University of Georgia Athletics
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Quick Chat: Greyson Sigg
June 09, 2020 | Men's Golf, The Frierson Files
By John Frierson
Staff Writer
Former Georgia golfer Greyson Sigg was already home on St. Simons Island, Ga., when the professional golf world shut down because of the coronavirus pandemic. Sigg is playing on the Korn Ferry Tour, one step below the PGA Tour, and after playing in tournaments in The Bahamas, Panama, Columbia and Mexico to start 2020, he was ready to enjoy a few weeks off.
Those few weeks turned into a few months, of course, but Sigg, who wrapped up his Bulldog career in 2017, is returning to action this week in Jacksonville, Fla., at the Korn Ferry Challenge on the TPC Sawgrass' Valley Course. In six events in 2020, Sigg has placed in the top 25 five times and the top 16 in half of his events, highlighted by a T4 finish at the LECOM Suncoast Classic in Florida, back in February.
During a recent Quick Chat, Sigg talked about being home, shooting a 59 a year ago on the Mackenzie Tour (PGA Tour Canada), traveling the world and much more. Here's some of what he had to say:
Frierson: How are you holding up these days?
Sigg: I'm doing great, just trying to get my game ready to go and get in tournament shape again. It's so crazy being eight or nine weeks without a golf tournament at this point and it's weird trying to get everything back together.
Frierson: Were you on the road when things shut down and what have you been doing to fill the time?
Sigg: I played in an event in Leon, Mexico, and I then had three weeks off afterward, and then we were going to start back up in Louisiana. I'd played six events and I was ready for a little break, and then about two weeks before the Louisiana event the coronavirus hit, and no one really knew what was going to happen.
They ended up canceling those events and I started quarantining. From there I didn't do much, to be honest. I did my part in quarantining and practiced a little golf here and there. That was the good thing about living down in St. Simons, they kept the golf courses open. Even though we weren't playing tournaments we could still go to the golf course and play and practice and try to get better.
Frierson: I have to ask you about shooting the 59 at the GolfBC Championship — I know you've probably talked about it a million times but can you tell me what it's like to have a day on the golf course like that?
Sigg: We were in Kelowna (B.C.), playing at Gallagher's Canyon, and I think it was the third event of the year. It was the last round and I wasn't playing too good — I want to say I was T35 going into the last round and hadn't really gotten much going all week.
I really had nothing to lose going into the last round on Sunday morning and everything felt great. You never really think you're going to shoot 59 until the last couple of holes and then you really have a chance to do it. I got off to a good start, no worries in the world, and I tried to just go out and shoot 5- or 6-under and go about my business.
I think I shot 5-under on the front and then 7-under on the back. I made a really good birdie on 10 and a nice par on 11 and I was like, man. At that point you're like, this could be pretty special because everything's really going your way, you're making all these putts and hitting a lot of good shots. I just kept making birdies. ...
I had to birdie three of the last four holes to shoot 59 and I parred 15, so I had to birdie the last three holes. Sixteen was a par-3 and I hit it to an inch and then I get to 17 and I hit it to about 2 feet — it was stress-free. I knew what was going on but I was hitting it so well and felt so good with the putter, I never even worried about it.
I get to 18 and it's kind of a drivable hole — a lot of guys hit 4-iron but you can hit driver — and I was sitting there thinking, I'm not going to be able to go to sleep tonight if I hit a 4-iron and make a four (par) on this hole. That would be a 60 and 60's a great score, but no one wants to do it. ... I decided to hit driver and it was a good tee-shot, short and left of the green. I hit a good chip and gave myself about 8 feet for birdie, and I buried the putt.
It's something that you don't get to experience very often and it's certainly a round that I'll never forget. I pretty much remember every single shot from that day.
Frierson: In what way are you a much better golfer now than you were during your Georgia career?
Sigg: I wouldn't say it's one thing, really. Certainly, my short game's gotten a lot better, but in college, there were times when I'd shoot 68 and be fine with it. Now, if I'm 4-under through 15 then I'm going to try to get it to 5-under through 16 — you've just got to keep pounding in pro golf. That's what thing I've learned, it teaches you to keep making birdies.
In college, you can get by with a 3- or 4-under and I found out quickly out here that there's always going to be somebody shooting 7- or 8-under every single day, no matter where you are. Believing in yourself and trusting everything you've done to get there is really what gets to making a lot of birdies.
Frierson: Looking at the tournaments you've played this year, what is it like to travel to and play in places like The Bahamas and Panama and Columbia?
Sigg: It's great and that's what a lot of people dream of, playing pro golf and traveling to all these cool places. I've spent probably 45 weeks in Canada in the last three years and if you had told me that when I was 15 years old I probably wouldn't have believed you.
I've seen a lot of really cool spots like Bogota and Panama, all those places were really cool. We started the Korn Ferry season off in The Bahamas this year so that's obviously not a very bad spot to be either.
Frierson: Has playing professionally been about what you expected or has it been a lot different in some ways?
Sigg: I'd say it's about what I expected. It's a great profession and I wouldn't trade it for anything, but at the same time, people need to realize that it's a job. You've got to stick to what you do, stick to a routine, especially when you're traveling. People are on the road for five, six, seven weeks at a time, away from their family, away from everything, so there are definitely pros and cons, but it's been great so far.
Frierson: This may be an odd question, but when you're on the road for weeks and weeks, how do you take care of things like laundry?
Sigg: [Laughs] Yeah, little things like that. Some of these questions are bringing me back a little bit to 2017, when I graduated from school and it was like, all right, here's pro golf. I go straight to Vancouver the week after the NCAAs and it's like, I just played for a week and I have this full bag of dirty clothes. Where do I go wash my clothes?
That's the thing, you've got to just find places to do it. The PGA Tour's a little easier because they have some people to do that for you, but playing the Mackenzie Tour and the Korn Ferry, you better either stay at an Airbnb that has a washer and dryer or pay someone to do it at a wash-and-fold.
You have to manage your time, too. A lot of guys like to go straight to the course on Monday of the new week and practice, but I'm kind of the opposite. I like to kind of chill and get everything ready for the week, if that makes sense. You have to have a day off here and there and go find something fun to do. Sometimes maybe that's laundry and sitting inside watching Netflix all day — whatever it is, just something to get you away from the grind and the everyday aspect of what you're doing.
Frierson: In all of your travels, has there been one meal that's stood out or a new cuisine that really got your attention?
Sigg: I'll be honest, me and all my buddies that I travel with, we always sniff out the really good Italian spots every week. That's kind of our go-to when we go to a new city for a tournament, I'm always on Yelp or something trying to find the best Italian place. If it's really good we'll probably go there two or three times during the week.
(This Q&A was lightly edited for length and clarity.)
Staff Writer
Former Georgia golfer Greyson Sigg was already home on St. Simons Island, Ga., when the professional golf world shut down because of the coronavirus pandemic. Sigg is playing on the Korn Ferry Tour, one step below the PGA Tour, and after playing in tournaments in The Bahamas, Panama, Columbia and Mexico to start 2020, he was ready to enjoy a few weeks off.
Those few weeks turned into a few months, of course, but Sigg, who wrapped up his Bulldog career in 2017, is returning to action this week in Jacksonville, Fla., at the Korn Ferry Challenge on the TPC Sawgrass' Valley Course. In six events in 2020, Sigg has placed in the top 25 five times and the top 16 in half of his events, highlighted by a T4 finish at the LECOM Suncoast Classic in Florida, back in February.
During a recent Quick Chat, Sigg talked about being home, shooting a 59 a year ago on the Mackenzie Tour (PGA Tour Canada), traveling the world and much more. Here's some of what he had to say:
Frierson: How are you holding up these days?
Sigg: I'm doing great, just trying to get my game ready to go and get in tournament shape again. It's so crazy being eight or nine weeks without a golf tournament at this point and it's weird trying to get everything back together.
Frierson: Were you on the road when things shut down and what have you been doing to fill the time?
Sigg: I played in an event in Leon, Mexico, and I then had three weeks off afterward, and then we were going to start back up in Louisiana. I'd played six events and I was ready for a little break, and then about two weeks before the Louisiana event the coronavirus hit, and no one really knew what was going to happen.
They ended up canceling those events and I started quarantining. From there I didn't do much, to be honest. I did my part in quarantining and practiced a little golf here and there. That was the good thing about living down in St. Simons, they kept the golf courses open. Even though we weren't playing tournaments we could still go to the golf course and play and practice and try to get better.
Frierson: I have to ask you about shooting the 59 at the GolfBC Championship — I know you've probably talked about it a million times but can you tell me what it's like to have a day on the golf course like that?
Sigg: We were in Kelowna (B.C.), playing at Gallagher's Canyon, and I think it was the third event of the year. It was the last round and I wasn't playing too good — I want to say I was T35 going into the last round and hadn't really gotten much going all week.
I really had nothing to lose going into the last round on Sunday morning and everything felt great. You never really think you're going to shoot 59 until the last couple of holes and then you really have a chance to do it. I got off to a good start, no worries in the world, and I tried to just go out and shoot 5- or 6-under and go about my business.
I think I shot 5-under on the front and then 7-under on the back. I made a really good birdie on 10 and a nice par on 11 and I was like, man. At that point you're like, this could be pretty special because everything's really going your way, you're making all these putts and hitting a lot of good shots. I just kept making birdies. ...
I had to birdie three of the last four holes to shoot 59 and I parred 15, so I had to birdie the last three holes. Sixteen was a par-3 and I hit it to an inch and then I get to 17 and I hit it to about 2 feet — it was stress-free. I knew what was going on but I was hitting it so well and felt so good with the putter, I never even worried about it.
I get to 18 and it's kind of a drivable hole — a lot of guys hit 4-iron but you can hit driver — and I was sitting there thinking, I'm not going to be able to go to sleep tonight if I hit a 4-iron and make a four (par) on this hole. That would be a 60 and 60's a great score, but no one wants to do it. ... I decided to hit driver and it was a good tee-shot, short and left of the green. I hit a good chip and gave myself about 8 feet for birdie, and I buried the putt.
It's something that you don't get to experience very often and it's certainly a round that I'll never forget. I pretty much remember every single shot from that day.
Frierson: In what way are you a much better golfer now than you were during your Georgia career?
Sigg: I wouldn't say it's one thing, really. Certainly, my short game's gotten a lot better, but in college, there were times when I'd shoot 68 and be fine with it. Now, if I'm 4-under through 15 then I'm going to try to get it to 5-under through 16 — you've just got to keep pounding in pro golf. That's what thing I've learned, it teaches you to keep making birdies.
In college, you can get by with a 3- or 4-under and I found out quickly out here that there's always going to be somebody shooting 7- or 8-under every single day, no matter where you are. Believing in yourself and trusting everything you've done to get there is really what gets to making a lot of birdies.
Frierson: Looking at the tournaments you've played this year, what is it like to travel to and play in places like The Bahamas and Panama and Columbia?
Sigg: It's great and that's what a lot of people dream of, playing pro golf and traveling to all these cool places. I've spent probably 45 weeks in Canada in the last three years and if you had told me that when I was 15 years old I probably wouldn't have believed you.
I've seen a lot of really cool spots like Bogota and Panama, all those places were really cool. We started the Korn Ferry season off in The Bahamas this year so that's obviously not a very bad spot to be either.
Frierson: Has playing professionally been about what you expected or has it been a lot different in some ways?
Sigg: I'd say it's about what I expected. It's a great profession and I wouldn't trade it for anything, but at the same time, people need to realize that it's a job. You've got to stick to what you do, stick to a routine, especially when you're traveling. People are on the road for five, six, seven weeks at a time, away from their family, away from everything, so there are definitely pros and cons, but it's been great so far.
Frierson: This may be an odd question, but when you're on the road for weeks and weeks, how do you take care of things like laundry?
Sigg: [Laughs] Yeah, little things like that. Some of these questions are bringing me back a little bit to 2017, when I graduated from school and it was like, all right, here's pro golf. I go straight to Vancouver the week after the NCAAs and it's like, I just played for a week and I have this full bag of dirty clothes. Where do I go wash my clothes?
That's the thing, you've got to just find places to do it. The PGA Tour's a little easier because they have some people to do that for you, but playing the Mackenzie Tour and the Korn Ferry, you better either stay at an Airbnb that has a washer and dryer or pay someone to do it at a wash-and-fold.
You have to manage your time, too. A lot of guys like to go straight to the course on Monday of the new week and practice, but I'm kind of the opposite. I like to kind of chill and get everything ready for the week, if that makes sense. You have to have a day off here and there and go find something fun to do. Sometimes maybe that's laundry and sitting inside watching Netflix all day — whatever it is, just something to get you away from the grind and the everyday aspect of what you're doing.
Frierson: In all of your travels, has there been one meal that's stood out or a new cuisine that really got your attention?
Sigg: I'll be honest, me and all my buddies that I travel with, we always sniff out the really good Italian spots every week. That's kind of our go-to when we go to a new city for a tournament, I'm always on Yelp or something trying to find the best Italian place. If it's really good we'll probably go there two or three times during the week.
(This Q&A was lightly edited for length and clarity.)
John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files. He's also on Twitter: @FriersonFiles and @ITAHallofFame.
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