Inside the Arnold Palmer Pro-Am and Playing Bay Hill With Viktor Hovland

What is up and welcome back to a wildly special edition of the Dan Evan show down here in Orlando, Florida at the Arnold Palmer

Invitational and Josh you got to witness it firsthand today was pretty incredible.

It was obviously you got to play the Victor Hovelin which we played with DJ before we played with Thomas Peters and we're just

racking up the list now of great pros to have on.

Yeah well I got quite the special invite by some new friends at Mastercard and they found me a spot in the pro am.

And kind of brand new for all of this first the the draw the draft yeah yeah we got to start there that whole thing is just wild.

So essentially there's a whole thing the night before all the teams get together and every team has a number and then they randomize and draw numbers.

And once your team's number gets drawn you get to pick the player you want to play with and they slowly get crossed off the list.

Once your name gets called you get to pick from the remaining players and we made a very strong choice.

Yeah Victor Hovelin I mean how do you go wrong? What a fun guy great guy great for our brand to definitely fits in with our our type of people.

And you you wanted Tommy let's be honest you wanted Tommy.

Yeah he was taken before he was one of the few names that was taken before which was interesting.

We have no idea how that works.

Yeah Scotty was pre-taken Shay Lowry rose Justin Rose and Tommy Fleetwood word.

Yes pre called for probably some some higher up names who don't have to sit through a draw.

Sometimes you got to pay for Scotty Schuffler you know like Scotty Schuffler doesn't come free.

But surprisingly enough Rory was available.

Yeah he was the first pick of the draft very first pick number two with the Justin Thomas.

Yes first turn it back on yeah and we should also mention this is your first time at Bay Hill as well right.

First time at Bay Hill yeah first time at Bay Hill first time playing Bay Hill first time at the Arnold Palmer like all the first first time playing a PGA tour pro am.

Yeah yeah that that is crazy to think about.

I wish I had the gifts here to share and show but they're they're being shipped back with a shoulder be on the next show.

Yeah whatever and it's some cool stuff.

It's very cool.

So yeah we have to make our pick and we have quite the early tea time.

Yeah to get Havelin he was at 7 10 a.m.

So we like our time on the range started at 6 10.

So we had to be on site by like a little before 6 so we're leaving our hotel like 545.

What time do you set your alarm for?

Um which alarm because there was like 5 but I was like starting alarm 445 was the first one.

How do you balance that like is your first alarm before when you really want to be up or that's the time you want to be up and then you.

It's a great question then thank you.

I based it on what I call the emergency alarm okay which is like 30 minutes before I have to leave home or wherever I'm at.

So like today we were leaving at 545 my emergency alarm was on for 515.

So that's the last one and then they all work forward and then I work back about a half hour every 5 or 10 depending on how I'm feeling sometimes I'm just mix it up.

Yeah but that's it was yours the same 445 is.

Yeah my first one was 445 and then I know that snooze is like 9 or 10 minutes or whatever yeah.

So I try to break it up so if I'm not waking up well so I went I think it was 445 448.

Oh god.

451 and then I knew my 445 snooze would go off and come back 454 so then I would like and then my snooze is what.

Yeah you could only set three alarms and have them for as many hours as you would maybe yeah.

Once you get in the snooze cycle but I think I was up by alarm too.

No you were ready to go to yeah it's different waking up for anything at 545 and waking up to go play bail and 545.

Yeah yeah I like I would say yard work yeah way harder to wake up to 545 no chance you could sleep in there.

Playing Bayhill with Victor Hovland right out of bed easy yeah we got a new breath it's like

we're in a drive either we just got a new group 545 it's pitch black out there and foggy and foggy

and then you've got to have like the full Bayhill experience you got the morning due in the morning

you got the fog all over and then but it's time you got to your second nine full sun.

I'm gonna tell you like the the biggest like sort of high pressure moment is the first shot

on the first tee oh yeah I mean we we have the whole experience the whole thing like the guy

comes out wearing the blazer with like the little name tag on and he was like now for the seven 10

a.m. t. time Dan Evans like two people left one with me I'm self clapping the two people are in

this room right now that was great we were very pumped for me yeah oh yeah I'm being done I will say

though I got that first one off the tee yeah it was solid I've been up to pro hands with you now

both times you said you were nervous going in and you played well both times now so maybe you're

just decent at golf I don't know yeah but I it doesn't make me any less nervous for whatever

it is it's not like oh I've got this in the bag is it the crowd or is it the pro that gets you

nervous because the experience in general I would say all of it yeah it's like the opportunity

you're invited you're like taking up this spot and like you don't want to embarrass yourself and

you've got a pro golfer who just smoked one from the back tees and then you go up to the yellows

and yeah people watching the group and it's just like everything you know it's so you you wanted

to go well and it to me it's like the second tee shot does not matter as much like you want

that to go well so you want them all to go well but like I feel like when I pray to the golf

gods for like one gift it's for just the opening tee shots that's in any round too yeah like if I

go out with my buddies at a muni it's nine a.m. that first shot is my most important yeah it sets

the tone yeah you have to yeah because you know it's a rough day if you just top that first one

and you're just like oh he okay here we go but it's even worse when you're at a pro you can't

just go like walk up pick it up put it back and you're doing it again yeah you're not reload no no

god no it's your victor goblin yeah well right would you see a lot though like the pros will

hit like multiple tee shots or like they'll make the putt and then they'll go over and like

like oh I want to practice on the Friday pin oh yeah you go like hit to like a random corner where

there is no company no so I can't like doing that a lot yeah but no it's I mean we we saw

that at the lip event as well that it because it is a still practice round for them at the end of

the day it's a day before the tournament yeah I mean essentially they've just set up the system

where we can go out there and hang out with them during their practice yeah that's really

what it is right like tournament starts tomorrow morning this is their last time seeing the course

before like it all counts and they're walking around with us guys there's all that it's a signature

event and we're just like a lolly guy dude and it's like a signature event based on like one of

the most notable figures in all of golf like there's so much about it that's the prestige of this

event and then here's us there's like there's like an air in the whole clubhouse and like on

all the ground that's like we should be respecting Arnie like that's what it feels like yeah

whatever I like think about us being there and like joking around and like

chooie me she's like maybe another weekend this is a mistake like do they know they get the wrong

name like I'll even tell you these tastes different there do that they do yeah there's just

something about it drink of the Arnie at the Arnie yeah you can't you can't beat that you can't

I will I will say though um you always know there's gonna be some gifts beforehand of course

gifts were great oh my god oh you walk right up first things first they hand you this like

vessel duffle bag which you've been asking for yes but like customed out with the little Arnie

umbrellas and like the liner has it the whole thing so nice then you step down a little bit and then

gift cards for Peter Miller yeah kind of fun um not even sure how much is on it yet

it's probably not a little yes I just assume it's uh you can buy a couple a couple sure it's

yeah then you got a little farther and uh you get a brand new cobra driver that was ridiculous

I don't believe it's the Arnold Palmer edition yes which is insane like that's got to be at least

a six seven hundred dollar driver easily and it's just in your bag yeah yeah wrap the brand

and go and then uh you get a brand new pair of Puma Arnold Palmer edition shoes oh I didn't even

see that one yeah oh they're in the duffle okay that's for the ship talk they're in the room for

like yeah I already packed like overpacked mmm I like I wasn't thinking you know whatever I know

but like I was like doing the whole thing where you have to like sit on your suitcase to see if

it I didn't have room for another duffle a brand new pair of shoes and whatever I blow this

Peter Miller gift card on wait a minute though hold on what's stopping you from just bringing the

bag as another bag because now you can put all your other stuff in there well the issue is you

only get so many carry-ons and all that so that I'll be like over bag you have the check

and duffle but I know it's it's a lot just get ruined immediately yeah I could have checked my

main suitcase and then carried the duffle on but then you know anything with the wheel so your

backpacking carry duffle yeah it's a lot it's a lot you want to be able to drag something at the

airport yeah well and I'm shipping stuff home anyway because when we finished our round there's

a great finishing whole gift which was this beautiful photo that we took on the first T

by the 18th T was printed and in gift form which is insane work in a frame in a frame which is

just crazy hand-signed yes by Victor Oblin which I still don't quite understand when he did that

I I don't they must have been coordinated this thing before and because right we took the photo

with him we played golf with him and then we got a gift that he had signed but he had never left us

yeah I don't understand yeah they hadn't done before but isn't it on the picture

no it's in like the plaque in the middle got you okay yeah that explains it pre-signed yeah

and unless he like dipped off him yeah he got a graph there he was I I did want to say shout out

to Victor Oblin he was very involved with the fans there's a good amount of people

yeah towards the end of the day and he was signing autographs for everybody taking pictures with

everybody which you don't got to do I wouldn't want to do it so like I respect for him and also he

um sort of I don't know like went along like you could talk to him ask him questions like he was

just up for it like he's having fun talking about whatever like well if you're cracking my dumb

jokes he's only laughing away like the whole thing I get to make like these guys you do it for

like enough years you have to do this every single week it's a lot that at some point you're like

I listen I don't I don't want to do small talk like I'm I'm not up for that you got to embrace it

at some point and I think a bit like I don't know if maybe I'm speaking for you I feel like you

were more when you were picking your player you wanted somebody that you'd vibe with more than like

let me just get the best player totally and you kind of got the best wall for

yeah but yeah for real like yeah for real to me like vibe is a big part of it yeah oh yeah if I

get to pick like you get up all the entire sheet with like whatever 80 something players on it

or whatever it was it's like I think it would be more fun to be with somebody who would be fun to

be with yeah exactly because there's obviously like a lot of these guys are so wicked dude

you're just naming guys yes I didn't intentionally didn't but yeah there's a lot of guys out there

that are just like stoic and they're just about their business and that's just it's not

enough on against them it's just what they do well or for example like one of the greatest golfers

in current modern era Hideki Matsuya now we're naming there I'm just one of the other folks in our

group shows him in the draw and I was like man that'd be so incredible because he got such a great

swing like but the conversation yeah because like in press conferences he uses a translate or

like the whole thing so I I'm curious like how they're after doing what we'll find out tonight

we will because they were about 1240 we had seven times they had 1240 so we had the extremes we

were all the way done before they got started crazy crazy shout out to you guys in the group in

front of you four hour pro-am round four hour pro-am round is why I was ready for six and a half

hours of course I mean easily live with how to have been five and a half yeah I mean I think the

the sort of saving grace to it is the fact that we were so early and there was I think one

group ahead of us or two maybe I don't know it was just Scotty yeah yeah so like he was playing

fast he's cruising yeah and Victor wasn't slow by any means either even when he was hitting four

balls on the tee no he was still just sending him dude he walks so fast he does oh my god like I was

like oh I'm gonna kind of like walk them for a little bit and like he kept like he was just like

I'm not next to him anymore you'll see a picture right here of him five feet above her 50 feet

bed of everybody he's like he's like galloping I mean it's crazy I respect it I mean he's definitely

that's probably makes sense why Jack you see those calves on him oh my god oh those things are so

dying get out of here I mean what do you think about it like at some point somebody asked them they

were like you know Victor so like turn them into tournament week after week like do you ever

try and take like Monday off he's like no days off so he's out doing that that thing like I'm

sore right now a lot of walking I was running the whole thing um he's doing that every day like oh

yeah and I'm sure like stuck around and practice for hours after then do it in a moment like

four more days oh my god he's been doing it since Monday exactly it's like oh my god it's a lot

it is golf though we do love golf but still it is it's a lot like people argue is golf a sport

is golf a game I mean to me hobblins an athlete yeah wait is that actually a thing to get people

to argue that was yeah but like it's not a sport it's a game the greatest game ever it's a game of

golf yeah I'm pretty negative on that yeah I don't get on board that I think it is one of the most

intense sports walking team one time that's all I got to say is walking team one time cat I mean

it makes sense why their calves are so dialed oh dude and like I couldn't even imagine being a

caddy oh my god because it's like dude like they're not even using like a Sunday bag like no they've

got like a full-blown staff bag yes which is wildly unnecessary by the way there's no need

for that big of a bag for the same amount of clubs yeah they're in for sponsors I get I get

I get what what about you what why do you have a staff bag I don't have a staff bag I thought

you were the one behind that you got from vessel no oh yeah but I'm not like carrying it for a

walking yeah yeah that's my point like yeah you bring yeah you bring that on the back of the

cart of course yeah that would be funny you you pulling up to the course of a cat 18-year-old

care and your heavy ass bag and look a lot of the caddies were like volunteers there's old guys

young guys there's some gals girls like one of the girls like she was like a young junior golfer

yeah I'm just imagining if I handed her a staff bag she'd be cooked she had no chance the the

golfer that she was counting for also felt bad because it's like you get a girl that's not

many years younger than you and it's like you feel bad handed or you're bad and he had like a

regular carry bag yeah a light bag yeah you got to have that that's that might be pro M101 or

just honestly golfing with a caddy 101 if you're gonna get a caddy anywhere don't bring a heavy

ass bag also lighten your bag yeah oh yeah like I did a full purge like I literally went through like

is particular is like I took half the teas out of my bag I was like I just don't need to have

have all these different repair tools like well I'm not using those take them out of the bag

I have two towels I'm like I'm gonna go to one tile there you go I went through all like my spare

balls on the bottom took all of them out and just had like two clean sleeves in there like I know

that you organized it for the kid I was I was being conscious of whoever was gonna be stuck

carrying this bag you were losing me there for a second because you were naming exclusively

light things yeah you got it the goalful yeah took out one towel I took out my phone charger

yeah that's big yeah I was that taking it I went through every single pocket this last night

or was this before you left uh this was at 420 or 521 am yeah this was me when my

emergency alarm was going on all this when you were doing that yeah I'm just imagining you in your

room with like the one that sounds like the air raid sign and you're just snoring through that's

free it's not the uh that's one you gotta have it bro if I imagine if I slept in for this and

didn't leave you know when I stacked my alarms yes I stacked the sound so the first one that

goes off at 445 is very peaceful it's like the piano one yeah the second one is like a little

more up like the Danana Danana and then by number three it's air raid time yeah that's the

emergency one I said get up I don't know who's getting up for that first alarm like the like the

the this like the soft peaceful what who's waking up from no I sleep better yeah yeah yeah I get

like real snuggly like oh my god that's another thing being in being in hotel we got to get up

at 540 or 445 for this tournament we're in a 60 degree room because you know we couldn't

get all the way down oh yeah yeah well you've been sleeping good tonight yeah I'm gonna sleep

like an absolute baby uh well especially because I'm you know like the whole falling asleep like

nervously before thing oh yeah excitedly like yeah it's not like I'm super nervous but like

it's just a big deal like I was excited dude how can you not be like I have to do the thing

where I'm like I put the phone down just like take a deep breath calm down and also like one

eye pops open and you're like I remember my oh yeah I got it got my rangefinder it's fine it means

you care okay once you get to the point where you're playing programs and you don't care

the night before maybe it's you play your laptop yeah you're all done I think that's it because

this is like this is the coolest thing you can't you can't beat the access that we have is great

yeah the master card obviously yeah um and I'm I'm very excited for the tournament tomorrow and

yeah we're gonna be the master card lounge 17 yeah yeah we had a little peek at today yeah there's

like a few beautiful nice ones on 17 so I was like oh are we in that nice one or that nice one

all of them yeah yeah we're we're getting spoiled out here for sure deservedly so I don't know

probably not but I feel like we condom pretty good including us so this is fine yep we did our job

I think yeah it's great day all around great day still got a whole tournament ahead of us you have

a highlight or a low light highlight um okay yeah for sure um whole six that's the famous

Bryson de Chimbo drove it over the entire lake and he did the whole like yep thing which by the

huge miss not taking that photo yeah oh I thought about it after I was like I should have

did yeah you should know what a waste do it tomorrow during the tournament and but also like I couldn't

do it on my t-box because we played nowhere near where Bryson's like which makes it crazy like yeah

I from a forward t still had no hope of doing what he did yeah and he's 75 yards back that one

nothing was the most extreme for like t differences like I'll put it near I have a picture of his

your t and it's like is this the same hole yeah it really isn't on that one I just I picked a very

confident like pretty aggressive line yeah pick my tree pick my target and I sent it and balls

flying over water for a long time and you just see that like mid fairway bounce and it's just like

you did it it was great um I have like he like yells up from the back he was like

he was like never a doubt huh never a doubt he was good for that he was good for the post shot

like perfect shot beautiful he was good for that I was like I was like yeah I was like I'm not sweating

this is that's not sweat that was easy yeah no that do that whole beautiful oh my god that was

the real being on that oh dude and meanwhile like many on many holes he's teaming off 60 yards behind

us in landing 60 yards ahead of us I'm like it's it's a different game yeah that mean there's

just like there's zero world where you could ever stumble into like being kind of as good as it

like there it just like even like on 18 like I don't he was you know like one 98 out or something

like that which is like a very respectful decent distance from the green and he hits it to like

three feet yeah with probably like a nine iron time it's just that's crazy like for me I'm like

let's just get it on the green sore potting and he's hitting to three feet you're thinking about

like shy rolling up yeah like I don't know if I can stick it but yeah don't chunk it like you know

like I don't know like way and and of course like there's people no yes so like when you miss

there's consequences there were some four rights and four left that ever heard some very aggressive

ones from some of the people I heard some loud ones really loud ones yeah yeah but nobody got

hurt so nobody nobody nobody except through your drums yeah yours maybe yeah other than that yeah

oh it's hilarious yeah I will say though for some reason I get I sent my expectations law I get it

we live in the Midwest we haven't played like real rounds of golf since like October yeah I played

one or two kind of travel rounds so you know you're whatever so I I tried to manage my expectations

and keep them low so they want to hit good shots I'm like oh nice okay good good but I struggled

on a few of those par threes yeah I don't know what it was I was like man like I'm I hit the same iron

out of the fairway on the last hole and struck it well and everything was great um step up to the

next deals like oh this distance is great I'm like I'm hitting the same iron again so I'm like I

have confidence over it and like I I forgot whatever hole it was but just chunked it straight

to the water think it was seven wasn't something I don't want straight in the water just like

with like two and a half pounds of dirt just like with it that was right after Victor like

sung like three above our head yeah like it was like fireworks which by the way is like one of

the coolest sounds ever never gets old having a probe behind you hit over your head it's to me I

would prefer that over fireworks on the 4th of July oh my god yeah just I'm not gonna get into my

firework so we're ready to take we can go for that another day we'll get there we can get that

another day totally I mean Disney isn't far from here it's a separate side show but I was

don't feel there all day like you you do not get used to seeing the pros hitting those kind of shots

you can't like the sound like the sound is just different and even like what I when I go practice

and what I'm hoping to achieve is not even that like I like I'm seeing shots I'm like oh my like

that's beyond even what I feel like I'm working towards yeah it's like so next level and you

got to hit the range which was uh you're on one side the pros are on the other yeah Hort Billy

Horsho was a couple stalls away from you and Sam Burns right over there yeah it's like here's

the other one that's you know I I did a quick little interview with Sam Burns yesterday and then

I see him today yeah and so it's like are we friends now do I say hi do I not like I don't want

to ignore on like is a hug too much yes yeah like do I just like do like you know like like like

like a one of those handshakes you jump in his arms or do I like wave with two hands like I

don't know what you end up doing none of the above well he didn't really look my way and so like

that's because it's also awkward if you're like oh my armor yeah yeah one of those yeah I

I what I also realized out is I'm so awkward internally that I'm like having these like

commerce I'm like should I wait put your arm down yeah all right how about this look a little bit

but if he looks don't look away because then I'm like oh my cat like a local Victor Vick

obli and ob just like having these like anxiety conversations just rattling through my brain like

are you having fun I'm like yeah yeah it's a great time it starts to become verbally we're

saying it out loud they're when playing out these ridiculous scenarios if I should wave

and sam burry with one hand or two hands ridiculous dude like relax I'm like I am relaxed

so it's it's great do you have a I want to ask you one question for today it's Wednesdays

we're recording this yeah you have a pick for me uh term it starts tomorrow I mean I just feel like

we got to pick Vick Vick's the pick there it is I mean I feel like we should take all the credit

for him doing well and you're present um also all the blame if he doesn't because he had to

watch some horrific shots and I don't say that any master card player wins it was because of us yeah

absolutely um or even sam burns because I spared him from the two-handed wave which would

have ruined his day actually we walked past him so he can't oh oh I I he was carrying a coffee

and I was like uh actually I got a latte you actually said yeah I didn't have to blame this but

I panicked did he what he said he was like ha ha ha ha like he laughed at first then really

it was the stupidest shit he ever he probably wasn't glad to hear myself yeah a little easier to

make it cool a normal person got a lot and I'm walking away I'm like why do it's because you

didn't have enough time to think about it before like oh my god it's sam burns I'm doing oh my god

I know it was a good time yeah that's great yeah well we'll uh report back after we see some more

this tournament yep Thursday for all day Thursday Friday and then um we're out back to the Midwest

and we're bringing the warmth back with a weather report we're bringing the warmth back bringing the

warmth and a bunch of merch from the uh yeah yeah merch store the first time we go to Bay Hill and

we just have everything that they have in the store I think I'm like hey I should grab like maybe

a shirt or something for the round three hundred seventy five dollars later I don't think it's

accusing the magic hat one layered piece on a rack later and you and I will be going back

yo for sure to there and we haven't even been to the tournament pro shop yet we've only been to

the course pro shop which by the way like if you can get the courses pro shop gear yeah at the

tournament and it's a it's a big time like if you know you know because like a regular person

would never know like the difference in us way yeah Taylor Arnold Palmer but for us it's like

I tell you though we could really level up if we could in that tennis pro shop oh dude

would we go out with that now the tennis balls I have a grasp of the dancing next show

all right that's it Dan Evan chill