Ben Griffin speaks with CNN World Sport’s Don Riddell about his successful season in which he captured his only two career PGA Tour victories and looks ahead to a possible Ryder Cup selection.

Ben Griffin has described his breakthrough year on the PGA Tour, noting the significance of his first tournament victories and the confidence they have brought him. After overcoming a difficult start in a recent round, Griffin managed to recover and finish strong, attributing his performance to mental resilience and determination.

Griffin also spoke about his goals for the season, including qualifying for major tournaments and the Ryder Cup. Although he narrowly missed an automatic qualification spot, he remains focused on proving himself and earning a place on the team through continued strong performances.

Ben Griffin is enjoying his breakthrough year on the PGA Tour

Obviously, I've learned a lot as well about the product that I took and that I shouldn't have been feeling the way I did, but nonetheless, I mean, it's a funny story, you know, regardless of what exactly caused what, probably more than anything was the dehydration. I wasn't feeling good in the moment and didn't execute very well. And then I felt great and went about my day and played really good and, you know, never gave up. That was, I think, the more important part about that story is, you know, it's really hard once you get off to a really poor start and you can kind of see your score. And for me, I saw it was six over through three. And it's hard to mentally like kind of reset and because you almost want to just walk back in and just like restart the round. Like in your head, you're like, I wish I could just start this day over. Like, I can't believe I just did this. But I immediately flipped the switch and said, I've got to get this back to even par. And sure enough, I got it actually to under par and beat my own self goal that I kind of created on that fifth hole. So it was a very interesting final round for me, but nonetheless, very proud of the way I fought back and was able to still salvage a decent week. Let's talk about the year you're having, because you're just playing lights out golf. You're having a phenomenal year and you won a couple of tournaments kind of in very quick succession. Some people might have been surprised by that. How much did you surprise yourself? Yeah, I mean, my main goal kind of going into the year was to win the past few seasons. I've played really well, but I hadn't broken through and won, finished decently well in the FedEx Cup, but just hadn't really broken through from a win standpoint, hadn't played in all the majors, hadn't been in all of the signature events, at least qualified. And so this year I knew I needed to come out strong and win at some point. I got in the mix a little bit early in the year in February and March. And then ultimately, yeah, the Zurich Classic with my teammate Andrew Novak, we were able to break the door down and get our first win. But yeah, I'd say from a confidence standpoint, that first one was huge. It just, it freed me up, but also it just kind of proved to me that I can do it out here, which I knew I could. I just hadn't done it. And once you do it, you kind of, you have more and more self-belief because you accomplished it. So yeah, moving forward, I just continued to build off that, continued to stay hungry. I didn't want to get comfortable with just being, you know, a PGA Tour winner and try to do other things in my life. No, I'm still trying to keep the pedal down. There's a lot to play for every week on the PGA Tour. And I was just excited after that to not only celebrate, but then get back to work with a lot of big events still remaining in the season after that first win and was able to keep playing well, kept the confidence high, kept my body in great shape. And here we are at Eastlake. I'd love to ask you about the Ryder Cup because there's a decent chance you're going to be playing in it later this year. What would it mean to you to be a part of that event? Yeah, it'd mean a ton. I mean, it's, you're talking about the best 12 golfers from both the U.S. side and the European side. You know, for me personally and my self-belief, I know that I'm one of the best, I would say three or four golfers on the American side. I believe I can be number two very easily. You could argue I'm almost number two, I think, just based on a recency bias. But regardless of my belief there, you know, it's an incredible opportunity. It's an incredible achievement to not only be on that team, but just to be able to represent your country. And I was pretty bummed after last week to not have finished in that top six because I really thought I was going to do it and I was pretty disappointed not to. And now my main goal this week is just to basically give the captains no choice but to have no doubt that I belong on that team. And so I've been playing great golf. I've got to continue to prove it. Every week matters out here. Every week is so important. There's a lot of bubble guys, including myself, and I've just got to continue to keep the pedal down, try to win the Tour Championship. If I do that, it's going to take care of itself.

Israel has intensified its assault on Gaza City, launching a new operation to seize it while planning the forced displacement of nearly one million Palestinians to southern zones.

Jerusalem

Middle East Conflict

Israel begins Gaza City operation

A New York appellate court threw out a $527 million penalty in the civil fraud case against President Trump and several others. CBS News' Aaron Navarro reports.

New York

Trump civil fraud case $527 million penalty thrown out

The U.S. and the European Union have locked in a framework trade deal that includes a 15% U.S. tariff on most EU imports, including autos, pharmaceuticals, semiconductors and lumber.

Washington

Global Tariffs

U.S. and EU lock in trade deal

Israel says it began its military operation to take control of Gaza City. This comes after an apparent Hamas attack in Khan Younis targeting Israeli soldiers.

Israel says it began Gaza City expansion

After weeks of pushback from Democrats, House Republicans in Texas have passed controversial legislation to redraw the state's congressional map, giving the GOP an advantage in multiple seats.

Austin

Texas House passes controversial GOP redistricting map

U.S. President Donald Trump’s top-down diplomacy has experts in Ukraine skeptical about whether there has been enough preparation for proposed talks to actually end the war between Russia and Ukraine.

Moscow

Ukraine Invasion

Russia signals more talks needed before Zelenskyy-Putin meeting

The Texas House on Wednesday night passed a controversial, Republican-backed proposal to redraw the state's congressional maps. The bill now moves onto the Texas Senate. CBS News reporter Erica Brown has more.

Texas

Texas House approves GOP congressional redistricting map

Israel's military has called up tens of thousands of reservists in preparation for an expected assault on Gaza City, as the Israeli government considered a new proposal for a ceasefire after nearly two years of war.

Israel calls up 60,000 reservists ahead of Gaza City operation

The Trump administration says it is adding 407 items to the list of "derivative" steel and aluminum products subject to higher tariffs. The list includes products like car parts, household appliances, baby strollers, fire extinguishers and spray deodorants.

Trump expanding steel and aluminum tariffs

NATO military chiefs met virtually Wednesday for what was described as a candid discussion about security guarantees the alliance would be willing to provide to Ukraine in an effort to end Russia's war in the region.

Brussels

NATO chiefs meet virtually about potential Ukraine security guarantees

Israel's military leaders approved the next phase of their ongoing offensive in the territory. The operation will shift focus to Gaza City, targeting areas where Hamas is believed to still be active and where Israeli forces have not yet operated.

Israel approves next phase of Gaza offensive, focus on Gaza City

Despite not making landfall, Hurricane Erin is forcing mandatory evacuation orders in parts of North Carolina and is expected to cause rip currents for days along the U.S. East Coast.

North Carolina

Hurricane Erin forces evacuations on U.S. East Coast

The White House says it is working to secure a meeting between the presidents of Russia and Ukraine, which both have agreed to, while plans continue to create security guarantees for Ukraine.

Trump says no U.S. ground troops will be sent to Ukraine

Hamas has agreed to a ceasefire proposal for Gaza, but mediators are still waiting for an official response from Israel. CBS News contributor Robert Berger has the latest from Jerusalem.

Mediators await Israeli response to Gaza ceasefire proposal

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi met China’s top diplomat on Tuesday and hailed the “steady progress” made in improving the bilateral relationship after a yearslong standoff between the nuclear-armed Asian powers.

New Delhi

India's Modi meets China's foreign minister to rebuild ties

Texas Democrats who ended a walkout found themselves shadowed by law enforcement officers to keep them from repeating the protest that stalled Republican efforts to redraw congressional districts and fulfill President Donald Trump's desire to reshape U.S. House maps.

Police escort Texas Democrats to prevent new redistricting walkout

Air Canada has reached a tentative agreement with the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB), ending the strike that began over the weekend involving 10,000 members and disrupted travel for more than 100,000 travelers per day.

Toronto

Air Canada reaches tentative agreement with flight attendant union

Exiled former Hong Kong lawmaker Ted Hui hailed Australia's grant of asylum status as a key acknowledgement of the territory's human rights infringements since its authorities quelled massive pro-democracy protests in 2019.

Hong Kong Island

Ex-Hong Kong lawmaker granted asylum by Australia

Forecasters are giving urgent warnings to millions of people who live along the East Coast as Hurricane Erin churns in the Atlantic. The storm will not make direct landfall but is expected to bring dangerous rip currents.

East Coast of the United States

Hurricane Erin to bring dangerous rip currents to U.S. East Coast

Jasveen Sangha, a Los Angeles woman known as the "Ketamine Queen," has agreed to plead guilty to federal charges in connection with the death of actor Matthew Perry. Sangha could face up to 45 years in prison.

Los Angeles

"Ketamine Queen" to plead guilty in Matthew Perry's death

European leaders who converged on the White House for talks on the Russia-Ukraine war demonstrated a united front regarding Ukraine's security on Monday, underscoring the issue as pivotal for the entire continent, not just Ukraine.

EU leaders show cautious optimism following Zelenskyy, Trump talks

As Hamas reportedly agreed to some ceasefire terms that would include the return of more hostages, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered troops to take more of Gaza.

Israel digs in on Gaza takeover as Hamas softens on ceasefire

President Donald Trump said that the United States would help Europe in providing security for Ukraine as part of any deal to end Russia's war in Ukraine.

Trump tells Zelenskyy U.S. would help with security in a peace deal

Bolivia's presidential vote headed to an unprecedented runoff after elections Sunday that ended more than two decades of left-wing dominance in the Andean nation but signaled voters' trepidation about a major lurch to the right.

La Paz

Bolivia heads to runoff after historic defeat for the left

All Air Canada planes were grounded on Monday (August 18) after its 10,000 flight attendants refused a return-to-work mandate from the Canadian government.

Air Canada delays plans to resume operations

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived at the White House Monday (August 18) for his meeting with President Donald Trump and other European leaders about Russia's war in Ukraine. CBS News White House reporter Taurean Small has more.

Trump meeting with Zelenskiy, European leaders at White House

Hamas on Monday informed mediators that it had accepted a ceasefire deal proposal submitted to it the day before, according to international and Israeli outlets.

Reports: Hamas accepts latest Gaza ceasefire proposal

Hurricane Erin will bring dangerously rough surf to parts of the U.S. East Coast. Over the weekend, Erin's outer bands lashed Puerto Rico with up to 7 inches of rain and flooding parts of the island.

Erin expected to bring dangerous conditions to U.S. East Coast

Ahead of his Monday meeting with President Trump, Ukrainian President Volodymry Zelenksyy says his country will not give up any territory to Russia, even as the White House insists potential land swaps will be necessary. Willie James Inman reports.

Kyiv

Ahead of Trump meeting, Zelenskyy says won't give territory to Russia

Thousands of Israeli protesters demanded a deal to secure the release of hostages still held by Hamas in one of the biggest demonstrations since the war in Gaza began. Debora Patta reports.

Breakdown