Harry Higgs could have made it about himself Sunday after winning the Visit Knoxville Open, his second dramatic sudden-death victory on the Korn Ferry Tour in two weeks.
A week earlier, Higgs had pitched in to win the AdventHealth Championship. On Sunday, he holed a long eagle putt to win again, assuring his return to the PGA Tour next year.
But the moment felt bigger to Higgs than what he had done. The victory was exhilarating, career-altering and helped secure a European honeymoon that he and his new wife, Kailee (née Kuehn), are planning later this summer, but Higgs had been thinking about Grayson Murray’s death and the world beyond the golf course.
If you haven’t heard Higgs’ victory speech Sunday in Knoxville, Tennessee, it’s worth two minutes of your time. What Higgs said was simple and sincere. The golf was great, but people need to be nicer to one another, and he was starting with himself and asking the few hundred people listening to do the same.
It’s an idea that came to Higgs on Saturday night as he was wondering what Sunday might bring and how it might fit against the sobering backdrop of Murray’s suicide.
“I didn’t sleep well Saturday night,” Higgs said. “I wanted to honor Grayson and how he was open and honest about his struggles with mental health.
“Is there a way to honor him and try to bring light to an awful situation, to just say again that it’s OK to not be OK?”
“It is important to remember that the golf, the result, the winning is not really the important stuff. I’m going to try to live it myself. To be the happiest, best person I can be.” – Harry Higgs
Higgs wasn’t particularly close to Murray and has not dealt with the mental-health challenges that he did. Higgs acknowledged the frustration golfers feel about how a bad swing or a lousy score shouldn’t reach beyond the course and that a part of his recent success can be credited to a fresher mentality.
After his comments Sunday, Higgs said three people approached him, shared their own struggles and thanked him for his words. Three more people shared stories of Murray’s time playing in the Knoxville event, each of them having fond memories of their interactions with Murray.
Any concerns Higgs had about whether he picked the right time and place to deliver his message – “Let’s all be better,” he said – were answered.
“It’s taken a life of its own. It is important to remember that the golf, the result, the winning is not really the important stuff. I’m going to try to live it myself. To be the happiest, best person I can be,” Higgs said.
“It’s part of the reason I did have some success. I did do a good job of that. I’d like to do it even more. I’m not going to be perfect about it. Just circle back and remember Grayson and remember his struggle and willingness to speak about it and use it to pull us back together.”
It was because of his success that Higgs had a microphone and an audience to send along a message that has resonated. He is the latest example of a golfer who has seen his career flatline before rediscovering whatever had been lost. Higgs’ style, which may best be described as the kind of guy whom everyone would like to hang around with, gave his words deeper resonance.
Higgs has a pair of runner-up finishes on the PGA Tour in his career, which raised his profile, but he lost his playing privileges after missing 18 cuts in 31 starts last season. He went back to the Korn Ferry Tour and, rather than feel sorry for himself, Higgs found motivation and inspiration.
At age 32, Higgs said he began taking better care of himself, eating properly, drinking more water, cutting out alcohol. He also found a clarity of purpose at the golf course.
On his way to the first tee in the AdventHealth Championship in his hometown of Kansas City, Higgs pulled out his yardage book and wrote down four thoughts to be considered before every shot he hit.
The four thoughts are:
- Have a clear intent on every shot;
- Have a precise setup with a rehearsal to match (feel the shot before making the swing);
- Have a positive thought before every swing;
- And, accept whatever happens regardless of where the ball goes.
“The last one is the hard one, and I did it better [in Kansas City] than I’ve ever done it in my career,” Higgs said.
It worked so well in Kansas City that Higgs didn’t change a thing in Knoxville.
There was no dramatic swing change, no coaching change; nothing like that. Higgs said hard work, a self-belief that he belonged on the PGA Tour and not dwelling on what happened but focusing on what’s next have been responsible for his renaissance.
“I believe that I belong on the PGA Tour, but I didn’t do a great job of giving myself the best chance to do that, maybe ignoring some of the mental side of this game and getting too frustrated when things didn’t go my way,” said Higgs, who ranks second on the Korn Ferry points list and has locked in a PGA Tour card for next season.
“It’s just part of my journey. No disrespect to the Korn Ferry Tour, but I don’t want to play this tour. But this is the opportunity in front of me, and I use it as fuel and motivation to get better.”
Higgs is spending this week at home in Dallas before heading off to a U.S. Open qualifier next Monday as he attempts to play in the national championship for the first time. After that, it’s on to the Korn Ferry Tour event in Greenville, South Carolina, before taking an overdue vacation.
Higgs and his wife were married three weeks ago. Because he’s never been to Europe, he’s working on a two-week honeymoon overseas this summer.
“Marriage was great for my golf game,” Higgs said. “My goal on either tour was to have a couple of nice results so we didn’t do the typical December golfer honeymoon.
“I thought, What if we just vanish some this summer? It’s nice to have the results so I can take a few weeks.”
While giving everyone something to think about.