In a plot twist that absolutely no one saw coming, Don Rea is somehow NOT the star of this episode recapping the 2025 PGA Championship. Masters winner Rory McIlroy joins Andy, Brendan!, KVV, and PJ to share some thoughts about his own historic year. Rory discusses the Masters win that made him a grand slam champion, his recent travels to Australia, the 2025 Ryder Cup, and much, much more. He even breaks some HUGE TGL news that may lead to one (1) Ballfrog win in 2026! After committing to a future appearance on “Lunch With The Boys,” Rory departs and sets the stage for a look back at the 2025 PGA Championship: The Rise of Rea. Andy is tasked with researching the early-week festivities, including dumping rain and a sparsely-attended champions dinner. He then transitions to the main event: Tuesday’s press conference featuring Derek Sprague, Kerry Haigh, and Don Rea Jr. Andy reads quotes from our live show from that very day, remembering when PGA members were referred to as “first responders” and recalling his own investigative journalism from a phone call to Augusta Ranch. Kevin Van Valkenburg picks things up for the first two days of play, detailing a leaderboard that prominently featured Jhonattan Vegas, Cam Davis, and Ryan Gerard. Mudballs run rampant after days of rain at Quail Hollow and players like Xander, Scottie, and more are very unhappy! KVV also has the honor of presenting on this year’s installment of Blockie-mania, as Michael Block missed the cut after a decent first round. Brendan brings this episode home as he chronicles Scottie Scheffler’s dominant Saturday performance that resulted in his third major championship. The 2025 Year in Review, although delayed, will continue on Friday!
0:00 – News & Schedule for the Week
4:10 – Rory McIlroy
42:18 – 2025 PGA Championship: The Rise of Rea
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Greetings and welcome to a Wednesday edition of the Shotgun Start. It is December 17th. Andy, how are we doing? Brendan, I'm doing great. I gotta say there's nothing like sitting up late at night cackling, doing research about uh about your interview. But we've made it. We've made it. >> The main event is here. It's not the Masters. >> I'm going to steal PJ's line that he had before this. It's the dawn of Dawn. >> The Dawn of Don. >> Oh, the Dawn of Dawn. The rise of Rhea. Here we are. >> There was there there's a world before we knew who Don Rya was, and that was precisely Wednesday of PGA week, whatever that was, May 15th, I'll say. And then there's the world after. And that that's the big lie of demarcation. I I we did know who he was. I clearly couldn't pick him out of a lineup. Name didn't recog name didn't resonate at all. And then there there was the world that was that happened after that press conference Wednesday at Quill Hollow, which we will get to in this part of your in review. >> Um it's a series event of events. This sparks a series of events that eventually would end in this. times over the last months. I haven't measured into those sus. I apologize for that. >> New devil's new levels, baby. I forgot about that. There's so much. Oh my god. I almost just want to exerpt or you know exempt Rhea from year review and just have his own episode for the entire the year and Rehea like some other time later on would be incredible. All right, let's get to the >> We should We We This This year we're We're fighting adversity. We're fighting adversity. >> We had TGL early on that threw a wrench in our in our year review. >> The great masters. >> For those not watching on YouTube, BJ has put up The Rise of Rhea in Star Wars Bot. >> Star Wars Bot. This is it. He came onto our lives. Um, >> there's a trade dispute in the colonies. >> KBB has joined us. PJ is here. We're going to go four wide again for this episode. Um, let's start with the instant week. We have schedule for the week because it's still a week with golf. I believe this is the last OWGR event of the year. The Aphrasia Bank Maitius Open. I've got I've got pages of intel on this golf course. I'm probably one of the few people in the world or certainly in golf media that has it. But now it's like a complete circus of a course. It's all downhill. You take a giant cart to like the top of the hill and then like mostly like 17 of 18 holes are like massively downhill. Uh but that's going on 3:30 in the morning Eastern time. European DP World Tour event. Maitius is a beautiful island. Uh just absolutely blowing there and they have to keep it really soft because it it just whips on the side of a mountain. Um, elsewhere in our schedule for the week, it has finally come. The Golf Channel games have arrived. This is Wednesday night at 7:30 p.m. Eastern time. Uh, Scotty's team versus Rory's team. I will watch. I will be tuning in. I'm I'm moderately curious about what this is all going to be. Could flop. Could be interesting. Could be a proof of concept for something more. could be a proof of concept for, you know, doing one more of these things. I don't know. I have a little bit of alt golf fatigue, you know, alternate ideas. Everybody's got ideas. I I think we may one day look back on the TGL as being one of the most insane experiments in the history of the world, but that's just it's just parklay in the back of my mind. Everybody's got golf golf ideas, throwing money at them. Golf's hot right now, but uh the Golf Channel games are coming Wednesday night. Andy, are you excited? >> Well, Brendan, you know, I uh I've got I'm excited about the Golf Channel games, but I wanted to bring in a special guest. We're going to go five wide to talk about maybe he's probably got more thoughts than me on the Golf Channel games. So, let's welcome in Rory Maroy. >> Good afternoon, guys. >> Is this AI? Is this We know this. >> This is not This is not AI. I promise you. >> Can I ask you a question? Go for it. >> Have you ever thought about getting a digital version of yourself? Like digital tech? >> Um, no. That's That's not something I ever contemplated, Andy. No, not yet. Anyway. >> Yeah. Yeah. >> Not yet. >> Don't have my own ice cream either. >> Think of all things like Gold Boy either. >> Yeah. >> Yeah. >> Yeah. I What happened to Gold Boy? Gold boy is gone. >> Well, yeah. We'll have to talk to Mr. Rollap about bringing him back. We really do want to worry about the product. We need to, you know, priority. >> We need to ask him the hard-hitting questions. >> Yeah, that's right. Uh, so what were you doing? Were you practicing for the Golf Channel games today? What does practice entail for the Golf Channel games? What's that like? Did Were you out there? >> Practice entails just trying to put Scotty Shuffler off, I think, at this point. Probably the only way you can beat him. Um, I have not. We uh I'm actually about to go to a production meeting. Um, and Mark Lumis is going to take us through sort of the the run of show. Um, and yeah, I it'll be, you know, it'll be interesting. Maybe something a little bit different. You know, it's a it's a slow time of year, you know. We'll see. We'll see if it resonates with people. >> What What What should people expect? >> Um, I think, you know, there's a lot of time challenges, so this is something that you guys are going to, you know, I think you guys enjoyed the shot clock and TGL, so trying to bring that back a little bit. Um, and I think just to, you know, maybe get a little more of a sense of how skillful elite professional golfers are, you know, sort of putting us in different spots, having us hit different shots. Um, and I think as well, it's going to be fun. You're going to have Smiley on the broadcast, Fax, uh, Keith Mitchell as well, who I think is always pretty good value, Johnson Wagner. Um, I think, you know, I think they're putting a, you know, they're putting a lot of production into it. So, um, as long as the the players show up and can show their skills, I actually think it could be quite entertaining. >> Did you guys have input into like the actual competitions or the games? >> I think with a lot of these things, it's like they already had their ideas and their answers, but they just sort of they ask you to be like, "Hey, what do you think of this?" And I mean, most of us are very agreeable and like, "Yeah, okay. Yeah, that sounds good." There was one. I think they're thinking of trying to get us to hit a left-handed shot. >> I think we pushed back on that a little bit, but we'll see if we'll see if that stays in. >> I feel like, come on, left-handed shot. That's soft. Let's go. >> I I feel like stuff you and Scotty would be open to and this would be kind of catnip for Andy was was retro like some sort of skill with retro stuff, right? I imagine that's not the case. Is there anyone of the eight guys that you think would be kind of not happy about that? Maybe. I don't think anyone would not be happy with it, but um I would think someone like a Luke Clanton probably just has never hit anything like that, you know, kind of amazing. So young. So it would be Yeah, absolutely it would be. Um >> I was I talking to Andy, he gave me a he gave me a sleeve of the original Prov1 um like at at the start of the year or might have been last year and um I have like some Pimmen Woods in the house in London. And I've been hitting those into my Trackman sim and it's like it's ridicul like even the pro even the prov compared to the ball that we play now in 2025 just like how much further this thing goes. It's it's insane. >> This isn't meant to be a humble brag but I uh I used those original prov at Cyprus earlier this year with pimmen >> or not pimmen it was like retro clubs. I had a PT3wood. >> Okay. >> And the thing that I noticed, I hit on 16. I hit the PT3wood and it was like the wind was in off the left and I hit it really good two times in a row and it hit the rock wall. The like the wind it couldn't handle the wind. Then I dropped a brand new Prov1 >> and the thing was like a missile >> and it ended up over the green. >> Yeah. But what they've been able to do, I would say the stuff in the wind is more to do with it. Yeah, it's the construction of the golf ball. They've been able to >> they've been able to perimeter weight the golf ball in these modern golf balls. So, it does stay so much more stable in the wind. Like I even like as much as like I you know I went to Nike in 2013 and even going from you know it was different like even going from the the Titus golf ball to the Nike golf ball. I felt like the Nike golf ball in the even though that Nike golf ball was you know in you know with the I guess with hindsight it was terrible golf ball. Um in the wind it was very good because they were able to perimeter weight it. They had that resin core which was light so they could put the weight more on the outside of the golf ball and this thing just didn't move in the wind. So, like there's things that they can do and ways they can get around that, but yeah, like the original Prov1 is um but like that was like that was the start of it, right? Like that was the start of this journey to where we've gotten to. >> Have you tested the seam versus the the straight on? >> Did that make a difference? Do you think that made >> that was the legend? I next time you're there, I want I want I want clarification with the track band. I guess I could do this with my reptile. You think Do you think it's more to do with if you hit it in the seam, it didn't spin as much? >> That's that was the idea was that if you would tee the driver >> with the seam facing your target. >> Yeah. >> And then on par threes, you'd switch it and you'd hit with the with the title is facing the club face. I remember the first tournament I played in with a prov and I was like so diligent in doing this like throughout the round >> and it was IGGA event. I can't remember where it was but I like vividly remember doing this. >> I remember uh the first time I ever saw prov was the I played at the junior tournament in Dural the Dural um Junior Publix or whatever. I think it was in the year 2000. And the guy I always used to play against in these junior events was Philip Francis. >> Yeah. >> You remember that name? Philip Francis. >> He's a He's big in crypto now. >> Yeah. I think he's he's doing okay. Lives in Phoenix. Um and anyways, or Scottdale. And uh he pulled this white sleeve of balls out of his bag and I was like this like I mean I thought I'd just seen like I I don't know. It was like the coolest thing I'd ever seen. this white sleeve of prototype golf balls that I'd never seen before and I was like I have no chance against this guy. How am I going to beat him? But um that was the first time I ever saw the prov. >> You probably can't share too much but like people are on the record with Adam Shupeak about playing the roll black roll back ball or the proposed roll back ball. I assume you've at least tried it while we're on equipment corner here. >> Yeah. >> Any any insights you can share or just mostly things you have to stay mom about? No, I'm Hey, I'm I'm an open book with this stuff. Um I if you talk to the players that say they've played or tried the roll back ball and they're critical of it, it's usually people from one manufacturer. Um if you talk to others, um I have a very good friend in Shane and Larry that plays a a certain brand of golf ball and he noticed no difference at all. And I think that's where I'm I think we're frustrated as a as players and as an industry as well because I think the lead time that these equipment companies have been given to figure it out by the time we play this ball in 2028, there's not going to be a difference or the difference is going to be so marginal that it's not going to make a difference. So that's the that's the hard thing. It's like there's there's ways that it's very hard for the governing bodies and the equipment regulators to stay ahead of the equipment manufacturers because the equipment manufacturers have more money to do R&D and test and get around the regulations. So that's where you know that's when you got to start looking at do you you know do you limit the the size of the club head? Do you you know I think you have to I think by just approaching it one way with the golf ball is is one thing and I think it's a part of it big part of it but I think you have to approach it from all angles not just the ball but the ball is a good start but again these equipment manufacturers are so good and have so many resources that by the time we play this thing in 2028 there's just not going to be a difference between what we have now and what we might have in you know 3 years time. The long history of of equipment regulation in golf going back to like John Low has always proven that by the time the regulation gets put in place the manufacturers effectively figure it out and it's always like you give engineers a parameter and they they solve for it. That's the way it works. What do you notice when you use like a pimmen head versus a modern head? How you approach the golf swing? Is there any difference? >> Yeah, there's a lot of, you know, there's a lot of difference. Um, you certainly have to focus on a center strike a lot more. Um, most pimmen heads are matched up with steel shaft, so you feel like you have to wait on it a little bit longer. Um it it uh and also like the modern the modern golf ball if you hit it with a pimmen wood just doesn't spin at all. Um so you got to try to uh add spin or or like you know you know like the old days you used to see the guys with a lot of lag or a lot of downcock. That's the way I feel like I have to swing a pimmen head to really make it work especially with a modern golf ball. Um but yeah, you have to, you know, I was I did a practice for TGL today in the in the Sofi dome and um and yeah, you're just you're whailing a wet driver into that screen. I mean, you're just hitting it as hard as you can and you know, it comes out of the heel a bit or out of the toe a bit and it's, you know, it's going to be okay. It's going to be fine. That's just what technology has done. But yeah, if we wanted to if we wanted to bring a premium back on on hitting the ball in the middle of the club face, then you would look to But then at the same time, you know, I can I can have my 3-wood, which is probably 270 cc's. Um, and I can knock that down to 12° and the thing will still go, you know, I don't have to swing on my boots. The thing still goes 300 in the air. like it's not. So there's again there's I think we have to if we're really look if the golf industry as a whole is serious about this I think we have to approach it from a lot of different angles and not just from the golf ball which I think a lot of people have said but um it seemed like the golf ball was like the lowest hanging fruit. Um but it seems like the manufacturers are just still figuring out a way to to to get around it. To be clear to the audience, we got about like 10 seconds of warning that that Rory was joining us here. So, this is not I was prepared. This is not Spawn Con or I wasn't prepared. >> We're about to go to news. I could ask you about, you know, your opinion on Abe Answer going to to get some hard-hitting analysis on that. But, uh, let's we're in the middle of year. Kevin, you got any review questions for >> Yeah, right. We just did three and a half hours on the Masters. >> I listened I listened to most of it. Thank you. >> What did we miss? uh what what hasn't come out about that week? What what can you share for us? >> Uh you know, you you talked about uh me watching Bridgetgerton. Um you know, John, uh >> you know, there's a lot of Yeah, I think you got the nitty-gritty details pretty much. Um pretty much I actually have a thing right beside me here, which I think you guys will appreciate. So Harry gave this to me sort of as like an early Christmas present in Australia last week. Um, and I'm gonna show it to This is the first time anyone's really seen it. >> Great. >> You see what that is? >> Is that a signed >> August sign everybody has won the Grand Slam? Right. >> Yeah. And he brought me he brought me this with a Sharpie and said, "Do you want to sign it?" And I said, "No, absolutely not." >> Um, and I said, "I just hope I don't have to get Scotty to sign it next year." >> What a Yeah. So, um that that's a little cool thing that's come out come out of the all of that. So, um but yeah, it's look, you know, reflecting back, what a like what an amazing week. And if I was ever going to do it at Augusta, it was always going to have to be that way, just throwing up all over myself the last few holes. >> I got a question that I've been uh dying to ask you on on air. Um, I was tried to ask it at the press conference, but there were a lot of people that had questions for you that day. Um, you kept talking about how you were with your work with Rotella trying to chase a feeling. >> What's the feeling that you're trying to chase? It's it's the feeling of um sort of like that childlike joy and enthusiasm when you know I I think back to my early days when I just you know I I wasn't I wasn't one for school. So, I just, you know, the last couple of classes in school and I'm just thinking about getting out and going up to Hollywood Golf Club and, you know, playing until it's dark and like just that just that joy and enthusiasm and, you know, like it's almost like an adventure, you know, once you get out on the golf course, it's it's like an adventure and you're just going around and you're chasing this ball and you're seeing shots and you're just you're so in the moment and in tune with your senses And like that's the feeling that and we talk about it, you know, once you once you finish your round of golf, like looking yourself in the mirror and being like, "Okay, that's that's how I want to feel. That's how I want to think. That's how I want to act." Um, and that's sort of that's it, right? You know, you just going back to the reasons of why you started to play the game in the first place. You know, that's the And I, you know, I' I've done that for the most part. I'd say this part of the year in the in year in review I probably wasn't thinking that way after the masters but um you know I I feel like I felt that way for uh at least for most of the year. >> What did you when you think back uh what did you think was like the key moment in the final round? It was I mean >> it was an insane final round. I think you could you could say six or seven shots and it wouldn't any of them wouldn't be wrong. >> Um I would say I think both three and four were huge moments. Um you know I I was walking up the third fairway before Bryson had hit his second shot one shot behind after starting to ahead and then I was walking off the fifth T- box three shots ahead. I was like what what just what just happened? like just the swings and the so I think that the you know the second shot on three I think it's it's it's interesting right like I could not believe that Bryson laid up I couldn't believe and I know that's I I didn't realize but I I know now that that's what he was really doing all week especially to the left pins but I just I thought with how firm the greens were it was it was hard to get a wedge shot close anyway and I just thought with I I thought he had a chance to drive it on on the green. I didn't think I could quite get there, but I felt like he had a chance to, you know, he just got one ahead. I felt like even though it was early in the round, it was a if he were to take driver out there and hit it on the green, it really is like taking the tournament by the scruff of the neck. I was just so surprised that he hit iron. Um, and I felt like that g, you know, he, you know, he three putts and and I end up making a three. And I just thought that was such a huge moment that I'm, you know, I hit that good shot into four and make the putt. It was just, you know, if if I don't have those two holes after the such a rough start, you know, I I probably I probably don't go on to win. >> Were you paying attention to a lot of what he was doing? Like you you obviously we just talked about the rotella and these approaches and staying in your own game, but you talk about Pinehurst, right? Obviously at Pinhurst, you were like he's right there behind you. You're in front of him. >> Then you're talking about watching him at three. Do you start the day thinking it's kind of I want to pay attention to how he's operating? I felt like that was going to be the toughest thing I would have to deal with that day was Bryson himself and just the just the way we completely we we're polar opposites in terms of how we approach the game. Um so I felt like and I I you know I felt like he was going to have a portion of the crowd and I was going to have a portion of the crowd and then just having to deal with that a little bit. Um, so I felt like that was and that I said that to Rotella. We always we always met, you know, just by the the caddy area there um before I went to the range every day. And he said, "How you feeling today?" And I said, "I'm feeling good. I'm feeling good about my stuff." And I said to him, "The the one thing that I'm like just uneasy about is just the pairing." And he said, "Well, just make him invisible." I said, "What do you mean?" He goes, "Just don't engage. Don't look at him. Don't you He's like, "Just just get lost in your own little world. You've got Harry beside you. Like, you know, have him be your companion and you just get lost in that world." And that's that's what I tried to do, you know. But, yeah, I was I was Yeah, I was that was, you know, that was the the one thing like obviously I felt like that was the biggest impediment between me and winning the Masters that day. >> Yeah. you know, and then once it was apparent that that wasn't going to be the biggest impediment, then I made myself the biggest impediment. >> Yeah, that's I mean I think that's relatable to everybody. You know, we human human nature is to make yourself the impediment of everything. >> Yeah. Exactly. So, um, but no, I'm I say like I've obviously I've done a lot of interviews and I've talked to a lot of people and, um, there's not one thing about that day that I would want back in terms of like I I'm happy that it's over. I never want to feel that way. I might I hope I feel that way on the golf course again because it means I'm playing for something very important. Um, but I don't know if I will ever feel that way again on the golf course. Do you think that you'll go come there, you know, in April with a freedom that people keep talking about that, oh, it'll it'll be freed up forever. This place will never be that, you know, intimidating again. Yeah, >> it's it's wish it's wishful thinking. I think it'll make it easier. Um whether it gives me pure freedom. Um no, I don't I don't think so because I just don't think that's the way we're wired. >> Um I was just I was at Augusta um a week ago. I I flew straight from Australia to to Augusta. That was my first time back on property since since that Sunday. So, it was cool to I hadn't seen my locker yet in the Champions locker room, so that was really cool. Um I had a lovely note left in there from Jack. Uh you know, you know, it was it was amazing. So, um there's definitely a different feel when you go back on property as a champion. Um >> say that McKenzie. >> Yeah. I wonder how many people Royal Melbourne got to national. >> I must say Royal Melbourne Third third best course in Melbourne. >> Oh man. Hot take. >> Yeah. >> The the composite course. You didn't even play the I've heard west and east. >> So my thing is with Royal Melbourne, it's look the the set the green complexes are amazing. >> Um yeah, absolutely incredible. I I think again going back to our I feel like there's there might be of all the fairway bunkers on the course, there might be one that's in play. >> There's a lot of blind te- shots. There's a lot of, you know, you don't you don't really you don't get to hit a lot of drivers off the TE's. And I'm not saying you have to hit driver, but again, Andy, to your point, it would be great if if everything was scaled back a little bit, then that golf course would play the way it should play. But I just think nowadays it's not it's just not quite what it once was. So maybe, look, maybe it is a great golf course and maybe it's just that that technology has has made it I don't want to say obsolete, but it has has passed it by a little bit and doesn't The one thing I would say about you know I talk about Kingston Heath or even like Victoria, Kingston Heath I feels like it makes you hit all the clubs in your bag where at um at Royal Melbourne I felt like I didn't the only I only hit like four, five and six iron off te's on par fours like I didn't really hit them you know even the even the par fives were pretty short and um so that that's where I I feel like it didn't it didn't get you hitting a range of shots and I played it in a couple of different winds and again it's an amazing it's an amazing uh set of greens and and like the surrounds and the bunkering and all that but from from tea to green from from tea until you reach the green I felt like you know It it you know I I thought there was going to be more. So not to offend Royal Melbourne members, but sorry. >> Hey, you know what? Golf Course opinions make the girl world go around and that's the beauty. It's like some people think certain restaurants are better than others, certain bands are better than others, and it's all personal taste. Uh it's it's funny, you know, the uh the first note on the PGA Championship week is that you committed that this week where we are in your interview to doing the next two Australian Opens. So back from one I know Peach >> Well, I actually I committed to doing the next two Australian Opens before I won the Masters. I wish I had committed to it after I won the Masters, >> you know, while while we have you here. Uh, speaking of commitments, >> speaking of commitments, uh, I was going to ask you this in the in the presser on Monday after you won the players, but I was too afraid that some serious golf journalist was going to kill me if I did. Uh, so I'll get it out of the way now. Have you maybe, you know, reconsidered your stance on the Champions Tour or, uh, you know, Ernie coming out and popping you a little bit that week? Uh, any any opportunity back? >> I I forgot about Ernie coming coming out and popping me. Um, I have a great relationship with Ernie. Um, I still don't I still don't see myself um playing the Champions Tour. Um, I look, I'm very fortunate that I'm in three of the four major championships until, you know, I'm until well, at least the the Masters until until um >> whoever the whoever the pars that be tell me to not play anymore. Um, but I don't look I don't want to and then the PJ championship and the open championship until 60, I think. But um like I've always look I I not that I'm going to do this but I always loved how Pete Sampas finished his career. I love I I love tennis. I loved how Pete Sampress won the US Open. Took a little bit of time. Didn't really know what he was going to do and then you know made an announcement a month later and said you know I'm I'm done. And you really haven't heard from him since. Like he's literally disappeared. And I I I have so much respect for that. So much respect for that. So like if the time came when I was in my 40s and something like that happened, I would consider doing that. Yeah. Because I want to I want my last memory of professional golf to be a great one. >> That sounds like >> that's just the way I'm wired. >> That sounds like a no for the region. If I win if I win the Colig Guard Classic, PJ, you know, I might I might uh I might write my retirement note the next week. >> Well, I'm just saying, you know, you've you've done a lot in golf. There are things you haven't done. You haven't walked through an inflatable colon in Country Club. You haven't done a lot. Speaking of things you haven't done, uh how are the ball frogs getting a win in the Sofi Dome? >> Well, we have a new member of the team who I practiced with this morning, Michael Thorbjornson. So, we've got some fresh blood. I'm >> breaking moose. >> Yeah, I'm breaking I'm breaking some uh >> I got to go find that. >> It's fine. It's all good. >> Um uh so we have some fresh blood. Uh I think that could that could make the difference. Um so we've got >> get the boot or is this just >> No, no, it's um you know, Hideki and Adam are uh world travelers. Um, Hideki is uh he'll be in Japan and Adam will be in Australia, I think, for the first game that we play on January 2nd. So, uh, Michael has come in and it's going to be, um, Michael, Keegan, and myself. And, you know, we're feeling pretty good. >> Okay. I didn't want there to be like lingering RDER Cup beef between you and Keegan, you know, that he would. >> Yeah, we, you know, there there might have been for like a week or two afterwards, but we've we've gotten past that. Is there going to be games beef between you and Keegan? >> I think that's between Keegan and Luke. >> That's right. Keegan, I should We should have got Victor Havland in there as well, the faking injury. >> Well, PJ got you consoling his kid there on the practice screen there page. So, PJ got a picture of you talking to Keegan's kids. So, >> yeah. H it's Look, I think Keegan was put in a tough spot. um he you know he came so out of left field that that he was offered this job and especially as one of the best players in the world in his prime like it was just it was an impossible position to be put into especially after winning the Travelers and it's yeah it was a it was a really tough one for Keegan like I I think yeah it's easy in hindsight like could could they have used him maybe like who knows but Um it's just I think that and that's why I you know look what it was a little bit of gamesmanship when I kept saying well you can't do both and whatever you know obviously I'm trying to >> get in the heads and trying to do anything I can to like >> you know be that person for Europe but at the same time like it is it it was an impossible position to be put in and I I I I did I felt for him especially felt for him that week when you know he's talking about all he wanted to do was be out there and play with the guys and like it was it was tough But I think that speaks to more the that speaks more to the the the sort of structure of the PJ of America and and where they're at um more so than um more so than team USA. I think team USA are are fine. I just think what Europe have, we have maybe some inbuilt advantages with the structure we have around um sort of RDER Cup Europe and the fact that we have people that work 247 all year on the RDER Cup and we see these people, you know, weekly or if not monthly at European Tour events. Um and the American team don't quite have that same structure. So, you know, we we feel like we we've sort of created this little bit of a you know, like an inbuilt advantage that um you know, maybe one day, you know, you USA sort of rejig that and and and come up with a similar structure. But, you know, that's where we we feel organizationally is is where we, you know, we we're maybe a step ahead. >> So, you don't have people practicing karaoke. Is that what you're talking about? We're about to get to some of the this organizational structure of PJ of America here in a minute with Quail Holl. I mean, he and Shane practiced karaoke at the Zurich, like, you know. >> No, no. I I I I You know, are you talking about the lose yourself karaoke? >> I don't think that was practice. I think he was already prepared for that. He'd already practiced. Oh, there was that was that was prepared. >> All right. >> Anyways, >> one parting RDER Cup question. I uh >> you've obviously gone through uh you've played so many RDER Cups. Uh Luke Donald has gotten obviously tons of praise. Uh what you're close with Luke, you're I think you guys live pretty near each other. What is it about Luke Donald that makes him such a great captain that you know maybe isn't out there in the general public? >> Yeah. Um attention to detail is is is a big thing and not the shampoo in the hotel room or the you know blocking the light in the doors like that. That is a part of it. And it wasn't just the big crap. It wasn't just It wasn't just the bedding. I mean, he he changed the mattresses, too. Like, it wasn't just the sheets. Like, he changed the mattresses and he >> So, is the I've never been to the Garden City Hotel. Is the Garden City Hotel not all that it's made out? >> No, it's it's it's a nice hotel, but you know, it there was some things that could be improved upon just like anything. >> I love to imagine the GM's phone just blowing up that Sunday night about what shitty beds they had and such. But no, back to Luke. No, he's >> Anyway, so attention to detail. Um, and I think he just does a really good job of um, relying on the analytics and the stats, but then also getting a feel for where um, for where we're at in terms of personalities and like, you know, Tommy and and my games match really well for Forsomes and then we get along really well as well. So that's that's easy. um like you wouldn't say you know like Shane and I our games wouldn't match up that well but obviously we're so close that I think in for look in for ball you can sort of throw people out with whoever and it doesn't make a huge difference but in the forsomes I think that's where you really have to dig into the analytics and get two two guys that um play a same type of golf or at least complement each other and you look at the stats and you look at all that and he He he he does a really good job of balancing that and and look um Eduardo is amazing to be not only be the you know the the stats guru but actually have him be a part of the team and be a team cap a vice captain I think is a is a big part of it as well. Um so I look would say this like look relies on Eduardo a lot for a lot of that stuff. Um and he also, you know, he surrounded himself with a lot of great experienced people. You know, he he he's very quick to praise the people around him. So, you know, Paul McInley was a part of the sort of consultation team and you know, he did a great job at the Rder Cup in 2014, Thomas Bjorn winning Ryder Cup captain in 2018. you know, he had a great brain trust around him and he, you know, picks and chooses what information that he needs and discards the information that he doesn't and he he obviously makes it his own captaincy. But he's always drawing from all of these others. And the other thing that we have an advantage that that maybe the US don't in recent times is we have so much so much so many more stories of success. So, you know, you know, he can reach out to Thomas Bjorn or he can reach out to um Paul McInley or he can reach out to, you know, whoever whoever it may be in the past. You know, I think we've the European team has done such a good job of just having that continuity where even if you've been a captain, you're still, you know, even the next the next Ryder Cup, you're still part of the team or you're still part of the group. So, you know, there's just a lot of that um that, you know, accumulated knowledge and accumulated experience over the years that that sort of goes into it. But, um so I feel like we have a we have a great blue, Migan Lee would call it a great blueprint and a great structure. The captain is sort of just the figurehead of that entire structure and then they put their own mark on what it is. But yeah, if I had to pinpoint one thing that Luke did really well, it's it's the he doesn't you know the other thing. So he his attention to detail, but then he doesn't say a lot, right? He's a pretty quiet guy. So then when he does say something in the team room, people sit up and listen cuz it's like, okay, it's it's very impactful. Not like me like waffling on like I am. It's like he, you know, he's very he's very simple, very concise, and then the words that he uses are very intentional. And I think that's the one thing that he does really, really well. >> He made you tear up in that press conference. you know, he was talking about, you know, legacy and these will be the moments we'll remember for the rest of our lives. You that was the first time you really got emotional during that uh celebration. >> Yeah. I think um I think the one thing that it it was nice to hear was that um he he yeah I think he sort of he sort of spoke about my willingness to my willingness to like not be me right or forget who or forget what I've done or you know I you know I I talk about just being one of 12 >> and >> you know even going into going into Rome. You know, he talked to me about, you know, a lot of these guys look up to you. And I said, I don't want I don't want these guys to look up to me. I want them to look across at me. I want them to see themselves as equals because we are we're one of 12. And I don't the one thing I would say with you know if you if you think about the European team as 2021 being like a line in the sand a lot of those older guys whether they you know left for live or whatever. I feel like in the European team there was like a sense of hierarchy and I think once Luke came along he sort of got rid of that sense of hierarchy which I think is a is a big part of it as well. >> All right we're in the middle of this year interview. We did not expect you to be here. No, I I did not expect me either. >> You got to go to your production meeting. Is there >> I was I was I was texting Andy about something else and I said, "Sure, dial me in." >> Is there is there anything from the your personal year review? We've touched on the Masters Rider Cup. We'll get you out of here that like that you we maybe is underrated or we haven't seen or was particularly enjoyable, amusing, something in your own year review outside of the high points that we talked Yeah, I would say look the one thing you're probably not going to touch on because this is a PJ tour year review is the Irish Open for me was probably like a high point for myself um you know you know that was you know going back to it wasn't the first time going back to Ireland you know as Mast's champion but um I think just the you know like I'm I'm Northern Irish and you know sometimes the the the relationship that I've had with the whole of the country has been a little complicated at times. Um, and I felt like that was just such an amazing, it was an amazing reception. Um, I'm never going to like holding that putt on the last to get into the playoff. The noise, the the scenes, the, you know, again, a bit like what Augusta does so well. Every, you know, I didn't see a lot of people on their phones. People were really into what they were watching. And you had boys and and, you know, you had sons and dads embracing each other. It was just it was the most um look in terms of my career and like it's it's not going to be the most memorable for people but I talk about at this point in my career just trying to um trying to create or be a part of these special moments and I think Justin Rose talked about that um in the the last year in review is his press conference at Hilton Head and I think once once you once you reach a certain point in your career it's about just be trying to to create these special moments And those are the things that are going to stay with you for the rest of your life. And and the Irish Open was was one of those for me. >> All right. Well, thank you for coming on. >> No, thank you. This is cool. I look, I obviously love the podcast. Um, love the year in reviews. They give me so much joy and I every time I see one pop up, I can't wait to listen to it. Um, PJ, I got to come on Lunch with the boys. Listen, you said it, not me. I wasn't gonna ask, but you're welcome anytime. We'll see you around whenever you want to come. You know, >> we've had presidencies. We've had Cameron Young. That's about it. So, you're welcome. >> New York's own Cameron Young. Um, >> best best performer in the Ryder Cup. >> Thank you again. You said it, not me. >> That's so nice of you after you emasculated the entire Long Island to to be willing to go on with PJ, you know. >> Oh, yeah. You know, that was >> there was a lot of good things about the RDER Cup and there was a few bad things as well, but that's that's for another day. >> All right. Well, we got to get to uh the uh the rise of Rhea or the All >> You enjoy that. Um I'll drop out and um thanks for having me on, fellas. >> Happy holidays. Have a great Christmas and New Year's. Thanks so much. >> You too. See you. >> All right. We uh after that interruption, welcome interruption. Certainly not a rude interruption, but a welcome interruption. I guess we got to get back to the year review. I I I we I thought we were going to get to Dawn and go with the with the dawn of Dawn or the rise of Ray as PJ's calling it. So, we got to get to it. Uh right back. >> Can Can you Can you believe that after all that somehow impossibly Don Reya will not be the star of the PGA year review episode? I think this is I think this is terrible disrespectful. >> I think it's terrible. >> I think it is absolutely upstaging the man's moment that he has earned. >> The the great Paul Kimage is steaming right now that he doesn't get the year the sit down the exclusive sit down with Rory at the end of the year. Some dumb podcast. >> To quote a great man, we only get one shot >> to recap the 2025 and we blew it. I'm not gonna lie. I'm not in the same headsp space as I was. That's the problem. Well, look, I think we're putting the cart before the horse here, PJ. >> We're not let Don cook entirely yet. So, we're about to let Don cook and maybe by the end of this, >> Rory will just be a little speck in this episode. So, let's get to the PGA Championship. We are going to Quail Hollow Club in uh Charlotte, North Carolina. Andy, I believe you have the uh leadin days, which is all that really mattered for the personal zeitgeist, for the larger zeitgeist of golf this year. >> My question, you know, usually you draw these leadin days at uh at, you know, for majors and this is the slow part. This is this is the main story here. >> This is the main event. >> What do we got Monday? Let's go to Quill Hollow Monday. What do we have here? It was a rain. >> It's a complete wash out. Yeah. Yeah. >> There's there's one man practicing though. Hideki is just putting in the piss. >> God, this picture >> I couldn't believe that. Do you remember this? Somebody from the media center. >> Yeah. >> What? Like >> I mean I don't know what he's doing there. And you know >> it's pooling. Oh, is this a PGA graphic? I mean they need squeegeees. What are you doing pulling putting through that kind of liquid, that amount of water? Res >> the PGA is is has co-opted this video to share a coaching tip about putting through adversity and uh any conditions that that may impact you, but this is this is a ridiculous visual asset here. >> Insane. Insane. Uh >> dump trucks in the background and stuff. He had to be just simply working on like stroke mechanics at that point. >> There's nothing else you >> did. You do that on a carpet, a hotel carpet. >> You wouldn't have to do that in the rain. >> I don't know. >> That's crazy. Um, also the week starts out uh, you know, this was an early rough early week for the city of Charlotte for the for Quail Hollow, but but our uh, our our friend in the media space uh, Tron Carter has just absolutely offended all of Charlotte. >> Charlotte, this is big. >> It this was the lead in the Charlotte Observer, which I believe is their like main paper. Uh it it reads, "Charlotte has a lot of apologizing to do, at least according to professional golf podcaster Todd Schuster, who were you to listen to the Trap Draw podcast posted on Instagram the other day, is in the in unfortunate position of needing to come to the Queen City this week for the PGA tournament." So that's going on. Uh Tron also, you know, is is, you know, doing his usual of stoking kind of fire on on the flame on on social media. He finds a a LinkedIn post uh from Ted Williams who who posts with like a uh with like a little red dot that says viral golf attack all in caps. popular golf podcast named Trap Draw absolutely roast Charlotte in a clip that has now generated 200,000 views. Uh Tron's quote is the people of Charlotte should just apologize in general. It's a bunch of midlevel junior bankers. I've never had a good meal in Charlotte. I don't think there's a good non-chained restaurant. It's the most vanilla bland city. The fake Queen City moniker pisses me off. What's the culture of Charlotte? NASCAR. It's diet Atlanta. It's a diet Atlanta. >> So, this is this then kicks to Ted Williams. Not >> a famous baseball player. Not that we're aware of. I mean, could be. He did. They did freeze his head and >> uh potentially reanimate him later. He >> said, "WTF? I've got fancy media credentials for the attorney. You know, if I see these podcasters in the media tent near Whole 18, I may get into a heated debate. I hope Tiny Money readers will have my back. That's, you know, his media outlet background. As PGA Championship sets to tea off at Quill Hollow, golf media has started to focus on our city. This clip has been flying around the group chats of Charlotte golfers, bankers, and internet people. It takes a nice nice moment to also pump his newsletter. tiny m money. >> Um, you tweeted back to Tron at this point just a picture of a junior banker that looked just like the guy. So, just a humorous exchange. Uh, the war the war on Atlanta and Coil Hollow is really the story of the early week. Um the rain delay, >> the story of the early week to this point. >> To this point. >> To this point. >> To this point. Good point. Um you know, early week we get we're getting nothing out of this week. >> Yeah, it was slow. Yeah, it was really slow. >> Um we got a tick or like a Tik Tok video. I don't know who posted this of Patrick Reed driving to the course. Do you have that PJ? Can we get two Trenta strawberry refreshers? No water, no inclusion. >> Yes, sir. >> That's it. Thanks, bud. >> Crazy. >> Thank you. >> Because I verify >> the snap kills me every time. Every time. I love it. >> What's an inclusion? What does this mean? What is this language? Like no, the the little dried up strawberries or whatever. >> Just just requesting like pink water. >> I think sugar. That's the big boy. That's off menu. All right. God. >> So, uh, we get that. And the other other big thing is uh is is Donald Trump brings up Sam Sneeed, which uh KV, you wonder if if this moniker is maybe how Sam Sneeed got to 80 82 wins on the PGA tour. But let's take that luxury jet as a personal gift to you. Why not leave it? >> You're ABC fake news, right? >> Only only ABC. Well, a few of you would. Let me tell you, you should be embarrassed to ask him that question. Uh, they're giving us a free jet. I could say, "No, no, no. Don't give us I want to pay you a billion or 400 million or whatever it is." Or I could say, "Thank you very much." You know, there was an old golfer named Sam Sne. Did you ever hear him? He won 82 tournaments. He was a great golfer. And he had a motto. When they give you a putt, you say, "Thank you very much." You pick up your ball and you walk to the next hole. A lot of people are stupid. They say, "No, no, I insist on putting it." And then they putt it and they miss it and their partner gets angry at them. You know what? Remember that Sam Sneed when they give you a putt, you pick it up and you walk to the next hole and you say, "Thank you very much. >> This is why Sam Sneed won 82 tournaments. Apparently, he didn't have to putty any of his little gimmies. He just Oh, yeah. It's a it's a fourball with the farmers from the, you know, the local Bing Cros. Let's just pick it up. Let's go. >> I think I think Trump kind of stuck the landing on that one. I I was in I was buying what he was selling there. I don't know about the ethical complications of accepting the jet and all that, but that analogy was flowing for me. >> There's no evidence that Sneeed actually said this, but >> right. Sure. >> Sneed scholars were like, "No, he did not say this." >> Sure. Sure. While while we're here, so Trump is going to Saudi Arabia this week and he's and the jet that he got gifted was fromQatar. >> That's right. >> And Aean reported and this was going to be later on Tuesday. We're on to Tuesday anyways. >> Sure. >> The president is going to Saudi Arabia to tell this is Aean's writing in Golf Week. The the president is going to Saudi Arabia to tell its autocratic leader Muhammad bin Salman uh that any deal between the tour and the kingdom's public investment fund will be on the tour's preferred terms and those terms will not include a long-term future for Liv. Tiger Woods, a director on the PE tours policy board and around whom Trump is reduced to a fawning fanboy, was dispatched to the White House late last week to ensure the president would be on uh on message in Riad. So there you go. That's what's going on. >> Golf at the forefront of international trip, diplomatic trip. >> Yeah. Yeah. Nothing else to talk about in Saudi Arabia. I just like it that Liv did all this like sucking up to Trump and then he just completely kneecapped them like when it came to negotiations. Like no, I'm not a fan of your format. Like I don't I don't care at all. Like you're you're done. >> Um so guess what happened on Tuesday? >> What the lawn drive contest? What what happened on Tuesday? >> It rained more. >> That's right. It wasn't good. >> There's rain delay. There's just like pooling everywhere. like rivers running down the fairways. It's a disaster and like nobody can get any prep in. But thankfully thankfully everybody has seen the golf course and most people are saying it's completely the same. We already talked about Rory committing to the next two Aussie opens. Um DJ got a last minute invite. I didn't send PJ the video. I didn't want to overload him here. But DJ got a last minute invite to this PGA and all early in the week he was posting these like work off workout vlogs. >> Oh my god, I remember this >> of him to music and he's like that's like what's on his social page. Uh just humorous. >> That exemption was just for like reasons like he was not it's like kind of like the Ricky one. But go ahead. Sorry. >> So let's get to the golf the golf course discourse. Uh the star the star piece of the week was Gabby Herszig on on Quail Hollow. >> Oh, I forgot. >> And uh and there she got an amazing one of the greatest quotes from Hunter Mayan about a golf course that's ever been done. >> I guess I would say Quail Hollow is like a Kardashian. It's very modern, beautiful, and well-kept, but it lacks soul or character. I would add, personally add that both of them have had a lot of plastic surgery. Uh Shackleford and his newsletter just absolutely nuked Fazio. Um gosh, >> uh talking about how he, you know, he's the plastic surgeon in this case who's removed, you know, sucked every bit of soul away from what used to be a wonderful walk in the park. Um JT adds in, I feel like a uh I feel like a place like this where it doesn't necessarily require a lot of thought or strategy off the tea. It's generally pulling out driver and I just need to hit this as far and straight as possible. Scotty, yeah, I would say there's certain golf courses on tour that there's really a big strategy component to it. You think of a course like Hilton Head where each time you step on the T- box, there's a thought into what club you're going to hit just based on the wind direction and pin placement and stuff like that. On this golf course, with it being so big, it's just a little bit easier to just step on the T- box, pretty much every hole is a driver. Outside of that, off the tea, there's not really a bunch of strategy stuff you can do. He went on to say, "There's strategy hitting shots into the green because it depends on what side it's on." You know, like basically like realizing where he went and and like backing the truck up a little bit. >> Um Rory also on Wednesday, I'll just get to it here. Uh sorry, I got to get through all the Don stuff. I should have aggregated this up, but I did it Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday. He said, "I thought it was going to feel different just because it was a major championship, and I got out on the golf course yesterday, and it felt no different than last year at Wells Fargo. The rough is maybe just a little juicier, but the fairways are still the same cut lines and visuals. It doesn't feel that much different." >> What an endorsement. >> Um, let's get back to the course discourse. Um, real quick, I'll I'll move this to the back actually. Um, everyone begins to predict Bombers Paradise and a Rory and Bryson route. That is the discourse. >> Yeah. >> Um, BP wrote in the newsletter, "A continuation of Rory of Bryson versus Rory Major Tussle seems almost expected this week and would further build momentum for pro golf in the post Tiger Woods era. Even if you doubt his sincerity, Bryson has become amusingly charming uh has become amusingly charming over the last couple years and is a credit to the pro golf entertainment product. Both he and Rory will have their vocal fan bases bouncing around Quail. It's a continued dynamic that's a massive credit for these majors and majors only. >> Um >> the So anyways, that's kind of like the discourse. It's going to be a bombers paradise. Scotty, Rory, and Xander get paired together. It's like the super group one, two, three in the world. I decide the Quail Hollow. I did not see this on my bingo card that the discourse has gone too far. >> I was going to say I hope you give yourself credit for being the white knight cuz you came in trying to save this thing hard. I got texts. You know, normally the Quail Hollow AP, the people that love Quail Hollow, they have been in my in my grill about my commentary about Quail Hollow. So many text messages over the years about like, "You got to take it easy. It's way better than you're saying it is." This this this day I got texts from multiple Quill Hollow defenders saying, "Thank you. Thank you for this." And what I did was I tweeted out a ranking of the 10 last PGA sites. And what they were saying thank you about was Quail Hollow got rated six out of 10. >> So here's my ranking. One, Kiwa Island. I said, "Great design." This was a tweet. Plus, spectacular natural elements, wind, ocean, elite, a venue that is perfect in May. Southern Hills number two. May is a great time to host in Tulsa, one of the best championship golf courses in the country. Three, Whistling Straight. Similar attributes to Kiwa, but less wind. Sad can no longer host uh with the date. Four, Beth Page. Big ballpark, electric atmosphere, classic design. Too bad it can't host with the May date. I might bump that down after the Ryder Cup. Five Oak Hill. Not my favorite, but tried and trueue uh champion test uh with history. Too bad I can't host with the Bay Date. PGA is going back there. What do I know? Uh six, Quill Hollow. Good venue, mediocre golf course, some fun holes, good market for seven, Baltistrol, pre-rennovation. I think this bumps way up post renovation. Uh, pregill. This golf course lacked a soul. Excited to see post renovation. Sketchy host is made date. Eight. TBC Harding Park. Sad the tour redesigned this once golden age course and ripped any architectural interest out of it. Need to have golf in a city center, but bummer. It was during co. Nine. Valhalla. The comment is Louisville loves golf. 10. Belief. St. Louis loves golf. >> So there you go. There's the ranking the last 10 years. I think like the distinction you were trying to make here is like Quailhala we were just throwing it in with Bell Reeve and Valhalla and Tory for the US Open and these things and maybe not Tori but those two like there is a difference there is a distinction here and I think that was the point and obviously it it's like a good tour venue but we kind of expect something >> Eddie I I have a little snippet here I think it fits with this this is Garrett from our newsletter on Thursday he says if Quail Hollow were a musical artist, it would be Ed Sheeran or late period Coldplay or Maroon 5. You know what I mean? Quail Hollow is pleasant and inoffensive. Professionally presented, but not especially original. A target of criticism for those who want to signal their own superior taste, but not really bad enough to deserve vitriol. My Gen Z colleagues have the perfect word for Quail Hollow mid. >> So that, you know, writing that's very sticking up. This was a nice piece of writing. >> Subscribe to the Friday newsletter. Um, so anyways, that that was the Quill Hollow discourse. Um, Jordan Speed had some interesting comments about technology. Do you remember these? >> No. >> No. >> It's it's kind of fitting given our conversation with Mr. Mroy at the beginning. He was asked about how how he's improved as a driver and he and he you know went into a bunch of stuff but he said the improvement Titleus has made in their drivers like the mis hits being just as fast and just as straight. I think the technology has a lot to do with it. I didn't try to become a better driver by any means. It just kind of happened. >> The missits they go just as far and just as straight. just as fast. >> He just as Yeah. Oh my god. >> He just tweeted it out. >> Now Tuesday. Let's get to the main event that we didn't know was the main event. This is how I started my Tuesday. It was a early morning wake up. I literally turned on the press conferences on Tuesday morning cuz I wasn't there. I was on the West Coast. And who is on the screen but Don Rehea, Derek Sprag, and Carrie Heg. Carrie Heg cannot be forgotten in this because he played a pivotal role in one of the most cinematic I you know and I struggle with what to do with this segment. Do I just read the entire transcript? >> That was a card that could be done. >> Um I I start, you know, I I relisted our pod. Uh, and then also I've I've I've got Shaq's writing on the press conference. That's where we settled. Um, here's some notes from the pot. I said, "I think my wife thought I was watching a political conference." You said, "Don Rhea makes Monahan sound like Winston Churchill." You you then compared him to a six-man the microwave man. He came in to get his shots done. >> Vinnie Johnson. >> Lou Lou Will got super hot off the bench. >> So much shots. He had to talk. He >> can I question. >> You go complete bozo. Bozo. Total clown. a great disservice to the PGA pros he's representing. >> Bozo is such a great word. Such a great insult. >> I said this is a deeply unserious situation. >> Little did we know. I mean, this kicked off like 9 months of this stuff. >> It's going to get so much worse. >> Serious. >> I completely forgot about this, but you pointed out he called PGA pros the first RESPONDERS OF GOD. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN? >> NO, HE DID NOT. >> YEAH, I remember that. >> To which you're like, what are the PGA pros running into burning buildings? >> There's there's someone on the first team is not shallow in the club. Get out there now. Get a team. Let's go. >> They're scuffing their wrist at the top. >> BP was apoplelectic about how they knew the questions that were going to come. the guaranteed questions that were going to come. >> One of them was roll back. They knew roll back was coming and you say they are so unprepared for the answers. And you point out how they are they say we are vehemently against roll back but open to collaborating in the same sentence. Those are contradictory. You can't be view PJ. >> You're not open to collaborating. It does. You can't say that. This is So, we kicked this to the end of the PGA preview episode and it inhabits like the last 25 minutes of the PGA preview episode. PJ in the while we're talking about Don in the process he gets can I get follow up just a little bit >> gets that onto the soundboard and it's just every time we're about to change hands on who's talking is just hitting can I just follow up just a little bit >> can I follow up just a little bit >> I mean if I recall like there was absolutely no need for him to just like lard his own thoughts on it was like a totally un like nonsequitator question to Sprag or Carrie Heg and he just had to get his shots up >> and he like moves into the camera shot. He like makes a move towards the microphone. It's just like, "Hey, >> taps him on the shoulder. >> Can I just get in here, Derek? >> God, >> they didn't understand when someone asked them about the tour buying the RDER Cup and PGA Championship. It led to like a complete nonsensical answer and it led to and it yielded that like Rehea pointing out that he's also the president of Rory Moy and Scotty Sheffller and everything >> was that you know we talk to our members all the time you know but you know who also is members >> not Bryson notably not Bryson >> Bryson yeah that's right >> Don used the expression fills his heart multiple times times during the podcast. Um, somebody asked Don for his, you know, his vision of what should happen with equipment and his response was, "I just want golf to win." This guy is a politician, but not like on a city council level politician. Fills my heart just using these empty cliches, just complete garbage. the more and more this guy is he's a parks and wreck character at the end of the day. He's like straight out of the city councilman actually that he he's way less talented than they are. >> All I know is golf is the engine of good. >> I just want golf to win. >> Shaq I'll get to Shaq's newsletter which is incredible. Uh, but I called up Augusta Ranch because he insinuated that kids should be using the same balls as high-end D1 players on the range. >> I forgot about that. >> So, I called, you know, and as PGA as pros playing this week, which if you go to a major championship, if you go to the range, you can get basically any type of golf ball you want to hit. Brand new, fresh out of the box golf ball. So, I called up Augusta Ranch and uh I found that they have just standard Callaway practice balls. Uh Shaq looked at a uh Google review that also pointed out that that uh a Google review commented about how they have trouble keeping range balls off a certain hole. To which Shaq said, "Wouldn't it be nice if the golf ball went a little bit shorter and and you didn't have range balls flying onto one of your golf holes at your golf course that you manage? That was so that was inspired. Andy, we were about to record on our preview episode and I think you were waiting for me. I was late as is often the case coming in. You're like you and PJ are sitting around like, you know what? I'm going to call Augusta Ranch and and you're like, "Oh, what kind of range balls do you have? Are those available today?" Like you were just doing some reporting. We've since gotten many pictures from Augusta Ranch and people have visited and I don't know that they're reduced flight, but certainly not what uh Don proposed they were in in his press conference. >> So Derek Sprag uh he like gets cover from this, but you point out in the pod he didn't cover himself in glory, but he looked like a star next to Rya. Spray gets mad at some at a reporter who suggested there might still be tickets available. He kept saying the fairways would be full. >> How dare you suggest people might still get to come. The fairways will be full. >> The last question of the press conference is about the golf ball debate evolving. to which he answers the question and immediately starts talking about the PGA World Alliance. >> What? >> So, he didn't answer the question at all. He just started talking about the great work of the PGA World Alliance. All right, let's go to Shaq's newsletter here. Um, >> the first responders of golf. I will I will never forget that. God. Uh, the PGA's annual press conference was the first for new CEO Derek Spring, new president Don Rehea Jr. and Hake. The gathering offered both men a chance to make strong first impressions. Rehea overwhelmed the proceedings and at times overshadowed the CEO with oddly contradictory comments. After staged introductory questions and remarks, the press yielded several uh surreal revealing exchanges with the assembled press regarding the possibility of an investment or greater PGA tour stake and PGA of American property reported last month by the Guardian. Sprag said such a specific discussion has not taken place while Reya said two PGAs are in communicate the two PGAs are in communication daily. In regards to the RDER Cup and the PGA Championship, we haven't had any specific conversations about investment or sales or any of that. Sprag said, >> "Maybe not at his level or not at Rya's level." >> Rehea then asked to speak. Don't forget, every PGA Tour member is a member of the PGA of America. So, I'm their president, too. Why wouldn't we talk to them on a daily basis? We're all trying to grow the game together. God, >> can you imagine Don going up to Scotty Sheffller and be like, "Yeah, you know, I'm your president. I was wondering if you had any thoughts for me about buying the RDER Cup." >> Sprag was asked about his stance opposing the RNA and USGA decision to change test ball test ball testing at 28. Sprag had previously suggested the PGA was not involved in the process and it was later revealed by C USGA CEO on the no laying up uh podcast by Juan that Sprag had not read the primary distance report. We're certainly vehemently against golf ball rollback, said Sprag. Um we've had great conversations with the governing body since that point. We've had several constructive and collaborative meetings, probably a number of times, three, four times. Rehea asked again if he could follow up. >> Can I follow up just a little bit? >> I think we have an obligation to talk to everybody who's involved in golf, the tour, USGA, RNA, all of them. And this is what we're hearing. He said of the anti-rollback calls. We're hearing people are a little worried and this game is booming. Families are playing together like never before. I'm telling you, if there's one point on this is that we're leading the most collaborative approach on this discussion that's ever started before that I can remember. >> I mean, you haven't been a part of any discussion like before this one. Don I families are playing. What is this? What are we talking about? We're talking about 180 mph ball speed. He's talking about families playing. >> God. Um >> to suggest that they had no input and this was like foisted upon them at the last minute is obviously I don't want to get into the whole debate, but they they were at the table the whole time. >> So there's questions about tariffs and uh Frank says he has no official stance on tariffs. A lot of manufacturers were coming up to us asking how it's going to impact consumers. You know, Sprag is on the World Golf Foundation board, the same one that sent one to lobby about tariffs and how that could impact it. Naturally, this is Jack's writing. Naturally, Rehea had to chime in and make >> Can I follow just a little bit? >> Make the PGA stance even more cons confusing. I don't know what's going to happen, but I do know you might not see it in a in a press release, but we call titles. We call Tailor Made. We call and Shrek. Titles and Ausha are the same company. We call them all and say, "How how are you doing?" And that and what's this impact going to be on our golf professionals? What could we do to help? That's what we've been uh been always been about. I don't know what's going to happen with the tariffs, but but I do know it's bringing us closer to the manufacturers and those who run the golf shops across the nation. Pressed a few more times on PGA's distance, Ry was all over the map. There's there's no real challenges here. I think it's all of us just understanding the impact of any decision that's made is going to affect all 100% of golfers. whether it's the 1% that play professionally or the 99% that just play recreationally. So then he gets to the range. We already covered that and uh and and that that's that's it. That's it. That's I mean >> my personal opinion on there is no personal opinion on the president of the PJ of America. >> All right. Real quick have a personal opinion. I mean, it's memorialized in the soundboard forever. I mean, this is the one that we did not forget. I guess I forgot the first responders, but go ahead. >> Carrie Hey, uh, is also in the mix here doing his usual giving nobody an inch on on answers. Garrett tweets this. Doug Ferguson was asking these questions. Garrett's tweet says, "My favorite part of the PGA leadership press conference was Carrie Heg acting like an impedled executive at Cong Congressional hearing in response to some simple questions about course setup." Carrie, two questions about today in September. What exactly when you come to a PGA Championship site are you trying to accomplish when you set up the golf course? Carrie Hey, here is his response. Every PGA Championship, we challenge all of our staff to make this one the greatest championship we've ever held. By doing what? Ferguson presses. Carrie Hey, by making it so you, the media enjoy it, the players enjoy it, the caddies enjoy it, spectators enjoy it, and the TV viewers enjoy it. Fergie, I need to be more clear. I wasn't talking about our parking. I was I was thinking more about the golf course. Exactly what kind of test are you trying to present and how do you go about it Carrie hey we look at each golf course obviously each have a different architect so two or three years prior we look at golf course see how it is uh we would like to play it and the test the and test the best players in the world in this case there's been some history with the number of events in 2017 that when we played so we do uh know that what took place then and now we're playing in May versus August So the overseas has sort of changed a little bit how we will play it. It's a beautiful golf course. It's a great challenge. We try and set the rough up so players can play, but you've got to there's got to be penalty if you go in there. Set it up the TE's. There's some wonderful short fours uh that you have the opportunity. Some long par threes and that's what setting up a golf course is. There's so many aspects to it. Let's try and bring out the very best uh in all of those on a magnificent golf course. He literally said nothing. >> I mean, he's always like he's he's good at saying nothing, but I mean, this is particularly embattled. It's like he's that's his his thing. It's like chewing on your wallet, >> you know? It's a it's a golf course. There are par threes, there are par fours. We put TE's on them and the players will go play it. >> Some players will make birdies, other players will make pars, a few will make bogeies. >> I love Fergie. I wasn't talking about our parking. >> That's a great line. This is a great line. >> I mean, Sprag really did get out of this just scot-free. He's supposed to be in like the gravitas position of like Seth Wah, Bvakqua, whoever, and like, you know, he'd say something and then he'd just defer cuz Rya would like slap him on the shoulder and he's like, "Oh, >> can I follow up just a little bit?" >> Okay, go ahead. He did get a get away. Scot-free kind of, but wasn't impressive. All right, >> one last tea time note. Um Keegan gets paired with Novak and uh McNeely and it's believed to be a Ryder Cup scouting. Both of those two were in the mix. >> You know, Novak still sits undefeated in >> in team compet. We probably should have asked Rory about that. >> Is it is it alarming that you know Novak now has been left off this team? Um anyways, uh let's get to Wednesday. Let's close this out. Sorry about the long last point of emphasis is >> this is literally the only press conference they do the entire year and they were so unprepared that they made this like giant sort of set the house on fire moment. It's not like they got caught flatfooted because they're giving press briefings every day. This is the only one and they weren't ready for it. >> It's not like the golf media is frost Nixoning it either. Like they're not exactly pressing them with some super hard questions. >> All right. I I guess you know the champions dinner happened. Uh it was sparsely attended and uh everybody made fun of everybody's ill-fitting clothes and jacket. >> Yeah, I heard they like have to pay for that or something. I don't know. >> I think there's like a lot of invites that go to the reception too. That might be the reason why people don't show up to it. You got to talk to >> not exactly exclusive. >> Dan Don's acolytes for 20 minutes before you can go sit down and eat. Yeah. All right. >> One last thing. KVB, on Tuesday of PGA Championship, you announced that you would do the whole 100 hole hike at East PTOIC >> because of how such how great of a cause the National Lakes Trust is >> in in use this week. >> Still is. >> Did it carried my bag the entire way. Uh yeah, maybe I'll have to talk about that on a pod at some point, but uh yeah. All right, great. >> Hold on. Hold on. We're not done. >> We're on Wednesday. >> Oh, sorry. >> But I forgot one last piece that wasn't in my notes that we talked about pre-show and PJ in PJ and I's pre-show production meeting. All of our pre-show. It's important. Astute followers. There was at Oak Hill there was a great wonder of who is this first tea announcer that's just preposterous doing these ridiculous announcements. It was Don Rea. >> Play it PJ. NOW ON THE TEAM FROM CALIFORNIA, PGA PROFESSIONAL MICHAEL BLOCK. >> Oh my god. That's the biggest ovation of the championship so far. >> Oh, this was f This was Sunday then. E was doing that. This is not like Thursday announcements. >> He got the He got the call up to the big time. He brought it. I almost I I I wanted to ask Rory. I didn't want to waste Rory's time, but Rory starring starring person in that video. I mean, what does he remember? >> Yeah, he this was also >> Rory. Did it go in? who connected the dots that that block or that Rehea was the guy that was shouting on the first te coming to me in a Tik Tok ironically after the nonsense uh interview with Sky Sports like Northern Ireland or whatever at the Ryder Cup. Somebody then posted, "Hey, this guy, we've seen him before." >> And sure enough, we had. I I keep comparing it to like when they showed Thanos in the end of Avengers one in the end credit scene where they give you a little teaser about what's to come. >> What's to come? That's that's the I mean we didn't know. We were focused on Blocky, but the bigger star was right behind him the whole time. >> Takes a village to do this deep dive reporting kind of situation, you know. >> Um I promise nobody has covered Don Rya more than us. Um it's true for better or worse. So the uh and we're I want to point out we are mispronouncing his name the entire time. I just realized but he's Don Ray forever to me. Um >> we're never going back on that. That's that's done. >> Uh the PGA uh Wednesday let's get to Wednesday. >> Okay. The PGA is not playing preferred lies be a statement for the PGA. We do not plan to play preferred lies. Playing services are outstanding and are drying by the hour. We are mowing fairways this evening. We're looking forward to exciting opening round of this 107th PJ Championship. This is going to uh play a a big big role in in in tomorrow's discourse on Thursday. >> Mud a lot of uh what a defiant statement uh there. >> Yeah, he's BP, you tweeted this uh the stringer bell. I want you to put out the word put the word out there that this just isn't another PGA tour event. >> The famous uh put the word out on the streets. We back up. >> PGA of course the only major that's ever done lift clean and place I believe. Balt 2016. That's >> ballsy to do that ahead of time. I mean where did they get more rain? Wednesday night. Okay. >> Oh that Wednesday rain. >> Well that's coming. >> I don't I don't know if we're going to get to it this episode but believe me that's coming. We aren't getting to it. I think this is just going to be the PGA. Um >> the uh the PGA tour on Wednesday, their Instagram is hacked. >> What? >> I don't remember this. >> No, John uncovers this. >> Rick and Marty official just dropped the official Rick and Morty uh on Salana blockchain. the results are out of this dimension. So, a Bitcoin or whatever that you want to call that uh uh type scheme has hacked the PGA Tours Instagram. >> Oh, jeez. Rick, we hacked the PGA Tours Instagram. >> What are all this event? >> Uh Pete Rose gets reinstated in in baseball. Uh, and you point out BP that this happened that he got reinstated before the framework agreement was final. Pete Rose gets reinstated in baseball. Um, Rory also got asked about Bryson, uh, and why he didn't talk to him, you know, and what Bryson said. He said, "I don't know what he was expecting. Like, we were trying to win the Masters. I'm not going to try and be his mate out there. Um, Ben Coley, one of my favorite followers on uh on Twitter, uh discovers that the PGA Tour and the PGA Championship are are are publishing the same social content on the same day where they're going around they're posting about uh people, you know, and what equipment they're using. uh what who they would trade their golf games with like build an ultimate golf >> who do you get? Um this question is being circulated. So these these these social posts are thought of because Shane Ryan is in the press center asking all the players if you could swap skill sets one skill set with any player in the world who would you swap with? And Rory will not take the bait >> from from Shane. four parts of the game, driving, approach, putting around the green. If you were forced to trade one of those elements of your game for anybody currently playing, which would you choose which part of the game, and who would you replace it with? >> I wouldn't trade it. >> If you were forced to, >> if I asked you what part of a game you admired in somebody else, what other player like who's somebody you admire putting for instance? >> I'm focused on my game. All right. >> But I'm not forced. That's pretty good. >> Not playing. >> I think I think like this question is really meant for like the AMX. >> Yeah. These guys are preparing to win a major championship and you're asking them like like, "Hey, you know, what's the the shittiest part of your game and who does it way better than you?" On the eve of them playing a major championship, not really the best place to ask that. >> Well, like mentally, you want to go into this and be like, I'm the best at everything. >> Sure. So, anyways, that's it. The preamble. I'll be right back. I'm going to go grab my lunch. I did not anticipate this running into my my, you know, recording in like an hour, but I'm going to get some lunch in. >> Go. >> Can I follow up just a little bit? >> All right, we're on to Thursday. Kevin, you have Thursday and uh Friday, I believe. >> All right. Uh, as as Andy mentioned, uh there was a couple no-shows at the Champions Dinner. uh Phil Mickelson and Brooks Kepka among them. Uh former PJ champions. Uh Phil doesn't show up at all on property until late Wednesday night. Uh he just shows up for like an hour at like 700 p.m. to chip and putt. uh a very weird uh sort of Phil nugget here >> just um he now they seeing that there's some like kind of damage reports here >> uh that excuse me there's some kind of like bad press about this uh his team kind of says to Bob Bob Herig of Sports Illustrated well he was actually practicing elsewhere it was the weather that uh he was uh wanting to avoid but he's been putting in a lot of work and he'll be ready to play uh does not work out really that well for Philly 79 in the first round. So perhaps uh things didn't quite go as planned. Uh this is the first uh day of of uh you know the the live pods here. We kind of go live throughout the day. I just wanted to call up this uh this hold screen of the shotgun start here. Uh this the lovely blue screen here. Uh it looks like Path has a wrist tattoo like uh like one of the sorority girls there. I just thought that was very cute. Uh a lot of you know an Arizona State uh gal whatever. fried egg branded tattoo. >> Exactly. >> Uh you're shaduring early. You're getting >> Yeah. >> Uh you know, I I I think I figured this might not be covered, but I enjoyed this sort of semiviral tweet. Uh there was a guy going around uh Charlotte, uh including at the Thirsty Beaver, which is the famous dive bar there this week. Uh asking people if he looked like Michael Block. Uh P, if you can pull up this tweet. Uh he's basically going up to people asking if he looked like Michael Block and then um saying what's your favorite golfer and regardless of whatever their answer was being like oh yeah well [ __ ] that guy. Uh so I love to think that uh like people thought this was Michael Block uh going around Charlotte basically like mixing it up with people. >> God. >> Uh the the scoreboard on Thursday is bleak uh to start out early. People are not >> happy. Uh this quote from Porath sort of kicks off the pod on Thursday. I went back and looked and I think this is the worst podcast we've ever had to do of a daily round in a page. Uh yeah, also says this leaderboard better get better by the weekend, but my god, this is bad right now. >> This is like Johnny V, Ryan Gerard. Uh it's it's just chaos. >> Johnny Vegas leads at seven under. >> Uh Ch. He needs to get a comment and he's trying to >> I'm here. I just am not going to subject people on YouTube to to watch me eat or something down right now. >> Cam Davis uh and Ryan Gerard are are close behind in second and five under. >> Uh Luke Donald shoots four under uh which is bonkers because he's close to last in the field in distance. >> Forgot about that. >> It's the lowest major round that Luke has shot since 2004. Uh we pointed out on the pod that PJ is five years old at this point. The last time Luke Donald touched this kind of uh sky in a major. Uh Andy Andy mentions that back then in 2004 he had a Motorola flip phone where he had to carry a piece of paper with everyone's number on it. That's how sort of long ago this was. Path, you looked it up and uh the number one song in 2004. Do you remember what this is? >> No. Some Total Re request live era or something like Cisco or something. Slow motion by Jun. >> I was I had that on the tip of my tongue. >> Yeah, >> slow motion for you. >> Uh slow motion for you. I I didn't want to uh I wanted to play that on the pod, but we decided we didn't want the algo to smash and kill us on this. >> We were we were going to play it and now uh people might actually watch this for the first maybe 40 minutes. So, we're going to let we're going to let things rock. >> Uh just a couple somber notes. Uh some a couple significant deaths this week. Uh, Katahhiro Muria, uh, the famous iron maker from Japan, uh, passes away this week. And also, uh, the alligator from Billy Madison, uh, dies. And Golf Digest does a very somber, uh, like Gilmore, excuse me, from Abby Gilmore. Does a very somber remembrance that looks like it could be set to Sarah McLaclin's I will remember you. Uh, which I found quite funny. >> Uh, that is a couple more notes here. as the sort of the preamble. Claire Rogers spots that um CBS has made a tremendous typo in its uh in its tea time sheets here listing Colin Morawa as Colin Morawasa Moraos >> Morawa Chaos >> Morawa Chaos doesn't know why uh how this uh why this happens but uh this was quite a tremendous typo I think. Uh, and of course, uh, before we get to the sort of real golf, uh, the Michael Block, uh, era continues. The the excitement is off the charts. Uh, before the tournament, um, actually CBS does a rankings, I believe this CBS, might be Golf Digest. I don't want to unfairly, uh, scare someone. And and puts Michael Block Digest >> ahead of of some of the people like Cam Davis, uh, Marco Pingge, uh, Thirstston Lawrence. uh an incredible sort of document as to like how people like looked at uh you know >> they put him ahead of the top 25 player in the world. >> He's like 15th right now. Penji I think this is what set Penji off for the next. Yeah. >> I also think Doran was in the final group on Sunday or among Yes. And they put I remember people this was so disrespectful putting Blocky >> above these guys. Okay. >> However, Blocky uh starts out >> No. No way. >> No way. >> Blocky plays the first eight holes in even par and and the block party continues. According to Nuclear Golf, uh this is people are just I I looked up there was a Michael Block tracker. It was it was live tweeting every single one of uh Blocky's shots during the round. Uh it has five followers, so it perhaps did not catch on uh with the mainstream. Uh but Blocky does shoot 75 on the day. Uh, and that is better than the following golfers. Jordan Spe, Justin Rose, Russell Henley, Dustin Johnson, Cam Smith, and as the aforementioned, Phil Mickelson. Uh, at noon on Lunch with the boys, uh, Joseph makes a point to call out a fraud watch here, which I think PJ might have a clip of. >> Also want a full fraud watch on Min on Mini. >> Oh, come on. >> It's noon. It's 12:30 on Thursday. We're doing fraud watch. Yeah, four overwatch >> started a little hot. I mean, Minui got a soft a little bit of a soft win at Memorial Park with the way that that was set up. Just ball speeded it around. What else has he done the last couple years? >> Sick. Uh I always appreciate someone putting their name on a take like that. You're going to stick your neck out, stick your neck out. Uh all right, so we said Johnny Vegas is the uh the first round leader at seven under. It's the first time that anyone from Venezuela has ever led a major. Uh I could imagine not going to name another Venezuelan golfer. So why wouldn't that be? >> Uh Andy points out that look Ryan Gerard and Cam Davis are not actually on the leaderboard. That's there's this fake. We we're going to have to adjust the scores. We have to knock at least two or three scores off everyone's score. Uh and says that Colin Morau is the real leader. uh we Neman who just a few weeks ago Phil said was the number one player in the world shoots 74 in the first round uh which leads to many jokes at his uh expense. Uh we have a super group going out uh Xander Rory and Scotty Sheffller and doesn't go particularly well for two of the people but Golf Digest says a tough opening round for the top three in the world when Scotty shot two under and they kind of get a little bit ratioed here. A lot of people very angry about this that Scotty would be lumped in with uh with Rory and Xander's uh bad play throughout this. Uh I got a g kick out of this Gabby Herszig tweet. Uh Keegan Bradley's son like went out to hug Keegan mid round. Keegan's playing pretty well. Uh and he kind of ran inside the ropes to hug him and then ran back outside and then and then pulled a little town crier like a future Billy Horchel AND SAID, "MOM, ROY MOY JUST MADE A DOUBLE BOGEY." Scrunched it out. So Gabby caught uh that. But the real story of Thursday, of course, is that the players are not happy about the mud balls. Uh particularly one >> mudball. >> One person in particular, the chief of the fair police, uh Scotty Sheffller, uh which I believe we have a video here. He says, >> I'm this is the one time I'm going to talk about this, but uh but he goes in in depth on mud balls here. deals where it's it's frustrating to hit the ball in the middle of the fairway and get mud on it and just have no idea where it's going to go. And you know, I I understand it's part of the game, but there's nothing more frustrating for a player. I mean, you you spend your whole life trying to learn how to control a golf ball, and due to a rules decision, all of a sudden, you now have absolutely no control over where that golf ball goes. But, um, you know, I don't make the rules. I just got to deal with the consequences of those rules. And, you know, I did a good job of battling back today and not letting a bad break like that, which cost me a couple shots, kind of get to me. and um did a good job battling after that and uh posting a a decent decent score. >> Uh not everyone is sort of in agreement, but there are some people in line with uh that Alex Smallley says I I feel like it wasn't the whole quarter or half of the ball that was covered, says Alex Molly. It was only a couple specks here and there and it wasn't anything too significant, but it was definitely enough to affect the flight some, but it wasn't like it was going to turn at 20 or 30 or 40 yards on you. Uh, Xander said, "I wouldn't want to go into the locker room right now because I'm sure a lot of guys are super unhappy." Yeah. With conditions out here. I feel like the grass is so good. So, there is no real advantage to cleaning your ball on the fairway, the course is completely tipped out. It sucks that once you're kind of 50/50 once you hit the fairway. Uh, but Nick Hardy, uh, sticking up for real golf here. professional golfer not on the field. But >> Xander Xander complained about mud balls the year before I think at the PGA at Valhalla too. All that he had he had had some comments about how you know >> those were you know a big part of the Valhalla week. >> Yeah. So probably the dorkiest debate possibly you can have during a major is like mudballs playing it up playing it down. The the kind of thing that like most casual golf fans just don't care at all about. But Nick Hardy, professional golfer makes I think a great point here. He's sort of commenting on an old Victor Havland uh video where Victor talks about like if it's muddy like hit a knuckler that like rolls out and sort of skips a little bit and knocks the mud off the ball. Nick says, "When in doubt, play it down. Pro golfers practice to master the predictable at home, but we should learn how to manage the unpredictable with it. Victor's take on how to manage the unpredictable of mun balls should always be an element we face in the game. In my opinion, we play the ball up far too often. Unless it's an absolute sloshfest, we should be forced to hit different shots off the tea to avoid mudballs. It's a skill. Thought that was a very nice point. >> Proper uh Illinois educated uh response there. I >> absolutely. Uh Scotty, right there. >> Yeah. Uh Scotty is wearing kind of an orange uh shirt for this round, which you would think uh was, you know, burnt orange for Texas, but it leads a lot of people to make jokes about he's wearing an orange prison jumper uh for the first time as sort of a throwback to >> uh last year's. And you already teased this graphic, but you didn't see the second part of it. The uh the president of Quail Hollow comes out and and responds to Hunter Mayan, says his Kardashian quote says, "Tell me who that is. I don't know the last time he was here. Stinger. I don't know. >> I don't know who Hunter Mayanm is. Who the hell? >> Former like top five player in the world. It seems like might have a good person to be able to take on this. >> Uh so we go on to Friday now after this after the mudball discourse. Uh and at the end of the day, Johnny Vegas is still our leader. Uh hard to believe he has never finished in the top 20 in a major, but he's hanging on here. Um he's actually caught a couple decent breaks to the I'm here writing from the AP story. The first meaningful sign of a nerves has arrived for Vegas uh where he hit made a double bogey on the last hole after three birdies on the back nine. But he did enjoy an outrageous piece of fortune on the 17th where his wayward t-shot rebounded from a bunker rake and onto the green. Uh otherwise it was going 20 yards wide of the green. Although a part of the debate throughout the week is that the the rough is so high around the greens that balls don't go in the water anyway. So, what does it matter that if you hit it in the rough on the uh on those holes? Uh, also in contention, uh, Matt Fitzgerald Seiw Kim, Andy's favorite golfer and part of the origin story of Shotgun Start. Uh, Matthew Pavone and everyone's favorite Twitter golfer, Max Homer, uh, has one of his best rounds ever in a major, shoots 64 and he almost aces the 14th hole, a 347 yard par4, hits driver to a foot. Uh it is truly his best major championship round ever. By nearly two full strokes, he gains 8.2 strokes on the field. And even better than that, it's the 11th best round in a major by any golfer since 2023. So pretty darn good from Max. Uh Max has a pretty great quote about mudballs here that uh Paul Jetti captures. Says, "I particularly like playing the ball down. I just think it causes chaos for the fans. It's supposed to be entertaining. So seeing people who can look like robots for a while look completely silly isn't the worst except when it's you. Uh good good well proper play there by Max. Uh, and uh, here we have Dylan Deser has a pretty good tweet here that goes kind of viral, but I'm going to call him Max because he appears to HBO Max because he appears to be back sort of poking fun in the fact that HBO went away from HBO Max and then four years later came all the way back to rebrand themselves as HBO Max uh, after several years as just Max. Uh, Max has been just hitting tons and tons of balls uh, trying to get his swing right. Peach, I think I sent you this video of him talking about his swing, but if not, uh, we'll just go ahead and move on because it's not that important. Uh, our guy Blocky, uh, puts up an 82 on Friday to miss the cut. Uh, he's dead last. The Cinderella story is truly dead, but Blocky has an explanation that you might not have considered. He says, >> you know, the kind of funny part is, I wish there was huge crowds on every hole because that's when I hit my shots. when there's no one around is when I hit my worst shots. That's something I need more in my life is a bigger crowd. I just need to play a little better so it could happen. I can only imagine what would happen if I would have been playing really good this week. >> Uh so it's not his own golf that was poor. It was the fact that there wasn't the blockamomania out there uh just had died. It was sad. >> No. >> No way. >> No way. Kevin, I I uh I found this the next day because I did Saturday. Did you find Ben an's take on Blocky needing a crowd? He tweeted about Blocky needing a crowd to play well. He goes, "Wild take definitely somewhere up there with flatearthers." He compared it to being a flatearther that Blocky needed a Ben Odd's tweeting under Yeah, Ben is a is a great tweeter. >> Poppy Blocky. Okay. >> You know, you know what could help you become a showman? What's that? A little perfect practice. >> Showman Showman Blocky's got great short game. >> He does. >> I've I've heard that. How you could get a good short game. >> How's that? >> How's that? >> You could uh dial in your chipping with the chip shot. >> Chip shot. >> Perfect practice is new product. >> We should have had Rory come on for this port. Should we have done an ad with Rory? That would have been a good use of time, I don't think. Probably contractually obligated with something else. Uh yeah, perfect practice. They've got chip shot. What a good Christmas gift. Go to >> the ball return on the chipper. >> That's crazy. That's crazy talk. Uh, chip shot. >> I don't know how they do it. I don't know how they keep getting the ball back to you, but they do. That's the thing. Perfect practice makes it easy. Easy on you. >> Incredible. >> Perfectpractice.com. You catching me off guard here. Code like Roy coming in with no warning. Code SGS gets 20% off. 20% off. You can buy it at on Amazon. Small business. Little small business on the internet. You can buy it in your brickandmortar store. You go to perfectpractice.com. Go right to the source. Use the code SGS. I think I maybe saw a mat of theirs in a viral uh viral ad this week for for the player of the year. Saw one of the perfect practice mats. Go to perfectpractice.com. Use the promo code SGS. You get 20% off. You can do indoor indoor golf. It's frozen in many parts of the country right now. Uh they got a ball return. Easy setup. You can break it down, put it up. I love that it's not permanently affixed to a corner or your basement. You can mo move it around easily, take it outside. Go to perfectpractice.com, use the code SGS. We've had a great first year with them. We met them at Oakmont and uh things are going well. We love Perfect Practice. Uh code is SGS. >> Yeah. You know, I just didn't want to get done with this this episode and be like, "Oh, we forgot to do the ad." You know, popped in my head. I I was thinking about Blocky Short Game and I was like, "Ah, we got to talk about the chipper." Thank you for your service. >> Not a flat earther if you go to perfect practice. >> Last last thing, we're I think we only have like 20 books left. We ordered a ton of them. Did not expect it. >> But if you want a book, this is your last last shot. Friday. >> Egg.com. Do the bundle. Get the get the membership, too. There's only a couple left. >> Not a lot left. All right. Love it. >> A cousin of mine just texted me during this podcast. Said that he had just signed up for Club TF. canceled another membership to another previous uh company. So, that was very exciting. >> Love it. >> Uh guys, Phil uh is is this just four years ago that Phil won the PGA? Hard to believe. Uh but now he is only kind of making news for doing [ __ ] that uh is is kind of weird. uh he he plays a sixhole stretch uh at at uh the quail where he makes four birdies, but he plays that stretch in even uh because he makes a quad on one of the holes where he takes four shots to get out of a bunker. Uh so probably not the best prep uh skipping the champions dinner that he thought here. Uh Mike, now the the mudball discourse has been kind of uh the hot topic of of the week so far. Uh, and we'll get a little bit more to that in just a sec. Uh, but news kind of gets out late, uh, Friday from SiriusXM. Uh, my my former ESPN colleague Jason Soil reports that Rory's driver has failed USGA testing and been deemed non-conforming earlier in the week. Uh, and we have a clip here of uh, on the Taylor Zarzor and Johnson Wagner show where Johnson, I think, does a pretty fair explanation of what went down. We have just become aware that Rory Mroyy's driver, he was not able to use it this week. His gamer, if you will, that it was deemed to be no longer permissible. And whether it was cracked or something had happened to the head, Rory unable to use that driver and switched drivers yesterday. Only at four fairways yesterday, he's hit six today. SiriusXM reached out to the PJ of America. They chose not to comment. The USGAA actually conducts the testing and when reached for the for comment to the USGAA, they also declined to comment. But they did add that testing results are confidential. If the player wants to share, they can. So maybe Rory will be asked about this later today. >> All right. So the USGA conducts these tests pretty much every week out here on professional golf and they test it across all aspects of the face of the driver. Drivers fail all the time. Every single week somebody's driver fails. It is by no fault of the player. They don't know how to do it. It is a sophisticated testing system. And when you're a player like Roy Mroy that hits the ball as hard as he does, it the the face naturally thins out, Taylor, even if you're hitting the ball. But when you're hitting it like Roy Mroy with his speed, it thins out a little quicker. And it's unfortunate that it happened the week of a major and that maybe cost him a few shots yesterday, but he seems to have it figured out today. He did nothing wrong. No player that driver head test ever does anything wrong. This is something that happens week to week on the PGA tour. >> So we would ask Rory about this in media, but he does not uh show up for media and does not show for media the next two days as well. Perhaps uh that's why he decided to come on the podcast today to to you know clear >> he said he was open to you know he said he was open to talk >> to ask me any questions and we dropped the ball there about asking the driver probably because I don't give a [ __ ] Like probably because who cares? uh you know playing fair is very important and then so uh we don't find this out till later but also Scotty Shuffler's driver uh failed testing and it's part of the reason that Rory was a little annoyed that selectively his results were leaked but nobody cares more about playing fair than the chief of police of the fair police Scotty Sheffller who has climbed into contention with a second round 68 uh and one of we have one of his biggest fans here was showing their support this week uh with a wonderful t-shirt that they were wearing uh just to to uh make sure that the fair police were fairly represented here. Peach, I think if we have this picture. >> I don't know if I Oh. >> Oh. Oh. Oh, there we go. >> Andy has the fair police t-shirt on that somebody sent him uh in this week. Uh thank you so much for that. >> I forgot I completely forgot about this. Uh guys, uh despite averaging only 277 off the tee, uh Blandy is fighting his way through the top 10 through the top 20 kind of all uh all late Friday. He kind of falls apart late in the end and and drops to 37th. But what an incredible effort by Blandy. uh kind of at some point someone looks at all the like worst driving uh sort of distances uh throughout the week and it's all guys who are in like 140th place, 180th place, whatever except for Blandy who's uh who's basically just, you know, spatting it around out there. >> Uh tempers are getting hot uh late in the day. Uh Shane Lowry is furious >> after he is not given relief for an embedded ball. Uh hits kind of a chunk out of it and then says, "Oh, [ __ ] this place." Uh in a good sort of Irish brogue there. Yeah. Twice. >> Step step two of his career slam of [ __ ] this. >> That's right. That's right. >> You said that about Oakmont, right? >> You get all four and four. >> Hey, I hate to say this. I had a schedule error. >> You know, I actually didn't get the time wrong, but I got it. I got to go. >> Okay. >> Are you serious? >> I got serious. >> I We just got an email for Friday night. >> Just came across our desk. >> Just came across our desk. PJ alerted me, but I gotta go. >> We'll bring this home. It's we got, you know, somebody we had a surprise guest at the beginning, so you're you're excused. >> All right. So, >> all right, let's go. >> Uh, Terrell Hatton also, uh, pretty fired up. Uh, this is from you and Murray and the Guardian. Uh, Terrell Hatton's lovehate relationship with professional domains continue. The Englishman will inevitably be fined after a foul-mouthed tirade during his second round of the USPJ championship was picked up on live television coverage. Hatton was within a shot of the lead when he reached the tea at 18, his ninth. Hatton's drive found the water hazard. What happened next was rather typical for a player prone to tempestuous moments on golf courses. The 33-year-old balled out piece of [ __ ] before adding the C-word insult, apparently towards his driver. Hatton's mood hardly improved as he slumped to a triple bogey 7. It wasn't my finest moment on the golf course, Hatton said after the outburst. I was running hot in that moment, and I'm pretty good sometimes at saying the wrong thing. uh playing in just his fourth PJ championship and his fir his fourth major championship and his first PJ championship. Michael Thorbjornson is T7. Uh founds himself kind of in contention. Uh pretty cool there. Story fades a little bit uh over the weekend, but uh fun to see him. Uh cutwatch here is pretty brutal for some of the the stars. Part of what makes this tournament kind of lack a little juice. Uh Jordan Spees the cut. Uh there'll be no uh career grand slammed uh this week. He's two over. Levig Oberg three over. Not playing well all year. Justin Thomas, despite playing pretty well in the second round, just hit it in too many creeks. Uh kind of was viral shots of him hitting it out of the creek earlier in the week. Will Zelator miss the cut six over, not great. Justin Rose nine over. seems so surprising that Rosie would play so stinky after uh you know such a great Master performance, but >> uh just didn't have >> wasn't good for a while. I mean after the Masters, you know, >> uh Brooks Keepa nine over. You thought that, you know, Brooks was uh kind of, you know, he just squashing PGA's right and left, but no. Uh and then DJ 12 over. I mean, he just did get that sort of late call invite or whatever, but uh yeah, Friday night wraps up and you it kind of like the villain in a horror movie. You can feel Scotty coming like he is inevitable at this point. Uh nobody really thinks that Johnny Vegas is going to stick around in the lead. So that's uh Thursday, Friday. >> Love it. Love it. Uh let's get to Saturday, Sunday. Oh, I forgot a I found a funny quote from Bryson. Someone asked him about I don't know who about playing doing a break 50 at Quail Hollow. He said it would be an honor to do bring break 50 to Quail Hollow. An honor to bring Break 50. I'd love to showcase that. We have a couple other ideas, too. >> From the junior te's. What? Like >> from the junior banker te? >> I don't know. I don't know. Um, all right. Let's get to Saturday. So, this was kind of like in a year of unserious PGA foibless and slip ups. This is up, not up there, but this is part of it. So they have everyone come to the course Saturday for business as usual and then blow the horn and say they're going to go split te's off of threes. Like they had all the guys at, you know, 7:30, 8:30. They got get up at 6:00 and they get there and they blow the horns like we're going to go off in groups of threes 11:43 to 2:00 and Rory is literally crossing the foot bridge to go to the first tea and they blow the horn and it doesn't take an expert lip reader to to say he said f off at the inanimate horn as they as they call him off like he spent you know him and obviously whoever else was off early is up early and now they're like wait actually you're going to go in two and a half hours alpha 2t >> people said he didn't comment ment all week. Great comments right there. That's a great quote. >> Kind of a nightmare. Um Rory, uh the driver gate picks up a little bit of steam. Um like and it's a lot of like the PG of America and USJ say they won't comment on the matter as per protocol and like we just people are like come on like this isn't a big deal but you're kind of making it more fertive and secretive and scandalous than it needs to be and nobody I mean Rory was not talking to the press either. I think he maybe knew the Scotty thing. You know, Xander lets it slip eventually is the one who breaks it first. Like I'm pretty sure Scott got his driver tag. >> Again, not on the Xander app. Could have been a great opportunity to break news on the Xander app for the exclusive Xander uh readers. >> So like Rory's not hitting fairways and and the PGA and USJ will not comment. People like, what's going on here? Uh the rain when they when they the rain flipped us from twos to threes, it delivered an incredible uh trio. We got Blandandy, Bryson, and Pendy. >> This is my This is my trio of the year. I mean, this is You can't beat this. This is >> Pendy and Blandy and Bryson. So, Pendy is a big big hitter, too. Not >> you can't do it. >> Uh Bryson was Yeah, Bryson was an average of 44.86 yards ahead of Blandy. He was 60 yards farther down on three at least three different occasions. We have the screenshots here, you know, where Blandy's got 157 into the hole. Bryson Nez like 75 65. Um Lowry, Shane Lowry comes out and talks about Pitchmark Gate. Um he said it was an ESPN guy was a bit too in there involved when he wasn't asked to be. And that's what annoyed me a lot. I was just asking the referee and the ESPN guy comes straight over and he's like, "That's not your pitch mark." And I'm like, "That's not for you to talk about. That's for me to call a rules official and decide what happens." which I would agree with them if I >> sound guy or camera guy comes in try to determine what's what. I said I just said the rules official. What happens to the guy who's not on ESPN live at playing at 7:10 in the morning? What happens to that guy? The rules official. Now I've got ESPN sound guy coming in. Who's the guy that doesn't play on ESPN? I guarantee you he's down there arguing it's his pitch mark. So >> it's not your pitch mark, brother. I'm sorry, brother, but you're going to have to move that back. It's not >> There was apparently this must have been from Friday. Someone was heckling Brooks and I the video has been DMCA by but into the ether several times over. >> PJ of America was hot of the DMCA TCMA whatever it is. >> Yeah, I found so many dead videos in my research. PJ had just been wiping it clean and someone heckled him and he said, "You want to come down here and say that to someone in the stands?" Um, but even though he MCED, he was seen Friday night at a local QT Quick Trip getting a brick of Miller Lights. Uh, the 30 frack of Miller Lights with Brooksie. That was a great like viral moment. Went to Quick Trip to grab some beer after rough 18 holes. I think this guy might be doing the same. This is from like a a Charlotte area Twitterer. Pretty good. Pretty good. Um, that was that was a viral moment for Friday that emerged Saturday. Uh, we get some Colonial Field Nuggets because now that field is official and we learned that David Frost, Cory Pave, and Olen Brown are in the field, listed as in the field, not for the Champions Tour event, but for Colonial. I'm not sure if they played PJ. >> Oh, there's a lot. Don't you'll get that on Friday for sure. >> All right. Uh, the PG of America finally issues a statement on the driver testing at about 2:00 p.m. on Saturday. Says we can't, it's, you know, just some me about Carrie Hank stuff. We can confirm that the USJ was invited to do club testing at the PGA and the PGA of America's request. The testing program is consistent with the same level of sport. I won't want to read it all on we do learn that they tested only 33% of the field. So we're like what either do it or don't like like either test or don't. And I know this is protocol. It's not just a PGA things like >> so either let everybody play under the same rules or don't. It's just like I I think they should be testing. The point is they should test everybody and test I think Xander all these people argue like just test us test us all the time. Um what else happened? Uh there was so we get these last groups there's no one. I think the last group was Johnny Vegas and Matthew Pavon and they just ESPN captures them on the first team that grand stands are just empty overhead shot just just you know contrary to Derek Spray's concern about ticket sales. I I think there's some evidence here that nobody was following the last groups. Feel bad for them. Uh cute moment of Scotty Sheffller was playing with the Club Pros kid, Ryan Lennahan. Like again, they were just kind of hanging out with uh he had his buddy with with Bennett and his kids, Lenan's kids. And there's Scotty just cleared away. Number one player in the world just rolling around on the floor of the clubhouse with a couple different kids. That was like a cute moment, I guess. I think Clare Rogers had that. Uh Rahm domes a guy in the head and there's a big scene like a big big scene like catches him fresh off the I think it bounced like 20 yards into play like onto the green. This was a big moment turning point >> a PJ championship murderer stage steel at Southern Hills. >> God I forgot about that like to get replaced. >> We do we don't get the rise but we get the return of Rehea. He's kind of been put in witness protection. PJ just buries him for the couple days, but he returns for his CBS spot with Amanda Balionis. We tweet, "Business is picking back up as Donnie boy in his in his vest." Uh Andy tweeted, what did Andy? He said, "They didn't give him enough time. The main event, they didn't let him cook." They did really like rock him. He was out within like 45 seconds. It >> he had become the story. You let him cook on the mic too much, things are going to go bad. Amanda and CBS did not let him go very much. Um, Adam Stanley had a funny tweet about like some Carolina golf bro attire. Said every guy is in the same outfit like there it's like this khaki, you know, khaki brigade and >> pretty snarky for Canadian Adam Stanley. >> He got ratioed. He got ratioed. The people did not take kindly to him making fun of the Carolina Golf Bro attire. Uh Andy I believe is the one or maybe Austin on our social group. Apppoplelectic that they have these make golf your thing billboards like on the first te on the tea boxes of the major just in your face this you know really conspicuous uh advertisement of for make golf your thing which is still not sure what exactly that is. Uh Scotty hits one like miles OB that bounces spits right back into the fairway. Like miles right spits just knocks it right down tumbos it back into play. We're like all right well this is is this the Scotty's like he's obviously good but is this again his week? Uh on 14 the par4 that Max you talked about almost hit hit it in the hole. Scotty hits it from 304 yards to 2 feet 9 in on Saturday. And this is where he really starts to lift and separate where that sort of uh kind of underwhelming early leaderboard becomes the Scotty show late and Max I think had a good quote like nobody's act I like he wasn't trying to hole it when he hit it close to that par4. Nobody's trying to do that except unless you're like Scotty or something like that. Um, so this was that that was like the beginning of uh the end of the championship on 17 just hits like an absolute uh perfectly proper shot into 17. Saturday was kind of hard. It was much harder. Like you still had a little bit of latent like residual mud balls. Wind picked up. They put some interesting pins out. 17 was challenging. Um he did then Scotty hit it in a divot I believe on uh 18. And this prompts much sirens from Andy and and all that that the pair fair police should be be able to remove it from uh from uh divots. Um so so Quail shows so shows a little bit of punch back on Saturday and Scotty just obliterates it. Low round of the day was 65. Um well there were I think from the newsletter Sergio and Ben shot 79. 50 players were over par. This is after the cut. So 50 is a majority who made the cut. We're wolver parrar. Scotty goes and uh shoots 65. Um let me find a few other nuggets. Uh Bryson at one point took the solo lead around 520 and two hours later he was six back. So Bryson hit it in the water at 17. He was one one of only like two or three people to hit it in the water around 17. >> Remember he tried to hit like a nine iron like 240 yards or something. I mean, not that his nine iron is the same as other people's nine iron, but it was like such an insane he was like looking at his club being like, "What? How how does that not get there?" >> Yep. Yep. Yep. And it was it it was just this remark. I'll get to him and he blames his equipment a little bit. Um Sheffller played his final five holes in five under par, including on one of the most difficult three-hole closing stretch in major championship golf. He gained more than five strokes on the field. He gained more than five strokes on the field in five holes just taking the tournament by the throat. Um, and again it was 5:00 p. p.m. it was Bryson, Rob, and Scotty were tied for the lead and everybody's like losing their mind. This is awesome. And then like two hours later, Scotty goes 500 through his last five in tough tougher conditions. And it's that and then there's this great image of in scoring. He was playing with Siwu Kim and Sew has this like thousand yard stare like what did I just watch those last five holes? He was just like hat off, hair like kind of flustered. Um Bryson again, like I said, inexcusably, like just totally inexcusably hits it in the water on 17. I think there were only two in the water all day. Um and he was asked about like his slip ups coming home. I read this aloud on the Saturday live show, I believe. He basically said he hit every shot great, but that like other outside forces made it not great. Uh he goes, "I'm three back with one round to go in a major championship." So, I can't complain too much. You can always ask for more. You can always try to be a little greedier out there. 16 didn't feel like I played that hole terrible. Just hit the T- shot a little farther right because I knew the wind was hauling down off the right. I could have hit it through the rough and pushed out to the right. I hit it exactly where I wanted to hit the second shot. I hit a great third shot, a good fourth shot. It just broke left. Broke more left on that putt. 17. I hit a great nine iron. Exactly the way I wanted to. The wind just pumped it. Nothing I could do. Wind flip for me just neutral off the right. Uh it said then on 17 I hit a great shot on 17 again and just made a dumb double. So that 17 there have been two balls in the water. He hits the third. He said he's hit a great shot and it was just a dumb double. Some other forces created that. And then on 18 I hit a great 3-wood. I just needed to aim it more left. Well like I mean it's all these elements of of of Bryson. He's just sort of like flabbergasted of I actually hit a great shot out of the bunker. He added it went in the bunker. I hit a great shot out of the bunker right on my target line and the wind just turned into me again. It was just a tail of the wind going into me instead of downwind. It cost me three shots and that's what happens at Quill Hollow. So I think he uses the word great like five times good right on target like non-stop but there he is three shots back. Um you say something Kevin sorry I didn't want Okay. Uh at Sheffller's win probability. So Bryson sort of spits the bit coming in. Sheer goes ham at 550. His win probability, this is from no lineup, was 23%, 90 minutes later was 77%. So 90 minutes, like that was the deal Saturday night. I kind of had forgotten about this if I'm being I forgotten that this is when he took control. Now he would slip up on Sundays. We'll get to in a minute minute >> on the mudball discourse, which just kept going going and going. Uh >> thesises were being written on mudballs. Doctorates were being handed out about mudball discourse. Bamberger talked to Patty Harrington and Patrick Harrington who was who was playing this week said generally when I've got mud on the ball I'm playing the most conservative shot I can play. The mud is at the ball at 3:00 I play the ball go left. You're going to cry mud on the face of your shot it's going to take spin off it. Got a longse second shot there's m sometimes just hood the club and hit something along the ground to the front of the green and that will clean the mud off the ball. Similar to what Victor said it's a different kind of skill. Calls it a skill playing mud balls but it's part of the skill of the game. It's like playing in bad weather. 50% of these guys are going to give up in bad weather. Of the remaining half, half don't know how to play in bad weather. So now you only have to beat one quarter of the original field. So uh very different view from sort of the mudball complainers of which was Scotty Shuffler who beat the piss out of everyone this week too. So he he also went and did it. >> Um we finally like Bob Herig and others like the PGA of America said it would not be commenting on this. Where's the comment? Just the lack of transparency became a big thing Saturday morning and then they get the two-hour delay. Like I think that's why they're like, "Look, we just got to put out some boilerplate stuff." All right, we go to Sunday. Uh Scotty Sheffler leads 11 under. Harris English is six, and Bryson Dashambo is six. Davis Riley is six. Pendy, Vegas, and Poston are all five. Rahm is not in that group. Brian Harmon on Scotty. I I wouldn't say they were resigned to the field, but they're like, "All right, he's five up. He's the best player in the world. He said, Brian Harmon said, "It's like he's got a time machine and he goes forward in time and knows exactly what the wind is doing and lands the ball just right." I thought that was kind of a >> Yeah, that's a good quote >> from a pier being like I believe that was to Marty Smith. Shout out to Marty Smith who gets the guys talking occasionally. Um, >> there was a lot of Marty. >> Tell me about that time machine, brother. >> I love Marty. If Marty, if you listen, I love you. >> Yeah. So I it's one of these things where like home is like I won't try to hit it there unless you're Scotty. Harman's talking about like he's got a time machine and can tell like again Saturday was tough conditions where he goes 500 through five. There's this sort of I don't want to say tiger-l like presence but he is the guy looming over everybody. >> If if Scotty does have a time machine it would make sense his comments at port rush be like nothing matters really. I mean like just you know go forward backward in time it's all decided. >> That is true. Um, ESPN, for reasons that I'm not sure, keeps playing Freeird to commercial break, like nonstop. Four days of Freeird to commercial break. Like, it was so much. >> Which part? Like the the end part? >> I think it was the fast part. And then PJ ESPN going to commercial break, the meme, play Freeird or play Freeird. Two options, four in a row. Uh PJ's incredulous about Freeird. Like I swear I've heard Freeird solo more times the last four days than I had my entire life leading up to Thursday. So much freeird. I don't know why. Quail being a bird. It was just it was >> honestly I my my hypothesis is they still had the license from the uh the four nations face off when Freeird was the goal song for Team USA and they still had the license and they were like screw it. >> Yeah. >> Quail's a quail is a bird. People know this song. Here's your bumper for the entire >> All right, folks. We've already cleared this music once for usage. Like we just run it into the ground. >> That's my conspiracy. >> I'm good digging, PJ. I like that. Uh weird early moment. Rory hits in the water right of 14, I believe, and a volunteer like throws himself down the side of the bank to fish it out. There are no fans. This is in >> part of the course. And he's just half submerged going for I think a >> rare funny tweet from Nuclear Golf here. Anything for a pro one. Yeah. Yeah. Yep. Uh this is where this is a very shotgun start uh story that came into our orbit. We are learned from sources on the ground that PGA of America's contracted with a memorabilia dealer called The Realist. That's the company name, The Realist. They've enshrined the rake that Johnny Vegas hit a rake on 17 that like nicked the ball like offline onto the green. So now they're attempting to sell this rake at auction. Not clear what the auction proceeds go to. Starting bid was $300 for a rake. >> You know, they've got the realist company. This features a gold OVD authentication. So just Mickey Mouse [ __ ] if I must be must be honest. like trying to sell these various sunundry of items that I mean nobody's going to remember the rake that Johnny Vegas hit on like Thursday of a random PGA >> before he finished like 12th, >> right? >> So we we are just apoplelectic about this and and we're just like what is this service they're offering? Which prompts PJ to do a little more investigative reporting and we learned that the realist says they gifted Eric Cole made an ace. So they gifted Eric Cole the flag used on the fourth hole on Thursday calling it the quote first officially authenticated item in PJ history which whatever that means but the same flag with that tagline is now up for sale. >> So did you give it to him and PJ is on the case? >> He's like is Eric Cole selling the flag from his first career hole in one? I suppose it's possible Eric Cole then reselling it. I suppose it's possible but I wonder why. Were there two flags in use? How could both of these be the first authenticated item in PJ history? Wow. >> Is this just a random rake they found? So, this just blows the cover of everything. >> Get the IRS on the line. This >> is exactly the kind of fraud I've been hearing so much about. >> You know what? I'm just I'm stunned that Rell didn't get in on this. >> Yeah, >> I'm stunned that I had to do Rell's job for him. >> PJ is apoplelectic. He literally is thanking them for the flag. Walks away with it. Did they take it back? How could anyone buy this rake and be able to sleep at night is what he suggested? Just the PGA doing PGA things. Uh you were on Eric Cole Flaggate forever. Um >> that was most of my Sunday legitimately. That took me a while to uncover the layers of this onion. >> Um Scotty's still out on the course playing. This is when we learn that Xander insinuates that uh I believe Scott's driver, he calls him Scott Xander. I believe Scott got popped too and learn failed his driver. He spoke to the press. Um all right. So Scotty's out there. He starts it. He's got a five shot lead. This is just forkon conclusion. Formal march to victory. Well, he's got the lefts going all through the front nine. Remember he keeps tugging at left. I question is the chaplain catting. We've never seen him. He's just struggling. I say is the chaplain cading. Andy tweets. I didn't know Scotty was such an AOC fan. He keeps going left. Uh NLU had a gif uh about the the the famous 50 cent pitch which he's like throws it 30 feet outside on the left. I mean it's we've not seen this like Sky is broken. Is he short circuiting? He keeps hitting it left and to that point he's tied with John Rom by 450 after another bogey on the on the ninth hole. He and John Rom are tied and it's just like whoa. He was five clear of not even Rahm but anyone and Rahm was farther back or further back and and now he's like is he lost? What's going on? Can he can he figure it out? Of course like as is often the case with with Scotty fixes it sort of he talks through it with Ted and one of the great hallmarks of his year was like he'd follow a bogey with a birdie and so that boge nine that leaves them tied momentarily. He birdies 10. I think he bird's 14. It's close. Bird's 15. It's like, oh, it's it's like fixing fixing mid round, getting responding from the bogey at nine with birdie at 10. Um, Rom like completely implodes, but totally excusably, right? He's like playing to win. He's like, "All right, it's going to take a miracle to catch Scotty like once Scotty gets like one, two, three ahead." So, he's going for broke on the green mile. Um, and so it was it was awesome to watch him. He intentionally wanted to go to that left, but but uh Scotty put put it pressure on you, right? You're not expecting Scotty to just fold. So like you got to go get it. And so he's like hitting balls all over the yard. Just just really aggressive. And someone blue on the board suggested Rob not being a PGA Tour player means he doesn't have to protect the points and that's why he's going for it this hard. That's pretty good. I like that. Um asked after the round, he has a pretty fresh pretty he ended up like T8. He was tied for the lead in the middle of the final round. Ended up T8. >> Pretty fresh wound right now. He said, "If there's ever somebody that's sitting right here that tells you nerves weren't a part of it, they're clearly lying. It's the main thing we do as as a professional sport. It's controlling what goes through your mind." I think it was a bit of nerves. I can't pinpoint exactly right now, but I'll go back to look at what happened. I didn't feel like I rushed anything. I didn't I didn't feel like my process was bad. So, he cites a little bit of nerves. Um, he also said, "God, it's been a while since I had that much fun on a golf course. >> Played really good golf from the eighth to the 15th hole." I think he had a quad. I think it was an eight on one of the holes. Might have been 18 or 17. He had an eight, but I mean, he didn't mean it, but sort of an indirect damnation damning of of Liv. God, it's been that while since I had that much fun on a golf course. I always go back to a little bit on something that Charles Barkley likes to remind basketball players all the time. Like I play golf for a living. It's incredible. Am I embarrassed a little bit how I finished today? Yeah, but I just need to get over it and get over myself. It's not the end of the world. It's not like I'm a doctor first responder. Well, >> how do I quibble when you are you are a member where somebody if they have a bad day, truly bad things can happen. So, um, what else do we Oh, we learned Windham throws his club on T-Mobile. He smashes a T-Mobile side. Yeah. >> Kind of recoil whips it back into the sign behind the behind the T- box. I forget it's 14 or 15. >> His own sponsor, right? Isn't he a T-Mobile? That'll come up next week for sure. >> Horrible like corporate, you know, attempt at at branding the next week, but just puts a hole through the sign behind the T- box. um writing in the newsletter, none of Scotty's three major wins have come by the skin of the teeth. This is Joseph Lammana. He's there's the whole from from throwing the the marshall who was there. He was like, I was standing right here and scared me to death. This driver head comes flying through this this, you know, advertisement board. And yeah, he tweeted, "I'm scared to death. I was scared to death." That was the Monday after, I believe he tweeted that. Um all right, this is Lemana in the newsletter. None of Scotty's three major wins have come by the skin of his teeth. He's left no doubt. Crossed two Masters now at PGA. His nearest narrowest margin of victory came at the 2022 Masters where he won by three after four putting the 76 72nd green. The win at Quail Hollow was a different display of dominance than what we witnessed from Scotty this past major Sundays. Entering the final round with three shot lead. He didn't just come out of the gates flat. He played straight up bad golf. Pulled his opening approach shot well left at the green. Everybody, by the way, everybody missed the first grade. And Andy was like, "This isn't like that hard a hole." He was like, "Is the first green the hardest green to hit in regulation in golf?" Like, what's happening? Is there a force field around there? Um uh so he he hit birdies on 10 14 15 to reclaim his lead while nobody else in the field kept pace following a tiny conservative par at 17. He stepped on the 18 shot lead. So I'm sorry, he had a three shot lead on Saturday. He finished six clear. I think I've been misstating that the whole time. He was three clear on Saturday night. I I was reading the Sunday scores. um playing away from danger. He made a bogey on the last for a five shot win. The margin widest margin victory in a PGA since Rory's eight shot win in 2020. Uh a big breakthrough, big breakthrough for a much belleaguer major championship performer. Wke Nean gets a little yellow on the Wikipedia page. His first ever yellow Wikipedia back door as hell back door top 10. His first in uh 24 starts. Uh, what else do we have? Oh, Rory goes for what people were calling the trunk slam because he skipped media all four days. So, he had the grand slam and I forget he was trunk slam. >> Uh, Max Homa adds, "I grew up a fan of sports as so many are." And I always found it really like the interviews and things to be to things to be so thoughtprovoking as a fan to get a little insight. I said, "We are entertainers and without the fans, we just playing golf with buddies." Sometimes I wish I would probably keep some things in, but at the end of the day, we owe the fans a lot. It's not so hard to be transparent. It doesn't hurt me in any way. Um, uh, Xander after the round said, "I think they should test everyone's driver. It's not right to just test 50 guys. It makes no sense for the spirit of the game. The whole point is protect the integrity of the field. If you don't test everyone across the board, I don't think you're protecting the whole field." Uh, what else do we have to clean up here? Um, oh, Canada gets absolutely whitewashed. No offense to Canada. Josh Carpenter says Taylor Pendendrick finished T5 and was not shown from 2 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. You finished T5 and was not shown. >> I had this for next week. It's just depressing that Pendy just gets absolutely jumped. >> By the way, like the coverage is incredible. I just like in terms of ad load, Carpenter had numbers. I found like the the growth uh or like the mitigation in ads over the years has really been substantial. I I don't you know it's something that like you know we do have to call out positively. Uh Garrett had a great tweet thread on Carrie Hag's setup. Carrie Heg would never put it this way, but the PGA setup philosophy is essentially one, don't let the course be the story. This means not letting scores get too high or too low and maybe not worrying as much as USG does about booking iconic venues. Two, reward a skill set that is commonly rewarded on the pro tours, thereby increasing the chances of quote big names topping the leaderboard on the weekend. And three, work to limit separation and scoring so that more players are likely to be in the mix on Sunday. I found this to be like a good digestion. He had this formula can lead to sleepy Thursday Fridays partly because the course and setup are typically not interesting in and of themselves, but often produces exciting Sundays. It's not my favorite setup strategy, but I can't deny that hey is very good at executing it. That was a good distillation of what happened this week. Um, Scotty Shuffler wins. Obviously, bogeies the last to win by five. And at Scotty's dad, he has a pretty cool moment with his dad who's often there and said, "Words can't, this is Scotty's dad. Words can't describe what we just watched. You're the toughest guy and the sweetest boy. I'm so proud of you. Thank you for never giving up, Scotty. It's a cool moment." Um, this was of course a year after he got arrested. And Nike has a cool ad. says, "Best player in the world, question mark, guilty." Uh, which was a good one after getting arrested a year earlier at the PGA. Um, Don Rehea comes rumbling through the wall like the Kool-Aid Man in his Nikes at the trophy ceremony. It's his his other moment of glory. He's got these flashy I think those are dunks on, just smiling, grinning ear to ear to cap off his uh his great week. Uh Scotty, as usual, as is custom now, loses the lid to the water maker. As we've seen Ted Bishop and Colin Morawa and everybody else, he loses the lid, goes flying off uh the water maker. They just need to bolt that thing, glue it. Happens every year, you know, >> it's a fishing line or something. >> Yep. Yep. Uh this was a cool moment. Bennett goes to scoring with Scotty and he's just kind of rumbling around on the on the clubhouse floor. Big big year for Bennett. Big year for Bennett. Uh, a lot of people are charmed by that. I had a tweet, I think it's uh, whatever that par five is. I think six. There are a lot of uh, Carolina women out on the uh, out on the ver out on the lawn there. I said >> the sound the sound this picture makes. Piper know cuz I think this was uh, White Lotus was and there was obviously I think that's a Charlotte area family in that White Lotus season 3. >> Uh, very White Lotus looking characters, not a not a cup, not a derogatory thing. in any way. Just >> simp >> observation. Um, what else? Oh, Bryson continues his search for the perfect golf ball. So, this is a a truncated version of that. You know, he had Guy had a great week and Andy was kind of like, why does he he's he's always like about the equipment. The credit is to his equipment. The blame is to his equipment. Guy's won his whole life. He's won at every level with different equipment and different eras. He's won everything. ones wins and it's just like disservice to his talent. Here's the after the round. What I really think needs to happen, being pretty transparent here, is just get a golf ball that flies a little straighter. Like that's just like what really is I need to learn, you know, how to do magic or I need to learn how make myself invisible. What I really think being pretty transparent here is just to get a golf ball that flies a little straighter. Everybody talks about how straight the golf ball flies. Well, upwards of 190 like Rory and myself, it's actually quite difficult to control the golf ball. Well, yeah, man. That's the point. You can't just go like if I could drive 200 miles an hour on the freeway, there might be some risk in that. >> It doesn't go as straight. Bryson, I'm going to work my butt off to make to have that happen. It's all up to manufacturing. We'll see what happens, but I'm I'm keen on finding something. I'm keen on improving. I'm excited of that. So, he leaves it all up to manufacturing and just needs to find a ball that flies straighter when you dial it up to 190. I love how at this point we're on the ball, but in 3 weeks when we get to the US Open, we're back on the irons. The 3D printed irons haven't come in yet, and we need to ship a new driver head out and we're we're just pivoting, pivot, pivot. It's he got everything at his disposal. >> In addition, he's like, "It's spinning too much about the ball with my wedges. If I try to hit a full shot, I'll rip off the green." And you saw that on 15. There's something weird with me in general and the way I play golf. I'm looking for a golf ball that launches a lot lower, has controlled spin at full swing, and half swing, still has spin. Like, he's looking for this magic bullet, and I don't doubt that he will try to find it and and find something that approximates it. It's just like it spins too much, doesn't spin enough for the certain instances. Um, I I won't go to the full quotes. I had them all here. Uh, but Ryan Barath had an interesting theory when he hit it in the water on 17 on Saturday. He added, "Although they might be a net positive, I believe Bryson's curved face irons could be the big reason for missed shots like the one on 17 on Saturday night. As a draw of the ball, a tow striking the club with a bulge will have more left spin access resulting in more curve. The result is that hard uh hard hook that he hit well draw he uh so just a lot of Bryson equipment discourse after a pretty solid week. He wasn't great on Sunday and we're starting to be like, you know, he was bad in the final round of the Masters with Rory kind of not great here and it's like he's so good. He's won biggest events like does he just start to lose the rope when he feels like his equipment is not responding to him in a way? I don't want to say he's like blaming the equipment, but it's a little odd how often that becomes like gets in his brain a little bit. Uh Andy was like, "Yeah, his game's not pretty. It's not like romantic. It's like it is machine-like or just hammer it and then like make a bunch make some 60 foot putts." Um >> his approach game just is very I mean not to go date on you, but like he's just a very average iron player. I mean, data golf has him as basically like even as as gaining shots in on approach play in >> in 2025. That's when you're like gaining two strokes overall and you're net zero as a with an irons. That's pretty pretty bad. There's not a lot of players that are like that, I would say. >> Yep. Yep. It was uh there was a lot of lot of Bryson sort of postmortem. I don't need to go into it all here, but I think that gives you a taste. Um Scotty confirms that his driver was taken from him. He just says, "Yeah, did you have to make any change?" Yeah, that's all he said. Yep, I made a change. Um the PJ is just incredibly This is all happening. PJ is just locked into the region's tradition. He's like they're incredible scenes at the region's in the dark right now. Three groups on 18 trying to finish. Ball is getting run over by carts. Richard Green almost hit the grand stand. Get to CNBC. So everybody else is just trying. >> We're we're live. We're this right now and I'm sitting here watching the TV instead of paying attention. It's It was the event of the year. I I mean as great as Mexico was. Regions got nothing on regions. Um, uh, what else? Oh, PJ Tour deletes a tweet. >> This was nuts. I forgot about this. >> 10th that said, "When in Charlotte that said Bryce, uh, Scotty has more wins since 2022 than the Panthers." He has 15 wins since 2022. The Panthers have just 14. I remember PJ Tour comm Stuart Moore like went publicly back at the tour account like great to like piss off our one of our most important markets in Charlotte and the Wells Fargo and all this. And this became deleted and uh several people Tron here preserved it. Uh David Ter seems like the dude who will now try to buy the PJ George to burn it to the ground for this tweet. Panthers having a good year. No, I don't know if that's >> Bryce took this personally. I mean that's clearly >> um >> Oh, they went to uh did I send you the Johnson Wagner uh clip where he bladed one into Infinity? They they went to him after. Yes, but I'm I'm afraid to play it. >> Okay. All right. Johnson Wagner has an incredible He crosshand chips like blades it. I mean, it goes and it runs down the hill. He's trying to like imitate Rob. It goes like 40 50 yards through the green and down the hill in front of the green. Uh Windom footage emerged on Monday. You might have that for next week, PJ. Uh Brle has some spicy takes. This was Rahm, Bryson, and Scotty all in the Crucible at one point. Brandle goes, "It matters where you play to be sharp, to be at your best, to test yourself against the best, which is which they're not playing against the best week in and week out. Scotty Shuffler is at the highest level. When it mattered most 16, 17, 18, when you had to hit shots, when you had to control your nerves, you had to control the rhythm of your golf swing. Scotty had it, Bryson didn't, and Rahm did it." I guess I mean, Bryson won it by first. I don't know. Um, but yeah, it's I I have to say the ROM result is so misleading from what he was like he was going for broke and I again he didn't execute. So it is part of the deal. He got punched in the face. So um Windham apologizes. Is this for you? Did I go I'm bleeding into you? We'll do this next week. >> I have I have it for >> We'll do this next week for Colonial. Uh that does it for the PGA. Scotty Sheffler wins. Can Many people were asking, can he only win the Masters? Is that the only major he could win? This this a nice weekend at Quail alleviates it. >> Uh that's it. Did I miss any assets, PJ? Did I get everything there? >> I think that's basically it. >> All right, that does it for the second men's major of the year. Do we want to keep going to Colonial or should we just punt? PJ looks scared here. Let's get out of here. >> Yeah, I think I think we just need to >> I'm kidding. I'm kidding. All right, everybody, enjoy your Wednesdays. Thanks to uh Roy Moy from You're the real contributor, Roy. surprisingly jumping in there and and taking some of our questions about Champions Tour and equipment and golf architecture and all sorts of masters. That was >> committing to lunch with the boys. >> You are not going to forget that. Um, all right, that does it. Thank you all. We know these could be uh hefty lessons. They're hefty to research, but we try to have a lot of fun with them. I appreciate all the like we've gotten a lot of positive feedback about it and uh so that helps. That helps, I would say, when we put all the work into it. listen to them over the holiday, you know, catch up on them when you there's nothing going on. You know, >> that was the origin story of these is just sit with them through, you know, however long you need. So, everybody enjoy your Wednesdays. We'll be back with more more baby on Friday. We're only to mid May. We got a good ways to go. We'll talk to you on Friday.
23 Comments
The Year in Reaview should be its own episode
Sick!
This episode is truly the engine of good
Rory was so insightful great stuff guys
My jaw hit the floor when I saw this thumbnail!!!!!! What!!!
This is an all time episode. Rory was fantastic. Questions were great. No tiptoeing to protect the brands.
The circle is now complete, I first started listening to this podcast because Rory had it on his dash display on Full Swing.
Andy playing original prov1 at cypress is unhinged flex
Rory vs Scottie with retro equipment would be golf nirvana
The gitty smile on PJs face…
Wow. Thanks SGS and Rory.
love tou Rory!
fuck! that was amazing.
Amazing stuff gents!!!
After all these years, this is definitely one of the best of all time. I think this was a true “coming out of PJ”. He’s been there for awhile, and we love him. But I think this was his true coming out party. Seeing his face the entire time that Rory was on was priceless.
God, KVV is such a good addition. Everyone asked Rory great questions, but you can just tell KVV has such deep knowledge and memory. Bringing up Rory’s emotions from the Ryder Cup presser, as an example.
The stars aligned. Truly great pod.
rory 😍😍😍😍😍😍😍
I’d suffer through a thousand victory Mondays for this.
This show is literally so funny,….im very happy for you guys getting one of the BIGGEST fish in the sea!
Rory surprise guest. Hells Yeah
Early Christmas treat big lad
PJ'S one shot line is perfection. Shut the show down, it doesn't get any better.