56th Annual RBC Heritage Presented By Boeing
South Carolina’s Annual Golf Tournament
A PGA Tour Signature Event!
Presented by the Heritage Classic Foundation
April 15-21, 2024
843-671-2448
http://www.RBCHeritage.com
http://www.Facebook.com/RBCHeritage
Info@HeritageClassicFoundation.com
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WHHI Daily News Anchor: Bob Stevens
April 2024
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32 Office Park Rd, Hilton Head Island, SC 29928
after The Crucible of the Masters last
week you can see it on the guys faces
how much fun they’re having coming to
harbort toown for this week’s RBC
Heritage presented by Boeing I just just
take the smiles on the faces of
Defending Champion Matthew Fitzpatrick
and Savannah’s Z open Champion Brian
Harmon yeah this is one of my absolute
favorite stops all year um state of
South Carolina I’m I’m so happy that
they’ve got such a good field this is
such a great event and um they’ve always
supported this event even when it got a
little dicey there uh I don’t know seven
eight years ago we were afraid we’re
going to lose this tournament I’m so
glad that it’s still here and kind of
made it through and and they’ve got a
great fiing great weather it’s going to
be a fantastic event it always seems
like you have a good following here
being a local guy so entering this
tournament how special is it to always
come back getting to play basically in
your home backyard and also do you have
any local friends or family that you
plan on seeing this week yeah we always
entertain a pretty big crowd uh this
week my parents my in-laws a bunch of
friends from Savannah uh they always
come out and support which is fantastic
this is the first tournament that I
attended as a spectator uh first PJ Tour
event that I played um as an Amer and
yes so for me this is a this is an
incredible spot I love the golf course
um and like I said it’s it’s always
really really comforting to be back here
it was it was good fun yeah it was good
fun like I said there to something I’ve
seen happen a lot so you know being here
over the years and and seeing it from
other other players so um yeah it was
good fun to be a part of it this time
and obviously defending your title this
week I guess you know knowing the
Affinity that you have for this place
having spent a lot of time here
especially as a kid I guess what are
some of those memories that come
flooding back specifically to you know
that that Sunday here last year uh yeah
just the shot in the playoff you know
the final shot to to win
um that that’s the the the first thing
that that my mind goes back to and um
having my fiance here my parents here uh
to sort of see that was um you know just
made it made it extra special for a
place that we’ve been coming for so for
so long and um to be a winner of this
event is uh is incredible how has the
reception that you receive everywhere
changed since the open and how exciting
is it to think to Thursday morning or
afternoon whenever it is that you are
announced at this event closest to home
a lot of people you probably haven’t
seen or heard since July uh welcoming
you here yeah it’s it’s certainly been a
different experience um being a major
Champion but I’m I’m I’m here for all of
it I I love it it’s been it’s been
fantastic it’s given me uh what I feel
like is a little bit more room to try
and perform the way that I feel like
that I can perform not that it’s giv me
any sort of of a cushion but it’s given
me a little extra confidence and it’s
given me a little extra motivation to
try and work really hard to try and put
my game back into the place that’s good
enough to to win a major because of your
history in this area you you don’t come
into these tournaments unless you have
confidence to win but what is your ties
to this place and Hilton Head and the
fact that you were able to finally win
it last year what does that do for you
this year is there a pressure is there a
looseness how does that feel no it feels
the same as any other year I think for
me it just you got to go off where uh
where the current state of your game is
and um I feel like that’s it’s okay it’s
not it’s not as good as I want it to be
but it’s not as bad as I want it to be
you know so bad as it could be um so
yeah there’s no no pressure for me this
week I’m I’m just going to go out there
enjoy it you know there’s no cut to even
worry about um it’s about trying to be
probably aggressive for 4 days and and
try and make as many birdies and as few
Bogies as possible so um last Monday
when you were talking at the Masters a
lot of people asked about being in
Georgia you know home type of event are
these two weeks circled for you going
into the season every year and the
excitement level for you to to play so
close yeah for sure you grown up in
Savannah you’re almost a an adopted
South Carolinian over here and like I
said as a you know getting a chance to
play as an Amer here I I’m very familiar
with this place I I love this area I
love the coastal Empire so so I I’m I
like I said I’m just really thrilled
that this tournament is is getting such
a good field getting a little extra
recognition maybe some guys that that
wouldn’t normally play this event are
showing up and I’m I’m I’m fairly
certain they’ll fall in love with it and
it’ll be a a more permanent start on on
their schedules Matt this tournament
always has that rep of being after the
Masters everybody can kind of take a
breath and maybe relax a little bit more
but with this becoming a signature event
do you think the vibe and and what this
tournament is like is going to
change uh probably yeah I think it’s
probably easier in a 70 man field with
no cut to kind of get up for it again in
my opinion certainly that’s the way I
feel um I feel like you know when it has
a cut it’s kind of a little bit
more relaxed and you’re like well you
know tough week last week kind of come
in here um I mean particularly depending
on how you’ve played the previous week
as well you know I think if you play
poorly it’s probably easy to to get up
for a week with a cut whereas if you you
played well it’s like well you know I
had a good week last week I’m playing
pretty nicely I’m kind of just going to
go with the flow whereas I think when
it’s 70 man no cut it’s it’s easier to
kind of continue that momentum that you
may have picked up from Augusta to um
you know to push on and and keep going
because you know You’ got four days
that’s plenty of time to to make up any
ground on you know on any scores so um
for me I think it’s probably
I you know I think people might be more
up for it now it’s it’s like you say
it’s more of a signature event so and
from the times you visited here in your
youth what was the one thing you most
wanted to show your fiance when you
first took her
here uh I mean there’s there’s loads of
things really but probably um probably
Salty Dog Cafe is probably a good one um
yeah ice cream over there is always good
but um yeah you know just wanding around
the uh the harbor where the the
lighthouse is and you know looking in
the shop just general stuff driving
around it’s uh it’s just such a nice
sort of quiet quiet Island so it’s great
was it different coming back after being
here a kid and now being the champion
walking back to Hilton Head outside of
golf what was it like driving down 278
and William Hilton Parkway coming here
and appreciating Hilton Head in a
different way maybe this time you know I
mean it still feels the same it’s just
like a nice bonus of of being you know
last year’s Champion so um I think for
me I’ve just been looking forward to to
coming back and obviously uh sort of
looking around it feels like it’s the
same every year for me and and that’s
what makes it such an exciting week you
know we we know what we’re getting um as
a family we love being here and and I
think that’s what makes it so special
when we come back the story of two
Mayors one a past mayor one still a
present mayor and the huge impact this
tournament has had on them and their
communities
