Lee Westwood and Trevor Immelman join 5 Clubs on Golf Channel

Lee Westwood and Trevor Immelman joined the program this morning. Westwood recently qualified for this year’s Open at Royal Portrush and Immelman is the lead analyst in the booth for CBS Sports.

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Good morning. Welcome into Five Clubs on this Wednesday here on Golf Channel. Of course, you can listen as well. That is PGA Tour Radio channel 92 on SiriusXM. And the program is always brought to you by Century Insurance. They are right by you. If you have business insurance needs, they’re the answer. Not to mention what they do with the game of golf supporting the United States Golf Association and also the first te golf pride when it comes to grips, the options you have, not to mention the durability, the quality through the bag, including that reverse taper putter grip series. It’s the best there is. Golf pride trusted by more players at every level. How about Peter Malar and what they provide you right now? If you go to petermalar.com across the website, 30% off, including this sport coat, this Claremont knit soft jacket, 30% off right now. I can move some product. And then, of course, the cradle of American Golf Pinehurst. They’ve got the US kids club coming up. They got kids from all over the world coming in there. They got grown-up kids going there at all times because there’s no better place to enjoy the variety of the golf. Not to mention all the different restaurant options and all the different places you can stay at the cradle of American golf. It is Pinterest. That’s the cradle of American golf. The men’s world of golf is at the home of golf this week. And we’ll talk about that with Trevor Imlman who is obviously the lead analyst for CBS Sports. He’s going to be joining me at the bottom of the hour. CBS does this event because it is a co-sanction event between the PGA Tour and the DP World Tour. Uh, and Trevor kind of turned back the clock not long ago at the Scottish Open. We’ll go down memory lane with him, get his thoughts on the final major of the year as well. And speaking of majors, his 92nd major championship start will be next week at the Open Championship where it all began for Lee Westwood. He’s going to be joining me in less than 15 minutes. his thoughts about qualifying, going through final qualifying. He hadn’t done that in 30 years. And also kind of live and kind of where everything is going. And also the RDER Cup. He was going to be a captain. Come on. Him and a bunch of other guys who are playing on live. I’ll ask him about that as well. So, we got a lot to get to, plus dogs, picks, all coming up. our final day of the week here on Five Clubs on Golf Channel and on SiriusXM’s PGA Tour Radio. But I’m going to share a photo with you because I mentioned the fact that, you know, the men’s game is in Scotland and that is 30 years ago. That is me and you can’t see that closely enough. My dad is to my right, uh, camera left there. And my father had some he had some lettuce, he had some flows. If you’re wondering, you know what? You’re not follically challenged, Gary. Well, the reason is because my dad had some he had some salad himself. That was my first trip to Scotland. The other gentleman was Dave Anderson, uh dear friend of my father’s, uh who lived in uh the kingdom of F, just north of of St. Andrews. That was my first trip over there. And there are a lot of things about the game of golf that have changed me, that have that have nurtured me, that have fortified me, that have enriched my life. Very few things are better than going there. And to hear Scotty Sheffller speak earlier today, and when I say earlier, you know, it’s 5 hours later there. It’s it’s lunchtime uh over there in Scotland. And no matter where you travel in that country, golf is part of the fabric of so many different little bedroom communities. But there St. Andrews and not far from there in East Lotheian where they’re playing this week at the Renaissance Club. There are a lot of very very uh sturdy neighbors to the Renaissance Club which is a newer golf course like brand new relative to places like Gullen which has hosted the Scottish Open and Mirfield the honorable company of Edinburgh golfers and you can go down the line North Burick which is that little seaside community which is so Tony so regal so pristine so sublime that you can’t believe that it even exists because it’s just so damn good. Everywhere you go in that country, uh, you feel like, my gosh, I could do this every day. And they do. Golf is a part of the culture. It’s a part of the society of Scotland. So, if you’re watching this show and you watch this channel, you obviously have more than a mild affinity for the game of golf. You probably love it. You probably have a passion for it. And many of you have already made probably a pilgrimage to go there with friends, with family. And when I went there for the first time in the fall of 1995, we played 13 rounds of golf in nine days. Could have played 33. That’s what it does to you. And so this next two weeks for the men’s game professionally, it’s a big stretch. It’s a co-sanctioned event. It is the final major of the year which it not it wasn’t formally before 2019 when the PGA championship moved to the month of May. This was the third major championship and then the PGA was played in the month of August. But these are the longest days of the year uh wherever you may be in this country or wherever you may be around the world. And in that part of the world because it’s so far north it’s light. Like I mean light like my gosh, let’s go play golf. It’s 4:00 in the morning and oh my gosh, it’s 10:30 at night. We could still play nine holes. At least you feel that way. It’s almost like it’s dusk at 11:00 at night. And so to play there, as so many of the best players in the world are for the next two weeks, this fortnight, so to speak, for the men’s game, this is a special time. and to listen as I did earlier today to Scotty Sheffller and I implore people to listen to him because he is very interesting. He’s very thoughtful and it’s not like he’s found his voice but he is I think more willing to give of his thoughts on design and on setups and on not no not so much like him projecting out what he’s going to do or looking back on what he’s already done. He ain’t going there. but he’ll give you his thoughts on where he is right now. And where he is right now is in Scotland. And he talked about when you play golf over there, how incredibly different the challenge is that there are so many different options that you can you can choose to play, particularly the closer you get to the hole, literally like almost every club in your bag. and for him to talk about that. And I know for a lot of the people who are a part of the assembled media there, some of them are from right there. And I’m sure they’re listening to him going, “Come on, keep keep talking. Keep giving us what we know already.” So, I’m going to end with this that this two weeks is a very important two weeks for men’s professional golf because in this country, we’re recreating. These are the long days. These are beach days. You don’t want to be sitting in the house, so to speak, late in the afternoon or even in the middle of the afternoon, but you can watch golf from the moment you wake up. And then by 10:00, maybe you’d said, “I’ve had enough. I’ve watched a couple hours of golf. It’s time to go play golf or go jet ski or or go to the beach or go play pickle ball or tennis or whatever it is that you do.” And next week with the Open Championship, there’s nothing better. And I’m not saying that you should get up at 1:30 in the morning for the first ball in the air next week at Royal Port Rush, but I will because there’s nothing quite like it. And so by lunchtime, golf’s done. And so golf in Scotland, my first experience 30 years ago, and I went back this last fall with three very dear friends. And there’s a photo that hangs in the corner of this studio from a day at Mirfield last October with these three friends of mine. My honorable company of golfers that has given me more than almost anything that the game has given me and I’ve only done it a handful of times. That’s how enriching the experience can be. We take our first break when we continue. Lee Westwood live golfs in Spain and that’s where he is. He’s going to join me. I haven’t talked to him in a couple of years. It was right before he left for Live Golf. Much to get to with him, Trevor Immelman as well. Picks and dogs. It’s what we do on a Wednesday here on Five Clubs. Not only on Golf Channel, but at Channel 92 PJ Tour Radio on SiriusXM. Back with Lee Westwood right after this. back in on this Wednesday here on Five Clubs on Golf Channel, also on PJ Tour Radio Network, on SiriusXM’s channel 92. And this segment is brought to you by Pinehurst, the cradle of American golf. If you’re planning a trip to play golf, to enjoy fine dining, the accommodations, and the choices you have, there’s no better place than the Pinehurst Resort. All right, joining me now from Spain. He’s got to compete this week and again next week in his 28th Open Championship start. He was the medalist at the Don Donald final qualifying site. 28th Open Championship start. Guy’s won in four decades on five continents. He knows this. Does he get introduced this way at home? I doubt it. Uh he of course is Lee Westwood. Lee, it’s been a long time. How are you, my friend? I’m very good, thank you. How are you, Gary? I’m doing very well. Thank you for making the time. Um 28 start, the first was 95. You played in every one until 22. What do you remember about 95 at the old course in that first start at the open championship? Well, it was a pretty good uh place to play first open obviously the home of golf and uh um a very memorable finish as well. you know, Constantino Rocker holding that put from out the Valley of Sin to tie John Daly and uh and then John Daly winning a playoff. So, uh yeah, it was uh it was a it was an interesting week. I remember standing on the pudding gr before anything started on the Thursday morning and I was in a group uh behind Arnold Palmer, Peter Baker and Ian Baker Finch and obviously Arnold the legend of the game teed off and then I think uh Ian Baker Finch teed off behind him and Augusta wind blew blew his hat off that nearly landed on his ball and he hooked it out of bounds left which uh which kind of shook me up a bit for when my uh my T-shot was to Um it’s like it’s like the widest fairway in the world and it suddenly got a lot narrower that you just reminded everybody uh of one of the most dubious things we’ve ever seen on the first te in competition. There have been a lot of balls probably hit left uh from the everyday golfer. Uh but Ian who had won the championship uh yeah I gosh you just reminded me there there is footage of that. People can find that t-shot. I can’t believe you were a witness to that. That was That was your first open. You were You were next on the tea. I was in the next group behind. Yeah. Yeah. It was uh it was it was a good it was the the round itself was a really nice way to start the you know your open championships because if you know St. Andrews during the open they’re quite slow rounds and uh because of the shared greens and shared fairways and uh I was on a lot of TE’s at the same time at the time as Arnold Palmer because there was a backup so you know backlog. So uh yeah it was uh you kind of got on the tea and then you you know being in the presence of of a god really. No doubt this will be your 92nd major championship start and you responded exceptionally well to these environments which are big and and can be distracting. Why do you think you did? Why do you think through all the years uh that you that not only did you respond to it, you embraced it, you liked it? Why do you think that was? Is that all? Is it only 92? Yeah, only 92. Feels like more. Um uh I think uh it it did take me a while to get used to playing major championships. You kind of build them up to be something um ultra special whereas you really ought to just treat them as another tournament and uh and just go about your way. You know, I tried to have too many practice rounds earlier on early on and uh it really felt like by the time the tournament started on a Thursday, I was a little bit burnt out. So I guess around uh 99 2000 I started to get the hang of them and uh and then you know started having some better performances had a chance in 99 at the Masters and had a few top 10s and then around 20089 um found form again and you know had a good chance at Tory Pines when Tiger beat Roco in a in a playoff and uh then there was a there was a run of uh major championships where I seem to be in the top three most weeks. So, I think it’s uh I think it’s a mindset you just have to get yourself into um and kind of just ease your way into the tournament. You know, you you know the old adage that you can lose it on the first day. You know, you can’t win it on the first day, but you can lose it on the first day. Um definitely applies to major championships. You you kind of want yourself in there thereabouts somewhere near the lead. Well, you mentioned all these top finishes. The last time it was at Port Rush, you finished fourth. Um, what do you like so much about that place? Cuz obviously a lot of people like it because they race back there pretty darn quickly uh to have the open there again. Uh, what do you like about Port Rush? It’s a it’s a lovely part of the world. Um, you know, the people are very friendly there. It’s a great little town. You know, some great bars and uh, you know, really sort of encapsulates the Open Championship feeling. It’s it’s sort of like a St. Andrews town but in Northern Ireland. Um, and then the course itself, fell in love with it years ago when I played the British amateur there in the early 90s. Um, and then obviously went back for the open in 2019 when Shane won and and played well there then and and obviously friends with Darren Clark who’s from that area and and Graeme McDow and um uh just really love the the golf course itself. It gives you a few chances. It’s tough in a few places, some hard parses, some easy parries. um really is it throws something different at you every day and obviously you know with it being a lynx course and kind of stuck out there. The next sort of land when you look out to see is Iceland I think or Greenland and you really get some weather coming in from that direction which changes the golf course completely. Uh three of the four final qualifying sites live players were the medalists. You were one of them. Final qualifying is not something you do much or have had to do much at all for a long long time. What what is the value of not only doing it but being the medalist? Is there something that can embolden you in some way? It was my first time qualifying since 1995, my very first home. So um I think anytime you play well and um obviously there’s a lot of good players at an open championship qualifying. Uh it gives you confidence. Um you know to qualify would have been great, but to to lead the qualifying was extra special, especially having not played the golf course before. Um that can be an advantage. can be a disadvantage. You know, you don’t you don’t really know where the trouble is. Um because you’re just going out there and looking at fairways and trying to hit it. You know, I think you’re you’re focuses a lot more honed on a target when you haven’t played it. Um and yeah, I actually quite in a strange kind of way, I really enjoyed the qualifying. It, you know, it was a chance to once again test myself against, you know, some of the younger guys. Does it does doing something like that for the first time since literally I mean it’s 30 years ago uh that that you did that does it remind you of being a boy again? Does it remind you of things that you did when you were an adolescent? Seriously? Yeah. Reminds you Yeah, it reminds you of being young. Yeah. Oh, this is what it was like to have to qualify. Yeah, it was it was it was actually good fun. Uh I really enjoyed it, you know, despite having flown in from Dallas and only having having a couple of hours sleep. Um, you know, yeah, getting out there and, you know, testing myself. It was it against the young kids, it’s always fun. Yeah. You and I had a long conversation at the beginning of 2022. We talked about a lot of stuff and then you left for Liv and here we sit more than three years later. Where do you think men’s professional golf’s going to be in two years? Well, I have no idea. Um I I I don’t kind of profess to the idea that uh you know that that people the best players in the world should play um you know all the time together. Um they never have you know the best players in the world come together for the major championships and it used to be yeah the players championship but other than that it was wasn’t really that way. Um, I just, you know, I I relate back to the question. There’s 52 weeks in the year and there seems to be this problem with Liv playing tournaments on 14 of them. If you can’t accommodate, you know, 14 tournaments a year into a 52 tournament schedule, somebody’s playing too many too many tournaments, uh, too many rounds of golf on their tours. So, um, yeah, there’s got to be a bit of give and take, I’d say, in the world of golf. But um you know there doesn’t seem to be anybody willing to give up ground at the moment. Do you think uh with Scott O’Neal who’s your new CEO and and now you’ve got a new leader on the PGA tour. From from your perspective, do you think for Scott that a a pathway for players to some degree is a priority? It’s got to be right. Yeah, I think so. Um yeah, I think the main issue is the fact that Liv don’t have world ranking points and uh and therefore there are players playing on Liv that are world class that should be playing in major championships. Uh I think it’s good that the PGA Tour are getting a new uh um leader, you know, the leadership’s changing there. I think that’s good for the game of golf uh that uh you know, all these uh tours, you know, start a fresh again. you know, the the trouble is when you you you’re dealing with the same people, uh you know, there’s there’s issues in the background, you know, somebody’s upset about something that’s gone on before and you need to come into it with in a very factual way with and there was too much emotion flying around with uh with previous people in charge. Thanks. Um, I had Keegan Bradley on the show yesterday and look, he’s in he’s in a position to do something that haven’t been done since 1963 and the affforementioned Arnold Palmer who’s a playing captain. I’ve talked to a lot of captains and it’s not about him specifically. I just think there was so much going on. I don’t know how this is achievable. What’s your view? Because look, you’re a presumptive captain. Forever is a long time. I’d like to believe that that that everything that there can be some harmony that all you guys who are lined up to be captains, you were on 10 European teams. Um, do you think that this is a reasonable thing for anybody to embark on a playing captain? Um, I personally don’t think so. I think it I think it there’s too much involved with the uh the captain’s role now. You have to be in so many places at uh at so many different times. you know, the value of having um good vice captains is is um very very important now. Um I just having been a vice captain and having played on 11 teams and know what you know how much effort and and you emotionally you have to get invested and physically have to get in invested in that. I just don’t see any way that you could be captain as well. Um, I I I’m very much of the opinion if you go to the Ryder Cup as a player, you should be concentrating on, you know, your performance and just as a player, you shouldn’t have to think about speeches and and picks and stuff like that. Uh I think yes it was possible long ago before it became this big monster that it is but now it’s just it’s just this big machine that you know rolls along and and you know I think uh I think the days of you know doing captainc and playing you know a long gone and he might prove me wrong and and you know I’ve been I’ve been really impressed with the way Keegan’s played. Yeah, I shorted you one. Thank you for correcting me. Uh it’s all right. Bring that mulligan. I I I’ll take a breakfast ball. It is early. All right. I I want to quote you to you one last thing on the RDER Cup because I said, “Look, you you are there’s so many guys on live who have been blew. You guys have not only represented Europe, you have carried the flag to all these victories over the last three decades. You said back in April that you would love to sit down and carve out a way back together again. If you were asked, you jump at the chance and captain the team at a dare manner. Do you think that there is a road ahead for all of you guys? Whether it starts with you and and from Poulter to to Graham McDow to Sergio Garcia, I mean to Henrik Stenson who was the captain uh and then that was taken from him. Would you like to believe that there’s a road ahead that all that can be done? Yeah, I would like to believe that, but you know, the everybody’s cards have got to be laid on the table. Um, you know, that um there’s got to be everybody’s got to get in a room and, you know, the absolute truth has got to be spoken. There can’t be uh people playing one against the other in in different types of negotiations. And uh you know, it’s uh it’s got to be an honest conversation. All right, let me get you out of here with five quick questions to go. I don’t know if one of them might be in the room. You guys always seem to be pranking each other. Who’s the more annoying prankster on your team, Palter or Stenson? Pter without a doubt. Easily just annoying in general, Gary. All right. Your your favorite city. Look, you you chose to live in the States for a for a brief stretch in South Florida. What’s your favorite city in the United States? Um It’s a great question. I think New York. Okay. I thought maybe you’d say Vegas for reasons that Well, I I did get married there, so maybe maybe I’ve dropped the ball there. I should have said Vegas, but uh um I claim to have had my honeymoon in San Diego, but my wife doesn’t think cading in the US Open counts. All right. Speaking of your wife Helen, what is the trashiest show that you guys share together? A TV show? Something that is a guilty pleasure? Is there something you watch together? You look at each other go, I can’t believe we’re watching this. I can’t wait for the next episode. I don’t watch a lot of TV. Um, we we don’t really I I will not put anything on. So, no reality TV for you. No. No. Wow. I’m impressed. I’m just like I’m out. You’re out. Okay. Uh, something I know you love is thoroughbred horse racing. Give me the thoroughbred that that you have an affinity for, an affection for, a love for historically. The the the the horse that you love that maybe you never saw run in all likelihood that you just love. I think probably I would say Secretariat, but of recent times, Frankle. Frankle was the horse that I stood next to and I was just in awe of how how big and how impressive an athlete he was. Okay, I’ll share this with you. I’ve shared it before. My dad was at the Belmont in 1973 uh and he said when that horse got to the top of the stretch and he went to everything you saw every sporting event there was. So it was the most exhilarating thing he’d ever experienced at a sporting event to see that horse and then continue to separate like it did. All right, last thing. He won by about 25 30 lengths, didn’t he? So, yeah, I think it was 3 31 or 33 and a2. Yeah. Yeah. He’s moving like a tremendous machine. That was the last line before he hit the tape. Yeah. Um, last thing. Uh, the one car. You can only have one car to drive for the balance of your time. What is it? Um, I I’ve always wanted a Rolls-Royce and never had one. I guess I’d say a Rolls-Royce. Interestingly enough, did did you see where Brooks Kepka was driving his Rolls and it ran out of gas? I did. Yeah. Yeah. That’s quite funny. How can a Rolls-Royce ever run out of gas? It’s It’s like a tank. It’s massive, isn’t it? And there’s a gas station every five minutes in the States as well. I mean, how do you Yeah, that’s an impossibility. I I don’t know how that how he could have achieved that. I figured there’d be like three reserve tanks in a rolls that you could never actually run out of gas. Speaking of not running out of gas, 52, another open start. Thank you for taking the time. I know that you’re thoroughly going to enjoy being back uh in that championship where it all started for you in 1995. I really appreciate it. Thank you. My pleasure. Good to talk to you, Gary. Thank you, Lee. Thanks. All right. We continue here on this Wednesday. It is five clubs on Golf Channel and also channel 92 on SiriusXM. We’re back right after this. Back in on this Wednesday, it is five clubs on Golf Channel. Also PJ Tour Radio’s channel 92 on SiriusXM. And this segment brought to you by Peter Malar. I mentioned at the top of the show, we got a sitewide sale right now. There’s Claremont knit soft coat can be yours. 30% off from Peter Malar. All right. Joining me now, uh, he buys his stuff on Park Avenue. That would be in Winter Park at John Craig and accessorizes as well. He’s the lead analyst for CBS. He’s headed to Scotland tonight and speaking, of course, of the 2008 Masters Champion, Trevor Imlman. Good morning, my friend. How you doing? Morning, Gary. It’s uh great to be with you. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed listening to your show over the last little while. And yep, still in Orlando. I head over to Scotland tonight. Looking forward to that. I know you are. My gosh, my friend. Uh to 2018, you turn back the clock at this at this event and I’m dying lousy, rooting like hell for you because you were starting to kind of dip your toe in the TV waters. Uh at that point you jump up at Gullan and you’re in the deep end of the pool. What do you remember about that 2018 Scottish? Gosh, it uh it was such a blast, Gary. Yeah, I mean you and I were working together at Golf Channel doing morning drive and live from and all that kind of stuff. And uh I was thoroughly enjoying getting into uh the broadcasting world and get to hang out with people like you, learn from people like you. Uh but at the same time I was trying to sort of see out my final days as playing and see how long I could drag that out. And all of a sudden I found some form at the Scottish Open. Uh the week before at the Irish Open I started to feel something clicking with my long game. And I’ve always just had this affinity with Lynx golf and and being able to use my imagination and move the trajectory and the ball flight around and got to Gullen. Fell in love with the golf course. I’ve always enjoyed that area of Scotland and that style of golf and it was just so much fun to get a little taste of having a chance to win again. And it’s so interesting. It’s kind of like uh like riding a bike, you know, you never quite forget. you sometimes wonder if you’ll have the opportunity again, but but when thought things start going in in your direction, uh you know, all those old memories started flooding back of when I had opportunities to win, it was so much fun uh coming down the stretch and and having a chance to win, but unfortunately just got beat in the end by a brilliant round from a fellow South African, Brendan Stone. I’m wanting to say shot 60 or 62. the 60 in the final round. So, hey, you can’t knock that. He went out there and won it. But, uh, it was a blast. It was. You mentioned that that part. And so, before we talk a little bit more about the Scottish, your first open championship was 2002. When you’re playing Gullen, by the way, you can look over and see Rearfield where which is where you had your first start. Oh, by the way, another South African uh won that open championship in a in a bizarre fourman split into twos playoff. It was Ernie Ellis who won and I was there with my dad uh for that. So you play in your first and you made the cut in your first eight open championships. Why did you respond and embrace the style immediately? Well, I just loved it uh from the get-go. You know, I was fortunate to play the ama as a 17year-old in 97 at Royal St. George’s and I found a way to make it all the way to the final. That was my first time playing Lynx golf and everything about it I just fell in love with. Like I touched on earlier. The the imagination needed, the fact that you could use every club in your bag pretty much for every shot was just something that really struck a chord with me. Uh also the the toughness needed when conditions get tough and hard, the wind starts to pump and you’ve got rain coming in sideways. Those are the kinds of things that that I really enjoyed when I was playing. And I have such fond memories of that 2002 Open. You know, I I qualified at North Beric, which is another gem that I love so much. I actually shot the course record in the opening round and and found a way to hang on and qualify for my first open. And then I played all my practice rounds with Ernie and then lo and behold, he goes ahead and wins the tournament. So, uh, it was a week that I remember fondly and you know, the Open Championship has just always been so special. I mean, look, it is it is for all of us. It’s the oldest championship out there. Uh, and anybody who who truly has a love for the sport, has a special place in their heart for the Open. And to be able to go back to all of these historic and iconic venues and feel the tradition, feel the history is something that is so special. Uh and and even now, you know, later on in my career in a different role with the broadcasting, it’s still so much fun to be able to go over there and and get immersed in it and speak to the locals and and the fans and the people in the crowd and how knowledgeable they are, how much fun they’re enjoying being out there even when conditions are tough. you know, they they pack their sandwiches, they’ve got their their flask of hot tea or coffee, and they head out for the day and watch uh their favorite players from all over the world. I mean, it it’s there’s something truly romantic about it, and it’s why I’ve got this huge smile on my face and looking forward to getting on a plane tonight and heading over there again. I know you are. It’s a I know it’s a special week for your whole CBS broadcast team. this co-sanctioned event for people who don’t know look this the administration of the professional game of golf is in your blood your dad uh devoted his career to doing it so I know that you can have a viewpoint on the idea of co-sanctioning events do you think there are other opportunities for the PGA tour and the DP world tour uh to create another opportunity to share space like they are this week you know I think they do they they are they are for sure I I think that’s definitely possible. It’s going to be very interesting to see how these schedules play out in future years. Uh, you know, caught some of your interview with Lee Westwood there before. We got new leadership at the PGA Tour and uh, you know, I think everybody’s kind of wondering what is that going to look like? Is that going to change in uh, the direction or the course of the PGA Tour in any way? Uh, but uh, you know, I’ll use that word romantic again. This just feels it feels right. It feels right leading into the Open to be able to to have the best players in the world go over to Scotland and get a little lynx golf in, play in a wonderful tournament that is the Scottish Open and start to have a little bit of a runup into the final major of the year. So, it feels good. It feels like it fits real well. uh you touched on on earlier, you know, our CBS crew is extremely excited to head over there and have the opportunity to cover the golf this weekend. Uh we’ve had some brilliant finishes over the last few seasons with Rory hitting maybe the shot of the year with that two iron into 18 and then Bob McIntyre beating Adam Scott down the stretch on his home turf. I mean, it doesn’t doesn’t get better than that. I don’t know how this year is is going to top it, but uh look forward to seeing how it plays out and likewise look forward to seeing, you know, how this partnership between the PGA Tour and the DP World Tour plays out. I absolutely think there are little pockets of opportunity to where they can do more co-sanctioned events. Yeah, I hope so. I’m with you. Uh Sheffller in the field this year. He spoke earlier today. I loved what he shared about the different challenge that Lynx Golf presents. you are front and center for so many of his starts and I know the appreciation level you have for him in every respect. Is there a trait he possesses that you admire or appreciate the most? Yeah, it’s hard to single one out. I mean, the answer is all of them, Gary. Yes. You know, that’s the thing with with Scotty is uh he’s such a complete package. you know, he has everything. And and when I say that, I’m not just talking about the physical attributes. I’m talking about the mental and emotional attributes as well. Uh it it really is special. You know, if if you look at the stats and you start to to pick apart, okay, where are where is a hole in his game, you know, the the only thing your eyes can wonder to is is maybe sand play around the greens, uh greenside bunker shots. And guess what? He’s 75th on tour. So, he’s still gaining shots when he’s in a greenside bunker. And that’s really his weakness, if you want to call it that. And it just goes to show how incredible he is top to bottom. The accuracy that he has, the power at his disposal. Look, is he is he one of the top 10 longest hitters on tour? No. But he has ample pop in the bat. He’s able to move the ball both ways. His imagination is incredible. his touch around the greens. He’s turned the putter into a weapon over the last two seasons, which if you’re another competitor out there right now, one of the other top 20 players in the world, let’s say, you’ve got to be looking at him going, “Golly, how on earth can I find a way to expose this guy?” Because he has all of these weapons on the course and then the mental toughness is there as well. you. He has the ability to keep things so simple. There’s just no drama in his life really. You know, he’s got a wonderful family environment. He has uh, you know, a strong faith that he relies on heavily. And then it’s getting out there with with Randy Smith, doing the coaching, doing the prep, sticking to the fundamentals. It’s very, very hard to to see and find a crack with this guy. And at this young of an age, man, he’s going to be around for a long time. Uh, you know, obviously injuries are crazy things in sports, but at this point, his body seems to hold up well as well. Uh, and, uh, he’s he’s a handful, man. He’s going to be a handful for these guys, Gary. No, that’s so perfectly said. He’s a handful and he’s going to be for the foreseeable future. Do you get the sense that the Travelers might have been a turning of the corner for Rory? Does your intuition tell you that the next two weeks that he’s going to be in the fight here? I’m hopeful. I definitely am hopeful. Look, what an incredible season and story it’s been for him completing the Grand Slam. Naturally, there’s a little bit of a let down there. I mean, that’s totally understandable. When when you’re a child, you dream of of winning on the biggest stages. uh you know, most probably don’t even dream about completing the Grand Slam because it seems unattainable and and here here he is being able to do that at a relatively young age. And so understandably there’s a drop off. Uh but he’s had some time away now to be able to reset and he’s going back to tournaments that he’s won, uh golf courses that he knows extremely well. And I really do believe that the opportunity to to come back and play in front of his home fans again uh is going to energize him. I think it’s going to energize him and I I look to him finding some form here again over the next couple weeks. Last thing uh JJ Spawn, it was it’s a great story. It was it was a great culmination. Trevor, in 2008 when you came to Charlotte after winning the Masters, I was sitting in the media room and it was like it was yesterday and you were talking about, you mentioned the word reset with Rory and you were talking about, you know, fatigue and and that you were in a different space that that winning a major championship put you in and you said something. You said, “I don’t know how Tiger does this every week.” That was verbatim what you said. Like, how does he do this? Cuz he contains or wins most times and that stuck with me. What guidance or advice would you give to JJ Spawn who finds himself now in a very different space? Yeah, it’s exactly right. You know, Tiger, guys like Tiger, Rory, Ernie else, uh, you know, Sheffller even who have the ability to, uh, really quickly put a victory behind them and move on and get motivated again. It’s amazing. It’s It’s an amazing gift and skill and something that these guys just naturally have inside them to constantly be hungry. Uh and you know, I actually had a conversation with JJ just a few days later on the putting green at the Travelers and we were talking about his amazing victory. Naturally, we spoke about that putt which will go down as such a memorable shot in the history of our sport and you know he asked me for some advice and I just said look hey JJ number one you’ve got to enjoy this moment because you’ve achieved something that is just so special at such an iconic venue with great history. And basically what I tried to say to him was look don’t be afraid to say no for a little while. protect your time, protect uh the the moments that you’re going to have with your friends and family and just don’t rush into anything. You know, take your time with things. Make sure that you’re still focused on your game because that is the number one priority is making sure that you’re still working on your fundamentals. You’re still keeping your form where you want it. you’re still focused on the things that you need to be focused on, which is getting the ball in the hole as fast as possible. And don’t feel like you’re a bad person if you can’t do everything. And that was something that I struggled with quite honestly. I felt the weight of of being the Mast’s champion. I I really wanted to represent the game of golf. I wanted to represent Augusta National PGA Tour in the best way possible. And uh I got a little distracted and basically that was was what I said to JJ was keep the main thing the main thing and that is maintaining this form playing brilliant golf and if you keep doing that everybody’s still going to want to speak to you. So you don’t have to say yes to to all the opportunities that get put in front of you. Excellent advice. Thank you for carving out the time uh before departing. Have a great trip. I know you will with your team. Like you said, it’s romantic. You get wrapped up in it all. Thanks so much. We can’t wait and it’s great to spend time with you, Gary. Thanks so much. Thank you, Trevorman, lead analyst for CBS. They’ve got the Scottish Open uh this weekend. We continue here. Dogs picks coming up right here on Five Clubs. Back in on five Close. There’s no segment that Golf Pride would be more proud of than presenting your dogs of the week. They present this segment again when it comes to grips. More options, the best materials. That’s why they are the leader in golf grips around the world. Golf pride. All right, let’s get to our dogs of the week. And if you’ve got a dog that’s got a relationship with the game of golf, send it to us dogs at fivecubsgolf.com. Here we go. And we lead with popcorn. Rob Smith, the owner, Tools Around the Country Club at Oxford, Mississippi, three and a half-year-old Kaboo, named after Lane Kein, who said, “Get your popcorn ready at Bama.” How’d that work out? All right, that is B. Bill Glenn, who’s the head golf professional at Roaring Gap, one of the great places. He’s one of the great people and pros in America. That is a great golden retriever mixed rescue dog. Loves being up there at Roaring Gap. That is Scooter and Slugger. Jerry Ortiz, who’s an Army veteran, loves taking his dogs out onto the golf course. Why wouldn’t he? That is Charlie. The owner is Molly Stone from right here in Charlotte, North Carolina at Rainree. loves to make sure people are raking their bunkers and obeying the cart rules and repairing their divot marks. What a glorious looking dog. And that right there is Phoenix at Caprock Ranch. That is Cheyenne and Trenton Celita. I met Phoenix a couple weeks ago right there in guest services at Caprock Ranch. There are very few places in the world better than to roam the fairways there at Caprock Ranch right there on the Snake River Canyon south of Valentine, Nebraska. Again, the dogs, send your dog in. Dogs at fivecubsgolf.com. All right, we got to get to our picks. This is a uh a big week with the co- sanctioned event, but we look at the standings first and where everybody sits on our team. Taylor continues to lead. He’s had a good season. Johnson, Emma, myself, Gil, Jay, and there is Brendan. Brendan De Young is like gout. I mean, it’s painful. Uh it never gets better. It seems like that’s him and his picks. Uh, I I just don’t know what to say. This is the middle of July. He’s only made $5 million. All right, with that, we get to the Scottish Open, the Genesis Scottish Open. Again, loaded field. I’m taking Colorawa. He had not only a good start in his last start, he had a good start here last year, finishing fourth. Gil H and Taylor Zarger both take Ryan Fox, a two-time winner this week. Robert McIntyre, the defending champion for Ammon Carpenter. Xander Schoffley for Johnson Wagner. Xander was great yesterday in the media center. Uh he too has got a great record playing Lynx golf. And Jay also taken Robert McIntyre. And I feel for Tommy Fleetwood because if he doesn’t have a good week, there’s one reason. It’s not because he puted poorly. It’s not because he was poor hitting T-shots and missing fairways because Brendan Young picked him to win. Uh Tommy would be a good pick and it would seem probably appropriate if he got his first PJ tour win in a co-sanction event where he’s won so many great events on the DP World Tour and not doing it in the United States. All right, Monday, a reminder, we start at 7 a.m. Eastern time. It’s open championship week. We got a lot of guests. Learner and Shambbley, Tommy Roy, who’s in the Hall of Fame for broadcasting, Billy Horchel as well. Have a great rest of your week. We’ll see you Monday, 7 Eastern.