

I think it's a good challenge for all of us, and just being here on this property makes it even more special. I think it's a nice week to be here for the players to spend out at the golf course, and I think it's a week where you enjoy a lot.

KEVIN NA: Yeah, I think this golf course has a great design, great green complex. It's in fantastic shape.

Like Joaco said, it requires all parts of your game to be in line and to be firing, and I really enjoy coming in, and the resort makes it a bonus. It's a beautiful resort, a lot of activities, some great food and great hospitality.

Q. There were some significant differences between Danny's win in 2015 and the cancellation in 2016 with the flooding and they revamped the course. How much are you comparing notes when you're out here now because of how different the course is?

KEVIN NA: The main bone structure is basically the same. At the end of the day, you've got to hit the shots and make the putts.

It's the same vibe, same feel. There hasn't been too much changes, and I think the golf course he won on and I won on, I know they had to redo it, but it's basically the same thing.

Q. We talk about the reception of the league when you guys went over to Korea. Just curious as you guys have gone throughout the different events here in the country, what has been the general reception of having the LIV Golf events in those particular cities, and any city stand out thus far?

JOAQUIN NIEMANN: Yeah, it's been in all different countries. It's been super nice. They've been treating us so good, especially countries where they haven't had the pleasure of having this many good players.

They are really happy that we are there, so you can feel that vibe, and it's always nice to go out of the country to places where we never play golf tournaments. Yeah, there's many other countries that I think we're going to visit, and we as players are also really excited to go to those countries, too.

Q. Has there been a different feel in terms of playing LIV Golf -- I know golf is golf, but three rounds versus four rounds, in terms of that? Has the approach changed?

KEVIN NA: I think golf is still golf, but I feel like the fans are a little more excited because of the music and the environment. I see that a lot of the fans that were skeptical or weren't sure, they had their first experience, and you hear a lot of comments about wow, this was better than I thought, wow, this was a very different and a cool experience than any other golf tournament.

You get a lot of positive feedback because once you see the product, I think people fall in love. That's what's been most of the cities.

The people have been so welcoming to all the LIV players wherever we go, and we really enjoy that.

The connection between the fans and the players have been amazing. I'm excited to go to all these new places, new countries and new venues, and obviously returning venues, as well.

Yeah, we've really enjoyed the experience and the ride.

THE MODERATOR: Thank you, guys. Good luck this week.