And another one! Ben Griffin captures his 2nd ever PGA victory and his first solo victory, with both wins coming this year. How deep can the Tour go? We discuss the effects of NIL and the NCAA on the depth of golf.
We also talk Lucas Glover, Angel Cabrera, and much much more!
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[Music] Hey yo, the last so that you never make it. Hopeless. So, eyes closed, hand candles open wide. So, embrace your dreams. Sometimes you got to take a loss just to get to win like popping like oxygen with boxes. Never lose instrumental. Better choose when I move. Choose what I get to. Never lose when I move. Never give up and we make it. We just keep winning. We conquering daily. Welcome in everybody. It is another beautiful Tuesday night here on Divots and Pivots on that sports podcast network. I am Andrew Luke aka Mr. Malard. Uh and to my right as always, Bud Copeland, the chief of morale. Uh joining me as we get ready to talk the memorial this week. Another big tournament in this beautiful stretch of golf. As always, divids and pivots brought to you by Acorn Hills. Get on over to acornhillscode.com. Use discount code TBFY15 for your 15% discount over there. Uh so now that the bills are paid and the friends are taken care of out of the way. Uh bud, how is city studios going tonight? Good. We’re wrapping up. Uh, guess we’re wrapping up, winding down, what do we want to call it? The the Witch City Studios, hence the new camera angle with the Pelaton behind us. I did notice. Yeah. Well, the rest of the the rest of the studio right now is barren walls with like patches everywhere. So, but I texted you earlier today. Yes, you did. There’s so much going on in the world of golf right now. And it’s amazing. And honestly, I wanna I want to get out I want to get out of the way. Budweiser is having a resurrection. Everywhere I turn, people are [ __ ] drinking Bud Heavies again. I love it. That was my go-to in college. Bud Diesel is just it’s a classic. I think I I I had some sort of like love affair with the image of it, you know? It’s Bud It’s Bud Bud Heavy, Budweiser, you know, real men. I gained 50 pounds my freshman year. 100%. Um live golf is done. Yeah, live golf is done for sure. uh we called it god knows how long ago. We it I just don’t think it has the juice to sustain what’s about to happen to its talent pool. So if anybody doesn’t know what we’re talking about, it’s not just our our ritualistic couple of minutes of [ __ ] all over Live Golf. There was actually an announcement that was kind of I would say this is the first time they’ve broken news in a while. you know, told us something that we weren’t already, you know, having a hunch about. But it did finally answer the question, what’s coming next once these contracts, this first wave of talent that they bought, the billion or billion and a half or whatever it was they put into buying that initial wave of talent, we’re going to find out what that got them because the next wave of contracts, Bryson, DJ, Brookie, all those contracts are coming to an end after this year. I think John Rom’s the only one that uh is currently slated to continue. But even people are going, “Come on, look what the College Football Playoff has done. You can break contracts left and right. This is America.” Uh, so they’re they’re looking at that and they’re saying, “No more guaranteed upfront money.” So basically, no signing bonuses to come to live. Um, their purses will probably remain. I could imagine that’s going to be the whole allure. Do you want to come and try to play for big purses, which with limited field size, it is live golf and and the most immediate person to come to mind. I texted you about this guy too. So right right there there there it is. We called it, you know, live is dead because there is no juice behind I heard this from um somebody on this one of the podcasts, one of the insiders and then Danny Rap was talking about it. There’s just no interest in a deal anymore. There’s no reason I think because not both parties, you know, to make a good deal, both parties need to want a deal. Oh jeez, this tip off is about to start. Uh and and and right now the PGA Tour is kind of looking around going, “What do we need these guys for?” You know, it’s not it’s not beneficial to them anymore to go and make a deal. So, they’re just going to let the live wither on the vine. If all of a sudden Liv gets some momentum, then there’s a you know framework or an idea of what might what something might look like. But once all the talent comes home and there’s not a real impetus for for guys to go immediately over there, I think you’re going to get a lot more of the what we saw with the initial talent, you know, uh, wave that went over guys in the latter half of their career who maybe they know that they’ve got a couple more runs in a major maybe, but the consistent grind, they’re just over it. You know, like Lee Westwood or something like that who’s just like, I’m done. You know, maybe it’s time for me to just hang it up, you know, after a long time. I don’t know why Lee Westwood came to my name, my mind because really who I was thinking of was Lucas Glover and his most recent. So, here we’re gonna we’re going to go ahead and just There there’s your I’m sorry. Did you want to say anything about the death of Liv? Well, not necessarily the the death of Liv, but ESPN that that noise that you heard, uh ESPN did just drop a bit of golf news right on that. You said no, no, no, Tom P. Pause. Pause. That is not It’s not news. It’s not. So, that’s what So, that’s what I was going to say. now saying they’re dropping it as news, but we already knew this was said for a year. I don’t know if it was a year, but you’re right. If because I remember a long time ago, we were like, “Oh, look at this. These changes are coming.” Um, we’ll get to that in a minute. So, back to Lucas. We’ll go back to Lucas Glover wanting everything to be about him because he wasn’t happy that nobody liked him as much on TGL. Wow. I like that. All they can’t keep his mouth shut. I thought he was just going to be pissed off about, you know, being passed over for the RDER Cup and then, you know, that run now it’s kind of like you said TGL and now he’s a little loose and feels like everybody needs his opinion because he comes out and and if you didn’t hear about this, so backing it up three steps, the PGA championship won by none other than Scotty Shries all week was that earlier in the week and they don’t necessarily do this at every tournament all over the place, you know, forever, but especially these majors will test, you know, for for club comp. And so what’ll happen is they’ll take 30% of the field, say, “Give me your driver.” They’re going to test it, make sure everybody’s, you know, honky dory and that nobody has a competitive advantage. And it’s no big deal for these guys to be like, “Oh, you know, they hit them thousands of times.” So, it’s no big deal for somebody to get their driver just pulled out of circulation because they’re like, “Well, um, you know, the rumors were floating around Rory, did he, you know, because his is one, I think, that had to get removed and did he win the Masters with an illegal driver?” And then it comes up with Scotty and Scotty’s like, “Yeah, no, mine was one.” Yeah, it happens all the time. No big deal. He’s like, “I shocked you. Don’t test more.” And for me, that was kind of the that was kind of the big story right there was and I agree with him like if the technology is that easy and these guys are there for two, three, you know, sometimes four days before a tournament starts. Yeah. Uh yeah, have them test it and have made, you know, mark it. Make sure it’s their gamer because here comes Lucas Glover going, you know, nobody really gives them their their driver anyways. They all give them a backup. I mean, I I I hate to be the one to say it. Hate to be You don’t hate the one to be to say it. You You love to say it. You just couldn’t sit there and and maybe internally fix the problem. There’s a little juice. So, um I don’t know. I think he’s a little thirsty and I think that’s kind of the recipe for live. Is there a place is there a pl where not going to say more is not better, but is there a place where I can maybe leverage my money opportunities better? Because I you know, you win the FedEx Cup, you win a major, you’ve been around as long as he has. I’m sure he’s financially secure uh you know you know for for the rest of his life if not is this like his old like his old man retired syndrome right now he’s just letting it fly no filter anymore. I think so. I think we’re seeing that and I’m kind of here for it. If this is what Liv is gonna be, almost an alternative PGA Tour champions, then, you know, go for it, man. Because I could see that happening, too, where it’s like, wait a minute, what did Phil what’s Phil what is Phil and the highf flyers? What are they offering me? And, you know, what’s the possibility over there? And I 10 tournaments in a year. I’m guaranteed to make minimum this blah blah. I could see that, especially with the evolution of YouTube golf and and alter pathways to simply make money. If if money is not the primary objective or status, you know, you know, Ian Palter, perfect example, like what what does he what else does he have to prove? No, he didn’t get a major, but who gives a [ __ ] He’s a Ryder Cup legend. He’s got a handful of wins under his belt. That’s more than, you know, a lot of people are going to say about themselves. So, I could see Liv existing as an alternative to maybe the PJ Tour Champions eventually. But we’ve always kind of said that there could be a place for Liv like whether it was some sort of, you know, quasi developmental league or like you said the champion, like we always said there could be a format for it, but it was never going to be the way that they built it. That’s the problem. And so obviously none neither one of us are shocked by what they’ve said. We we knew it was coming. Like I said, I’m more curious now to see what the p what the path back for these guys is back to the PJ when their contracts are up this year. Um, and that that’s going to be more of the story now in my opinion. So, we we’ll see how that all shakes out. Uh, but yeah, Liv is essentially dead as far as being a true challenger to the PGA, even though I think they were dead long ago for that aspect. And I love what you said there right towards the end, a challenge to the PGA because um, some God, I got to save that for me. I was going to say some Joe [ __ ] the rag man, but that’s a term of endearment. Some would say honor. Uh, some dip [ __ ] this has a good ca this has a good cadence to it. Some [ __ ] was was on Drap’s show and Oh yeah, this was and Dan Rapid Boy, you know, good question. He’s kind and he was the one who’s kind of like is the is the live stuff dead? And whoever was on his show, uh, you know, they were kind of saying it’ll be interesting to see what happens with these contracts, yada yada yada. And he goes, but we have to say it was a success. And we’re kind of eyebrows raised. He goes, “No, not from like a money and a revenue standpoint, but from a business and a conversation standpoint it was.” And all I could think was like, “What conversation?” And then he followed it up with, “Look, we’re here mentioning Liv along with all the other major tours. They succeeded. They’re one of the tours.” And I thought, “No, no, no, no, no, no. Let’s let’s let’s put a plug in that because let’s see what happens when the tour caliber talent is no longer there by gunpoint. when you’re not holding a bag of $100 million over their head to come play. Let’s see who really wants to go play on that big, you know, competitive professional tour. So pump breaks on the symbolic victories too because the conversations that it started uh I mean to Tiger’s point again he he said it you know we’ve been these have been issues for a while and sure you know Phil and them burnt the house down just so we could say look the fire department needs to you know needs to be better at their job but now we have to deal with this mess. Well the mess has been dealt with the sun is set. Talent’s no longer fleeing. Tony Feno didn’t go. Victor Havlin didn’t go. None of these rumored people who were supposed to be Greg Greg Norman’s unemployed. Not literally. He’s just no longer running live. So, the live experiment’s over. We’ve been calling it for ages. I do think they they’ll get one more maybe one more wave of talent again. Maybe some maybe some some butt hurt Lucas Glovers or something like that or a Wesley Bryan just because he gets suspended like something. It’s going to be stuff like that. you know, well, I mean, it’s it’s it’s it’s substantial because of the story, but as far as golfer and stats and all that stuff, it’s really not going to matter. Could you imagine this this hypothetical? So, because they have more duels planned. I saw that there’s more duels coming out and that was another thing or July something I forget. That’s how much I care. Uh the bigger thing that I was noticing is somebody’s like, you know, Wesley Bryan’s PGA Tour suspension is still being dealt with. How’s that going to affect? I’m like, it’s just like the other players, you know, and if I’m him, I mean, I don’t give a [ __ ] anymore about the PGA Tour. I’m not going to be We saw this with Ben Griffin, and here’s our pivot back to it. If you’re going to win on the PGA Tour, you have got to be all in. I mean, you got to sprinkle some luck, some timing, some weather, all sorts of [ __ ] on top of it, but you have got to be all in laser focused as far as where your heart and your passion is. and the Brian brothers have just outgrown it. I don’t blame I mean I wouldn’t blame him for hanging it up or you know focusing all in on his YouTube life that could spawn this other competitive opportunity that could then you know have other could yield other results. I mean, could you imagine if if Wesley Bryan joins a Liv squad next year, uh, and then because the Brooksies and the Bryson’s and some of that other highle talent has, you know, gone away, the field’s a little little looser and he’s all of a sudden the top, you know, the top ranked guy going into the US Open and that’s how he gets in or that’s, you know, so I could I could see a path forward that would be an interesting one. But as far as the great live experiment and like the new era of golf over and done with, Ben Griffin, Ben, and I texted you this because I keep going through nicknames. Uh, do you want to Why don’t you recap the Ben Griffin story slash get us to Sunday and then I’ll tell you where my brain’s been for I mean at least 48 hours. Yeah. So Ben Griffin, if you don’t know, so I first got introduced to Ben Griffin. I admit I don’t know anything about his like his real beginnings in golf or anything, but I first got introduced to Ben Griffin on TikTok. Um he started he was posting videos about a a week in the life of a PGA Tour pro at an event and kind of how what he packs, what he goes through for his practice workout routine and what it looks like day of tournament on the court. Like a little behind pause. It’s I It’s basically if you have a partner who sits there and watches makeup videos and get ready with new videos, that’s what it is for golf guys. It’s that’s exactly what it is. And I’m Nike sent me I I don’t I forget exactly what sponsor is because I know Nike sent me this one. This it’s a lot of that and it’s fun. Whatever. Um you know his wife girlfriend I forget gets involved and they the back it’s it’s good stuff. So that’s how I got introduced to Ben Griffin. And I’ll admit and I’ll say dead wrong here and I apologize Ben if you’re watching this. Um, I’ll admit when I first saw a couple times I was like, “Oh, this is this is good for this guy. He’s probably never going to do anything on the tour, but like he’s he’s working hard to at least be be as known as he can.” Um, he’s now won two events this year. Now, granted, the first one was the Zurich. It still counts, people, but it was technically a partnered event. This is his first solo win. His first two ever PGA Tour events coming in the same year. Doesn’t typically happen that way for for professional golfers. So, I love to see the confidence that he’s coming up with right now. He almost did kind of lose it down the stretch. Um Matt Matty Schmid uh was was roaring up the the leaderboard with them there. Matty Schmid I mean got I’m kind of a fan now. Well yeah because you know he had like he had a stone face like icy like he he he was there in the moment and nothing was and yeah he don’t give a Yes. Um he showed it though on 18 uh being down to uh one being down one on 18 and he was chipping from off the green um by the water kind of on a slope uh out of the rough and uh he he he chipped it in uh to do everything he can to force a little bit of pressure on Ben Griffin to sink his putt. Uh Ben Griffin had a giggle about it and he was like, “Well, I guess you’re really going to make me do this.” And look, he had like a three-foot putt. He sank it. He won a nice little ceremonial fist pump. Um, and uh, Ben Griffin, you’re a champion at the Charles Schwab this past week. I love it. I I absolutely love it for Ben Griffin. I want to see and and I must say little, this was like a geek out moment, too, a little bit here. And I’m sure not a lot of other people mentioned it. His sunglasses fantastic. They were so reflective. You could when they had him on camera, you could see what he was doing in his bag. Like you could see down into his bag, seeing what like his clubs and how he was moving around. Like I was just like, “Hey, look at that. We can see what he’s doing.” So, okay, now we’re gonna now I’m going to take over and bring the golf story back into this now that the social media aspect is out of the way. So, Ben Griffin was a two-time honorable mention all-American at UNCC. He set the their alltime scoring record. He was on tour previously and then he retired. Uh, basically he ran out of money. I mean, it’s an expensive sport to excel at. We talked about it. You need luck, you need timing. He was working as a loan officer and you’ve heard that 50 bajillion times. It’s kind of like Jake Knap was working as a bouncer before he won. You know, what was your last job before you actually did this? Uh, and what I found out recently or I heard he uh it was the the CEO of the company he was working for who was actually like, you know what, [ __ ] that. You’re going to be a pro golfer. And so he was the one who staked him like 120 grand or 100 grand to to lay him out for two years to say, “Go get him, Tiger.” And he did. And so it brings back to me those sunglasses. And we’ve got some good nicknames here. We, you know, we got Benny G. Uh little a little homage to to the saxophone artist and the hair. Um Benny Benny Blades because he’s a golfer and he plays blades. Although really [ __ ] interesting, he’s the only pro golfer playing or tour golfer playing a Max Fly ball. We talked about that when he won the Zurich. That was kind of a headline. Still the same thing. I give it 2.5. You’re gonna see some college golfers who just want to be different coming out be like, I signed with Max Fly. Uh niche that niche type of like representation is also a thing right now. You know, we’re going to see more. Don’t don’t think someone like Grant Horvette is the is the the end of the line of signing with a brand like Tacoma. Uh Tacoma, I mean, or Acorn Hills, you know. Yeah, not everybody needs to go out there with Peter Malar. Give Nate want their their own path. Tell them Bud sent you or Benny shades as you said the sunglasses which he kind of said are a thing. They’re either prescription or oh they help with floaters he says. So if you’re Yeah. You ever had like the little star like floaters things blades Benny Shades Benny G I’m here for it. And then here’s the best part about this Charles Schwab tournament and uh and this is I mean this is one of those things they know exactly what they’re doing but they get a car. You know some of these tournaments do this usually it’s like oh the Mercedes-Benz open and they get the new E-Class or whatever the [ __ ] it is. So this year the Charles Schwab challenge hold on a little parched. Well I will say as to lead you into that the the Charles it’s always some sort of classic car like last year I want to say it was some sort of old old Mustang. Last year it was a 75 Schwab Stingray. Before that it was a 73 Schwab Bronco. Before that it was a Firebird, a Power Wagon, a Challenger. This year homeboy is going home in a 1992 Defender, which looks [ __ ] sick. Looks like he was about to go on safari. Well, I mean, they’re that’s what they’re made for, by the way. Yeah, that’s if you’ve ever seen a Safari video, those are probably defenders they’re driving around. I would say so. Uh, so sh and he gets the plaid jacket. So, and and it’s a cool tournament. The Charles Schwab, we’re kind of tongue and cheek in here. Uh, and really what what what started this whole thing was welcome. Danny Rat was Danny Rat was saying, is there is there a problem with PJ tour and these non signature events and juice and all sorts of stuff? And all I could think to myself was yes and no. You you it depends on what your level of expectation are. If you’re coming off the PGA Championship, expecting a back-to-back championship, you know, major championship experience, it’s just not going to happen, right? If you’re looking for the best competitive golf that’s on the market in that moment, that’s what you’re going to get. And then you’re going to get stories like Ben Griffin. Thank God for Ben Griffin because I don’t know, we’d have to dig deep on Mattie Schmid. No disrespect to Mattie Schmid. But that leads me to my next question. Benny Griffin, where is he on? I should have done my research. Jamie, pull up. He’s fifth in the well rider cover. So he’s fifth in FedEx covered I was trying that’s what I had on the top of my head. I’m trying to fill space and you’re wasting your time critiquing me instead of just looking it up. Well that’s that’s what I’m here for. Fifth in FedEx Cup standing. So uh with the two wins honestly he should be Yeah, he’s got to be he’s got to be close. He’s he’s definitely got to be five spots. He’s up to 13. and and you look at who’s ahead of them, you know, Patrick Kentlay, JJ Spawn, Brian Harmon, Matt McNeely, Andrew Novak, Harris English. And so here are the top six. Here is here’s who’s on the team as it sits. Number one, Scotty Sheffler. Duh. [ __ ] it’s his spot for the next 10, 12 years if you want. No brainer. Yeah. Uh Scotty Sheffller, Xander Schoffley, Bryson Dashambo, Justin Thomas, Colin Morau, or Russell Henley. I like that starting six. Yeah, I’m fine with that. That’s a good strong six. So Keegan at 18, what does it take for him to pick himself? So I think that the way he’s going to look at it, I think for him to pick himself, he he’s going to have to be in that second six. He’s going to have to be top 12. I think unless unless there now I will say unless it’s someone with the with the I guess the smaller um credentials like Ben Griffin who sticks around and if he were to be like one of those guys in contention right around the 6 to 12 range like I could see Keegan taking himself over someone at that level because he’s still just coming up and and whatnot. So I don’t no no hate on Ben Griffin. I love Ben Griffin. I’ve talked about Ben Griffin a ton on the show. Um, but I I just don’t see Keegan going out of his way to pick himself, no matter how bad he wants to play. I think because of the way he felt like he got screwed last year, I don’t think he’s going to want to do that to anybody else. That’s what I was going to say is it it’s either it’s either it’s either um I got screwed and and I’ve earned my way here and then like the team took a vote or some [ __ ] But the the real answer is what you said. It’s like no, he’s not going to he’s not going to give he’s not going to take a potential pick from another upandcomer that would distract from his captaincy duties, etc., etc. if he’s in the top six, if he all of a sudden goes out. Let’s be honest, Keegan’s been in competition in a lot of these tournaments. Fantastic form. We’ve seen him, we’ve seen him late on Sundays, you know, look out for him this week. Uh, wink wink, nod nod. And so, I think that it’s not outside the realm of possibility. And with Tiger doing it with the President’s Cup a couple years ago, I think it was 2019 maybe. Uh, I think that in the modern era, we might be bringing back this idea of a playing captain. I mean, that’s how that’s how it used to be. Walter H. We haven’t seen that in a little while. Who was the last playing captain? I’m trying to I Who was the last playing captain for Team USA on the Ryder Cup? Because I feel like it has been a while. This is fantastic, man. Siri, that’s way the [ __ ] off. I don’t care that Zack Johnson will serve as the Ryder Cup in 2023. That is youthful, man. do the good old Google search. How about that? Yeah, bring an and an bring some Android search logic into this. Exactly. Um, last moose. And that was a pretty clear question. It was on US Ryder Cup. All right. While you’re pulling that up though, there’s a lot of these names in seven to 20 that I could make an argument for. And and it’s easy to skip over the, you know, JJ Spawn because of the lack of name recognition. And the closest thing he’s got is, you know, losing in a playoff uh to to Rory. What a [ __ ] Uh you’re going to love the answer, by the way, when you’ve done this a lot. Had Billy Horchel not had not gone out with an injury. Was it an injury or an illness? He he got he injury? Yeah. Okay, good. I didn’t want to. So, you got Billy Horchel, Billy Ho at 20. Windham Clark at 19. If Windham is in form, I don’t mind that. We already said we got about Kee. Lucas Glover’s at 17. And I think Lucas has got to get into the top 12 uh after his pity party and the kind of [ __ ] that he’s throwing out there. I don’t know. Maybe he’s a popular guy behind the scenes, but from what I can see, he kind of seems like a thirsty hoe. He Well, exact. And that’s how I feel. Honestly, I think he I think he needs to get into the top six because I I have a feeling he’s get garner garnishing this reputation amongst his peers that he would be like a locker room killer for the as far as the attitude in there. I feel like I I think they want him to stay away from this team. And I will I will leave a small part of my brain open to that idea that maybe you and I are way off and maybe he’s like a locker room god and they’re all like hell yeah there’s Lucas not giving any [ __ ] man the balls will tell all of our secrets. I I just can’t see that. Before we get back to your trivia answer Tom Hog’s at 16 which I think is too low to go go for a rookie. Tony Fen now at 15. Anywhere there or higher you got to take him. Anywhere 15 14 you gota take him. Danny Burgerer at 14 I think you got to take him. Yeah, enough of a punch. He can He can do it, I think. Then you got our boy Ben Griffin at 13. If he continues his trajectory, I don’t even care if he wins again. If he just continues with some more solid play and creeps into the top 12, I think you got to take him. Uh, and I think you got to take him over maybe Maverick Maverick McNeely who’s higher up just because you’ve got a winner versus a very very goodter uh right now. And then Harris English at seven is almost a no-brainer. Same thing with Brian Harmon at 10. Uh the little the little lefty is I mean the little lefty is gonna I got he he turns it on when like the pressure is up to like he has a he has a quiet attitude about him where he’s like that guy that he’s going to walk all the way through like he the whole round just going to walk quiet and then when he beat wins his match he’s going to turn around tell the other guy like [ __ ] you. Yeah. Like you know what I mean? He’s gonna be that guy that surprises you with his aggression. I feel like have you Napoleon syndrome? Thank you. Are you familiar with Family Guy? Yeah. Big whoop. Want to fight about it? Like that guy. Exactly. And And you have to have at least one of those in your crew. I had one or I we had one in ours in in college. He was this 5 foot three, 5 foot four uh Filipino kid who was just shredded like you know 150 pounds or 40 pound soaking wet, but it was all muscle Bruce Lee looking [ __ ] and he would be the quiet one until [ __ ] started hitting the fan and then he would just quietly turn it on and be like, “Excuse me.” And and I feel like that’s the Brian Harmon syndrome, right? When he’s done waggling the real quick before we move on, did you see the sick of waggles? Shout out whatever network they were on because the production truck, some some genius decided to do a sidebyside or a top and bottom with Brian Harmon approaching a chip or a pitch shot. I think maybe it was even a putt. Uh, and then a turtle going from the land into the water. And they started seeing who’s going to make it first. And I think that’s fantastic. That’s up there with, you know, I, you know, real quick, modern marketing. I saw social media and whether it was manipulated or not, I don’t think it was because Wendy’s social media game. If you don’t follow Wendy’s on all the platforms, go get them. Fantastic. It seems for a fight. It seems like it’s fake. And you have to realize, no, their marketing department a few years ago decided to go all in on social media, which is a trashtalking, nameless, faceless entity. And so, the most recent one that I saw, I think it’s a repeat, Chick-fil-A was announced as the top food, you know, in America for the whatever year in a row. Yeah, Chick-fil-A post, you know, could you imagine if we opened on Sundays to give everybody else a chance like you Wendy’s and the Wendy’s account just commented back, “Your mom’s a hoe.” I don’t know if it’s because I’m I’m, you know, we secretly don’t mature past 15 if you have a Y chromosome, but to me, that’s what I want out of my social media snark. And I think that’s kind of what you would get with Brian Harmon. What I want. It’s exactly what I want. All right. You ready? Are you ready for the uh because I was actually surprised by Who was the last playing captain? Was it Walter Hagen? No, it was Nope, it was not Jean Sar, but you’re sniffing around. I guess the the right time frame Byron. This is so much further back than I thought. I thought we had one or more recent than this. No, it’s not for not knowing this. So, the answer I’ll give you the year first. Let me see if you guess. So, it was in 1963. 63. Yeah. Arnold Palmer. It was Arnold Palmer. Arnold Palmer was the last Rder Cup US RDER Cup playing uh captain. Um and he led the US team uh to a 23-9 victory that year. Uh and he was three he was three- one in pairs and one- one in singles. So did you say 23-9 win? 23 to9 victory for the US that year. The Rder Cup’s fun. We’ll get to it later on this season. uh you know the number of matches, the days, the time of year, etc., etc., etc. Uh the introduction of the Europeans and Sev Seano Baysteros. Uh that’s really where he shined. Uh so I don’t even know how we got on the Ryder. So go ahead real real fast. You want to know who was left off that team surprisingly that that 1963 US Ryder Cup team that won? It was Jack Nicholas. was left off after winning his third major title uh at the PGA Championship that year. He was only 23 years old at the time, left off the team. Yeah. So, if you want to talk about Keegan Keegan being upset about being left off the team, I get it. But take a look at that and view it with some perspective because he Jack Nicholas won a major that year. the at the very beginning of the show, your ESPN alert went off and and I immediately got pissed off when you called it breaking news or at least news and I know you were doing it tongue and cheek. I think partially to trigger me and I applaud you for that, but it’s and and no disrespect to the people on social media, but it’s not that quiet of a week. I guess it must be a quiet week because we’ll get into the the Rory and Jack kind of exchange or whatever. That’s stupid. Uh but here we go. starting strokes are officially gone for the tour championship. I think what it was is you and I were paying attention when this was announced that this was the likelihood or this was what was on the table because it was announced in like a memo and a newsletter or whatever it was like it wasn’t mainstream media. It was a press release. I think this is on the table. And today was the official announcement or whatever from the, you know, like the official every year update. Uh cuz it was around this time that, you know, we heard about was June 6th, I think it was, or June 5th, whatever, a couple years ago when we heard about the live potential agreement and Well, yeah, it makes sense. Right around the PJ Championship. It makes Yeah. between PGA and the US Open. So, it’s not real news. I think I think what we heard and we’ll see what the details shake out to be, but no more starting strokes. Um, it’s gonna be like top 30 and then they’re going to go down to 16 in the weekend and then only the top eight going to Sunday for, you know, maybe even down at like eight into the through Saturday and four into Sunday. I don’t know what they’re going to do, but good. It’ll be fun. You know what? You know what that does? that brings a sense of um excitement and you know I can’t think of the word but like definitessiveness to every single day of that tournament that weekend cuz some it’s it’s every day is going to have who’s going to like a line where who’s going up and who’s not making it, who’s going up, who’s not making it. Like that’s going to be I think like the perfect mix of excitement and tension for that tournament that weekend that is going to be fantastic. I think it’s going to work out perfectly. And and honestly, I’m glad you said that this kind of definitiveness, but you know, the everyday the everyday nature of kind of having elimination because the NCAA college championships are going on right now. And I think we talked about Liv dying earlier today and another element of that was the deep bench of the PGA Tour. Correct. And so you I think actually going to the finals are tomorrow. Let’s see who is in who’s in the final match real quick. We’ll just kind of cut the cha. Yeah, I haven’t paid attention right now. Virginia. I think it’s Virginia and Miss. Yeah, Miss beat Oklahoma State in the semi. So, Virginia and Miss are going to go head-to-head tomorrow for the NCAA title. Yay for the team title. The the individual championship was a guy from Miss. He’s got a really funky swing. He like almost hesitates halfway through his head, drops six inches, and then he just slams the ball 5,000 yards. Uh Michael Loso, I think is his name or something like Laraso, something like that. Anyway, the NC2A’s, you know, part of this tournament too was the freshman or last year freshman, so sophomore Jackson Ko from Auburn. He finished in the top 10 in the individual standings, got another point. He got his PGA Tour card. There’s been some criticism that because of the nature of how you get in, which is it is a team sport in college. There’s an individual champion crowned, but it is it is overall a team sport. we had a tournament or a finals, an NCAA finals without the number one golfer in David Ford. You know, his team in UNCC didn’t qualify and so there were some people trying to criticize that and I think they were just trying to stir [ __ ] up because I wanted to raise my hand and be like Heisman Trophy winner doesn’t always play in the national title game. You know, the MVP doesn’t always play in the NBA finals. Like that’s stupid argument to make that the system is flawed if the best player isn’t on display. Some people will try to at me and say golf is an individual sport and I would go right back at them and say not at the NCAA level. It is a team sport full of individual performances. Much like gymnastics, you do have individual elements. I grant you that. So, get off my lawn if that’s what you’re trying to bring to me. Outside of that, you do have these team regionals, five matches, you know, five five individual matches, you know, best of five, uh, kind of setup and then 30 teams get to the nationals and after four rounds or I want to say it’s three rounds in there to cut, but after four rounds of individual stroke play, the field is cut down to eight teams that then go head-to-head for, you know, the team title. And so the amount of NCAA uh crossover with the PGA Tour right now with this kid Jackson Kyman just got his card. We keep talking about Gordon Sergeant’s about to go pro. Uh Dave, the affforementioned David Ford, I believe he’s in Canada later on. Not only did Liv screw the pooch on so many other things, but they underestimated the value of the NCAA as a feeder now for the PJ tour. And you sprinkle on top of that, one of my favorite phrases, the NIL potential. These kids can go, we’ve talked about this, you can go play, get an education and a college experience for two, three, four years while banking some money into playing some dope ass tournaments on the amateur level like the US amateur or the Walker Cup or the North South or all these intercolgates. so much valuable experience in that. That’s what that comes down to. Like these guys are entering with their tour card once they get their cards with so much more experience than previous generations. And so it’s fantastic. And so it’s going to make these signature events that that much more valuable to get into. I think the PGA Tour’s vision uh while not executed or step by step being perfect, but nothing ever is. You look at the position they’re in now three years after the disruption or four years after the disruption and they’re sitting pretty and they’ve got a deep bench and they’ve got a lot of opportunity. I think as a you know aside from the PGA Tour us Americans need to be worried because I do look across the pond and I see the European Rder Cup team and it kind of makes me shake in my boots. I know we were just going down our guys and how we love this and a bulldog that it’s going to be a fun fun weekend at Beth Page. It’s gonna be some fun. It’s gonna be a nervous weekend at Beth Beth. But that’s what I want. I want that. That’s go. Golf is so much better when you’re on the edge of your seat. Like that’s I love it. Love it. Love it. Love it. I’m there for it. Real fast as we talk about the next generation of golf because I I had to check because I I did notice this on Thursday. Uh Blades Brown did get a special invite to uh to the Charles Schwab this past weekend. Uh he did go out on round one and shoot a two under 68. Um that’s when I that’s what I noticed. So, I checked to see if he make the cut made the cut. Actually, he did not because unfortunately he shot a five over uh round two and I think the cut line was one over. So, he was three over total. But every time Blades Brown gets an invite to one of these these tournaments, he he shows up to where he’s if he doesn’t make the cut, he’s like near the cut line. like he Blades Brown is a name that needs to keep coming out of our mouths in the future because he’s not going anywhere and his path to the tour is going to be, I think, a path that is going to be open to so many more players going forward and I’m excited to watch it come to fruition. This this sponsor exemption is actually not a sponsor exemption. It’s the It’s Charles Schwab does something cool where the past champions vote on two players who didn’t get in. We we’ve featured this before and this year is Blades Brown and the other one was Neil Shipley. Built by Waffle House, Neil Shipley was the other one to get in the field. I’m gonna quickly check how he did while you talked too because I’m curious. I didn’t see how he did. No, it’s fine because Blades Brown and Neil Shipley, both guys who most, you know, barring, you know, not gonna say a miracle, they’ll most likely end up full-time on the corn cornfy tour next year, but the corn ferry tour is going to be a crowded place because all these guys are getting their tour card coming out of college. That’s great. You get it. maintaining it’s a whole other beast and especially with the new requirements. You know, all these guys that we’re featuring, Jackson, Ko, Mike, whoever the hell from Miss, Luke, uh, you know, Luke Clanton from, uh, Florida State, who they got bounced before getting into the finals. They all have teammates who, many of whom are incredibly like the next one up at Auburn’s, Brendan Valdez, you know, he’s almost there. He’s like a point or two away. So all these guys have teammates who are professional caliber and a lot of them are going to end up on the corner too. So this just glut of talent is going to produce more and more good stories and talented golfers etc. Adnauseium at Infinitum. Um but yeah that that was the whole point of introducing that is that I live is dead. NCAA’s is kind of like the new future and I think that if Liv has any life in it, it’s going to be in this social media collaboration world. And who knows, maybe the YouTubers have found their home. Maybe the PGA Tour is like, “We don’t necessarily need this.” Like the the the Creator Classic at P at TBC Sawrass was dope as [ __ ] because you could almost do anything in those last four those last eight holes and it’s going to be magnificent. It’s a great great stadium, pun intended, for golf, but um it lacked a little bit of juice, I’d say, at the Philly Cricket Club. Uh you know, and maybe the PGA Tour is just like that’s not our game. That like leave that alone. Let the DS happen. let the social media crossover be over there. We’re just going to stick to the golf excellence and you know our proams. But then again, maybe that’s what’s going to take the place of the prom. I just had this probably way too out there to to actually exist, but wouldn’t it be fun? This is fair. Uh, wouldn’t it be fun if PGA somehow partnered like really leaned into the the YouTube world like we expect them to do eventually, but they partnered with one of like a Bryson Dshambo or like one of these pros that have gone that route instead. um and made it to where call it playing for pinks so to say where if one of these guys on the fringe of their tour card goes out there and beats Bryson say in a in a round of 18 they get their card like like wouldn’t that just like it’s like final bosses for Q school. Yeah, but like it’s that would make that would make for some for some entertainment if you ask me. Like I think that would be a ton of fun to watch. Is it practical and would it ever happen? No, absolutely not. That’s a crazy idea, but I would watch that. Oh god, I’d watch a lot of things. Well, I don’t want to know what you’d watch. Delete your brows browser history, folks. Too much silence there after that statement. I’m trying to think of a subtle way to pivot over to the memorial, but then I was thinking of Barbara Nicholas and then I just felt bad about myself. It was just hard pivot then. Uh Jack Nicholas disappointed that Rory’s not playing the memorial. dive head first into the ice. Okay, I’m sorry. It Listen, you know the first of all, I had a feel this was going to annoy you. What pisses me? Yeah. What annoys me about this is it’s like if you know anything about this, the two of them are incredibly close, right? And and and and Jack’s disappointment. By the way, I didn’t see his comments. I’ve been scrolling past them on social media because that’s how much I how little I care. Yeah. Because I I’m I doubt that Jack’s going to go out there and trash Rory. So the hay that people want to make out of it is most likely taking that statement. Of course, I’m like I’m disappointed that Rory’s not playing. Oh, and J. And he probably didn’t call him ahead of time. Jack and Rory like J Rory plays out of the Bears Club down in Florida. I mean, he’s a member of like a 14 or 15 or 20 clubs around the world. There’s a great clip of him counting him, but he spends a lot of times and he’s based out of Jupiter and the Bears club’s down there. And if you know, again, that’s that’s that’s Jack’s club. Mirfield Village was his first love, like his first baby. He, you know, he bought this land right when he was a pro in the 60s like for and he would hunt on it with his dad and family for a while before he turned it into what it is now. So Rory and Jack have a fine relationship. My guess is it’s a slow [ __ ] week. Scotty Sheffller’s on top of the world, so we can’t talk about hookers and DUIs. Not anymore. And so what do we do? Oh, Rory’s not here. Did he tell you he isn’t he wasn’t coming? No. Are you disappointed he’s not here? Of course. But he’s disappointed because one of the greatest golfers in the world is not at a tournament that is meant to have the greatest talent. And it is what it is though. I mean it’s one out of 140 guys. It’s a key one. But he would also if there was follow-ups probably say like I get it. He’s going to India and then he’s got to prepare for the next major. So I have the full I have the full statement. So tell me because I want to know how wrong I am. So speaking with reporters Tuesday in Ohio, uh Jack said he had a conver he didn’t have a conversation with Maroy about his choice to skip the memorial. he found out in the middle of last week and here’s his quote, his exact quote is, “Yeah, it surprised me, but you know, guys have good schedules and they got things to do.” So, here’s the thing. So, that I think obviously the Nicholas, you know, call, you know, quoteunquote calling out Rory is fully and and like exploded, you know, hyperbole here. My question to you though is Sure. Have we seen too little of Rory since winning the Masters? No. because we’ve only seen him in one tournament since winning the Masters in comparison to Sheffller last year like and I know Sheffller had his own views on it and everything, but is one after the after the Masters too little for I guess the weight that you carry as the Masters champion? I want you to get used to this new reality where Rory’s going to play 14 to 18 events a year like the Tiger of old. He’s on scholarship from here on out. He is going I’m shocked that he’s missing the memorial just because it’s that’s like a player favorite Jackie. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. It’s almost like you know tipping your cap. If he didn’t have such a great relationship personally and he was still of at this level and that kind of I think it’d look a little different but to like Jack said you know he’s a busy guy and and he’s got things to do. Yeah. I think we’re going to see. So, he’s going to India and it’s going to be like the first time he’s ever played in India and I think that’s that’s a paid appearance kind of like Tiger used to get these all the time in Southeast Asia and explode the game. Yeah. Trying to boost some other things for the world of golf. So, no. And and and quite frankly, I don’t want Rory every week. I think if we get if we get major fields every week, then majors are watered down. And with live coming to an end and the, you know, the three or four guys who are kind of needle movers over there come back home or decide to just not play any tour golf. And I could see some of these guys being like, “All right, I’ve got I’ve got an exemption for two more years into these three majors and f lifetime into this one. [ __ ] it. I’ll just play in the qualifiers in the opens. I’ll play like DJ DJ could literally be thinking to himself, you know what? Yeah, I’m going to play in the Masters the rest of my life. If the PGA ever wants to invite me, I’ll take it. Otherwise, if I get a wild hair in my ass, I’ll go play in a qualifier. Yeah, he had it’s very clear he does not give a [ __ ] anymore. The cool thing about golf is I think because these seasons because they just kind of they I know we joke the offseason’s long but there there’s this lack of finality after the FedEx the way that there is after the NBA finals. You know we see we see I see Jordan with the cigar in the locker room sitting there Kobe with the trophy you know just sitting there and you can tell they’re just emotionally spent. they’re going to shut it down for six months or we might never see them again. With a sport like golf, you’re always going to see them again. It’s just a matter of where and when. And so we’re we’re having a tough time adjusting to a lot of these names that we’re so used to being staples and instead going, “Wait a minute. Is Ben is Ben Griffin like the new Lee Westwood?” And that’s a second Lee Westwood drop, you know? And I don’t mean that as a direct comparison, but just saying like, “Oh, wait. Is A the new Phil?” Like we have a crafty lefty. We’ve had these thing these moments and these errors before that are they they last for however long they last and then whatever it happens in golf the changing of the guard that’s what’s happening right now happens more in golf than it does in most other sports and it’s more noticeable in golf than it is in most other sports yeah because the talent pool is going to get deeper and and broader at the same time so and but the number of people but they’re only going to have 70 people in a signature event you know the Masters is only going to invite you know whatever they do 80 90 people the PGA maxes out 156 or the US Open. So, it’s a it’s an exciting time to be a golf fan. And I think going into a week like the Memorial where Jack does mean so much to the game and you know, we’re just coming off of uh you know, the Byron Nelson a couple weeks ago who back in the day this was the same thing. You know, oh my god, you have to play in the Byron Nelson. You have to go honor Byron Nelson. The genesis is going to be that for your kids and my kids. They’re going to be like, what is this tournament? It’s like, oh, you have to go play in Tigers tournament. And then there’s going to be some of the some of the, you know, the real true purists who still hold the memorial in that regard. But for now, the milkshake still brings all the boys to the yard. And that’s the reference because I guess the big thing at Mirfield Village is milkshakes. You know, they all they all have milkshakes and All right. Milkshakes it is in Deerfield Village. I I here’s the thing. Oh, sorry. I said Deerfield. Sorry. That’s a town close to here, too. So, or Derek, whatever. Whatever. Um, I do want to talk a little Scotty Shuffler because I asked the question about have we not seen enough of Rory? Um, and I also beg to question, have we seen because of your point about you don’t want to see major fields all the time? Have we seen too much of Scotty then? And before you answer that, just know I want to almost prove a point and and address a topic that surprises me because we’re going to pivot to his his injury for a second. But first of all, have we seen too much of Scotty? Is he is he coming out here too much? Is he watering down himself and hurting his own image by playing as much as he is? No, because we’re about to leave Texas. So, that’s the thing. We we have been on the Texas swing and that’s his that’s his place. That’s the thing. And if you saw the Charles Schwab this weekend, um you saw there was a moment where he possibly got injured. Uh he had a pretty wicked slip of his ankle. It it looked to it looked to almost snap in a way. Just a really bad twist. Um, so because we have resources here as part of that sports podcast network, I reached out to the network’s uh, injury expert, Brian Scott, uh, host of the injured list podcast. Um, and I sent him the video clip of it and I said, “What did you see here? Do you see anything that’s be concerning or is this just a regular twist of the ankle?” His answer surprised me and he said he’s seen reports that also confirm his suspicions. So, my first point here is that he says he thinks it was more of a back injury than an ankle injury, which surprised me because when you see that video, that ankle looks like it’s about to snap in half. Um, so it did surprise me that he says and it’s been confirmed by other sources that it’s most likely a back injury. Now, Sheff finished the week. He Brian and others don’t seem to think it’s going to be an injury that we need to worry about with Sheffler. If it is a back injury though, we’ve seen back injuries in golf. if it’s even just a tweak, it’s going to linger. I’ll be curious to see after, you know, the adrenaline of the weekend wears off next time we see him this weekend. uh if he’s a little tighter to say, but something Brian said in his answer to me caught me off guard because he said to me, I think it’s more of a back injury and I think he’s been dealing with it for before this moment with the twist of the ankle and that’s the explanation as to why he’s been playing so poorly. Now, so here’s the playing poorly. So, he was saying Sheffield’s been playing poorly. And here’s what I’ll say. Brian’s he’s not necessarily a golf fan. He’s strictly he’ll he’ll look at a video. I send him and he he so he’s not in touch with the happenings of golf. I I simply said back to him, I said he did just win the PGA Championship the week before. So, poorly thought the fact, but but does seem to be outside of that major win, there does seem to be this perception that Scotty’s not been playing well. And I just I I want to read a few rankings for you for some of these stats because I I just noticed this and this is you want to talk about some stats that we always go to as well. Scotty Sheffller, the number three putter in this week’s field and I and I will say the field for the Memorial is is probably a pretty good test as far as where you rank amongst the best of the best outside of a major championship. So he’s third in putting. He’s first in strokes gained approach. He’s first in birdies or better gained. He’s first in short game. He’s first in ball striking. He’s first in tea green. He’s first in power force 450 to 500. And he’s seventh in proximity 150 to 175. He’s not playing poorly. He is still playing world number one level lights out golf. He’s just not won as much as he did last year. the the comparison needs to go away that just because he doesn’t have, you know, four or five wins by this point like he did last year, it doesn’t mean he’s playing poorly. He is still dominant in moments where we’ve now seen multiple golfers fold and collapse. He’s there standing strong, holding steady as the world number one. I am not worried about Scotty Sheffller at all, injury or not. And just to put a bow on that steak that you drove through the heart of whatever vampire was vexing you over this, I I raised my brow, too, because I’m like, “Yeah, I I’ve heard this too.” Anybody trying to stir up I think it really is just a slow time in golf because here’s Scotty Sheffller’s year so far. It’s just crazy to me. It’s not a slow time in golf. Let’s be honest. Pebble Beach Prom because there’s a couple things here that you mentioned. Pebble Beach Prom. All right. from starting there. T9 20 T25 at the Phoenix, T3 at the Genesis, T11 at Arnold Palmer, T20 at the Players, T2 at the Texas Children’s Houston Open, fourth at the Masters, T8 at the Heritage, wins the Byron Nelson, wins the PGA, T4 this week. He’s fine. He’s Scotty Sheffller. He’s world number one. To your point about his back, this would be the perfect time for him to get any kind of injury because his schedule’s about to lighten up. He’s got, you know, I don’t know if he’s playing in the in the Canadian Open. I think if we pay attention this week because if he needs to, he’s going to withdraw this week’s, take next week off, and then roll into the US Open because that’s the one that matters. After that, we are in this kind of time of the season where they do have minimums. Now, they do have to play in a certain minimum number of tournaments, certain number of signature events, etc., etc. But right after the US Open, you got the Travelers here in New England, our signature event. And then then is really where he’s going to get some rest because they have to get they have to go overseas and usually a lot of these guys are going to play the Scottish Open right before the championship. So they’ll go over a couple weeks early, you know, get acclimated. Um you’re going to see a lot of guys on social media going to a Dare Manor, the host of the next RDER Cup in 2027. Yep. And so if if if Scotty’s hurt, no better time for them him to be hurt because after the open championship, he really could just hang it up for another couple weeks until the FedEx Cup playoffs in August position for everything. The the playoff, the RD, I don’t think he’s concerned. Scotty’s not Scotty’s not really going anywhere. Um but I will tell you this, somewhere he is not is on my bet slip. And I’ll tell you, I’ve got a couple I’ve got three bets that I’m excit Look at that test. Uh, we got three bets that I’m excited about this week just because I think the leverage is there and the likelihood is there and that’s these are not, you know, predictors. I will tell you who do I think is going to win the memorial this week. Do we agree? Let’s see. I really think Patrick Canlay might remind us that he’s good at golf. Okay, if he can turn that putter on, he’s struggled a little bit with it. If he can turn that putter on, he 100% has the game for this this course. Well, before we get into the the betting side of this, who do you think? Not not leverage wise, not like who’s a good player, but who do you who who do you like this week just to win? So, my winner this week is Justin Thomas. I think he’s going to ride a little bit of that high. He’s been he’s been riding um he got that win out of the way, so I feel like he’s breathing a little bit lighter now. and uh he does just stack up well for this course to where he’s in, you know, the top in the top five of my model. So yeah, I’m also staying away from Scotty Sheffller. Um in multiple there’s no way to make money there. So well that’s the thing. So in multiple formats for the reasons of that his odds just are are useless. Um on DK he’s 13,300. Like that’s just absolutely useless. The next closest guy to him for salary is Xander at 10,900. Um, but even then I’d rather pay for Justin Thomas at 10,100. Uh, so like that just that’s where that all comes in. Like there’s so much more value this week than playing Scotty Sheffller really in any format. And plus, when it comes to one and done, I’ve already played Scotty Sheoffller. So, uh, Justin Thomas is my one and done this week. And I I actually feel quite confident with it. That that was my finalist. He was on the tip of my tongue and then I pivoted at the last minute to Patrick Kentlay because although he he did get he missed the cut at the PGA. He has been in decent form this year. He’s got a handful of top 10s including a top four T4 at the truest a couple weeks ago and he’s won the he’s won the memorial twice. So horses for courses, you know, uh guy who’s trying to get into that major form himself and solidify his Rder Cup presence. But here are three bets that I think that you know I’m gonna put I’m gonna put three units out there, one unit on each one with high leverage, high yields for returns. And remember folks, only for entertainment purposes. Don’t ever don’t ever just imagine yourself, you’re going to place a bet. You could be walking outside and lighting that that that amount of money on fire. That’s the likelihood of what you’re about to do. That’s what how you need to view it 100% because odds are it ain’t going to work for you. Yeah. If there if that money’s going anything. Okay. Anyways, Tommy Fleetwood, first round. Tommy Fleetwood first round leader plus 3500. He looks good this past weekend, so I don’t mind that for that. Yeah. I mean, maybe he’s just a hot hand. And again, he’s he’s got that distinction of most top, you know, most runner-ups without a win, you know, most all that kind of [ __ ] So, um, all right, Ricky Fowler, top five. Ricky has got a decent history at Murfield Village. He’s always in the background with Tiger. Poor Tiger when he’s or poor Ricky when Tiger’s making that flop shot. There’s Ricky’s orange. Uh and then the affformentioned Harris English. So this is my winner pick for some leverage. I don’t necessarily think he’s the favorite, but at plus 5500, Harris English coming off of a 65 at the PGA T championship to back door his way into a T2. And if you watched his interview with Amanda Balion and that big [ __ ] dumb grin of his, he’s feeling it. And I say that with all love spot on. He’s feeling himself. And again, with the RDER Cup around the corner, he’s another one. Keep that dog in your sight. So, Harris English to win plus 5500. I think that’s worth a gander. Yeah. Look, I I I like the the Fleetwood and the Fowler play a little bit more than the first round. First round, Tommy. Yeah. And you know what, and that was one of my favorite things the other the other weekend with Keith Mitchell was um he finally led a first round and he’s he’s like a a crowd favorite for first one first round leader and he finally did it and that was a just a fun storyline for betters. Um no, I can get behind that. I honestly haven’t fully looked at like any of those outside bets outside other than um Justin Thomas. So uh that’s going to be my play this week when it comes to that. Um, and I think we got ourselves I think this is going to be a good tournament and a good finish this week. Like this field is lining up with guys the the right guys are in the right form I should say is the way this is really this is showing up because even someone like Max Ho who’s down in the 7500 range when it comes to DK or JJ Spawn right there as well like those two guys that are are playing well enough right now uh that they can make some waves um and actually Batia. So that’s the thing from DK. Two of my biggest um values was Akay. He’s only 7,300. Um and then who was it was uh Oh, sorry. It was Harris English. Yeah. So that’s why I second Harris English. He was my other value at 7,800 as well. So if you want 7,800. Yeah. So if you want his ownership, I’m sorry. That’s So I So I talked about this the other night on Tik Tok live. I went into uh and I forget so I’m gonna look it up really fast. Um the projected ownership, let’s see, because it was uh who are we asking about again? Harris. Harris. He’s going to be around 11 12% owned. Oshay around 7 8% owned, which is fantastic value there. Um don’t sleep on Ryan Fox at 6,500. He rates out well. He’s had a good season. He’s going to be around 6% owned. Tom Hogi around four or five% owned at 6,400 as well. So there’s definitely value um in this this tournament for sure. I would stay the guys I’m going to stay away from just because of strictly an ownership and value standpoint. I’m staying away from someone like Sew Kim 8,300 but around 21 22% ownership. Like that’s just shoo till the US Open. Bring him back out around that. Right. So that that’s that’s I’m good with that. um where Bud Collie is seeing a ton of play after his performance this past weekend at 6,800, but he’s going to be around 20% owned as well. Like that just that doesn’t add up as from a value standpoint for me. So those are guys that I’m just staying away from. And like I said, Scotty Sheffller, even at 13,300 on DraftKings, he is still projected 25 26% owned. That’s absolutely outrageous. There’s no edge to playing Scotty Sheffller in any format of betting D, you know, DFS, whatever. It is a bull market for Scotty. Yeah, that’s that’s absolutely crazy if you ask me. So stay away from those guys. Finance bro like that’s not how it works, man. Yeah. Well, guess what? It’s how it works for me. Whatever. The [ __ ] I raise your degree with my gut feeling. Uh but that will do it for us here on Divots and Pivots as always here on Tuesday nights. that Sports Podcast Network tomorrow uh at 8 a.m. You can catch us on all your podcast platforms. Thank you, Golfer Gang Network. Love those guys over there helping us grow to the future of this show. So, get on there. Spotify, you can catch us 8 a.m. every Wednesday morning, the replay of tonight’s show. Golf I you was landing the plane and you know something I learned a real quick. You know something I learned today? You open the emergency hatch. the [ __ ] walk and I was watching the [ __ ] walk. So walk. So Kendrick Lamar, you know, he’s up there, you know, doing his little walk. Serena Williams looking hot as [ __ ] little skirt doing the [ __ ] Snoop was saying it’s not just the [ __ ] walk. It’s the dance just called the walk. Bloods and crips both do like the same or similar dance. It’s all So I just I found that fascinating. I didn’t know that it was all about unity and love in the in the gang world. Th this plane had a crash landing for sure, but that’s okay. No, I love that. I love that. Um, but you can catch us here again next Tuesday as we break on the memorial as we get ready for the Canadian Open and leading us into the US Open after that. Uh, we love you guys. Thank you for hanging out with us. And hey, you guys over here on Tik Tok live that watch behind the scenes with me. Thank you for that as well. We are going to figure out how to get this show live on Tik Tok as well. I promise you. I’ll do some research. Love you guys. Stay classy as [Music] Hear me.
