Golf Podcast: next on the tee

America’s Caddie Michael Collins Tells How He Went From Comedian, To Little Hootie, To Caddie, To Broadcaster, To Photographer, To Being the ”Dream”...

America's Caddie Michael Collins joins me in this bonus segment of the show.
Michaels shares his story of how wanting to make his mom laugh put him on the path to becoming a comedian. We hear about how he got over the fear of going up on stage the first time and the rush of getting that first laugh. Michael shares the story of meeting his first PGA Tour Pro, Omar Uresti, and how laughter helped Omar relax during his rounds and led to Michael getting inside the ropes, then inside the PGA Tour. We also hear how he got his start broadcasting for Sirius/XM radio and the night Pat Perez got hammered during their show Out of Bounds.
Michael has added great photographer to his long list of talents thanks to his personality (listen to the story) and some help from Ken Griffey Jr.
Michael makes our game, and this segment, so much fun because he's in it. I'm incredibly thankful for the time I got to spend with him. When you listen to this segment, you'll understand why he's quickly become one of my favorites.

Gary Player Shares Why He Ranked The Masters Last Among The Majors, Why He’s Still Searching to Play Better, Staying Mentally Strong at 87, & Much More...

This is the 10th year in a row that I've been blessed to spend time with Gary Player prior to Masters week. This year we talked about:
His search to still play better at 87 years of age.
How he kept his mind and body sharp back when traveling from tournament to tournament in the 1950s & 60s was much more of a grind than it is now.
If LIV Golf will have longevity.
The importance longevity should play when thinking of the greatest players of all-time.
Could we be embarking on a new era Big 3 with Scottie Scheffler, Jon Rahm, and Rory McIlroy.
We reminisce about his 1978 Masters victory.
The death threats he used to receive because of his stance on apartheid.
Dealing with fans who were actively rooting against him and Jack Nicklaus because they adored Arnold Palmer so much.
How great Bobby Locke could have been if the PGA Tour would have allowed him to stay on Tour.
And why he is the voice of my conscience.

Talking Masters Past & Present Plus Growing The Game with Mark Calcavecchia, Olin Browne, Geoff Lofstead, & John Patrick...

We recap this year's Masters Tournament plus look back to Mark Calcavecchia's runner-up finish in 1988 and Olin Browne's first appearance in the Masters in 1998. John Patrick, Host of the Augusta Golf Show, shares his thoughts on this year's tournament plus some of the rumored new expansions at Augusta National. South Florida Executive Direct of the PGA of America, Geoff Lofstead, talks about their relationship with Jack Nicklaus and Jack's Play Yellow Birdie Bash. We also hear about how the Section is working with former Steelers WR Santonio Holmes to help grow the game at his high school alma mater in Belle Glade, Florida.

Talking Masters, Growing the Game, & How to Successful Bet on It with Tom Patri, Donnie Hammond, Jane Blalock, & Keith Stewart...

We talk all things Masters in this episode of Next on the Tee with my guests Tom Patri, Donnie Hammond, Jane Blalock, and Keith Stewart.
Tom Patri shares his favorite Masters memories, whom he likes to be at the top of the leaderboard Sunday evening, and the lengthening of the 13th hole. We also hear his thoughts about what it would be like if one of the LIV players were to win.
Donnie Hammond shares his memories of playing in The Masters. We hear about his first drive up Magnolia Lane, the practice round he played with Arnold Palmer, what it was like being in the 2nd to last group in the final round of the '86 Masters, and how he ranks the 4 majors.
Jane Blalock talks about the short-lived Women's Masters Tournament, the growth of women's golf, the painting LeRoy Nieman did of her, and the Legends of the LPGA Tour.
Keith Stewart teaches us how to bet and handicap golf tournaments. If you're looking for betting advice, no one has EVER done it better than Keith. Check out his site, www.readtheline.com.

Tim Simpson, Suzy Whaley, Frank Nobilo, & Bart Romano Join Me...

On this episode I'm joined by 4-time winner on the PGA Tour and one of the all-time great ball strikers Tim Simpson, former President of the PGA of America and now President of Golf Nation Suzy Whaley, former PGA Tour Pro now one of the all-time great Broadcasters Frank Nobilo, and the Director of Golf at Caledonia Golf & Fish Club and True Blue Golf Club in Myrtle Beach, Bart Romano.
Tim Simpson and I start off talking about the mental game and the work he's doing with a company called Cerefit/Zing Performance. They have vastly improved his mental approach and cognitive thinking through mind exercises he does every day. We also get his perspective on the rolling-the-ball back issue, plus we hear his memories of playing at Oak Hill site of this year's PGA Championship.
Suzy Whaley also weighs in on the proposed Model Local Rule of rolling the ball and her thoughts if the Tours don't approve it what that does to their relationship with USGA & R&A. Suzy is now the President of a new golf platform called Golf Nation that's about to be rolled out. We hear about the unique content they'll have available on there including being able to purchase gear right from our smart TVs, iPad, & mobile phones plus watch her show, "Don't I Know You".
Frank Nobilo talks about the preparation that goes into The Masters broadcast. We hear his thoughts on how awkward the Champions Dinner could be with the former champions, who are now playing on the LIV Tour, back in the room. We also get his thoughts on who he likes to be on top of the leaderboard come Sunday evening.
Bart Romano is the Director of Golf at Caledonia Golf & Fish Club and True Blue Golf Club. They are two of the top courses not only in Myrtle Beach, but also on the Top 100 list you can play according to Golf Magazine, Golf Digest, and Golfweek. Bart talks about the design of both courses and the esthetic beauty that surrounds them. It's easy to understand why our friend Charlie Rymer says they are two of his favorite courses in Myrtle Beach.

Rolling Back the Ball, Bifurcation, LIV, Life of a PGA Professional...

This week on Next on the Tee I was joined by two of the Top Instructors in the game Tom Patri and John Hughes plus PGA Professional Hall of Famer Bob Ford, and 2UNDR VP of Sales and Skoni Founder Jack Curry.
Tom Patri tries to explain why I'm wrong for agreeing that the golf ball needs to be rolled back. We also talk about what The Masters Champions Dinner and tournament might be like with the LIV players invited back to the dinner and in the field.
Bob Ford shares his thoughts on why I'm right that the ball does need to be rolled back and should have been years ago. We also hear what it was like for him as a first-year Assistant Pro at Oakmont, living up on the third floor of the clubhouse.
John Hughes also weighs in on rolling back the ball plus we talk about the Club Pro crisis. John also give us a playing lesson on how ball position impacts ball flight and a tip for how to get your body prepared for the new golf season.
Jack Curry introduces us to Skoni golf shoes which won Best in Show at this year's PGA Merchandise Show. We hear how they created a shoe that you can wear all day at the office or out and about and then go right to the first tee. We hear why their revolutionary sole won't wear out with daily wear. Jack also updates us on all the great new, fun designs they have this spring at 2undr. When you do your spring cleaning, clean out that underwear drawer and get the ones the pros are wearing. You can use code nextontee20 to save 20% on www.skoni.com and code Next20 to save 20% on www.2undr.com

Rolling Back the Ball, Bifurcation, & Much More From Hal Sutton, John Cook, & Top Instructor Rob Strano...

In this episode, I'm joined by Top Instructor and Host of The Golf Kingdom TV Show Rob Strano, 1983 PGA Champion and 2x Players Champion Hal Sutton, and 21-time winner between the PGA Tour & Champions Tour, John Cook.
Rob Strano takes on the course at The Players Championship. Rob hosted a camp for deaf players on the grounds that week. We also get a taste of the Veterans Appreciation Event and what TV doesn't do justice to regarding the course. Rob also shares his thoughts on the rollback of the golf ball and helps us hit better pitch shots from 40-60 yards off the green.
Hal Sutton takes us back to his 2 wins at The Players Championship in 1983 by 1 shot over Bob Eastwood and in 2000 by 1 stroke over Tiger. Hal shares his thoughts on rolling back the ball and whether we're in the midst of a new Big 3 with Scheffler, Rahm, and Rori.
John Cook starts off by talking about the influence Tom Weiskopf had on his life and career. We hear his thoughts on rolling the ball back plus memories from his wins at the 1983 Canadian Open over Johnny Miller and Jack Nicklaus, and setting the PGA Tour record for low 54-hole total at the 1996 FedEx St. Jude Classic.

Season 10 Kickoff with Tom Patri, Jim Gallagher Jr., John Mahaffey, & Briston Peterson Join Me...

We kick off Season 10 with a bang featuring conversations with my guests 4-time Instructor of the Year Tom Patri, 5-time winner on the PGA Tour Jim Gallagher Jr., 1978 PGA Champion & 1986 Players Champion John Mahaffey, and the Founder of On Point Golf Briston Peterson.
Tom Patri shares his thoughts on the battle between LIV Golf & the PGA Tour, his time spent with Arnold Palmer, why he thinks we need to watch out for Pierceson Coody, and in our new segment Tom's Tip of the Week, hear why we all need to take our 4 iron out and put a 7-wood in the bag.
Jim Gallagher Jr. talks about joining his wife Cissye as an inductee into the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame. We go back and hear about Jim's big win at the 1993 Tour Championship and taking home the biggest check in PGA Tour history at the time. We also talk about what it was like for him to be sitting in the lead after the first round of the 1991 Masters.
We get to hear what it was like for John Mahaffey when he came back from 3 strokes down with 4 holes to play to win the 1986 Players Championship and what it was like standing on that 18th tee trying to win that tournament. We also talk about his wins at the 1979 Bob Hope Desert Classic and teaming with Joann Carner to win the 1982 JC Penney Mixed Team Classic. Plus John is a great writer. We hear about his great murder mystery series of books that started with "Shafted", and the second book in the series, "Unfinished Business" just came out. The third book, "Dead Quiet", is in editing right now and will hopefully be out soon. Get your copies of all John's books by going online to www.johnmahaffeyauthor.com or on Amazon.
Briston Peterson is the Founder of On Point Golf. Their 3D ball markers have captured the attention and imagination of the golf world. Jim Furyk saw a prototype and now uses one. We hear about the concept, and how it helps improve focus on the putting line so we can make more putts. I know I'll have some in my bag from now on. Check out why Jim Furyk and I like them so much by going online to www.onpointgolf.us

Tom Patri, Matthew Laurance, Hal Sutton, & Ross Greenburg Join Me...

I close out Season 9 in style with 4 of my all-time favorite guests: Top Instructor Tom Patri, former Actor & Host of Backspin Golf Matthew Laurance, PGA Tour Legend Hal Sutton, and the former President of HBO Sports & multi-time Emmy Award Winning Executive Producer Ross Greenburg.
This week Tom Patri updates us on how things are going in Southwest Florida in the wake of Hurricane Ian. We hear about how the recovery is going for local residents plus the trickle impact on the local golf scene. Many golf courses won't recover because bermuda grass can't tolerate the salt water dumped on them from the surge. Local PGA Professionals are looking at a very difficult Winter season without golf courses to teach on and students who may not come down this winter because there aren't places to stay. Please go to www.redcross.org and donate to help our friends in Florida get a roof over their heads and back on their feet.
Matthew Laurance starred in the movie Eddie & the Cruisers. He shares the story of a very cool recent event where they showed the movie at a local historic theater in Lexington, Kentucky. The event was used to help raise money for victims of the flooding in Eastern Kentucky. Matthew also didn't hold back his hatred when we discussed LIV Golf.
Hal Sutton and I started out by talking about his new golf course design project. We also hear which designers have influenced him. I asked Hal about the burden of expectation placed on him as a young player and what he would say to Tom Kim to help him deal with that. Hal joined my guest from last week, Tony Ruggiero, on Tony's podcast Tour Coach and they had one of the most important golf conversations that I've heard in a long time. We recap that conversation which included why we focus on our bad shots instead of the good ones and how some players place blame on everybody else instead of taking responsibility for their own golf games when things go wrong.
Ross Greenburg has won over 100 major television awards over the course of his career. We talk about the movie he did along with Billy Crystal titled "61" about the 1961 homerun record chase between Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris. We also talk about 3 other films he's done: "Extra Innings From 9/11...20 Years Later", the Disney movie "Miracle" about the 1980 US Hockey Team, and "Jack Nicklaus, Making of a Champion."

Rob Strano, Keith Hirshland, Brandon Stooksbury, & Russ Holden Join Me...

Two of the Top Instructors in the game Rob Strano & Brandon Stooksbury plus my all-time favorite Author and Emmy Award Winning TV Producer Keith Hirshland, & former PGA Tour Caddy and Founder of Caddy For A Cure, Russ Holden all join me...
Rob Strano shares his insights on the Presidents Cup and the performances of Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas, Max Homa, and Tom Kim. I also got his thoughts on the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, playing in drastically different weather conditions from one round to the next, plus a tip for strategizing our rounds.
Keith Hirshland joined me from Bangkok, Thailand where he's preparing for this week's LIV Golf broadcast. Keith shared what he knows about any potential TV contract for next year. We hear what it's like trying to produce a golf tournament when every player is on the course at the same time. He talks about the on-the-fly decision to allow their players to wear shorts and where they got the idea for their leaderboards. We also hear about his latest book, "Song Girl, A Tale In Two Verses" and that CT Mascaro character.
Brandon Stooksbury is annually among the Top Instructors in Golf Digest. He was the PGA Teacher of the Year in Georgia in 2015 and 2018. He's now out at Metairie Country Club in Louisiana. Brandon shares stories of how he got started as a Golf Instructor working for Jim McLean at Doral. We learn the difference between teaching golf and teaching golf for a living. We also get tips for hitting a bump and run chip and the importance of attitude in sinking more putts.
Russ Holden is the founder of Caddy For A Cure and we get an update on the great things his organization is doing to help support our wounded military heroes, including their new program Inspiring Warriors Golf. We also hear about his daughter's win at the Sea Island Women's Amateur Championship and his son Brandon playing in the PGA National Assistants Championship.