LIV GOLF TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP MIAMI

October 22, 2023

Bryson DeChambeau

Anirban Lahiri

Charles Howell

Trump National Doral

Crushers GC

Press Conference

Q. Congratulations to the Crushers. Question for Bryson. I know you shaved your legs, you're all about performance and advantages. How do you think that gave you the edge this season?

BRYSON DeCHAMBEAU: It was all about air he dynamics so cleaning that up gave me a little more speed on the tee and was allowing me to hit it farther out there.

Q. You had birdied three out of four and then you went birdie, bogey, birdie, bogey. Was that in your mind? What was going through your mind as you were close?

BRYSON DeCHAMBEAU: Was weird, you was hitting my driver very well on the front nine but then for whatever reason on the back nine, I started to turn the face over and I kind of lost control of the face. I got nervous out there. You want to do well for your team.

So there was a lot of nerves going and I started overcooking it and 17 I blocked it and 18 again I was -- I just pulled it, unfortunately.

And again, that bogey, birdie was just a result of me not driving it my best but if I had my driver the way it was, it would have been a lot more under par. But shoot, it's about the team this week and these guys got it done. I couldn't be more proud of them and Ban stepping up to the plate shooting, what was it, 7, geez. And Paul, playing well as you always do. Charles, consistent. I couldn't ask for more from these guys.

Q. You were hot all day but with the team championship, is anything going through your mind at the end to say, hey, I've really got to keep this up?

ANIRBAN LAHIRI: Oh, hell yeah. When I was 7-under playing 18, which was my 17th hole and we were only two or three shots ahead, and you know, normal circumstance, I'm going 15, 20 feet right of the flag. I went straight at it. Didn't hit a good shot. But you know, the mentality was different. It didn't matter where I was or what I was shooting. What mattered was where the team was and what the team needed. I'm just glad I showed up for the team on a Sunday.

Q. Obviously with your team doing well, last three holes, you guys each birdied to help the team finish it off. How does that make you guys feel, even though maybe not your best day of golf?

CHARLES HOWELL III: This golf course is brutal and every shot counts. There's a lot of water out here, a lot of crosswinds and a lot of difficult shots. I was feeling out there. It's a tough day. Playing for myself but also playing for these teammates, it was brutal, brutal.

Q. 16, what happened on the tee shot? What happened with the ball?

PAUL CASEY: Got to make my apologies. Getting on a flight to baby-sit my kids. I'm not skipping your press conference. Just want to say I love these guys, and I'm going to go.

Q. What happened with the tee shot on 16 and how did the ball land where it landed and what were you thinking on the second shot back to the green?

BRYSON DeCHAMBEAU: So I've been pulling the driver a little bit and I don't know what was happening. I think the face has flattened a little bit.

I don't know what's going on after but I've got to check that after because it kept happening. The ball started curving a lot. And I hit it and I pulled it a little bit but it just went forever left. The wind was off the right and hit the top of the grandstands and went over, and my drop zone I was going to drop in a sidehill lie out of the rough over palm trees, it was just not feasible. And like I got a perfect lie in front of the green on 2 and it was 109 yards and we had the Ryan and I was like, it's a 109-shot, whatever, let's go. And hit it to 20 feet and made an incredible put.

Q. They got to within one or two and you made that birdie putt. That turned the momentum back to you?

BRYSON DeCHAMBEAU: It did. I didn't really know where everybody else stood because somebody could make an eagle or bogey or birdie, you just don't know how it's going to shake out. So for me I was focused on making as many birdies as I possibly could and not making any big mistakes and that's what I tried to do.

Q. How do you get a yardage from an opposite green over a grandstand like that?

BRYSON DeCHAMBEAU: Thank you to Bushnell. We need to get a sponsorship for the Crushers. Come on, Bushnell. We're using them.

Q. Last year, DJ admitted his hands were not exactly steady on the last putt. Did the nerves kick in anymore today? Was it more than you thought it was going to be? How did you deal with that?

BRYSON DeCHAMBEAU: Yes it was very nerving wracking. Finishing it off, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, I was super nervous not knowing what could happen. Everybody was in flux and I wasn't driving it particularly my best. I did it very well on the front nine but the back nine didn't do it as well, and it's one of those things that I was just trying to hit the best shot I possibly could. I was super nervous. I couldn't feel my arms over the ball on the last hole.

Q. Did you have any moments that you thought you were a little bit more nervous than you might be coming in?

CHARLES HOWELL III: We are watching the leaderboards, and I was thankful every time I looked up and saw Bryson and Ban make another birdie. You know you've got these finishing holes ahead, right, and there's water everywhere and trickiness and the greens were fast.

Yeah, and then the 18th tee shot, that had my full attention and when that went in the fairway, I felt pretty good about it then.

Q. I wanted to just ask Charles about the format, when all four guys count, obviously a bad hole or two from any one guy could really impact things.

BRYSON DeCHAMBEAU: Yes.

Q. If you're playing by yourself, that can happen, and it's just probably notices. Do you think about that as you're out there at all or do you have to try protect at all?

CHARLES HOWELL III: For sure, right. There are certain times where let's say Ban and Bryson are rolling and they can be aggressive and keep going but there's some situations you need to be really careful and mindful of. Yeah, if you go out there and make a couple bogeys, it affects everybody, not just me, but it infects three other guys.

Absolutely, this format today, on this golf course, brutally difficult. Brutal.

Q. If I remember a year ago, you had Sunday off and you expressed some disappointment about not being able to play Sunday. As the season unfolded this year, 14 events, guff more giddyap to get to where you did today?

BRYSON DeCHAMBEAU: Absolutely. We have all been working hard even since last year. A bit of a shorter season for people jumping in. We knew that with our games, we're a very consistent team, and I think that just showed itself over the course of the year.

Even though we didn't always win, we were right there and we had a chance to win most of the time, and it just shows, when awful our games are B to A games, we can win any week. And especially this Sunday, we had our full attention focused on making sure we got the job done today and they all did it very well today.

Q. It's one thing to come to LIV but it's another thing to join Bryson's team. Can you talk about the decision to actually join Bryson in this journey, if that played a part of it? Obviously it did.

CHARLES HOWELL III: Yeah, I mean, well, first off, to come to LIV was obviously a big decision, and really exciting and a great decision in my life and my career.

But to do it and be a part of Bryson and Bryson's team, Bryson is someone I've looked up to for a long time. Sadly he's younger than me but I first knew about Bryson in college. There's a guy down there that's playing the same length irons and he's a golf machine guy. I'm like, oh my gosh, I like this guy already.

BRYSON DeCHAMBEAU: Funny enough, remember in 2004 when you went to the St. Mark's Shootout?

CHARLES HOWELL III: Yes, absolutely.

BRYSON DeCHAMBEAU: In Fresno. I was actually 11 years old hitting in front of all these professionals, Nick Watney, Jason Gore, Peter Jacobsen was up there with Sign Boy and I hit three drivers in front of them and I was so nervous as an 11-year-old and I remember them coming to me after saying, great job, man, we'll see you out there soon.

So I've looked up to him my own life.

CHARLES HOWELL III: He just reminded us of the age difference again. It's a big 14 years.

But to be a part of it with Bryson, what he putts into this, how hard he works, what he thinks about, he's such a wonderful captain on top of being a great player, a massive heart and a great person. As happy as I am for this, I'm happy to see this guy win and succeed always because he deserves every bit of it.

Q. A bit of a leap of faith to come to LIV. Can you talk about that and coming to this particular team?

ANIRBAN LAHIRI: Yeah, for me, when I initially started, my family, my wife and I started looking at it and thinking about it. I had a few different options to start with. And then when my agency basically asked me, who is the one person you want to go with, and I had the three or four options in front of me, I said, I want to go with Bryson. I've known him for when he had just turned pro, even from when he was an amateur, I went out with him a little bit, I knew hem from then, not very close, but I had an idea he was a pretty chill guy.

And also just to join Paul and Chuckie was a great honor, and I think the last 14, 15 months, I've had the time of my life. You know, this team is like family now. We have all kind of grown together. I think he's grown about eight or ten years in the last 14 months having three stepdads on the team but it's an by pleasure. It's so much fun. We guys have a chance. You get to learn a lot from everyone on the team. His work ethic, Charles is just genius and Paul just makes it look too easy.

For me, it's like I just come out and hang with them and it's inspiring. I think I've elevated my game thanks to being on this team and I look forward to doing that going forward.

Q. You obviously had a specific kind of player that you wanted to have on your team, veteran players, consistent. It paid off obviously today. Can you just talk about that thought process?

BRYSON DeCHAMBEAU: I think when you have a team you want players that are going to show up day-in and day-out. You don't want some players that can be really good one day and not the other and volatile.

When I was choosing my team, a lot of it was there were players that wanted to be on my team and there were players that I asked to be on my team. And what's funny is all three of these wanted to be on my team and I couldn't have picked a better group of guys to be with. Because one, they are wiser than me, so I wanted to gain more knowledge, what they had.

. And two, they are recall dedicated to the draft and getting better every day and that's what you need in the team format and team competition, and that's what you need at LIV to win and we proved that today.

Q. The way Jeddah ended --

BRYSON DeCHAMBEAU: Terrible for me.

Q. -- how much does this make up for it?

BRYSON DeCHAMBEAU: It definitely helps. Any time you get a win with a team, I'd say honestly that's more important than individual stuff. Look, majors are great but there's a team behind you there. I've got a team, my own team.

But having the Crushers be front and center of the first inaugural full season, just means the world. We are part of history and I couldn't be more proud of these guys and definitely takes the sting out of last week. But the team is what it's all about, and I couldn't be more proud.

Q. How long was 16 today? What was 16 playing today?

BRYSON DeCHAMBEAU: For my second shot? It was 330 but I don't have a 3-wood right now. I had a soft driver and pulled it over and turned it. Then I had 109 in for my second shot.