Ben Griffin Talks Ryder Cup, Best Golf of His Life & Why He Plays So Many Events | Golf on CBS

Ben Griffin joins Patrick McDonald to discuss his best golf in 2025, what Cubicle Ben was like, why he plays so much and much more.

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Golf on CBS Podcast with Shane Bacon & company delivers expert insight, sharp analysis, and behind-the-scenes stories from the PGA Tour every Tuesday. The show breaks down the biggest events, preview upcoming tournaments, and bring you unfiltered conversations with golf’s biggest names — all with the trusted voice of CBS Sports.

Let’s now welcome on twotime PGA Tour winner, top 10 finisher at the PGA Championship and the US Open in world number 17, Ben Griffin. Ben joining us live there from TPC Deer Run. How’s the week going so far for you? Yeah, it’s been good. Um, yesterday didn’t uh just kind of hung out at the golf course, did uh little training and PT and then this morning kind of same thing. got in the gym and uh haven’t swung a club yet here, but going to this afternoon and yeah, excited to get the week going here at the John Deere. It’s gonna be gonna be a lot of fun. Love that. So, your story is pretty well known golfer turned loan officer turned golfer again. I’m curious, what was uh what was Ben Griffin like in the cubicle stage in the office setting? Were you uh hanging out by the water cooler? Were you bringing in bagels on Monday? Siloed? What uh what were you like in the office? Yeah, that that’s funny. This is actually no one’s really asked me that these questions and this is important. Um but yeah, someone someone actually asked me earlier like literally like 10 minutes ago, what were you doing? Like were you we still playing golf? I was like no, I was going to happy hours. Um to to answer your breakfast question. I mean I was bringing in Pop-Tarts. Other people would bring in like other stuff, you know. Um we all had our things that we would just bring in from time to time. Um but yeah, I mean it was like happy hours, go to the lake on the weekends. Um I’m a big uh I used to be more of a lake guy. I guess I’m not quite as much now. Just a pretty much a weekend golfer. But um yeah, we would go to the lake with friends. Um go out. I mean, just do what a normal 24 year old 25 year old I guess I was probably 24 at the time. What a normal 24 year old would do is try to still pretend like they’re in college and still, you know, have fun with friends and um but yeah, I mean, pretty much work during, you know, Monday through Friday and occasional like Sunday nights getting ready for the work work week. What uh what do you think about PAL holding rates right now? The wait and see approach. You got a take on that? I mean, as a loan officer, I mean, yes, we’re we’re directly tied to the 10-year Treasury, but um yeah, I mean, in terms of the interest rates for, you know, the overall government, um I I can’t answer any question. I don’t think anyone knows anyone knows the answer to that. I can’t predict. No one can predict future interest rates. And u I think the administr administration wants them a little bit lower. I think a lot of a lot of people on in the United States would like them a little bit lower, but um hey, you know, economy seems to be pretty pretty good still. I like this. Okay, this is good. Yeah, I uh I didn’t send that one ahead of time. I apologize. Okay, we can we can get back to your current career right now playing the best golf. I I assume if you’ve played better, please let me know. I’m just I’m just curious, how fun is it confidence-wise to step onto the golf course this year even as opposed to last year? Like just the different mindset when you step onto the golf course. What is that like? What’s that difference like? Yeah, it’s pretty cool. Um to obviously have had some success recently. It’s been a different feel going to golf tournaments, you know, doing media early in the week and then teing up on Thursday almost feeling like I’m kind of the favorite to win in a way. Um it’s a different feeling and u it’s it’s very rewarding and it it just kind of adds to my confidence level I would say. Um but yeah it’s I’m definitely playing the best golf career. It’s been an awesome journey and I feel like I still have more to kind of work on and and improve as I continue on this progression but um yeah it’s been a ton of fun and it’s yeah especially tune it up on Thursdays. I mean going back even like maybe a year you know you kind of have other thoughts that kind of can creep into your mind when you’re starting off a tournament. uh maybe some anxiousness. You don’t know, you know, go back even a year ago, it’s like a week like this, I’m trying to play well and push my way into the playoffs and finish top 70. Now I’m like in the tour championship, so I’m not worried about any of these external things that I wasn’t necessarily worried about, but they always kind of creep into your head regardless of what you said, what every player says. Like there’s always things that guys are playing for. Feel like for me, I’m I’m just playing to try to win and like I just I can tee it up this week and be super free. not necessarily be more aggressive, but just be just feel really like smart going into the week and and keep my mindset on trying to win the golf tournament rather than think about finishing positions or um in terms of like top tens or top 20s or make the cut or whatever it is. Um so yeah, my goals are high. I’m uh I’m excited. I’m very confident. Yeah, I was going to say you’ve kind of turned into the PJ tour Iron Man with how much uh you’ve played uh these last few seasons. 37 starts in 23, 35 and 24 probably more a necessity like you mentioned. 23 this week though you made that push to try to get into the top 50 for the Masters. Is this now just like man I’ve got the hot hand, let’s keep it rolling type of situation for you. Yeah, I think look, I I I play a lot and it’s for a various of different reasons, but like I think it’s been awesome to continue to play when I’ve had success because I think there’s been players maybe in the past that have success and kind of start to go deviate from their normal schedules and maybe uh you know take a few more off and maybe they don’t kind of stay on the the hot runs as long as they probably could because because golf is kind of a game of runs. there’s a lot of highs and there there can be lows from time to time and it’s important when you’re playing really well to to play a lot and keep teeing it up. Um, and so that’s kind of what my strategy is. I’m trying to continue to to play really well, continue to take notes on where I’m at with my game, with my swing. Um, continue to do more and more in the gym. Um, you know, and and think about my preparation for each and every tournament. um still doing the same thing the night before kind of going through the golf course, you know, marking my pin locations, checking on the win, like playing strategy kind of before each round. And so feel like after you win, you can kind of stop doing some of those things and and feel like you have a little more flexibility for me. Um, you know, I’m trying to do the same things I was doing leading up to this kind of stretch um that I’ve been on. And so just trying to keep the pedal down and and play a lot. I’m taking next week off, but that’s more for preparation for the British to make sure I have enough practice time. So, I’m going to fly it um Friday night, get there um Saturday morning, and then um I won’t play the 3M just because the the time change and travel. So, I’ll actually take two of the next three off, which is very rare for me, but it’s for the right reasons. Um and then, um hopefully play kind of the rest of the rest of the year after that. And then, um the fall’s kind of TBD. I want to play some international events. So hopeful to hopeful to play some DP World events, but um I’m not going to I’ll probably take a little break after the Tour Championship and then obviously we have the Ryder Cup on the horizon. So um looking forward to, you know, probably being on that team and and doing the right things to to get there. Um and then yeah, after that we’ll just kind of see. What uh what DP World Tour, what international events do you have uh maybe pencled in right now that you’re on? There’s a few. So b basically the entire month of October is kind of free in my mind. Um, so there’s various different events. The there’s an event in India. There’s the um Spanish Open. There is um the Genesis Korea Championship. There’s a few events out there that I would consider playing. Um, and November is tricky because um I’m sponsored by Worldwide Technology. So, I’ll play in their event in Cabo and then the RSM Classics in Sea Island, which is where I was basically living the last five or six years. So, that’s a that’s a convenient one for me. So, I don’t think I’d be able to play those Dubai events. Um, but definitely looking to play the um, you know, at least one or two of those that I just mentioned. Yeah. Are you a big traveler outside of golf? Obviously, you get to go everywhere with golf, but do you get to travel a lot for personal leisure time or are you just using golf to kind of travel combo? I I play too much to where I can’t I can’t leisurely travel. I can’t tell you the last time I leisurely traveled actually because I play I play every single I I skipped the Masters but I was first alternate in the Hilton Head this year so I was still on site. So I guess I traveled to Hilton Head and didn’t play in that tournament even though I play a practice round. Um then the RBC Canadian I didn’t play but that was just kind of get home and reset and change the the suitcase a little bit to get ready for summer events as opposed to a lot of the the spring events that could have been a little more cold. Um but yeah, I mean looking the rest of the year I’m traveling. I’m getting married in December. So, um I’ll probably we’ll probably do some type of honeymoon, whether it’s maybe tie it up with some of those DP World events and try to go somewhere while we’re out there. So, we might do it before the wedding or maybe something just after. But like, yeah, I travel for a living. So, it’s as golfers, your vacations are kind of when you have off weeks and can go home. Your home is like a vacation when you when you travel as much as professional golfers do. Fair enough. Early. Congratulations. Let me be the first, I’m sure, to uh congratulate you on your marriage. Uh you’re the you actually are the first. Oh, let’s go. I’m just kidding. I’m taking it. Clip it. Clip it. Uh your increase in speed has been talked about a ton this year. You changed a lot. Diet, creatine, no booze anymore. Uh what was the what was the catalyst for those changes? Yeah, just trying to be a better golfer. Um trying to do the right things off the course to help me play better. um is very important. So yeah, diets played a role. Um working out’s played a role. Um I do drink alcohol, but only if it’s celebratory um or like offseason and I want to get together with friends or whatnot. But like during the season, like I I haven’t had a drink of any sort since Charles Schwab. Um it’s I just feel way better. I feel amazing. Um it’s nice to get on a good sleep schedule. My Whoop age says I’m 22, so that’s pretty cool. Um, I just looked at that the other night. Um, so I’m like I’m like seven years younger than what I’m supposed to be according to my Whoop. Um, so yeah, all these things are cool. Um, and yeah, the supplements I’m taking are are pretty much solely just to make my body either one, feel better from an inflammation standpoint or two to actually help me a little bit with performance and and muscle gain and and some of those things. You you touched on your goals a little bit for the rest of the year. Do you allow yourself one are you like a goal setter at the beginning of the year and have you adjusted those at all if you made any? No, I don’t set any goals um not not like a like physical goals that compare myself against other people. Um in terms of like ranking or winning. I kind of set more daily goals of what I want to kind of accomplish um maybe not necessarily daily but kind of like weekly or or things that I can control. So where do I want to get my swing? where do I want to um what do I want to do off the golf course that’s going to make me better? So, some of those things. So, yeah, like this year was a big goal was was working out more consistently and um that’s paid off tremendously for sure. Um and so a lot of my goals aren’t actually tied to finishes or tournaments or qualifying necessarily like like yes, I am trying to play on the RDER Cup team. I’m trying to like, you know, win the tour championship or whatnot, but I’m trying to do the right things each and every day leading up to those to where they become very attainable. Do you struggle at all staying in the moment, staying in the process of those goals and looking longterm like to the RDER Cup or to the Tour Championship or anything like that? No, I’m like super present. I’m like as present. Yeah. Like I’ve even gotten I used to get like on the golf course even I used to like kind of think about future holes that I’d be playing. Now, I literally don’t think about anything except like the next shot. Um, which is really hard to do, but it’s taken like a couple years of like actual training to to be able to get to there mentally. And that’s not like anything I can do with like a mental coach. It’s more just like individually make sure I’m I’m staying in the moment and process. And if I ever catch myself leaking to thinking ahead, just quickly getting my mind off that topic. So, yeah, I’m pretty good at staying very present. God bless you. Okay, here’s one. You brought up the RDER Cup. You brought up the RDER Cup. Eighth in the standings. got to ask about it. Um, is there anyone in particular non-Andrew Novak division that you would love to pair up with if you’re on the team? Yeah, I mean, I think I’d pair up well with with most of the guys. I’d say I’m pretty friendly with everyone. Um, you know, even like I think it’d be fun, especially if I continue on this this trend of hitting it further and getting stronger. Playing with the Shambo would be really fun. Um, try to hit a bunch of bombs out there with him. I feel like I still have a little bit more speed that I need to need to get to to actually hang with him. But, um, yeah, I mean, obviously me and Andrew team up very well. All you have to do is go back to the Zurich to see that. Um, kind of both formats were were very comfortable playing with each other. Um, but yeah, outside, I mean, I played with Maverick and Andrew at the US Open. Both those guys I played a ton of golf with throughout, you know, even junior golf into college. Um, I mean, Morawa, Sheffler, like all these guys, most of the team I’ve played with for the last like 10 to 15 years. Um, I would say there’s a few outliers that are a little bit older. Um, a couple that may be a touch younger. Um, but yeah, I mean, I feel like feel like I’d play play well with just about any guy. Okay, we got to talk about your shades, too. They’ve kind of uh become your your cape almost. There it is. Uh, could could you get the American flag like printed on those? You think? We got to find a way. We got to find a way. Um, no. But, uh, my buddy Shane Bacon wanted me to ask, what’s the cut off point in darkness between on and off? Cuz was there a round at the US Open you didn’t wear them because of the rain? Um, there might have been. Sometimes there’s a few whole stretch where I’m like, I can’t wear them because it’s too dark. But there’s also times where I’ll wear them and I’m like, man, it is really dark right now. So yeah, there there’s a fine line. There is a line there. I don’t know exactly what it is. I don’t know how to measure like lightness, but there is a there is a point in time where if it’s either raining, I I will I will play if it’s raining, but I kind of wish I’ll have like windshield wipers on them so I can wipe them off. That’d be kind of cool. Might have to admit that. Um but yeah, they they stay on most of the time. Yeah, I’m going to talk to the USPTO to get that patent after this. Um okay, final final one. I ask everyone this. If you have one tip for amateurs for you with the with the speed gains, I’m curious what uh if someone’s trying to get longer off the tea, average Joe, not practicing a lot, maybe gets out a couple times a month, few times a month, is there a route that you would suggest? Is it just as easy go to the gym or something with their swinger? Yeah, I would say gym, diet, and mobility is the most important. So, stretching every day. Um because most most golfers that go out there, they’ll play around once a week and then they’ll be sore the next day. You’re trying to like make sure your body’s in good enough shape to where when you tee it up, you’re not gonna get sore. That’ll help you gain a few miles per hour. All right. I think uh I think that’s all we got for you, Ben. We’ll have to have you on uh when uh Pal cuts these rates and we can uh continue this conversation. Sounds good. Let’s wait for it.