Brian Harman’s journey toward becoming “Champion Golfer of the Year” at Royal Liverpool (Hoylake) last July might have seemed like a walk in the park, since he cruised to a six-shot victory in the storied Open Championship. But the Titleist Brand Ambassador admitted beating the best golfers in the world to claim the Claret Jug was anything but easy.
Joining CBS Sports’ Jim Nantz in an informative “fireside” chat to highlight the Acushnet Company Opening Presentation Wednesday morning at the 71st PGA Show, Harman relived his historic Open Championship victory and noted that winning his first major “was the culmination of a lot of hard work” that led to a lot of great shots and eventually led to his name being etched alongside many of the greatest players in the game on the coveted Claret Jug.
“I think everyone dreams about winning a major and then when you get in contention and the opportunity presents itself, you just have to trust your swing and be able to execute under pressure,” analyzed Harman, whose rounds of 67-65-69-70 to finish at 13-under-par 271 left him six strokes clear of the field at Royal Liverpool.
Harman said his life has changed since he won at Hoylake six months ago – or has it?
“I have three small children and they don’t know what this is, or really care that I won the Open Championship,” chuckled Harman while holding the Claret Jug at Wednesday’s Titleist presentation. “I’ve spent all of my life trying to win golf championships. I’ve never had a backup plan career-wise. I guess if I wasn’t a golf professional, I would be doing something in the medical field, but I’ve never had a Plan B. Winning a major has just motivated me to work harder.”
Harman never wavered coming down the stretch at Royal Liverpool six months ago, and he’s now looking forward to the Masters in April.
“A big part of trusting your swing under pressure is trusting your equipment,” said Harman, the lefthander from Savannah, Georgia. “I’ve trusted Titleist equipment for as long as I can remember, and when I was coming down the stretch on Sunday, I was confident that I had the equipment and the swing to finish the job. It helped a lot that I got off to such a great start the first two days (shooting 67-65), and then I just tried to play solid golf the last two days and everything worked out.”
Hundreds of PGA Golf Professionals and industry professionals attended the annual Acushnet (Titleist) Opening Presentation Wednesday in the Linda W. Chapin Theater at the Orange County Convention Center. Titleist Director of U.S. Partnerships Bobby Acciardo welcomed the PGA of America Golf Professionals in attendance, noting that “As PGA Professionals, you are the driving force behind golf’s engine and at the center of the great momentum the game is enjoying.”
Nantz, the voice of Titleist for three decades, was recently inducted into the PGA of America Hall of Fame and called his appearance at the PGA Show “one of the highlights of my schedule every year, something I always look forward to.” He will be calling the first PGA TOUR event of the season for CBS Sports this week, but he won’t be doing it live from Torrey Pines. He will call the golf from the stadium in Baltimore, where he will be calling the AFC Championship game between the Ravens and Kansas City Chiefs.
Nantz, a member of the Royal & Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews (R&A), closed his chat with Harman Wednesday by offering to exchange the coveted R&A necktie he was wearing for the Claret Jug Harman was clutching. When Harman vetoed the trade, Nantz gave the 2023 Champion Golfer of the Year his R&A necktie anyway, officially welcoming to the club after winning the Open Championship at Royal Liverpool six months ago.