Keegan BradleyMatt Slocum
Keegan Bradley says he felt for Kevin Na last week at the Players Championship, having experienced similar issues in the past.
Na reignited the slow play debate, enduring hecklers and cat calls from spectators last Sunday over his lengthy pre-shot routines as he watched a three-shot lead quickly evaporate.
"It seemed like he was struggling against himself a little bit out there," said Bradley, the defending champion at this week's HP Byron Nelson Championship. "I give him credit for coming forward and talking about it and I sympathize with him."
Bradley said while he's also taken some criticism for slow play, he's never had to deal with being put "on the clock" by Tour officials.
"I have struggled with it a little bit. I've never felt that I have affected others, which if I did, I would be mortified."
"I feel like if it gets bad, people should be penalized."
Bradley, in his second full year on the Tour, said it's a situation that takes some getting used to, especially by younger players who have never experienced the atmosphere and pressure of a Tour weekend.
"It's just a matter of getting used to it, which I think you kind of have to go through it a couple of times. You have to be thrown in and fend for yourself."
A PGA rookie a year ago, Bradley showed some veteran poise by closing with a 68 in the final round of the Byron Nelson event to tie Ryan Palmer and force a playoff. He went on to par the first sudden-death hole to claim his first career victory. Bradley recalled that originally he wasn't scheduled to play the Nelson event and only did so at the prodding of his caddie.
"I was setting up my schedule and I was going to play Colonial and skip this tournament," explained Bradley. "I had made my decision, and Pepsi, my caddie, said, 'Look, I think you should play' - he's never said anything like this to me in my career. He's supportive. And he said, 'I think you should play Nelson and skip Colonial. Nelson fits your game better,' and sure enough, we came here and won. Pepsi knew something I didn't, and thank God he convinced me to do it."
Bradley said that victory went a long way in helping him to deal with the pressure of winning the PGA Championship in a playoff later in the year over Jason Dufner.
"This tournament might have set up my whole career," said the nephew of Hall of Famer Pat Bradley. "People don't realize what the stress level is of a rookie on the PGA Tour, trying to keep your card. I played on the Hooters Tour and thinking about going back is scary. And to know I was on the Tour for at least two and a half more years was huge. At the PGA I didn't have that pressure of having to win my first tournament or having to worry about making enough money to keep my card, stuff like that, that rookies have to think about."
While Bradley has yet to return to the winner's circle since the PGA victory, he does have three top-10 results this year including a loss in a playoff at the Northern Trust Open.
"When you start playing bad golf out here it seems like you get too serious, too much like a job. It's important to remind yourself you're a PGA Tour player and some people are working in offices in the city and we're out here."
"I try to remind myself every day that I'm a PGA Tour player and this is what I wanted to do my whole life, and I'm living my dream."
THIS WEEK IN GOLF
PGA TOUR: HP BYRON NELSON CHAMPIONSHIP
COURSE: TPC Four Seasons Resort (7,166 yards, par 70).
TELEVISION: Golf Channel (Thursday-Friday, 3-6 p.m., 8:30-11:30 p.m.) and CBS (Saturday-Sunday, 3-6 p.m.).
OH CANADA: Graham DeLaet, Matt McQuillan, Mike Weir, Stephen Ames
NOTES: Phil Mickelson, the 1996 winner, is making his 14th appearance in the event and first since 2007. He won at Pebble Beach in February for his 40th PGA Tour title and was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame last week. ... Matt Kuchar, who won The Players Championship for his fourth PGA Tour title last week, is in the field. ...The field boasts four of the top 15 players in the world and nine of the top 50. ... Rory Sabbatini won in 2009, closing with a 6-under 64 for a tournament-record 19-under 261 total.
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EUROPEAN TOUR: VOLVO WORLD MATCH PLAY CHAMPIONSHIP
COURSE: Finca Cortesin Golf Club (7,290 yards, par 72).
TELEVISION: Golf Channel (Thursday-Friday, 8 a.m.-noon; Saturday, 6:30-11:30 a.m., 6:30-9:30 p.m.; Sunday, 6 a.m.-noon, 7-9:30 p.m.).
OH CANADA: No Canadians entered in this event
NOTES: Ian Poulter beat fellow Englishman Luke Donald 2 and 1 in last year's final. ...England's Paul Casey withdrew Sunday because of a right shoulder injury. Sweden's Robert Karlsson took his spot in the 24-man field. ... The format sees eight groups of three, with the leading two players in each after the round-robin games going through to the knockout phase.
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LPGA TOUR: SYBASE MATCH PLAY CHAMPIONSHIP
COURSE: Hamilton Farm Golf Club (6,553 yards, par 72).
TELEVISION: Golf Channel (Wednesday, 5-6 p.m., 9-10 p.m.; Thursday, midnight-1 a.m., 6:30-8:30 p.m.; Friday, 12:30-2:30 a.m., 6:30-8:30 p.m.; Saturday, 12:30-2:30 a.m., 3-6 p.m., 9:30-11:30 p.m.; Sunday, 4-6 p.m.; 9:30-11:30 p.m.).
OH CANADA: No Canadians entered in this event
NOTES: World number three Suzann Pettersen is the defending champion. ... Eight of the top-10 golfers in the world, including top ranked Yani Tseng, are among the 64 player field which also includes Ai Miyazato, Angela Stanford, Stacy Lewis and Sun Young Yoo who have all won this year on the LPGA Tour. ...After single rounds Thursday and Friday, the third round and quarterfinals will be played Saturday and the semifinals and final are Sunday
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NATIONWIDE TOUR: BMW CHARITY PRO-AM
COURSES Thornblade Club (7,024 yards, par 71), Greenville Country Club (6,864 yards, par 72) and The Carolina Country Club (6,951 yards, par 72).
TELEVISION: Golf Channel (Thursday-Friday, 12:30-2:30 p.m.; Saturday, 1-3 p.m.; Sunday, 2-4 p.m.; Monday, midnight-2 a.m.).
OH CANADA: Stuart Anderson, Chris Baryla, Bryan DeCorso, Brad Fritsch, Adam Hadwin, James Love, Jon Mills, Nick Taylor, Ryan Yip
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CN CANADIAN WOMEN'S TOUR: Richmond Country Club, B.C.
NOTES: A total of 36 Canadians are in the field for the two-day, season opening event. Jessica Shepley of Oakville, Ont., Kirby Dreher of Fort St. John, B.C. and Samantha Richdale of Kelowna, B.C. are among the LPGA Tour players entered. ... Sue Kim of Langley, B.C. comes into the event having just taken medalist honours in qualifying for the U.S. Women's Open. ...The winner earn's the first of three Tour exemptions into the 2012 CN Canadian Women's Open which will be played at The Vancouver Golf Club in Coquitlam, B.C. this August.
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NGA PRO GOLF TOUR: Cherry Blossom Classic
COURSE: Cherry Blossom Golf & Country Club, Georgetown, KY
OH CANADA: Yohann Benson, Marc-Etienne Bussieres, Sebastian Szirmak,
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eGOLF PROFESSIONAL TOUR: Willow Creek Open
COURSE: High Point Country Club, High point, N.C.
OH CANADA: Cam Burke, Matt Hill, Zach Schnurr,
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