THE MODERATOR: Ben Crane is with us now at the 2026 Senior PGA Championship. Ben, 67 for you today. How would you summarize your opening round?
BEN CRANE: I mean, really solid. This is a tough test of golf. There's a lot of places where you cannot go until you play a long ways away from those spots, but the greens are perfect. The course is in amazing shape. Weather was obviously unbelievable, but overall played really solid, putted really well.
Made a lot of 6-footers for birdie and for par, because you get out of position pretty easily here, and you're going to have to chip it close and make a 6-, 10-footer to save some pars. But overall 5-under is a great score around here.
THE MODERATOR: Questions.
Q. Not bad at all for your first day and your first major as a senior. How do you envision this tournament and what happened today?
BEN CRANE: Yeah, I was telling my friend on the first tee that the PGA Championship -- people always ask me, what's my favorite golf tournament in the world, and everyone expects me to say the Masters. I'm, like, No, it's the PGA Championship. They're, like, What are you talking about? I'm like, Well, it's the best major because it's on a great golf course that we rotate, it's the best field, and it's set up super fair.
We can shoot 14-under or 6-under, whatever the course kind of lends and weather lends. So I love this golf tournament, love the PGA. Yeah, anyway, just excited to play in my first Senior PGA Championship.
Q. From what you are saying, I understand that the Senior PGA matches that kind of standard?
BEN CRANE: Now it's my new favorite golf tournament, that's right.
Q. Ben, you're kind of getting your feet wet in the Champions Tour. How is it going? Do you feel like you're adjusting pretty well?
BEN CRANE: Yeah, Billy Andrade said -- I shouldn't have said that -- but said there's two questions you don't ask: How is their wife? You might not know with which wife they're on. Then you don't know how they're feeling because you don't have that much time.
There's some rules, dos and don'ts, out here on the Champions Tour. Overall it's really fun. Guys are super competitive, trying really hard, but also a little more laid back.
Yeah, Stewart Cink is a good buddy. He's been telling me -- excited to have one of my closest friends, Zach Johnson, out here and guys that I look up to, Bernhard Langer, Tom Lehman, some guys. It's fun to be playing golf with those guys that I haven't seen in a number of years.
I love this tour, yeah. Hopefully it continues for a long time.
Q. Talking about how you're feeling, some of the conversations we have here this week is everybody has some kind of pain or ailment. You do not ask questions about that.
BEN CRANE: That's right.
Q. You come in as a young 50-year-old. How do they look at you?
BEN CRANE: Yeah, I've been training my club head speed. I've been working on my body to stay fit. Just as important as the golf is the health out here.
So everything from I work harder than anybody on nutrition. I pack all my own food, snacks. I bring coconut water out there. I pack my own sandwiches. I eat the cleanest bars. I just know nutrition is a huge deal about long-term health. Then I work on my flexibility. I do a lot of stuff for joint care for my body.
I'm just trying really hard to stay healthy. I love playing this game, and fun to be out here and compete still. I don't know another sport where you can at 50 get a rebirth, so pretty fun.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports