Shownotes
The central theme of today's discourse revolves around the remarkable journey of professional golfer Aaron Rye, who has garnered significant acclaim following his recent triumph at the PGA Championship. Throughout our discussion, we delve into Rye's compelling narrative, one that epitomizes perseverance and the unwavering support of his family during his formative years in the sport. Notably, we examine his unique approach on the course, characterized by an impressive mental fortitude, which allowed him to maintain composure amidst intense competition from some of the world's top players. Furthermore, we highlight the personal anecdotes that enrich Rye's story, particularly his humble beginnings and the sentimental significance of using iron covers as a homage to his parents' sacrifices. Ultimately, our conversation serves to illuminate not only Rye's achievements but also the broader implications of his success for the golfing community.
Links referenced in this episode:
Companies mentioned in this episode:
- Golf Channel
- ESPN
- Westwood One
- Birdie Ball
- Gary Christian Golf
- Painted Hills Beef
- Weston Kia
This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:
OP3 - https://op3.dev/privacy
Transcripts
It's time for Grilling at the Green.
Speaker A:Join Jeff Tracy as he explores a golfing lifestyle and tries to keep it.
Speaker B:In the short grass for the hackers,.
Speaker A:New sweepers and turf spankers.
Speaker B:Here's Jeff.
Speaker B:Hey, everybody.
Speaker B:Welcome to Grilling at the Green.
Speaker B:I'm jt.
Speaker B:We are a proud part of the Golf News Network along with all the other platforms and a number of radio stations.
Speaker B:Hither and yawn.
Speaker B:Today, I've welcomed back friend of the show, personal friend Whit Watson from Golf Channel, espn, Westwood One, and his media credentials pod.
Speaker B:I'm seeing him everywhere now.
Speaker B:And Whit just did some specials on the PGA Championship.
Speaker B:He did an hour review every night.
Speaker B:In fact, I just got a notice this morning on my phone that, on YouTube that another one popped up.
Speaker B:So we're gonna, we're gonna kind of chop that up, as they say.
Speaker B:Hey, how you doing?
Speaker A:I'm doing great.
Speaker A:It's a, it's a heck of a story.
Speaker A:I was just doing some research on Aaron Rye for my radio show Saturday morning, and I've, I took his 24 minute press conference and kind of cut it down to about three and a half, four minutes.
Speaker A:His story, Jeff, is amazing.
Speaker A:I mean, it's for an Englishman.
Speaker A:It's an all American story.
Speaker A:The child of immigrants.
Speaker A:You know, he kind of stuck to his process.
Speaker A:He talked about he wasn't really close with a lot of other junior golfers coming up.
Speaker A:His dad apparently quit his job to help Aaron through the junior golf process.
Speaker A:And mom at one point, at one point worked two jobs.
Speaker A:His wife is a professional golfer.
Speaker A:It's just an amazing story.
Speaker A:And what a, what a noble winner he was, what an absolutely gracious champion he was.
Speaker B:I loved that part, honestly.
Speaker B:Yeah, I really did his, his acceptance speech, if you will.
Speaker B:And he was kind and he answered reporters and he did all that wit.
Speaker B:And the other thing I like is the two gloves.
Speaker B:I love the two gloves because, and he admitted it.
Speaker B:He goes, my hands used to get cold over in England.
Speaker B:Well, yeah, if you've ever been there, you know, it gets cold there and wet and damp and, and so, you know, because we have Tommy Gainey over on this side of the pond, but I think that's, I don't think Tommy Gainey's hands ever got cold like Aaron's did.
Speaker B:You know what I mean?
Speaker B:So I, there's so many facets to his story that you were just pointing out that I think it's,.
Speaker A:I, I,.
Speaker B:You know, as we always say, it's good for the game and this and that.
Speaker B:But I just think it's a very humbling and story that his folks stuck with him, practiced all the time.
Speaker B:Like you said, he's not in the social circles as one would think.
Speaker B:You know, I'm sure he's friendly with all of them, but, you know, and maybe in a professional manner, but that doesn't.
Speaker B:Who cares?
Speaker B:You know, he stuck to his guns and did his job.
Speaker A:And the part that kind of got me as a dad was the fact he talked about the fact that he uses iron covers, which is something that, you know, you kind of associate with amateurs that are sort of new to the game.
Speaker A:It's kind of like a cheesy sort of thing.
Speaker A:But he does it as a hat tip, an homage to his parents and to his dad who every time he went out and played his father after the round when he was a junior, would come back with a nail file and baby oil and clean the grooves of his clubs.
Speaker A:And they didn't have a lot of money, they couldn't afford new equipment every year.
Speaker A:So the idea was to preserve his clubs as long as they could.
Speaker A:And as a 31 year old professional and now a major champion, he still uses the iron covers as kind of a reminder of where he came from.
Speaker A:I mean, I, it's hard not to love this guy.
Speaker A:How do you not have this story?
Speaker B:Oh yeah.
Speaker B:And I think, you know, correct me if I'm wrong, but I think they must sell what, two or three hundred sets of iron covers every year, industry wide.
Speaker B:So it's not a common.
Speaker A:Right, right.
Speaker B:It's not a common thing there.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:And I like, I like that and I like the.
Speaker B:You touched on the part about his wife being a golf professional.
Speaker B:And they were genuinely.
Speaker B:And this is, this is an observation for a guy who's been married for 37 years.
Speaker B:Okay.
Speaker B:A lot of times when you see the wives come up afterwards, you know, there's, there's a hug and there's some affection, but then the guy's off to shake his buddy's hands or get the trophy or go to the scores tent, all that stuff they have to do.
Speaker B:But I saw there, and maybe it's the softy in me, there is some genuine affection towards his wife.
Speaker B:I mean they were, they were both extremely happy and, and then when they were walking towards the scorers tent, she goes over and hugs the caddy.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:Because they've been buddies for a long time.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker B:And she shows gratitude and affection to the caddy.
Speaker B:And it just kind of gave me this whole family Atmosphere vibe.
Speaker B:You know, our guys over here have their teams, their posses, their, you know, whatever, from nutritionists to physical therapists, blah, blah, blah.
Speaker B:The financial guys waiting at the 18th hole afterwards to tell them, well, you made 1.3 today, and this is how we're going to do it.
Speaker B:And his was, like, genuine family.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:And his wife.
Speaker A:I again, did some homework on her.
Speaker A:She won eight times on the Indian tour as a professional touring golfer.
Speaker A:You know, she's a hell of a player.
Speaker A:And people have gone back and reposted the video of her at the par three contest at the Masters, when she caddied for her husband.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker A:And took a swing at one of the par threes, and everybody went, oh.
Speaker A:Oh, wow, she can play.
Speaker A:Wait a minute.
Speaker A:It was like, oh, this is not okay.
Speaker A:Wait, this is not a grandson or a kid taking like, oh, crap, she can play.
Speaker A:And he says that when they practice together, they don't play a lot together is what he said, but they practice a lot together, and they'll do chipping and putting contests.
Speaker A:And he says that she usually beats him, which is amazing for a PGA champion.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker A:I mean, think about that as opposed to coming home and, hey, honey, how was your day?
Speaker A:And all G was, I'm sorry you lost.
Speaker A:Like, she understands the grind.
Speaker A:She knows exactly what he's doing and what he had to do to get to where he is.
Speaker A:But like I said, I chopped up about four minutes of that press conference, and I'm just completely impressed with the man.
Speaker B:What?
Speaker B:What.
Speaker B:Of all the little subtexts that we just talked about, what was the one thing that really stood out to you as far as his playing?
Speaker A:Well, the fact that he's not the longest player, you know, he.
Speaker A:He doesn't hit it very far.
Speaker A:He relies on long irons, which he's very good at.
Speaker A:And the fact that he, you know, there were charges being mounted by some of the best players in The World, by McElroy, by, you know, guys Scheffler and Koepka and guys that were expected to contend.
Speaker A:And I think that many of us who didn't know much about Aaron Rye thought Sunday, he's going to be in trouble.
Speaker A:You know, this lead's not going to hold up.
Speaker A:And the guy for the last 10 holes didn't miss a shot.
Speaker A:He didn't miss a single shot for the last 10 holes on Sunday at a Runamake.
Speaker A:And that's just mental fortitude.
Speaker A:I mean, just sticking to your game plan.
Speaker A:Do as he said in his press conference.
Speaker A:His father always Taught him, stay in your lane, do what you're good at.
Speaker A:Don't worry about the opposition.
Speaker A:Stick with what got you here.
Speaker A:And in those situations, I mean, you know, you know, when you play any kind of competitive round and things maybe go a little bit awry, it starts to speed up, you know, your mind starts racing.
Speaker A:And that never happened to him.
Speaker A:He never lost focus.
Speaker A:He never looked like he was in trouble for the last 10 holes on Sunday.
Speaker A:I think that's what struck me most.
Speaker B:Do you think that sometimes we, as the almighty Press, sometimes make assumptions?
Speaker B:I know I do.
Speaker B:And then come 5 o' clock on Sunday when they're handing out the trophy, I went, wow, I didn't see that happening.
Speaker A:I didn't see it happening.
Speaker A:I knew who he was.
Speaker A:Having worked in golf for 15 years, I knew who he was and I knew about the gloves.
Speaker A:I knew his backstory and I knew that, you know, how he had grown up and where he had played.
Speaker A:But no, I didn't, I didn't see it coming.
Speaker A:And I think that even on the TV broadcast, I think they were a little surprised that he didn't crumble.
Speaker A:You know, I think they were expecting, I feel like no knock on CBS and selling shy and all those guys.
Speaker A:I mean, they're all people that I know and I've worked with, but I think they were kind of looking around for, okay, where's the charge going to come from?
Speaker A:And it's.
Speaker A:He didn't, he didn't falter, you know, he didn't break.
Speaker A:And I thought that was again, the most striking part of Sunday.
Speaker A:He just didn't break.
Speaker A:He didn't miss a shot for his last 10 holes.
Speaker B:Well, there's so many times that we've, we watched tournaments or we're covering tournaments and just what you were referring to a Scheffler or McElroy or whomever, the guy that we've never heard of before kind of falls off the edge, he hits a sand shot and skulls it across the green and, or puts it in the bleachers, whatever, and costs him a couple strokes.
Speaker B:Then pretty soon he's downtied for seventh and they go, well, he made a top 10.
Speaker B:And that's really great, like this and this.
Speaker B:But in watching it, just what you said, Aaron Rye, he didn't blink.
Speaker A:No, no, it's.
Speaker A:Again, it's a testament to sticking to what got you there.
Speaker A:He was true to himself.
Speaker A:He stayed in the moment.
Speaker A:He hit the shots that he knew how to hit.
Speaker A:He didn't try to do anything Crazy.
Speaker A:He didn't try to cut corners, he didn't try to unleash a drive.
Speaker A:I think he averaged.
Speaker A:I think his longest drive of the day was 309 or something like that.
Speaker A:He's not a long hitter.
Speaker A:And in this day and age, that's a serious disadvantage, as you know.
Speaker B:Sure, sure.
Speaker A:When you've got Kapka and McElroy out there getting 357 yard drives, he just stuck to his guns.
Speaker A:And I think that.
Speaker A:And the other thing that struck me to kind of go back to a question you asked before, when McElroy was interviewed after that PGA Championship, he said something to the effect of.
Speaker A:Something to the effect of.
Speaker A:There is no person on this property that isn't happy for Aaron Rye.
Speaker A:He said that he's one of the most liked and respected guys on the Tour.
Speaker A:He's just genuinely friendly and genuinely a kind human being.
Speaker A:And to succeed at the highest level of golf, typically, I've always said you've got to be either really smart or really dumb.
Speaker A:You've got to be.
Speaker A:I'm serious.
Speaker A:Like you're either you're Dustin Johnson or you're Phil Mickelson.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:Or Bryson DeChambeau.
Speaker A:You're either a genius or you're just impervious because you're not paying attention and rise.
Speaker A:Clearly a very, very bright guy.
Speaker A:If you listen to him talk.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker A:And for him to, to stay in that moment and, and do what he does and to have the universal respect and admiration.
Speaker A:There's very few players that generate that kind of reaction from everybody in the field.
Speaker A:When McElroy said what he said, that there's not a single person here that isn't happy for Aaron Rye.
Speaker A:I think that speaks volumes to the guy's character.
Speaker B:Oh, absolutely.
Speaker B:Hey, Whit and I are going to take a break.
Speaker B:We're going to be back in just a minute here on Grilling at the Green.
Speaker B:Stay with us.
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Speaker B:Welcome back to grilling at 39Jt.
Speaker B:Today we've got our friend of show, as they like to say in our world.
Speaker B:Whit Watson from, well, from everywhere now from Golf Channel, from espn, from Westwood One, his own media credentials podcast.
Speaker B:You see him out there doing stuff.
Speaker B:One of the greatest voices in broadcasting today.
Speaker A:I, I like that.
Speaker B:No, it's a, I don't know about that.
Speaker B:Let me switch gears here for a minute.
Speaker B:When you look at a leaderboard on Saturday morning, okay, you get online or you look at the one at the course, but usually online, what's the first thing you look at?
Speaker A:That's a great question.
Speaker A:I think the first thing I look at in practical terms, my radio shows at 9 o' clock on Saturday morning in Orlando and Jacksonville.
Speaker A:So the first thing that I would look at is who missed the cut.
Speaker A:Are there any notables that didn't make the weekend?
Speaker A:And the second thing I would look at is who had a big round on Friday to get into the weekend.
Speaker A:Because that I believe in momentum.
Speaker A:I believe that one round carries to the next.
Speaker A:And so I guess that's, yeah, I look at the top and I look at the cut and then the guys in the middle, you know, it having done this for a long time, you can kind of make a guess tournament to tournament.
Speaker A:As to how far back is too far back as golf channels.
Speaker A:Brian Hammonds used to say, you know, I'll look at anybody within about four shots of the lead, four or five, because that really is going to determine the winner on Sunday is who's within shouting distance on Saturday.
Speaker B:I think you nailed it first.
Speaker B:As far as comparatively speaking, I look at who missed the cut.
Speaker B:All right.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:I look at the top, you can't help but look at the top.
Speaker B:But I always scroll down, look at the cut because one of the things is, and it's, and I know we've got a job to do and all that, but a lot of times our commentators on various platforms and they're all great people for the most part, oh.
Speaker A:Boy, here we go.
Speaker B:You know, but they, when they, they, they're kind of going back and forth about this and that and this and that and, and I always look and say, I'll just, I wrote this down.
Speaker B:So we, you look to miss the cut on this one.
Speaker B:He had Bryson Snedeker, Woodland Bradley, J.J. spawn, Adam Scott, Wyndham Clark, the list goes on.
Speaker B:None of those guys are slouches.
Speaker B:Some major winners in there.
Speaker B:All right.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:And you look at that.
Speaker B:And you say, any given, any given Saturday, it can be different.
Speaker B:And sometimes I think we in the media kind of forget that I, as I said, going into.
Speaker B:Or as we were leaving the last segment, we make assumptions sometimes, and I think sometimes they go by so quick that most people don't catch them.
Speaker B:Except guys like you and I will go back and look and say, look at these guys last week, you know, whoever Woodland or Snedeker Spawn or somebody was in the top five or they won or whatever.
Speaker B:So it, it's so volatile that, you know, I think sometimes they're a little harsh on these guys.
Speaker B:That's, that's my take.
Speaker A:I think what it speaks to is the margins are so slim on the PGA Tour.
Speaker A:And from.
Speaker A:There's my dog Mabel, by the way.
Speaker A:She always show.
Speaker A:Hi, Mabel.
Speaker A:The margins are so slim and the, the, the gap from 1 to 125 is very small.
Speaker A:All of these guys can win.
Speaker A:If you're on the PGA Tour, you can win, right?
Speaker A:Because you've gotten there in the first place, right?
Speaker A:But it comes down to a shot, a putter.
Speaker A:Koepka talked about it this week heading into the CJ Cup, Byron Nelson, that he had just switched putters and gone back.
Speaker A:He'd done a whole bunch of testing at home because his putter failed him at the PGA Championship.
Speaker A:So he decided to go back and retool and try to figure out something to help him.
Speaker A:And he played great the first day on Thursday.
Speaker A:I say this all the time.
Speaker A:The talent level from the Korn Ferry Tour to the PGA Tour, from 1 to 300, the gap is so small.
Speaker A:And it comes down to the tiniest things.
Speaker A:It comes down to one shot, one missed putt.
Speaker A:Everybody out there can win.
Speaker A:If they couldn't, they wouldn't be on the tour in the first place, right?
Speaker A:And I think that's kind of the answer to the question is, God, these guys.
Speaker A:Well, as a PGA Tour used to say, these guys are good, right?
Speaker B:These guys are good.
Speaker A:It's a hard game.
Speaker A:I think it was Scheffler or Koepka this week who said prior to the tournament, this is the hardest game in the world and everybody out there can win.
Speaker A:They can all play.
Speaker A:It's just the mental grind.
Speaker A:Moment to moment is what separates winners.
Speaker B:And losers, you know, and it can be the simplest thing.
Speaker B:It can be a bug flies on, not in, but on your nose, and you have to back off a shot and it breaks your concentration.
Speaker B:I mean, I, I'm not sure the average non golf Nerd, if you will, understands that, you know, we do, because, you know, we covered and we play okay, so you understand that.
Speaker B:But somebody just watching from the cheap seats and, you know, this guy's been hitting them good or this lady's been hitting them good all day, and all of a sudden something goes wrong and they scull it or shank it or do all the evil words that are in our vocabulary, you know, and.
Speaker B:And they were, like you said, putting a press on for they were in the top five, maybe heading for the top spot, something like that happens.
Speaker B:And they drop two shots, and then you don't hear from them the rest of the day because it's up here with them, you know, it's up here.
Speaker A:So on my show, I'm really good friends with Gary Christian, who used to play on the PGA Tour.
Speaker A:He was one of the oldest rookies ever to make the PGA Tour.
Speaker A:And every week he comes on and he records very graciously, a tip, a golf tip that I play on the show.
Speaker A:And one thing that he talks about a lot is when you watch the pros play, don't watch the distances they hit it because you can't hit that shot right.
Speaker A:Watch the routine, watch how they prepare for each shot, watch how they go through the same motions and the same routine on every shot.
Speaker A:And he talks a lot about eliminating the big mistake, eliminate the double bogeys and staying present before every shot, which I think is.
Speaker A:And he's got a website.
Speaker A:Garychristiangolf.com I'm going to go ahead and pimp him because he's doing me a favor.
Speaker A:I'll do him a favor.
Speaker B:Sure, sure.
Speaker A:GaryChristianGolf.com where he will book sessions with recreational players online and help them develop a practice plan so that when you go out to practice, you're not just wildly hitting drivers and just farting around, hitting balls.
Speaker A:A bucket of 100 balls.
Speaker A:You're practicing with a purpose.
Speaker A:And I think that is what we can learn from the best players in the world, is having a plan, understanding how you hit the ball.
Speaker A:If you hit a fade, hit a fade.
Speaker A:If you hit a draw, hit a draw.
Speaker A:Where to aim.
Speaker A:You know where to miss.
Speaker A:He talks about playing in pro ams with captains of industry who fall in love with their best shot ever.
Speaker A:You're not going to hit that shot every single time.
Speaker A:What's the shot you're going to hit most often?
Speaker A:Play that shot.
Speaker A:And I think that we can learn a lot as recreational players from that mentality is, you know, Play the game you brought that day.
Speaker A:Stay present, you know, stay short of the hole if you have to.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker A:And kind of stick with it.
Speaker A:And yeah, I've learned a lot from him, actually, in these recordings we do, we sit and record about like six at a time.
Speaker A:Sure.
Speaker A:And then I chop him up and I play him back on the show and he's, he's really got it nailed.
Speaker A:He's, he's a great mental coach in that regard, targeting recreational players and junior golfers to help them understand how to get better.
Speaker B:That's, that's a wildly challenging ambition, but somebody's got to do it.
Speaker B:I'll put it right.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:Hey, Whit and I are going to take another break here on grilling at the Green on Golf News Network.
Speaker B:We'll be back in just a couple of minutes.
Speaker B:Stay with us.
Speaker B:Hey, everybody, it's jt.
Speaker B:You know, I talk about Painted Hills all the time and we always say beef the way nature intended.
Speaker B:But it's more than that because each bite of Painted Hills will make your taste buds explode, put a big, bright smile on your face, and whoever is at your dinner table will have a big, bright smile on their face.
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Speaker A:Foreign.
Speaker B:Welcome back to Girling.
Speaker B:It's Green on jt.
Speaker B:Don't forget, as I say all the time we are on Golf Newsnet, but we are also on all your podcast platforms.
Speaker B:If you live on the west coast, you live in like Portland, Seattle and some of those places, you can find us on the radio.
Speaker B:But really, honestly, we're much Stronger on Golf NewsNet and the pods.
Speaker B:You know, it's just the way things are working these days.
Speaker B:So, you know, I'm being, being pretty forthright about that.
Speaker B:And coming up in just about a three weeks, a month, the second tournament in our North Valley Challenge series that I put together out here is at Tualton Country Club.
Speaker B:You can go to northvalleychallenge.com and find out more information there.
Speaker B:I want to talk to you about a couple other players with.
Speaker B:First of all, I will let me jump back for a second what you were talking about, Gary and his tips.
Speaker B:I think the one thing I've gotten from doing this show for the last almost 10 years now is just what he's talking about.
Speaker B:Prior to that, I would go up and just like try to pound it or pull off some shot or, you know what.
Speaker B:And 95 of the time, failure.
Speaker B:Right yeah, because I'm normal.
Speaker B:But the one thing I've learned is to try to, you know, visualize what I want to do, get up there, get my stance where I'm comfortable, same stance every time, that type of thing.
Speaker B:And that has helped me immensely.
Speaker B:So that.
Speaker B:That's just from a practical standpoint, but for the average golfers listening to this.
Speaker B:Yeah, Whit is right.
Speaker B:Gary's.
Speaker B:And all those guys that tell you how to do that, they're right.
Speaker B:So shape up here.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker B:After the round and during the round, at a couple depressors, we had guys like Rory, and.
Speaker B:Because he's the most prominent kind of complaining about the setup of the course.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:You know, I don't think the PGA or the.
Speaker B:The.
Speaker B:The.
Speaker B:Any of either of the two Opens should ever be compared to a.
Speaker B:One of the 35 other events or whatever it is that they're supposed to be a test, they're supposed to be a challenge, and they're not always perfectly manicured, if you know what I mean.
Speaker B:I mean, the course is always great, but you know what I'm talking about.
Speaker B:The rough is at 1.37 inches high, you know, like that.
Speaker B:And I kind of get disillusioned with that.
Speaker B: hen it was at Chambers Bay in: Speaker B:My buddy and I went up and played Chambers right afterwards, and I could.
Speaker B:And I could understand the complaints because I was actually on the course and played it, and it was.
Speaker B:It was pretty rough in spots.
Speaker B:But I think, overall, these guys are making a boatload of money that are the best in the world.
Speaker B:I mean, you got to take it as it comes.
Speaker B:That's my take.
Speaker B:I wanted to get yours.
Speaker A:Everybody's playing the same course, so if it's.
Speaker A:If the setup is, quote, unquote, unfair or overly tough or what have you, everyone's playing the same course, so who cares, right?
Speaker A:It's.
Speaker A:And par is a suggestion the US Open likes to say.
Speaker A:We're not trying to embarrass the best players in the world.
Speaker A:We're trying to identify them, and they.
Speaker A:You know, they set up US Opens specifically in a certain way to make it very penal if you miss a fairway.
Speaker A:You know, the greens are always vicious, but everybody's.
Speaker A:Everyone's playing the same golf course, so it doesn't really matter if it's hard or tough.
Speaker A:We.
Speaker A:We actually had last week the head pro at a golf course in Philadelphia that's about nine miles away from Iranomake, and he's played in the PGA Championship Four times as one of the, you know, one of the 20 guys that.
Speaker B:Qualified the PGA Club Pro guys.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker A:And he's played around a make a million times.
Speaker A:And I said, have you ever seen the pins in that location at Ironomic?
Speaker A:And he said, yeah, all the time.
Speaker A:Every time we play a PGA Club Pro event at a run, Amen.
Speaker A:That's where they put them.
Speaker A:It's not.
Speaker A:It wasn't just for the PGA Championship.
Speaker A:That's what they do to make it hard.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:You're a professional golfer.
Speaker A:That's, you know, so what I mean, that's your job.
Speaker A:That's your job, you know, and, and if you have to.
Speaker A:And if you understand Donald Ross as an architect, he always rewarded playing for the middle of the green.
Speaker A:He always rewarded.
Speaker A:If you hit it to the middle of the green, you got a shot at par.
Speaker A:And okay, that's fine.
Speaker A:You know, other designers did it differently, but that was Donald Ross's trademark, was if you find the green, you've got a chance.
Speaker A:But don't go hunting flags or you're going to get in trouble.
Speaker A:And so I understand.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:There was a lot of talk about the setup at Arundam Inc. And, you know, Thursday, Friday, they had cool, blustery weather.
Speaker A:And I think it was Jason Sobel, my former colleague from Golf Channel, who said, we're playing a PGA Championship under US Open conditions with Open championship weather.
Speaker A:Which I thought was pretty clever, right?
Speaker B:Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Speaker A:But the pga, I mean, that's, that's.
Speaker A:They wanted to distinguish themselves with this event.
Speaker A: not hosted a men's PGA since: Speaker B:They did.
Speaker A:But the guy that one was nine under Jeff.
Speaker A:I mean, it wasn't like they were, you know, par was not necessarily your friend.
Speaker A:I mean, Rye won it nine under par.
Speaker A:So obviously he figured it out.
Speaker A:A guy that doesn't hit it very far hits a lot of greens.
Speaker A:He made one miracle 65 foot putt on 17 on Sunday, which he said he was not trying to make, but other than that, he just hit greens.
Speaker B:Well, he.
Speaker A:Worse than that.
Speaker B:I think you, you touched on it there and I think it was.
Speaker B:Scheffler said you talked about flag hunting.
Speaker B:And he said in his presser, and maybe I've got the wrong person, but he said something like the flag on 16 or what, he goes, I really had no business going after that flag, but I did and I paid for it.
Speaker A:Right?
Speaker B:So, I mean, that tells you.
Speaker B:And if you look, you know, when you're watching it on tv, these beautiful aerials that they have, the drones and cbs, they got the Goodyear blimp or whatever, it's, it's looks deceptively simple.
Speaker B:Yeah, that course does, you know.
Speaker B:Yeah, it's a beautiful layout.
Speaker B:It looks like your local country club, men's club type thing like that.
Speaker B:But I think if you get out there, you're going to find out it's different.
Speaker A:Well, there's not a flat putt on any green on the golf course.
Speaker A:That was one thing we learned about Iranomake.
Speaker A:There are no flat putts.
Speaker A:A three footer could break two feet.
Speaker A:And the one thing about Ross, every course he designed, it was all right in front of you.
Speaker A:There's no blind tee shots, there's no, you know, you crest a hill and find out there's water left.
Speaker A:He didn't do that.
Speaker A:Everything was laid out right in front of you.
Speaker A:It was just an examination.
Speaker A:Can you hit the fairway, can you hit the green?
Speaker A:And like a lot of Donald Ross courses, Aeronomink is one where if you're long, you're dead, you can't be long.
Speaker A:A lot of Ross courses, the green slopes back to front.
Speaker A:So.
Speaker A:And he was designing these courses in the 20s and 30s when the equipment was different, the athletes were different, the ball was different, and they played it much lower.
Speaker A:The game was not an in the air game, it was an on the ground game.
Speaker A:So you can run it up.
Speaker A:There's always an entryway to a Donald Ross green on the ground.
Speaker A:And so if you were smart as Rye was and played it short, you had a chance to get up and down.
Speaker A:That's just a hallmark of that architect.
Speaker A:That's just what he does.
Speaker A:And the guys that were patient and disciplined were the guys that finished well at the PGA Championship at that golf course.
Speaker A:You know, we, the PGA Tour today, as you know, all these guys can hit 230 yard five irons straight up in the air and land them on the hood of a car.
Speaker A:But that's not what that golf course called for, that.
Speaker A:It's not a tpc, it's a Donald Ross.
Speaker A:So I think that the players that played well understood that and finished well accordingly.
Speaker B:Well, I think again, I'll go back to the aerials.
Speaker B:If you looked at the aerials, because they showed them every time they came on the air and some of the breaks and stuff, but there was always a pathway.
Speaker B:You could just see it right from 20 yards out or whatever.
Speaker B:The distance was right up to the middle.
Speaker B:Of the green screen.
Speaker A:And if you follow.
Speaker B:If you followed the map, you were probably going to be okay.
Speaker B:But if you were getting directions from your drinking buddy on.
Speaker B:You know what I mean?
Speaker B:Let's take a left here.
Speaker B:Not going to work.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:I'm partial to Ross.
Speaker A:When I worked at espn, we lived in Connecticut for about seven years, and I was a member at a Donald Ross course in West Hartford, Connecticut, called Wampanoag.
Speaker A:And so I played that course, I don't know, 300 times.
Speaker A:I mean, I played there two or three days a week because we all worked at night and had our days free.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker A:And I just.
Speaker A:I love the architecture.
Speaker A:I love the green complexes.
Speaker A:I love the fact that, as you just said, there's always a pathway.
Speaker A:If you just follow the plan, there's a pathway.
Speaker A:You know, it wasn't deceptive.
Speaker A:It wasn't penal necessarily.
Speaker A:It was just patience, discipline.
Speaker A:And if you play short, there's a par there.
Speaker A:There's always a way up.
Speaker B:Yep.
Speaker B:And that's more my game than totally, you know, I'm not taking a wedge and hitting it 196, you know, which.
Speaker A:Which goes back to what Gary was saying.
Speaker A:You can't watch these guys and club yourself off of the PGA Tour players, you know.
Speaker B:Oh, no.
Speaker A:Bryson hitting a seven iron, 200 yards.
Speaker A:No one does that.
Speaker A:No one does that.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:You're better off watching the LPGA as a recreational player, especially guys our age.
Speaker A:You're better off watching the LPGA when they're pulling head covers off for a second shot on par fours.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker A:That's our game, Jeff.
Speaker A:That's what we do.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:How many times do you hit hybrid into a par 4 or 7 wood or what have you?
Speaker A:I mean, I do it all the time.
Speaker B:Yep.
Speaker A:And, yeah, so I. I just.
Speaker A:I think that, like I said, there's a lot to be learned.
Speaker B:I'm not quite where Freddy Couples is with, you know, seven hybrids and woods in my bag, but me neither.
Speaker B:I've got four.
Speaker A:I do have a seven wood.
Speaker A:For the first time in my life, I have a seven wood and a four wood and a driver.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker A:And I love.
Speaker A:That's.
Speaker A:That's my lumber.
Speaker A:That's it.
Speaker B:I love them.
Speaker B:Hey, we're gonna.
Speaker B:I'm over as normal, but that's okay.
Speaker B:I'm talking to wit.
Speaker B:We're gonna take a break, come back and wrap up the show, and we will do a short after hours today talking about some specific players, because that part doesn't get broadcasted over the FCC airways.
Speaker B:So we can talk, do what we want.
Speaker B:Anyway.
Speaker B:We'll be right back.
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Speaker B:Go to birdieball.com check out the actual birdie ball, their packages, their putting greens, which I happen to have a couple of those and they work great.
Speaker B:Birdieball.com.
Speaker B:Welcome back to Drilling it to Green.
Speaker B:I'm jt Today we've got Whit Watson.
Speaker B:Check out his media credential show.
Speaker B:I've been on the show.
Speaker B:He does a great job with it.
Speaker B:Very interesting people.
Speaker B:Whit's kind of taken the approach that I did with this show.
Speaker B:I, I don't always go after Rory or something like that because I probably couldn't get him anyway.
Speaker B:But I, I do media people, people within the golf industry, people that have made contributions, added something and I find those stories fascinating.
Speaker B:And that's what doesn't just talk about golf in media credentials.
Speaker B:But that's the premise, I think, of his show and he does a great job with it.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker B:I gotta tell you, one guy I'm continually impressed with still is Justin Rose.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:You know, the guys like the Energizer.
Speaker A:Bunny, I mean, 45 years old, 45 years old, where he should be in that in between zone between the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker A:And he's competing in majors.
Speaker A:It's, he keeps himself in great shape.
Speaker A:Obviously.
Speaker A:He works very hard.
Speaker A:He's got a swing that is not hard.
Speaker A:It's not easy to break that swing.
Speaker A:It's a very simple motion which is I think equal parts practice and equal parts just God given talent.
Speaker A:He just has a simple motion.
Speaker A:And you know, those guys like couples, you know, the guys that have a repeatable motion are going to play forever.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker A:And yeah, I, I totally agree with you.
Speaker A:I mean, it would not be a stretch if he plays at the level that he's playing now to see him on a Ryder cup team again as a player, not as a vice captain.
Speaker A:As a player.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker A:Year they're in Ireland, he'll be 46.
Speaker A:Would anybody be surprised if he made the team?
Speaker A:I mean, the way he's Playing right now.
Speaker B:Well, look at Langer and Monty.
Speaker B:They're 117 years old between the two of them.
Speaker B:And they hung on, like, to the Ryder cup spots forever.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:You know, so it's doable.
Speaker B:And.
Speaker B:And Justin, I don't know him, but like you said, he's in better shape.
Speaker B:His swing is very silky, if you will, very smooth.
Speaker B:Simple like that.
Speaker B:He's not likely to get hurt with one of these big, complicated, you know, gonna kill it, every shot type thing.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker B:Like that.
Speaker B:I'm just completely.
Speaker B:Every time I see him play, I'm just more impressed.
Speaker B:And I've always liked him since he was, you know, came out of the Faldo deal or whatever.
Speaker B:That was 30 years ago, but he.
Speaker B:He's just the Energizer Bunny, man.
Speaker B:He just keeps going.
Speaker B:And I. I think that's great.
Speaker A:I think about him, and I forgot what year it was.
Speaker A:Maybe you'll remember when he was an amateur playing in the British Open and he hold out on the final hole.
Speaker A:Was that 99?
Speaker A:I can't remember where I was gonna.
Speaker B:Say, like, 98 or 99.
Speaker A:98, Maybe.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker A:And Mike Tirico was on the call and gave one of the best.
Speaker A:I mean, Tirico is the best that ever did it, for one thing, but he.
Speaker A:His comment was, way to go, kid.
Speaker A:And Rose finished as the low AM at his national championship, at the Open Championship, and then went through that long streak when he turned pro where he couldn't make a cut, he couldn't break an egg.
Speaker A:And look at where he is now.
Speaker A:Major champion, probably going to be in the hall of Fame.
Speaker B:Oh, sure.
Speaker A:Multiple Ryder Cups.
Speaker A:Still competing in majors at the age of 45.
Speaker A:Yeah, he.
Speaker A:I agree with you.
Speaker A:He's.
Speaker A:He is one of my favorites to watch.
Speaker B:I think when he gets to that 50 mark, I think he can, at his leisure and choice, go terrorize the Champions Tour and.
Speaker A:Absolutely.
Speaker B:And cherry pick what he wants to play on the big tour and win it both.
Speaker A:If.
Speaker B:If he stays perfectly healthy, which he.
Speaker B:No reason he shouldn't.
Speaker B:You know what I mean?
Speaker A:Look at Stuart Sink.
Speaker A:I mean, he's killing it on the Senior Tour right now.
Speaker A:Again, he's owned that tour this year.
Speaker A:He's won two majors.
Speaker A:And again, a big guy like Rose doesn't get hurt.
Speaker A:Simple motion hits it a long way, and he's just crushing that tour right now.
Speaker A:If Rose decides to go that route and play the Senior Tour.
Speaker A:Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker A:He's going to be a force.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:I just, I. I really like watching him.
Speaker B:We've only got about a minute left, so we'll.
Speaker B:We'll pick up my next two topics and on the after hours, give us a 32nd final overview of the PGA.
Speaker B:Whit Watson's personal take.
Speaker A:I loved it.
Speaker A:I loved watching it.
Speaker A:I thought the golf course showed out.
Speaker A:I thought it was worthy of a major championship.
Speaker A:The town showed out.
Speaker A:Philadelphia is a great sports town, no matter what you say about their fans.
Speaker A:They showed out for that event and gave Rye a lot of energy.
Speaker A:And he said himself, this is not me, this is the champion.
Speaker A:A Brit that no one knew in Philly.
Speaker A:He said the fan support on the final day was off the charts.
Speaker A:He loved playing there.
Speaker A:Said they were behind him, they weren't pulling against him.
Speaker A:There was no Rory McElroy USA chant kind of thing.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker A:He said they carried him to that title and I just thought it was right up there with the Masters.
Speaker A:I can't wait for the next two majors.
Speaker A:I mean, if the next two match the first two, we're in for a hell of a year in golf.
Speaker B:Oh, yeah, we are.
Speaker B:Okay, Whit, everybody where they can find you and where they can find media credentials.
Speaker A:I appreciate that.
Speaker A:So my website is whitwatson.com W-H-I-T-W-A-T-S-O-N.com and that's kind of a one stop shop.
Speaker A:It's got a link to the radio show, a link to the podcast, a link to the blog.
Speaker A:All the work I do for Westwood One is posted there.
Speaker A:College basketball, college football, all the freelance stuff that I do.
Speaker A:Whitwatson.com Best place to find me.
Speaker B:There you go.
Speaker B:We appreciate it as always, my friend.
Speaker B:Guess what, folks?
Speaker B:I've got former NFL quarterback Neil Lomax coming up in a couple of weeks.
Speaker B:We don't live that far apart.
Speaker B:I didn't realize that.
Speaker B:Anyway, we've got Neil coming up here.
Speaker B:And so for Whit and myself, thank you for listening.
Speaker B:Go out, play some golf, have some fun, enjoy the holidays this summer and we'll see you next time.
Speaker B:Take care.
Speaker A:Grilling at the Green is produced by JTSD Productions, LLC in association with Salem Media Group.
Speaker B:All rights reserve.
