Kuraly, Sillinger welcome the PGA Tour's best to Central Ohio

Blue Jackets forward Cole Sillinger grew up in a golf family, not to mention a competitive family, so he's able to produce some pretty good scores on the links.

The low 80s score -- he remembers it as an 83, give or take a few shots -- he carded last week at Muirfield Village Golf Club would certainly qualify, as that's a darn good score on a PGA Tour-level track.

"I played really, really well," Sillinger said Wednesday.

Of course, that wouldn't get him anywhere near the leaderboard this week at Jack's Place. The world's best are back in Central Ohio for the 48th playing of the Memorial Tournament, the annual Tour stop in Dublin held at the crown jewel designed by the legendary Jack Nicklaus.

Sillinger and teammate Sean Kuraly are two of the best in the world in their chosen pursuit, with both in the midst of extended NHL careers, but this week they are merely observers. The top golfers in the world are in town, all ready to battle for one of the most prestigious crowns on the PGA Tour.

To that end, the Sillinger and Kuraly were part of a Q&A session Wednesday at the Memorial's annual Patron Appreciation Party, joining tournament entrants Sam Ryder and Stephan Jaeger for a panel discussion to talk about their chosen sports and what it takes to make it to the top.

Kuraly and Sillinger are pretty good golfers in their own right -- hockey players tend to be, given their offseason lines up with the summer months -- but they can't wait to see what it's like when the true pros tee it up for the tournament that runs Thursday through Sunday.

"I'm really excited just to watch the shots up close," Sillinger said. "Especially when I played it last week -- to see them hitting it and putting it to where they're gonna put it, it's pretty impressive. It's why they do what they do for a living. That's what I'm most curious to see, is how good they really are and see them live and how consistent they are and how focused and determined they are to want to be the best player in the field."

Kuraly grew up in Dublin and said he's been attending the tournament since he was a kid, making trips to the course to see the legendary Tiger Woods, who won the event five times. Not much of a golfer in those early years, Kuraly said he's come to enjoy the sport, and he appreciated the chance to meet with Ryder and Jaeger, two players who have taken the long way to make it on Tour.

Ryder, 33, went to Stetson University and turned pro in 2012, and the Memorial will be his 159th career PGA Tour event. He's posted 17 top 10s in his career and made over $7 million in prize money, and he held a share of the lead after the first three rounds of the Farmers Insurance Open earlier this year. Jaeger is one year older at age 34 and was born in Germany before moving to the United States in high school. Also turning pro in 2012, Jaeger will be playing in his 115th Tour event and has made over $3.7 million.

"We have a lot of common ground, especially guys like that that made it in a weird way," Kuraly said. "They're not like these generational talents. It's easy to relate to guys like that. They're just really good guys, and I look forward to seeing them the rest of the week."

That was clear based on the conversation, as there were plenty of laughs between the pro athletes as well as moderator Dave Maetzold of the Blue Jackets' Bally Sports Ohio broadcasts. Ryder and Jaeger will join a field that includes the top six players in the world ranking (Scottie Scheffler, Jon Rahm, Rory McIlroy, Patrick Cantlay, Xander Schauffele and Victor Hovland, respectively) as well as the reigning winners of The Masters (Rahm), U.S. Open (Matt Fitzpatrick) and FedEx Cup playoffs (McIlroy).

Previous winners of the Memorial -- including Woods a record five times, Nicklaus three times as well as such luminaries as Tom Watson, Raymond Floyd, Hale Irwin, Greg Norman, Ernie Els, Justin Rose and Bryson DeChambeau -- have won a combined 73 major titles. This year's field includes players who have won a combined 28 majors, including Central Ohio resident Jason Day.

In other words, it's big-time golf -- just the kind of event the best of the best in another sport can appreciate.

"This is a big weekend for Columbus and Dublin," Kuraly said. "There's just so many people that you know from TV and sports and athletes and singers, just so many people find their way to Columbus, Ohio. When you're from here, you think it's just a small little town, but this tournament is a good thing for Columbus. We feel proud of our city after this."