⛳Golfunity Episode 12 Sepp StrakaSepp Straka’s Rise to PGA Tour Stardom – From Austria to the World’s Top 10!
In this episode of the Golfunity Golf Podcast, we dive deep into the inspiring journey of Sepp Straka, the Austrian-American golfer who’s taken the PGA Tour by storm! 🇦🇹🇺🇸
From his early days in Vienna to dominating on American fairways, Sepp’s story is one of grit, growth, and greatness. We cover:
His beginnings in golf alongside his twin brother Sam and their path to the University of Georgia
The grind from PGA Tour Canada and the Korn Ferry Tour to his first PGA Tour win
Major career highlights, including four PGA Tour victories and his breakthrough Signature Event win at the 2025 Truist Championship
His impact on Team Europe in the 2023 Ryder Cup and what to expect at Bethpage Black in 2025
Insights into his playing style, mental game, coaching changes, and how he leads in Greens in Regulation on Tour
Fun facts: his love for Diet Coke, his nickname “The Ox”, and how he stays sharp with JLab tech
Whether you’re a weekend warrior or golf fanatic, Sepp’s story is proof that hard work and belief can take you to the top.
🎧 Tune in now, subscribe, and follow us for more pro golf stories and insights!
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golf Unity the most popular golf infotainment podcast in town welcome back everyone to the deep dive we’ve got this uh great stack of sources you sent in all focusing on one player who’s really been making waves lately that’s right yeah sepraka and this is going to be our deep dive using only the stuff you provided to kind of trace his path you know how did he go from maybe being a bit under the radar to well a multiple PGA Tour winner writer cut player all that exactly these sources are like our road map because they paint this picture of a well a really spectacular 2025 season for him capped off by his biggest win and there’s some uh pretty interesting stuff in here about how it all started really unique journey okay yeah let’s get into it one of the first things that jumps out from these sources is um just how surprising his whole career path feels even to Seb himself totally he says he kind of finds it hard to believe sometimes and you know the sources point right back to the beginning with his twin brother Sam yeah that’s a key part of the story isn’t it sam was uh apparently the better golfer early on the one people thought might go pro right they play football first apparently and Sep uses this analogy like Sam was the striker scoring goals and he was the goalie just shows that difference back then or golf even yeah and then Sam around age 11 or so decides “Right we’re quitting football we’re doing golf.” Pretty wild having your twin make that call and the sources talk about these chipping and putting contests they had super competitive uh-huh and Se apparently lost most of the time yeah he jokes about how he’d have been broke if they played for money back then uhhuh yeah and what’s really interesting is how that played out with college sam was the one getting recruited by the University of Georgia the coach was focused on Sam and only kind of later realized oh wait this other twin Seph he can play a bit too seriously Seb actually credits Sam based on these sources with getting both of them noticed by the coach that’s how they end up with scholarships that’s quite a start and Sam’s still playing right still aiming for the tour himself yeah still grinding still has that dream shows you how deep that connection that maybe friendly rivalry runs it’s like fundamental decept story according to this material okay so from college the sources track his path into the pros it wasn’t instant success was it no definitely a grind started on PGA Tour Canada uh back in 2016 then two years on the web.com tour which we now know is the Corn Ferry Tour right and his first pro win was there wasn’t it the KC Golf Classic yep 2019 and that was huge because as the sources point out that’s what got him his PJ tour card and not just a PGA Tour a card he was the first Austrian-B born player ever to get one that’s a pretty big deal highlighted right here a major milestone for Austrian golf yeah then came the actual PGA Tour Breakthrough 2022 Cognizant Classic his first win right the old Honda Classic again another first the first Austrian to win on the PGO tour won by a shot final round 66 and guess who he beat shane Lowry uh Lowry again seems like their paths cross at big moments seems like it then win number two uh 2023 John Deere Classic that was that crazy final round oh yeah the near 59 what happened there he was absolutely cruising looked like 59 was on but then he double bogeied the 18th still won though nine birdies an eagle just wild stuff so that pattern again brilliant play mixed with having to kind of fight through a tough spot exactly and that kind of form led him to the big stages the sources talk about next like his Rder Cup debut in 2023 marcus Simone he was on the winning European team and he delivered a point didn’t he in forsomes alongside Don’t tell me Shane Lowry you got it shane Lowry it’s uncanny okay so beyond the Ryder Cup 2023 was big for majors too according to them yeah his best finishes so far runner up at the Open at Royal Liverpool brian Harmon won that one right and a T7 at the PGA Championship at Oakill solid stuff plus he’s played in two Olympics for Austria T10 in Tokyo T35 more recently in 2024 so he’s definitely comfortable in that world stage now okay now we get to 2025 and the sources describe the start of this year as spectacular yeah and maybe even that doesn’t quite cover it now his third win came pretty early January 2025 the American Express beat Justin Thomas by two shots there mhm but then came the really big one win number four the truest championship in May and this one felt different right the sources really emphasized this one oh yeah his first win at a signature event you know the huge purse the elite field $20 million prize fund he won it at Philly Cricket Club was a hicken course and who was right there with him at the end tied starting the final round shane Lowry again and Justin Thomas was in the mix too he beat them both by two strokes that final round sounds like a real battle based on the descriptions here oh totally seb talked about the nerves said it was hard to eat felt kind of nauseous couldn’t feel his arms or legs just brutal pressure wow but he got through it fought off mistakes bad shots and the sources pinpoint that shot on 18 that was the moment yeah what happened he was in a fairway bunker only had a one shot lead pulled out a 4 iron from like 216 yards hit it to about 30 ft clutch incredible shot under pressure he called it one of his best of the week right yeah and while he did that Lowry found trouble on 18 made bogey that sealed it for Seb wow and wasn’t there a story about his caddy that week too oh yeah great detail in the sources his regular caddy Dwayne Bach was out with a bad back so Drew Mathers stepped in right and Matters skipped US Open qualifying for it he did talk about a gamble paying off potential $360,000 payday for him amazing just incredible and the sources mentioned Rory Mroy coming up to him afterwards yeah congratulating him but also specifically mentioning the writer cut points that little detail tells you everything about how his peers see him now his status has definitely changed for sure and the sources back that up he’s now one of only two guys with multiple wins this season on tour him and Rory that’s an elite company so this truest win what did it actually do for him like rankings wise according to these sources it was massive pushed him inside the world top 10 for the first time number nine wow okay and the first Austrian ever in the top 10 exactly another huge milestone and he jumped way up the FedEx Cup standings too uh second place behind Rory that consistency is showing up the sources say 12 cuts made in 14 starts this year 10 top 15s that’s that’s really solid it is and the sources trace a lot of this improvement back to around 2022 that’s when he started with a new coach John Tiller ah okay and what was the big change they made well he was kind of known as this powerful but maybe inconsistent driver so they made a conscious decision to uh throttle down a touch as the sources put it focus more on accuracy throttling down that sounds interesting for a pro trying to get better how did that help what changed in his game it seems counterintuitive right but the sources say it led to huge gains in accuracy obviously but also his short game got way better putting scrambling all that stuff okay so hitting more fairways maybe hitting it closer exactly and the stats here really bear that out he ranks really high in strokes gained approach uh greens and regulation and actually says he leads the whole PGA tour in greens and regulation 72% leads the tour wow okay so he’s hitting greens more than anyone else that’s a recipe for consistency right there definitely and then higher ranks and strokes gained putting and scrambling mean when he does miss or when he’s on the green he’s capitalizing or saving par way better than average it’s a complete picture and he mentioned a small technical tweak too right something about his grip yeah just a little thing for the short game this season he tried a slightly firmer grip and his hands are a little higher now tiny adjustments making a big difference fascinating so okay thinking about his journey these changes he made what can someone listening you know maybe working on their own golf game actually learn from Sebstraka based on all this yeah that’s a great question the sources offer some really good takeaways first off his mindset seems key it’s about consistency not chasing perfection all the time right he’s not trying to hit the perfect shot every time he’s trying to hit the same shot repeatedly yeah sticking to the process even when the pressure is on and linked to that is being willing to make small adjustments mid round like he apparently made a swing change during the truest tournament whoa really during the event yeah no that doesn’t mean you know completely rebuilding your swing on the fifth TE it’s more about making smart little tweaks if something feels off knowing your game okay yeah for amateurs maybe that’s just noticing hey my ball position’s crept forward or my grip pressure is too tight making those small corrections instead of just grinding with something that’s not working exactly adaptability another thing is um quality practice not just banging balls for hours right focus on one specific thing with intention purposeful practice 30 focused minutes is better than an hour of just hitting basically and then trusting that prep the sources say Seth makes his decisions behind the ball then commits fully when he steps in no second guessing over the ball trust the work he did makes sense yeah and there are even some direct tips for amateurs in here from Seth oh yeah number one straightness over distance he basically says just getting the ball into the fairway is huge stop trying to kill it if you’re spraying it everywhere good advice what else having a predictable eye know your typical shot shape factor in the wind aim realistically based on how you actually hit the ball don’t aim for a shot you can’t hit right play your own game and keep the swing smooth tempo tempo tempo don’t strain for power light grip full turn stay balanced accuracy first distance second that seems to be his mantra now that aligns with the whole throttling down thing exactly okay oh and there’s this drill mentioned the straa rhythm drill okay you take like three different irons of five seven nine maybe swing them without a ball just focusing on keeping the exact same tempo for all three swings then try to hit balls with that same feeling that same rhythm ah neat focusing purely on tempo not distance that’s a practical one you could actually do yeah definitely actionable so all right looking ahead then based on the sources what’s next for him after this incredible run well the writer Cup looms large doesn’t it 2025 at Beth Paige Black he’s put himself in a fantastic spot for the European team yeah the sources say that truest win shot him up 15 places in the points list he’s sitting fifth now in the automatic spots and guess who’s second let me guess lowry bingo shane Lowry is second so that potential pairing is definitely looking strong again interesting and Seb expects Beth Paige to be tough right in the New York crowd oh yeah he knows it’ll be loud and heavily pro- USA very different vibe from Rome but he seems kind of ready for that challenge and then more immediately there’s the PGA Championship coming up at Quail Hollow how does he feel about that he knows the course finished eighth there last year though he missed the cut the year before he thinks it might play really long this year because of rain they’ve had makes sense and fellow Austrian burn Weisberger thinks he could win a major now yeah weisberger’s quoted saying “Anything is possible for Se in the majors with his current form.” That’s pretty high praise definitely and that truest win also locks up his tour card through 2028 right that’s huge for long-term planning massive security allows him to just focus on playing his best golf oh and a couple of fun tidbits from the sources before we wrap his nickname is the Ox he loves Diet Coke apparently travels with it in case the tournament only has Pepsi uhhuh that’s dedication and he’s a big University of Georgia football fan and Atlanta Braves too and his career earnings over $26 million now wow quite a journey from losing those chipping contests to Sam isn’t it just so Okay let’s try and summarize what we’ve unpacked from your sources here about Sept Straa well we’ve seen this uh pretty unlikely rise haven’t we starting with his twin brother being the golfer in the family yeah that was key and then the deliberate changes he made to his game around 2022 that whole throttling down for accuracy really honing the short game that seems crucial absolutely that led to this incredible consistency we’re seeing now and obviously the big wins including that signature event and we pulled out some really useful lessons too hopefully for you listening that focus on consistency over perfection being adaptable practicing with purpose trusting your preparation valuing accuracy working on rhythm all good stuff yeah hopefully digging into Straa’s story using these sources gave you some aha moments maybe some inspiration for your own game or just a better understanding of what it takes at that elite level you know seeing him go from like you said the second best golfer in his own family to a top 10 player in the world leading the tour in a key stat like greens and regulation it does make you think doesn’t it based purely on these sources what does his success story really tell us about getting to the top is it more about raw talent or is it that persistence that strategic change trusting your process and just relentlessly improving those fundamentals something to definitely maul over head over to our social media tell us what you think let’s hear it and give us your predictions for the future of golf until next time keep it in the fairway and hit them straight
