JJ Spaun on Winning the US Open and What Really Happened at the Ryder Cup

JJ Spaun on Winning the US Open and What Really Happened at the Ryder Cup

He was put in a tough spot. You know, the whole team really believed he should have been on the team and we tried to almost almost talk him into it, but he accepted the role. He thought about it that long to where he had, you know, finalized the lineup, but you know, I mean, 10th in the world. I mean, we all said, you know, if you weren’t the captain and you’re sitting here number 10 in the world, is that captain going to take you? Of course, 100% of the time. Do you think, like Colt said, he should be captain again? That would be the ultimate comeback. You know, I think he deserves another chance. From the time I talked to Keegan, which was literally the week after the US Open, he’s like, “You’re on this effing team. You’re locked.” So, were you surprised that you weren’t playing alternate shot? Maybe a little bit. I wasn’t sure what format I would start in. I think Keegan didn’t want to freak out and and start changing things around just assuming, you know, like I’ll never forget like just we were all right there on the green watching Shane make that putt and it was just like God like I wish that was us so badly like winning that cup. [Music] Hey everybody, what’s up? Trey Wingo here. Welcome in to another edition of Straight Facts Homie, the podcast where we don’t yell at you, we don’t scream at you, we just talk about things that are relevant in sports and we use this really wild concept called data to guide us through what we’re seeing and what we expect to play out. We also have great conversations with a lot of interesting people. Um, and if you like what you’re listening to and seeing, please click that like and subscribe button, especially on YouTube. It helps us grow the show and get it out there to as many people as possible. It’s been an interesting year in golf. chronicled that a lot. And I’m not sure anybody had more of a breakout year uh on the PGA Tour than this week’s guest. JJ Spawn finally won his second PGA Tour event, and it was a big one, the US Open at Oakmont, where he made that unbelievable putt on 18 in the dark and in the rain to secure the one-stroke victory. And then, of course, that launched him onto his first ever Rder Cup team. And obviously, there’s a lot to get in there. So why don’t you sit back, enjoy this straight facts homie conversation with US Open champion and rider cuppper JJ Spawn. JJ, thanks for being with us. So let’s just sort of go through this year for you, right? I mean, obviously you’d won before once on tour, the Valero Open, came close at the players, breakthrough win at the US Open with that unbelievable putt, and then the RDER Cup. How would you describe how 2025 has been for you? Oh man, it’s uh it’s been a breakthrough year for me, honestly. Um it’s it’s kind of nice. I feel like I’ve been working so hard over my you know past nine years on tour and my career just you know waiting for you know that that time to really uh reap the fruit the fruits of my labor and um you know it’s finally came to fruition. What did you see or think or or hear in your game that made you think that that might be a possibility? Honestly, um I feel like my putting has gotten a little bit more consistent. Uh ball striking wise, I’ve always been pretty solid. Um from fairway to green. Um I’ve picked up a little bit of distance, but without sacrificing accuracy. So I think, you know, probably since the middle of 2024, I picked up a little bit of distance. So, I I’d like to think that played a little bit of a role to getting me in a more uh desirable distance from Greens to be more aggressive, which obviously, you know, if you pull off the shots lead to more birdies and and less bogeies. So, so close at the players, right? I mean, so close at the players. What did you take away from that near winin experience for lack of a better term that you think helped you uh down the road a couple months later at Oakmont? Yeah, I mean the the players was huge. I think it it kind of set up um eventually where I would position myself for the US Open. Um you know, I had a close call going into the final round of the Sony Open. I was holding the lead there. I was super nervous sleeping on that. um was really scared about crap in the bed Sunday, but I didn’t. Um and I think I kind of grew off that. So then, you know, fast forward a couple months at the players, yes, different magnitude of of an event, but in facing Rory uh in the playoff, I just I just knew, you know, as long as I try to stick to my game plan and give myself a chance that week, I would be able to pull something off. And I got close. So, um that playoff was big. you know, I mean, I didn’t win um during the playoff, but you know, I hit a lot of the shots how I wanted to. The one on 17 was exactly how I imagined it. It just didn’t get hit enough by the wind and uh fortunat unfortunately it ended my chances of winning that tournament. But uh you know, having these near misses uh went a long way. So, you know, once I was at the US Open and uh had an opportunity there, I was I was ready to give it another shot. And take me through Oakmont. Right? Because I was fortunate enough to play that course once, part the first two holes and then shot I think 98. Okay. Like people that haven’t played it and haven’t dealt with it and haven’t sort of experienced it. I mean there’s not a drop of water on the course really. The only OB is on the first hole to the right. What made Oakmont such a difficult test? Man, it’s just it’s just a beast of a course. Not necessarily lengthwise. I think it’s it neutralizes the long hitter just because of how how severe the greens are. Um how severe the rough was. Obviously the course setup, you know, was extremely tough. Um we had a lot of rain that week, so it it was generally soft, softer, but I don’t even think they were trying to get the course any firmer as far as greens wise because it would just almost be uh unplayable. Uh, but I just think, you know, there’s so many there’s so many different corners to these greens that it’s basically you got to hit your spot. You got to hit it in the fairway, number one. That’s the first objective. And then the second objective is leaving the ball on a on a portion of the green to where honestly you’re trying to hit to a spot where you can guarantee like a two putt because those greens are so severe slopewise that you can you can three putt or more from inside of 10 feet easily all day long. Um, but I just think the general golfer, you know, it’s it’s just such a brutal test and chipping around the greens is is so tough with how long the rough is and um it’s one of those courses that beat you beats you up. You know, you got to be mentally tough, especially during a US Open to to push through those, you know, troughs in in your rounds that kind of can get you spinning, get your wheels spinning. And um, you know, ultimately that’s that’s essentially what a US Open test is. So what was your mindset going into it? Because you know that was the idea was going into Oakmont overpar is probably going to win this tournament and it might have been if you hadn’t made one of the most ridiculous putts in the history of the US Open which is a separate issue we’ll get to in a minute but a as you’re taking on something like Oakmont which I mean you know they take pride in making this the toughest thing in the world. What was your approach going into it? Well, leading up to the US Open, I was just I was I just didn’t want to embarrass myself and and not break 90, honestly. Like, I was from all the the hype and and the leadup of the of Oakmont, I had never set foot on property. Um I had only played one US Open prior to Oakmont, and I just know, you know, what what type of test US Open is like. So, uh I I really was just hoping to show up and and not embarrass myself. Um, obviously get four rounds there would be, you know, a good accomplishment to play four rounds making the cut. But, uh, I didn’t want to sell myself short, but I also didn’t want to, you know, underestimate the challenge that I was going to have. Um, but, you know, I I I knew I was playing great. I had such a good start to the first quarter of the year. Um, and it was weird because, you know, I was sending my coach swing videos the week before. I had the week off before the US Open. And uh you know, we’re just sending videos back just for some feedback to get an idea of how my swing’s feeling, what it’s looking like. And I said, “What do you what do you see in this swing here?” And I sent him a video and he goes, “I see the US Open champ.” And so it was actually I kind of like I didn’t laugh. I was like, “Okay, yeah, okay.” So, okay. So, just just this is interesting. Like, did you ask him why he saw that? No, but I just I just think he he knew I was swinging well. He knew I was playing well. Um he actually, you know, after the US Open or sorry, after the players, you know, it after we lost and it was, you know, we’ve we were going through our feels after the round, he’s like, “Dude, don’t worry.” Like, because of this, like it’s something bigger is going to come from this. And it’s just so crazy how, you know, and you have little things like that in your ear constantly, like positive things and things to reinforce what you’re doing. Um, how that can just change things. I don’t know if it was some sort of wavelength that put me on or whatever, but uh you know, it’s it’s that’s why I appreciate the team that I have around me. Yeah. So, so when when you heard that from him, you said you kind of laughed and and then how did you process it after that? I was like, no, seriously, like what do you see? Do you see anything like technically wrong here? Like I was like, come on, let’s be let’s be realistic here. Like, what do you see? Is there anything bad? Is there, you know, I’m kind of hitting a little bit of a pull. and he just, you know, after he said that first comment, uh, it was like, I’ll just, you know, get a little more open on the downswing and it was fine, but I think he was playing the long game there mentally. Yeah. Okay. So, you have to play the long game mentally at a place like Oakmont. Um, you know, you’re looking at that leaderboard going into the weekend. Some really interesting names out there, right? Uh you have yourself, you have Rory, you have Sam Burns, you have a lot of people that that were really big names out there, right? And how did you say to yourself, “Okay, listen, if I want to pull this off, I have to focus on me and not focus on what other people are doing.” How do you go through that process? Yeah, I was just really focused on trying to play my game. I mean, as cliche as that sounds, that’s that’s all you can really do. Um, going into US Open Sunday, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I’d never played the the Sunday of US Open. I I just know it’s going to be tough. I know it’s going to be a grind. Um, to be I think I was maybe one back of the league going into Sunday. I knew I knew that I had a really good chance if I maintained to to have a an opportunity on the back nine, you know, uh, on Sunday. And that’s all I really wanted was um to be in contention with nine holes to play. And you know, the first few holes didn’t go as planned. And it started looking pretty bleak that I would have um you know, a chance on the back nine. But the rain came in, the delay. We went back in kind of it kind of took a little reset um and went back out there and and kind of with a fresh fresh aspect, fresh mental um aspect. and you know went for broke and it worked out. So you’re saying that that little delay helped you? That was huge big time. Why what I mean obviously like you said it wasn’t going the way you wanted before that. So what did you when you got the break? How did you say to yourself, okay, that’s behind me now and and let me just sort of refocus. Yeah. So I was five over through six the first six holes or something like that. Um, then I made some solid pars to get get off the bogey train. I made pars on maybe seven and eight, six, seven and eight maybe and uh or seven and eight. And then we were on the T- box on nine and put the tea in the ground. It’s starting to rain. You could see this black cloud over on the eastern side of the course. And then you hear the horn goes off. And it was almost like a sense of relief. I was like, “Okay.” Yeah. Yeah, like I have a minute to kind of kind of absorb what happened, but also to to take a little time out and and you know, uh reset and and go go back in the clubhouse and just kind of try to re recenter my focus. And we went in there and it was nice to have my coach and my caddy there talk to me. They said, “Hey bud, like you have 10 holes left. You’re five I think four or five back.” Yeah. of the lead with nine holes to play. Like if you teed up Monday, if you showed up Monday and was told you’re going to be five shots back going into the back nine on Sunday, you would take that, right? Right. I’m like, “Yeah, I mean that sounds worse than it is, but no, I would take that.” So, it was almost like a switch, whereas like I didn’t feel like I lost anything. At first, I felt like I lost maybe my chances of of winning the tournament to now, okay, I still have a chance, like a really good chance because the back nine on Sunday at any tournament, you know, no lead is safe. I mean, granted, guys have blown two two shots on the final hole at a regular event, let alone a US Open with five. So, um, I I kind of changed my perspective, my mentality, you know, I’m like, “All right, let’s just go out there, get comfortable with your swing.” It was nice to have another warm up to kind of get a get the feel right, whatever I was lacking at the start of the of the round. Um, and just go back there and just say, “Okay, fairways, greens, just have putts, grind everything out, and we’ll we’ll add them up when the the round’s over.” Yeah, I’ve seen that happen a lot in tennis matches, too, where there’s a rain delay and guys that are like down a set and, you know, down a break, they’re like, “Okay, thank god I needed a chance to reset.” Do do you think you would have been able to find that reset if there hadn’t been the rain delay? So, funny enough, you bring up tennis. Um, I referenced earlier that week when I was, you know, in contention the whole week. Starting Thursday, I was leading and uh they were talking about, you know, what’s the difference between this year and last year because last year I was really struggling in 2024. I almost, you know, was it was looking like I was going to lose my card unless I finished the second half of the season really well, which I end up doing. And I say I watched this movie Wimbledon with Kristen Dunst. And uh so it was it was an inspiring movie. I saw that after I end up keeping my car, but I it really resonated with me with the the the tennis player that you know he he felt like he was on his way out. Paul, I think was the actor. Paul. Yes. Yeah. He’s on his way out. Got another birth into the Wimbledon, ends up winning. So I’ve referenced that. And then in my post uh US Open conference uh press conference, they were bringing that up and and one guy from the media said, you know, well after we started talking about the rain delay, he goes, you know, uh in that movie you referenced in the final match because keep in mind I I watched the movie on a red eyee from uh Phoenix to England and so I was kind of like in and out. I kind of got most of the movie. I didn’t really see exactly the entire end of it, but I got the gist of it. He’s like, you know, uh, in that movie there, he’s down like two or three sets. Rain delay comes, goes inside, comes out, and wins Wimbledon in the final match. So, I thought it was super ironic that literally I did identically the same thing uh, you know, at the US Open, which is pretty crazy. It’s it’s insane, but it speaks to when you’re in the cauldron and I think it’s different for golfers and tennis players more than any other athlete because yeah, you got your caddy and you you can do a little bit of coaching in tennis, but you’re sort of out there on your own like you don’t have teammates to rely on. And that reset I I think is is was really significant because it it allowed you to sort of talk to yourself almost, right? Yeah. I mean, when things aren’t going well, everything feels like it’s just unraveling so fast and everything’s happening so fast and you’re hitting more shots and and it’s just it’s happening so quick that you’re just like, “God, I wish I can just go hide somewhere for like 5 minutes and then literally like I got that opportunity with the rain delay and we got to go inside.” And you know, that was that was the trick. And and it happened at the players too on Sunday. I was not playing great uh the front nine on Sunday at the at the players. I was probably one or two over. Had a rain delay. Came back. It was like a four hour rain delay. Came back and I think I finished the round like two or three under from that point on to get me in a playoff with Rory. So me and my caddy when that horn went off at Oakmont, we kind of looked at each other like, “All right, like we know that this is a good thing because we’ve been there before.” So obviously then we get down to the 18th and everyone’s like just two putts and we’ll take it from there and we we’ll see what what what the playoff situation is and you know then the weather cuz it rained again and the course was soaked and it was getting dark. I mean who knows when you would have finished in in in the new format? So what was going through your mind when you looked over that? But did you ever say to yourself, hey, if I make this I win or were you just thinking let’s just get it close? So, the last be honest, I’m God’s my witness. This is exactly what I told myself. I did my routine. We read the putt. I got into my my routine and I’m behind the hole or I’m I’m behind the ball looking down the line to the hole and I’m I’m just getting a feel for speed doing a couple p practice strokes. And the last thing I say to myself is this is just another $100 putt. And so to give you some context on that is every practice run I play with my buddies every hole we go to a ridiculous part of the green and then you know catties my buddies my caddy the coaches will all go in and hit like a crazy 50-footer or more for 100 bucks and if you make it everyone owes you 100 bucks and so you know I stepped over and I just tried my best to dumb down what was at stake here. You know, I was trying I’m trying to win the US Open a major and uh you know, there was it was far from being done obviously 64 feet away. You know, so much can go wrong from that distance on that green and I just tried to make it stupid and simple and I said this is just another $100 make and cashed it and it was just pandemonium from there and just slightly slightly more than a $100 make. I mean, I understand the premise but it was a little more than that. So, what went through your mind as soon as you saw it? What was the first thing that you thought as soon as you saw that cup go over the that ball go over the lip of the cup? I just I was in shock. I mean, I was relieved, shocked. I I you know, out of body experience. I I never really showed too much emotion on the golf course. Um, but just to I the only thing I remember is hearing my caddie’s scream in my ear and it was a great scream, you know, like I’ll I’ll always remember it and just jumping up and down and just how loud it was. Um, it was just such a surreal moment and you know it was just it was it was one of those things where where it just happened and you just you you can’t you can only look back and just think of it as destiny honestly to to finish it off in that fashion um given what I went through at the start of the round to to ending in that on that note was just you know you couldn’t really write a better story. No, you you you couldn’t. Um, and one of one of the things I thought was really amazing, whether it was McIntyre or Tier Hatton, everybody, they were sort of, you know, McIntyre was waiting to see what happened to see if he he would be a part of something else if you if you didn’t make that putt. And Tier Hatton’s there and they’re actually talking to him at his press conference and I I never forget his reaction. Oh my god, he hold it. What What What did fellow players say to you about that putt after you made it? Yeah, pretty much the same thing. Uh, I saw that clip of Turtle. That is like one of my favorite clips. I loved it cuz it’s so genuine and that guy is so raw and you know he tells you what’s on his mind and but yeah literally like you know I I’ve never really felt so uh so much respect I feel like from my peers you know they they were so happy for me and it felt genuine you know like everyone literally everyone came out of the woodworks to congratulate me and just tell me how happy they were for me and and you know that I earned it you know and that was kind of the biggest thing that I took from it. So, yeah, it was it was so cool and you know, it was an experience I’ll always remember for the rest of my life. Okay. So, you go from the highs of the US Open, you play the rest of the the season and then you obviously, you know, you’re going to play for the RDER Cup and that has been obviously a very controversial uh topic for a variety of reasons. Um, but you were a Ryder Cup rookie. So, just the overall experience, what did you think it would be going into it as opposed to what it was? Okay. So, I was stressed like for the Ryder Cup, like I from the time I talked to Keegan, which was literally the week after the US Open, he’s like, “You’re on this effing team. You know, we’re you you’re locked.” And uh, you know, although formally I wasn’t, but you know, points-wise everything I was in. And just from that point on, like all I could think about was the Rder Cup, how I’m going to perform, am I going to be ready? Can I handle this? And uh honestly, like leading up to it, it was just so much stress. Like I tried to just put it in the back of my mind thinking like, okay, this is 3 months away, you know, like just let’s focus on finishing out the season, trying to get more wins, um doing what you got to do here first and then we’ll focus on that. It was so it was just it just consumed so much of my mental space that everything I was thinking about the RDER Cup was just was only the only thing I can think about and so I was just worried that I wouldn’t play good because I don’t have an issue I don’t have an issue with me playing poorly and letting myself down. But here I am like on the Radic Cup team and you can lay it down your your teammates, your country, your captains. And I’m just like I don’t know if I’m ready for this. And um I just remembered, you know, telling myself, dude, like and and that was the other great thing was yes, I might have been getting in my head negatively and stuff and that’s kind of been something that I struggle with, but you know, JT and Keegan, they’re like, “Dude, you’ve earned the spot. Like, you’ve won a major. No one else on this team other but you and Scotty have won majors. Like you’ve earned your your way to this team. You have nothing to be stressed about or be afraid of. Like you know, you’re going to kick their ass. We’re going to kick some ass. And um you know, I was just putting a lot of pressure on myself. So eventually when I got there, I started getting into the routine of things. It’s a new thing. I’ve never been on the RDER Cup. So uh I end up feeling more comfortable. And then, you know, the first match was a nice way to Yes, I was very nervous on that first te. I was nervous on every shot, literally. Um, but once I got that first match kind of under my belt, even though we lost, um, I was able to calm down and be like, okay, like I almost had to experience experience the worst case scenario from what I thought in order to feel comfortable. And, you know, it wasn’t as bad as I thought. But, it ended up being a really fun week. Um, you know, unfortunately we lost, but uh, you know, we made things interesting there on Sunday. Sunday was interesting. Friday and Saturday were tough. Um, I want to get a couple of thoughts about you cuz when I had Colt on the on the show, he he he told me that you knew ahead of time you weren’t going to play alternate shot. And he also said you dropped a 60 on him when you played. So, kudos to you on that little Yeah, that’s what I got to shoot to beat him. My god, I got to ask for so many shots these days. And now he’s wants his amateur status back, which is another separate issue we can get into. Yeah, we’ll get that later. We’ll we’ll deal with that. So, were you surprised that you weren’t playing alternate shot? Um, maybe a little bit. I wasn’t sure uh what format I would start in. Uh, I talked to Keegan, you know, a few weeks prior and and he was just he he was adamant about having a pretty veteranheavy lineup going out in the first match, which was forums. Um, so it had nothing to do with how I was playing, had nothing to do with what equipment I played. Um it was more of just he he wanted to put guys out there first that have been in in that arena and have had success and had the experience then you know versus getting my feet wet in for ball which is probably an easier format which I think was appropriate but uh yeah I mean who knows I don’t know I don’t know what the thought process was for um Saturday’s matches but you know we didn’t we didn’t want to I think Keegan didn’t want to freak out and and start changing things around just assuming, you know, put the guys put the batting lineup out there and eventually, you know, get things turned around. Yeah. I I I guess and again I I don’t know and I’ve certainly said it. You know, there were some things that I questioned about some of the decisions he made, but I’m not sure if anything would have changed just the way how well the Europeans played. But, you know, from from my perspective, knowing what you just did at Oakmont, especially with the putter, and then knowing Sam Burns, who statistically was the best putter on tour this past season, you know, to me, those are guys I want out there in alternate shot in case there’s a wayward approach that you can make something up with the blade. So, I I was kind of surprised that neither of you guys were in in foroms or alternate shots. Yeah, I think I thought there would be a little bit of a change. um whether it was someone else. I mean, I think Cam was the only one that subbed in for the Foresomes on Saturday. That was different maybe. Um but but yeah, I honestly though, the European team, they were playing so good. They were putting amazing. I mean, they were shooting, you know, eight under par on alternate shot, which is it’s just that’s just so hard to do. And, you know, with the course setup eventually, yeah, it was it boiled down to the putting and, you know, we would make good putts and they would make it on top of us or, you know, we’d be in there tight and they would make a 30 40 footer to beat us to the hole. And now it’s like, okay. I mean, that happened to me and Scotty on on Friday. you know, we we both ham and egged 13 through 16 birding those holes and and we didn’t win a hole as we were three down already. So, it’s like, you know, what can you do? You know, birdie five holes in a row and don’t win a hole. So, you know, they just they just outright beat us, you know, Friday and Saturday. And, you know, unfortunately, it was just we were just too far behind uh going into Sunday. We’ll get into a couple other things about the Ryder Cup in a second, but alternate shot to me is it’s sort of my I don’t want to say it’s my pet peeve, but but it’s the one thing I think that where the the US has its biggest problems. You know, I looked up the RDER Cup in 2023, the President’s Cup last year, not that the President’s Cup is in any way similar to the RDER Cup. Uh it’s a team format, but they have the same formats. And in alternate in alternate shot or forsomes over those last three cups, team USA is 619 and0. How do we get better at alternate shot for someone that has play that you know was was in the tournament or in the in the matches and didn’t play it? How do you think we as a as a as a country need to get better at playing alternate shot? Man, that’s tough. I mean, I don’t I don’t know, man. We literally from behind the scenes like we’ve we did everything you possibly could under the sun to really prep and and and match up the right forsome teams. I mean we had analytics, we had ball testing, we had personality tests. I mean my god like we did kind of everything. I don’t know other than what the Europeans have other than you know the the confidence from winning you know tons of foresome matches. is I I don’t know if that’s the difference maker, but that’s a really good question. I mean, I I don’t know how you can go about making more events alternate shots, but you know, I mean, there there could be something, you know, in in the European development where alternate shot was a format played very often. I mean, I know I played uh Mirfield uh in Scotland this year and literally the club, you can only have two balls in play at the club no matter what time of day who you’re playing with. So, meaning if you have a foresome, you can only play uh two balls. So, alternate shot for one between four guys. It’s weird. So, I don’t know if it’s like a cultural thing or something that these guys are used to, but you know, they they might do it a lot more frequently, you know, growing up maybe over there in the the in the European countries. Well, they do have a little bit of a a more of a a program in place to get, you know, the the Sevy Cup that they they they play over there. They do have it seems like a little bit more of a program to get people used to the RDER Cup. But, you know, for me, JJ, it comes down to one thing, and I want to get your your opinion on this. when Shane Lowry sank the putt to make sure, you know, that Europe retained the cup and they went on to actually win it so that the envelope rule wasn’t a controversy, which we’ll get into. Uh he said something that I thought was really interesting. He said afterwards, you know, as I was walking up the 18th, I told my caddy, I have a chance to do the coolest thing in the world, secure uh the putt to make sure we keep the RDER Cup. And he said, I won the Open as an Irishman in Ireland, Northern Ireland at Royal Port Rush. Um, and this meant more to me. I don’t know how many American players would say, “I would rather sink the winning putt at the Ryder Cup than the putt you sank to win the US Open at Oakmont.” And, you know, I mean, and I don’t I mean, I don’t begrudge people for saying that, you know, right? I I do feel like for whatever reason this thing about the RDER Cup seems to mean a little more in terms of its significance for those European players than the American players. Is that fair? I don’t know if it’s fair. I I mean would you would you I I guess would you say no? I I would rather sink the winning putt at the Ryder Cup than the putt I sunk at Oakmont. Yeah, I mean that’s a really tough question. Um, you know, I think that perspective comes with having played Ryder Cups and understanding what that was. Like if you had asked me that before I played, I would have chose US Open all day long. I mean, honestly, I still, you know, for me it’s a tossup, honestly. But and again, I don’t begrudge you if you feel that way. Like I think most people would would think that way, but I was I was blown away when I heard that from Shane. Yeah. I mean, man, that’s that’s very a very dedicated answer by Shane, but I I do believe when after after playing the Ryder Cup, I understand the intensity of what it means to be not only a Ryder Cup, but to Ryder Cuper, but to be on that team and to have a chance at winning and representing your country. Like, it meant way more than I ever thought it would. And yeah, maybe moving forward, yeah, if I already had a major and all that in my under my belt and I would rather do that. Yes, 100%. I’d rather make the winning putt for the RDER Cup because it’s so intense. I mean, you literally you’re spending every waking hour with these guys. You see what the captains are doing behind the scenes to give you whatever you need to do whatever whatever is possible for you to succeed. And obviously, your country is behind you. And it’s just it’s such a it’s such a huge magnitude of an event that like you don’t really understand it until you play it. And like if I was asked that question before I was on the Ryder Cup team or ever was on the Rder Cup team, I probably would have chosen myself, you know, a self victory over winning the Rder Cup. Like I’ll never forget like just we were all right there on the green watching Shane make that putt and it was just like God like I wish that was us so badly like winning that cup. So So now you would change your answer you think? Yeah. Mhm. I I get it. I get it cuz it’s just it just means so much. I mean it’s Yeah. We’re we’re playing for each other. We’re playing for I mean and then you get to share it with everyone like Yeah. You win the US Open. It’s just kind of all yours. You win a a tournament, you win a masters, it’s like just yours. I mean, obviously you have your small team and family, but it’s like you’re sharing this with your country, you’re sharing this with your fans, you’re sharing with your teammates, all the hard work, the wives, the families. Like, it’s it’s definitely bigger. Definitely bigger. Wow. I I actually I I mean, kudos to you for saying that. I was not expecting that, but it does it does change you, right? Like what you just said, I get it. You know, for me, you know, I’ve I’ve the Ryder Cup is my favorite thing. You know, I love football. Obviously, I love golf, but like to me, the RDER Cup is just a different deal. And I’ll never forget David Duval was on that 99 team at Brooklyn. And, you know, there were a lot of guys that like, well, what’s the big deal about this? And then they fell behind. They came back and won. And David sort of said the same thing. Like, you don’t really understand the appreciation for the event until you play in it. And it definitely has changed you. Oh my god. Yes. And you know, Keegan really reinforced that after the after the tournament was over. where he was just like, “Dude, you’re a Router Cuper for life.” And no one no one else that’s done that can see you eye to eye on what this tournament is like. And I think that’s why my perspective has changed on, you know, what the importance of the RDER Cup is because 100% you have no idea. Like honestly, like before I was on the Ryder Cup, I really didn’t care to be on the RDER Cup, you know, cuz it was obviously a seemed like an unattainable goal, you know, years prior. But I saw that on your Instagram. Yeah. Yeah. You know, it’s just like, yeah, what’s the big deal? But like once you once you are in that that arena and you feel those feelings that you will never feel ever other than in a RED Cup maybe coming down the stretch of a major maybe. I mean, I was talking to Tony Fen now on the range the other day and he’s like, “Dude, it’s it’s crazy that you’ll see like how many guys that have played Ryder Cups that how that just like took them to a whole other level because of that immense pressure and being able to pull things off and and succeed. Now, when you get to, you know, a regular event or a major, you you you almost can belittle it because of the pressure that you felt at the Ryder Cup.” And it’s so true. Um, did you see the quotes from Keegan the other day about uh about the captaincy when he was at Travelers Media Day? Yeah. Yeah, I read those. Yeah. What do you make of those? because I I I do feel awful for him because, you know, in my perspective, you know, he should have been on the 2023 team and then quite frankly, he was playing well enough to be on the 2025 team, but because he had accepted the captaincy because they were trying to sort of do a make good for him, not making the 2023 team, I feel like he’s been like sort of haunted by these last two Ryder Cups. Yeah, you know, I he was put in a tough spot. You know, I really the whole team really believed he should have been on the team and we we tried to almost almost talk him into it, but he accepted the role. How close did you get? I mean, it it got down to literally Yeah. really close to like before he had to make picks, you know, he he thought about it that long um to where he had to, you know, finalize the lineup. But, you know, I mean, it was 10th in the world. I mean, we all said we said, “Okay, you know, if you weren’t the captain and you’re sitting here number 10 in the world, is that captain going to take you?” Of course, 100% of the time with your experience, nonetheless. Um, so it was tough, but you know, I I I I have so much respect for Keegan because not only did he handle all this, you know, Ryder Cup responsibility, captaincy responsibility, he played great, he won an elevated event, um, you know, he’s a father and a husband. He’s dealing with, you know, triple the amount of work that, you know, the normal guy has to deal with taking on this RER cup captaincy role. And um you know I didn’t really know him very well before this whole RDER Cup uh experience but you know he’s a he’s you know fairly keeps to himself but he almost had to like come out of his shell to really like be a captain and I think it took a lot out of him but he he made us aware that like this had been life-changing for him like being a part of the team as a captain and being the leader and having to be the one to initiate and to you know, interact, you know, whereas before he can kind of, you know, hang around and as a player, just kind of be, you know, in the mix, but now he was the leader. And, you know, that’s kind of not really his personality. And and now he’s, you know, grown a brotherhood with us, you know, us 12 guys on the team. And it’s, you know, going into Sunday, I really felt from because he he just was he put so much effort into giving us everything we needed to succeed and and how and showing us how important it was to play for our country and for each other. And you know, it almost felt like I wanted to play more for him because I knew he had sacrificed so much. And then also with the whole deal of him, you know, kind of being forced out of playing, you know, in a sense, you know, like let’s put it in in your hands to to, you know, die by the sword whether you pick yourself or not. I mean, it’s it was just tough. And, you know, he handled it so great and, you know, I just wish we would have won for him and our country. You know, Colt, I mean, Colt No said Keegan should be captain again. Um, and Keegan has said again at at Travelers like he wants to find try and find a way to play again, you know. Yeah. Um, and I feel bad cuz I feel like, you know, I I I think the only way he can sort of get over this is if he finds a way to get onto the team in a dare manner and is is a contributor in a win. Otherwise, it’ll, you know, if he gets on there, they fall short again, it might haunt him again. So, we’ll see if he can play well enough. That’s that’s, you know, we’ll find that out over a while. But if he’s not, do you think, like Colt said, he should be captain again? I do. Um, you know, I think it’d be ultimate redemption if he played his way on played and then like maybe two years later he captained captained and won. That would be the ultimate comeback. But, um, you know, I think he deserves another chance. It was almost like they’re trying to usher in this new wave of tradition or whatever they they want to call it to uh the the the the formalities of the RDER Cup whether it’s captaincy age and I mean gosh like you know he did a cool thing bringing in a lot of vice captains that we all know um you know I can’t speak on past Ryder Cups because I hadn’t been on them but from what they were saying you know it was a lot of guys that hadn’t been on tour for a while a lot of guys that you don’t really see often but now It’s like GDub and and Kiz and Sneds and Web, you know, guys that we still see like week in and week out, you know, but that are older and there for us in a, you know, a mentoring way to be our vice captains. And it felt like a really tight-knit squad. Um, just kind of bringing bringing guys that we see more often around as as vice captains. And then obviously with Keegan being, you know, a younger face, you know, has been been refreshing, I guess, for for the PJ America. And uh you know hopefully they continue going down that route because I think I think ultimately that that’ll pay off in the end. Well, we’ll see. I mean, look, obviously it would be a controversial decision because of what went down whether he is back, but you know, the Europeans look like they’re going to keep Luke Donald for a third straight uh you rerout situation. So maybe there is some some point to being a little consistent there. Um speaking of consistency, you know, like we said, huge year for you. win your first major, uh, make your first RDER Cup team. And, and I want to sort of ask you, how much do you change your game or your expectations now because of those things? And the reason I bring this up, Ian Baker Finch, who just retired after a long career uh, calling golf, you know, he won the 1991 Open Championship at Burkale, and he after he won that, he said many times in interviews, “Oh, okay. now this is the new standard for me and I’ve got to start winning more majors. So he his entire approach about golf became I got to win more majors. I got to do this different. I got to do that different and it sort of messed him up, you know, and and stopped him from being the golfer that he was that allowed him to win that first major. So I I guess when you get into that situation where you bag that first major, you’re on that first RDER Cup team and know those are the things you want, right? you want them more. But how do you put that in perspective so it doesn’t swallow you up like that like that process seemed to have swallowed up Finchy? Yeah, totally. I mean, it’s um, you know, a different level of golf that I’m, you know, at now. I guess you know, a very elite level of golf. And you know, I think there’s you can put a lot of pressure on yourself as far as trying to maintain or or validate or um you know, yeah, add to you know, success successfully wise. Um but, you know, I for a while I’m I’m afraid I just don’t want to get too complacent. Maybe I do need to feel more aggressiveness. I mean, I don’t want to feel like, okay, you know, I I accomplished the pinnacle of golf in my terms. You know, maybe maybe I maybe it doesn’t get better. Maybe it is maybe it is what it is. But no, I’m going to keep plugging along. I I you know, I’m not young anymore. I’m probably considered more of an older guy on the tour. Well, please, you know, just turn just turned 35, but uh you know, I looked up a crazy stat like VJ won something like 80% of event his events after 36 years old or something like that. So, who knows? maybe I could, you know, go the VJ route and and have success, you know, the older I get. But, you know, I’m just I’m just lucky to to be given the opportunity to have a really good team around me that also keep me in check, don’t let me get negative or or overly confident or cocky. But, um, you know, there’s a good balance between all of us. And, you know, I I found really a good recipe and and marriage with with what I do on the course. Um, and it’s obviously paid off really well. that started at the at the first first event of the year and it lasted all the way through, you know, end of September to the Ryder Cup. So, yeah, I don’t see a need in trying to change or adjust anything. I mean, maybe I could do some work in between the ears um to We could all use that, brother. Yeah. and uh maybe you know not not rev up a little bit more but just I think the biggest thing for me would be getting comfortable in these bigger events which you know I’ve proven myself that I can and uh just see where it takes me. I mean I got you know five year exemption on tour which is you know something I could I’ve always wanted to to play freely and and now I can. So, first major second win on tour RDER Cup, what are your expectations for 2026? Um, besides besides shooting a 60 when next time you play with Colt again, yeah, take more of Colt’s money. Uh, uh, I just like to stick more to the processor oriented goals. I feel like um I would like to stick with the the goals of being in contention and that’s kind of what I did this year was I said I just want to give myself a chance on Sunday every every often as often as I could whether it’s every week or once a week or once a year. I mean I just I want to give myself the opportunity to win a tournament and regardless of how that happens like I’m going to be okay with it. And I think that was a cool little mindset that I had this year was when I did have those opportunities. I the first time I didn’t know how to handle it. I was like thinking to myself, oh my god, like don’t blow this and this is at the Sony. Like oh don’t you know you might not get another chance. Like you better you better do it this time. You know, you don’t know when you’re going to have another chance. And and I didn’t do it. But but I think focusing too much on the outcome added the extra pressure that I didn’t need and obviously didn’t help me play my best. But, you know, at the players, uh, even at Cognizant, the players and the US Open, even going down like that last whole US Open, I I just tried telling myself like I had all to gain, like I had nothing to lose, you know, like I just wanted to let myself know that like everything was going to be okay if if I failed. And that just kind of like freed me up. And like that’s the easiest way mentally to like play your best golf. Yeah. What’s the old saying? Free your mind and your body will follow. Right. Exactly. Just let it go. Yeah. Well, we’re all we’re all trying to get there. Trust me. Even us a 7.5 index. Handicappers are trying to get there. Um listen, JJ, uh great year. Uh congratulations. A lot of fun and uh thanks for being on and we’ll see what happens uh when you start teening up again. All right, Trey. Thanks for having me, man. So, once again, thanks to JJ for joining us. We’ll see what happens uh for him in 2026 and see if he can keep keep dropping a 60 on cult and take more Colts change. Um but big things expected for Colt going forward and who knows what happens in two years with the Ryder Cup. There are a lot of interesting possibilities about the what the US will do in terms of the team and the captain for a Dare Manner. Uh thanks again for watching this episode. Again, if you like what you heard and saw, make sure you click that like and subscribe button, especially on YouTube. and we’ll see you next time on another edition of Straight Facts Homie.

Trey Wingo sits down with breakout PGA Tour star J.J. Spaun to break down his incredible 2025 season — from his emotional U.S. Open win at Oakmont to the intensity of his first Ryder Cup appearance.

In this deep conversation, JJ opens up about how he improved his putting, found consistency in ball striking, and mentally reset after setbacks to seize golf’s biggest moments.

This isn’t hot takes or empty noise — it’s real insight for serious sports fans who crave data, composure, and competitive truth. If you want to understand what it takes to win on the PGA Tour, this episode delivers a rare look inside the mind of a major champion.

#TreyWingo #GolfPodcast #USOpen #PGATour #RyderCup #GolfAnalysis #SportsInsight #JJSpaun #JJSpaunInterview #GolfStats #SportsPodcast #MentalGame #GolfFans #DataDrivenSports #NoHotTakes

More Straight Facts Homie! Episodes: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLihC6TAafKWcDbvIlAMc87HibcOlDYf8c&si=sPioGmRdOG8yZOVk

Some Quick Facts: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLihC6TAafKWfD9U_ly2tdTcFaRBnX2VsI&si=9lp2eHAHCbLNmA3P

Find us on all platforms here: https://linktr.ee/straightfactshomie