SENIOR PGA CHAMPIONSHIP

April 18, 2026

Scott Hend

Press Conference

The Concession Golf Club

THE MODERATOR: We're joined now by Scott Hend here at the 2026 Senior PGA Championship. Scott, how do you feel about your round out there today?

SCOTT HEND: Yeah, it was a real grind. The greens were obviously way different from being first group out yesterday, and I struggled to get ahold of it on the front nine. Just tried to hang in there all day.

THE MODERATOR: Questions.

Q. Eight of 11 Australians make the cut here this week, and two of them are one stroke from the leader. What does it mean for Australian golf?

SCOTT HEND: We're very good.

Q. Why are you very good?

SCOTT HEND: Because we're fortunate to have 300-plus days a year that we can play golf in nice conditions and great golf courses, and we're fairly competitive.

Q. All your scoring kind of in the back last, what, seven, eight holes, whatever it was. Was there something that turned your round around after the turn?

SCOTT HEND: No, I felt like I played all right on the front nine. Just got tricked by the wind a little bit. Like on eight I hit a great shot. Just went a little left to right. Hit the green, rolled in the water.

As I said to you guys yesterday, the first round I short-sided myself and got in trouble. Today I did the same thing, and when I short-sided myself, it went in the water.

So this is the type of golf course where your risk/reward is there. You just got to -- it's hard to get the wind. It's hard to get exactly where it's coming from.

Q. We have a very packed leaderboard. What do you have to do to win tomorrow?

SCOTT HEND: Hit one shot better than everyone else. Obviously the old cliche.

Just stick to my game plan. Play to my ability. If I play to my ability, then I've got a chance to win. If I don't win, then as long as I finish as hard as I possibly can, that's fine.

I can go to sleep tomorrow night quite happily with those goals set and achieve those goals. Winning isn't the be all and end all. It's fantastic, but as long as I am happy with myself and my play, then that's the way it goes. Sometimes you just get beaten by a better player on the day.

Q. You also mentioned that getting onto the PGA TOUR Champions is a big deal.

SCOTT HEND: Yes.

Q. How much does that kind of play into whatever your game plan is tomorrow?

SCOTT HEND: Well, obviously this is a tournament

stand out by itself. No disrespect to the Senior PGA. It's a great title to have, but in the grand scheme of things it's a long list of tournaments that I need to try and play the best I can when I get an opportunity to try and rack up those points to get the exemption next year.

As I said, there's small goals along the way. Obviously the big goal is to stand at the end of the week with the trophy and say here it is. The small goals are also good goals to achieve.

Q. Holding the trophy, does that get you --

SCOTT HEND: Sure.

Q. It does get you on the tour?

SCOTT HEND: It would be a Champions Tour winner and you count on the money list, and I would be able to stay in my house in Jacksonville and travel instead of traveling 30 hours to go play tournaments overseas all the time with the young kids.