00:00Welcome back to in-game live all-access hour two of the program here where we are chatting
00:09about the 152nd Open Championship at Royal True and there's a lot of action underway
00:14out there.
00:15I'm Charlie Hume.
00:16I'm the co-host of the Smiley Show alongside Smiley Kaufman who is out traipsing around
00:20Royal True and watching some some major championship golf on a Sunday, but I am thrilled now to
00:26be joined by a guy, Bill Haas, who is not only a phenomenal player, a 2011 FedEx Cup
00:32champion, a six-time winner on the PGA Tour, and a guy who finished top 10 the last time
00:38we played the Open here at True in 2016, but he's also a family friend.
00:42Bill, it's great to see you.
00:44I know my granddad and your dad are big buddies.
00:47In fact, we were talking on the break about the Haas Family Golf Center, I believe it's
00:51called down there in Greenville, North Carolina, where not so long ago I was taking lessons
00:54from your brother, Jay Jr.
00:56So appreciate you making the time to come hang here on a Sunday, Bill.
01:02I think I got to laugh a little bit because I think the last time we saw each other in
01:07person, I think I shot a roughly 1 million at Chanticleer in your cart.
01:13You had to witness that debacle that day, but put a lot of work in since then, Bill.
01:17We're down to like a tidy 3.3 now.
01:20So I'm going to have to get like a redemption shot so you can see that I'm not the awful
01:23golfer I was on that day.
01:25Yeah, for sure.
01:26You know, Chanticleer, they're about to do a renovation here.
01:29So you got another year before you can come back and redeem yourself.
01:35We'll do it.
01:36We'll do it when they open back up.
01:37That's perfect.
01:38That's perfect.
01:39I guess he's some time to really kind of work up some confidence and, you know, get some
01:42notes on the reno at Chanticleer.
01:43So I love it.
01:44Well, Bill, the place I think that it's worth starting, obviously, is 2016 at True, right?
01:49So great top 10 finish for you at two under.
01:52You were only four shots off J.B. Holmes, who finished in third place.
01:56Now, here's a question I have for you.
01:58What sport were Henrik and Stinson and Phil Mickelson playing, and how did they finish
02:02at 20 and 17 under respectively?
02:05Because looking back at that leaderboard in preparation for this week, you're just thinking
02:09how?
02:10How'd they do it?
02:11Yeah, I don't know.
02:14I remember that course just it seemed like every tee shot for me, I was fitting it in
02:21to a tiny area, and it was not unplayable, but you were making par at best if you didn't
02:28hit it in the fairway.
02:29And, you know, Phil's not known to be, you know, the straightest of drivers.
02:34Henrik was, but the scores they were shooting just shows how good they are in those conditions.
02:40And they obviously must have been fueling off of each other and just kind of playing
02:44match play, especially down there in the back nine.
02:46And instead of making pars, they were making birdies.
02:50Those are amazing scores.
02:52I remember thinking those were two of the best scores, you know, in major history when
02:56they did it.
02:57It has to be.
02:58I mean, just unbelievable playing in that condition with that sort of a test.
03:02And I think we've heard a lot this week about how you can't really prepare for an open championship,
03:08right?
03:09I mean, for example, on the practice rounds they're playing on Tuesday and Wednesday,
03:12I'm told there was more of like that north-northwest wind, Brysons drove like four greens on the
03:17front nine.
03:18Then they come out Thursday, Friday, it's more south-southwest.
03:21So the difficulty of the nines flips and you got guys who are shooting just a million and
03:25missing the cut.
03:26They're just shockers of names.
03:27Did you, when you were coming into that week, did you have a game plan in mind and how much
03:32did that change according to the wind direction and weather?
03:36Yeah.
03:37You know, I always went over a few days before and some buddies would come maybe and we would
03:42go play other courses, you know, try to find famous courses that played on, that the British
03:48will be played on and just have fun and just to kind of get used to the, mainly the time
03:54change and a little bit of Lynx golf and just try to enjoy myself.
04:01But I don't know that there is a recipe, you know, certainly Rory, he's my pick almost
04:05every week.
04:07The other guys that missed the cut that typically wouldn't, it doesn't make much sense, but
04:13I think it does show you that those courses seem to, it allows other people in the mix,
04:20I guess, because it does seem over here in the States on the PGA Tour, you can pretty
04:24much pick and choose your three or four guys at the top every time.
04:30And they impressively, they show up every time.
04:33And it seems like the British Open allows for, you know, there's three guys on the top
04:3710 currently that I don't necessarily even know and I'm around quite a bit, so it just
04:43kind of, I don't really know why that happens or how you prepare for it or what those guys
04:47did better.
04:48What has Billy Horschel done this far, you know, so far better than the rest of the people?
04:53I don't know that that's the case, it's just maybe a few bounces here or there have gone
04:56his way.
04:58It's a very challenging setup, but also fair in a sense for everyone.
05:03I love hearing you talk about going over early just to kind of immerse yourself in Lynx Golf
05:07and get a feel for different courses.
05:09And I was actually just over with my dad for the first time experiencing Lynx Golf in Scotland.
05:14What are some of your other favorites that you played as part of these sort of prep tours,
05:18but just, you know, kind of like you said, just to go have fun and experience it?
05:23They're all fun and it's kind of dependent on weather.
05:28You know, there were days I'd get over there early and I'm looking at my buddies like,
05:30are we sure we're going out and playing in this?
05:32You know, this is just supposed to be fun and I say we go to the pub for a few hours
05:36and call it quits.
05:37But yeah, I don't know, I mean, I always, I think Carnoustie, St. Andrews, certainly
05:44that was my best open there at Troon and so that, that place is special to me.
05:49I actually like St. George's down there in the, off the English coast there towards London
05:55and just the towns that they're in, I think I enjoyed that more than anything.
06:02Just kind of being in those old towns that actually have history versus the American
06:08history and old courses, you know, you might have one a hundred years old, they're over
06:12there, they're 400 years old.
06:14It's pretty amazing.
06:15It's unbelievable.
06:16Yeah, just staying in St. Andrews for like the last five days of our trip and you're
06:20just looking around at some of these structures and just thinking what a cool, you know, rich
06:24in history sort of place.
06:25So, you know, we talked a little bit about that today, Gary Williams and others about,
06:29you know, why it's worth going and doing that trip, but here, you're hearing to hear from
06:32Bill Haas as well.
06:33So worth, worth it to go over there and do it.
06:35I'm curious, Bill, because here's a perspective that probably only you can provide is that
06:40there's been some criticism of the setup this week.
06:43I mean, it's, it's, which I find delightful as a fan, you know, you're seeing Si Woo Kim
06:48ace that par 3 17th at 238 yards early in the day with the long iron in his hand.
06:54And then later in the day, you have Scotty Sheffler hitting a three wood.
06:56And then finally, the last group comes through and Shane Lowry and Dan Brown are hitting
06:59driver there.
07:00I mean, do you separating the fan perspective from the player perspective, you know, do
07:05you take issue with some of the tough setup or is it like, this is open championship week.
07:10You just got to sign up for this.
07:14I don't know.
07:15I think if I was playing, I'd be critical of the setup, but I'm, I think I'm with you
07:19as a fan, you know, I think that's pretty cool.
07:23Seeing Shane Lowry, not being, you know, scared to pull out driver and, you know, in
07:29the last group of the day and, and try to pull on, try to execute the shot that he needed
07:33to hit.
07:34And he, he figured three would probably get up in the wind and not get there.
07:37And you know, that's what he had to do.
07:39You know, I look at that tee shot when they, when they show the shot from behind and it
07:45shows the shot tracer.
07:47And when I just thinking to myself, man, I would hit this ball, I might hit this ball
07:53right.
07:54Of the railroad tracks, right.
07:55You know, into that wind.
07:56It just looks so difficult.
07:57And I think I, as a fan, I like watching the carnage, just like, I think what you're saying,
08:05Bill, I think there were a couple of days with 30 mile per hour, left, right.
08:08Winds.
08:09And I think I hit some balls that might still be spinning up in the air over there in Scotland
08:12might not have landed yet.
08:14I just, it's, it's wild.
08:16Some of those conditions, I mean, even like the approach that Shane had into 18 yesterday,
08:19the hits over in the bleachers, he just knows that as soon as he hits, he's trying to cut
08:23it.
08:24And it, it's just gone.
08:25So I, yeah, I find it delightful, but I can understand how these guys might say, well,
08:28hold on a second.
08:29I'd love to play a little bit better.
08:30We have less than a minute here.
08:31So just quickly today, names of the top of leaderboard, who do you like to get it done
08:36at the 152nd open championship?
08:40You know, I've just watched the first couple of holes here.
08:42And then yesterday I thought Billy Horschel was very impressive.
08:46His up and downs, his putting, he had a handful of four or five, six footers that didn't
08:53leave the middle of the hole.
08:54And, and I think that's, he, he just looks solid and not, and I don't know how to explain
09:00that.
09:01I just, I think he's going to be in the mix, but now all of a sudden, I think he just bogeyed
09:05a hole number four maybe.
09:08And he was only two, two ahead of Sheffler, Rahm, guys that have been there a bunch and,
09:15and, and one.
09:16And I think that means something, especially when you get to 10, 11, 12, you know, if you
09:22make pars there, the five under is going to win.
09:25And if I can see even par, you know, being in the mix by the end.
