It’s Open Championship week — and we’re talking all things prep, practice, and the gear moves players make when it matters most.Nico Darras is back for a wide-ranging conversation on how pros get ready for majors, the difference between sticking with your stock shot or adapting to links golf, why some players tinker with gear (and why most of us shouldn’t), and the weird things wind does to your short game in Scotland.We also dive into amateur golf trip prep — how to actually practice before you...
Jul 16, 2025•44 min
We’re diving deep into golf speed training with Dr. Alex Ehlert, a sports scientist who works with players of all levels at PGA Frisco. In this episode, we break down the mechanics of speed, how to structure a smart training session, and the real-world journey of adding 10+ mph to your swing. Whether you're trying to break through a plateau or just figuring out how to swing faster without losing control, this conversation is packed with insights. Dr. Alex shares the most effective physical predi...
Jul 09, 2025•54 min
Ever wondered why tour pros rarely hit 60-yard wedge shots? Or why amateurs obsess over yardages that the best in the world actively avoid? In this episode of the Golf Well Podcast, host Cordie Walker sits down with Dr. Nico Darras of Golf Blueprint to unpack the real data, strategies, and myths behind distance wedge play. From launch angles and spin control to wind math and why setup is everything, this conversation dives deep into what the pros actually practice and how you can apply those ins...
Jun 17, 2025•38 min
What if the 3-wood is the most overrated club in your bag? In this episode of the Golf Well podcast, I sit down with Marty Jertson , VP of Fitting & Performance at Ping, to talk about the rise of the Thriver —a shorter, higher-lofted second driver that's replacing fairway woods for tour players like Neil Shipley and Preston Summerhays. We break down: – Why the 3-wood is becoming obsolete for high-speed players – How a Thriver setup can drastically improve accuracy off the tee – Fitting insig...
May 28, 2025•34 min
Get ready for a deep dive into the science of golf with Dr. Sasho MacKenzie. In this episode, we cover it all, from the surprising impact of iron size on shot shaping to advanced concepts in swing mechanics. Here’s what you’ll learn as we recap the World Scientific Congress of Golf: - Why smaller irons might not always be better for shaping shots - The surprising truths about club kinetics and how they influence your swing - The science behind face-to-path variability and what it means for your ...
Sep 02, 2024•52 min
In this episode, Dr. Paul Wood, Vice President of Engineering at Ping and President of the Golf Science Organization, discuss insights from the recent World Scientific Congress of Golf. They delve into various research topics, including the physics of putting on sloping surfaces, technological advancements in measuring putting dynamics and the latest buzz in the research community.
Aug 14, 2024•39 min
After Tony Ruggiero and Smylie Kaufman reflect on their years working together – Smylie was one of the best students Tony ever had. Smylie shares the secret to his success it was his understanding of his swing and keeping his focus simple, by having three to four things he’d monitor. They dive into specific techniques and approaches, as well as the best advice he’s ever received, what the best players can do and how his greatest strengths as a player have helped him in broadcasting.
Oct 26, 2022•33 min
Ralph Bauer and Tony talk all things putting. He explains where he starts when work with tour players, it’s changing their perspective to understanding how they missed is due to misreading instead of pushing or pulling. He talks about his new app, and how it solves the missing part to putting better is reading the greens better. The technology accelerates what would take years into weeks. They also discuss which grip is best for your putting, and the data he found from testing twelve tour player...
Sep 22, 2022•30 min
Tony has Tour Player, Akshay Bhatia, on the show this week. Tony shares what really stood out to him about Akshay. They talk about his journey and choices with turning Pro at 17 years old. The uncharted challenges he struggled with and how he’s worked through them the past two years. He talks about the amazing coaches that have helped on the journey, and what he’s learned from playing with some of the greatest in the game: Phil Mickelson, Jon Rahm, Bill Haas, Bryson DeChambeau and many more.
Oct 14, 2021•24 min
Michael Jacobs - 50 Best Teacher in America by Golf Digest, and top 100 Teacher in America by Golf Magazine; shares his journey, with Tony Ruggiero to creating his own research software and what the Jacobs 3D team is working on now. Teaching for 22 years, Michael explains how his focus changed and the 2 steps to becoming a great coach if you’re just starting out. Tony and Michael also discuss the culture of golf instruction and the great modern debate of pushing vs. pulling on the back of the sh...
Jul 16, 2021•29 min
This week’s guest is Shaun Webb - he’s a top 100 teacher, been coaching for 20 years and has achieved great success with his business Athletic Motion Golf. Athletic Motion Golf integrates other sports' exercises and drills to golf instruction. He also studies the commonalities of great players to incorporate and improve the uniqueness of each student. Tony and Shaun share four different similarities of great players, they also talk about what it takes to become a successful coach. This episode i...
Jul 13, 2021•34 min
We sit down with Luke Benoit, a renowned instructor and Founder of Ryp Golf, the inventor of Rypstick, a speed training tool. He's done interesting work in the fields of attention of focus and learning. There's tons of GREAT info to help you train and play better.
Mar 24, 2021•32 min
This week we have the pleasure of sitting down with Trillium Rose. She shares her perspective on the foundations of great ball striking, helping her players understand their unique tendencies, the value of saving the data, making the most of feedback and having a go-to shot. Trillium is the Director of Instruction at Woodmont Country Club in Rockville, Maryland and she’s been recognized by Golf Digest as one of “The 50 Best Teachers in America,” and a “Top 50 Master Kids Teacher” by U.S. Kids Go...
Mar 18, 2021•35 min
Brady Riggs joins Tony Ruggiero from our partner podcast, The Tour Coach. Brady has been recognized as a Top 100 Teacher for the past 13 years, and was inducted into the Southern California PGA Teaching Hall of Fame, in 2017. Alongside of coaching Tour Players, he's added Director of Instruction at Hualalai Golf Hale. Tony and Brady talk in depth about his practice strategies - 'Combine-arama', and utilizing stress - as well as the evolution of teaching.
Mar 09, 2021•34 min
Drew Steckel sits down with our partner, Tour Coach with Tony Ruggiero. Drew has been recognized as one of the Best Young Coaches by Golf Digest - he shares his journey to coaching Tour Players and his keys to being a great coach. Tony and Drew talk in depth about being on tour, what are the most effective ways of coaching.
Feb 17, 2021•34 min
This week we talked to Mike Malaska about what is good Ball Striking. He shares three super specific ways that you can improve your ball striking in practice. This discussion has tons of insight, great stories, helpful tools for you to check out. Use our discount code GSL for $75 off links.rapsodo.com/gsl-website-mlm-75off
Jan 15, 2021•34 min
We are kicking off a new series today; it's all about ball striking. How can we do that more effectively? We have tons of accessibility to feedback with golf technology, but how do we use it to improve our ball striking. To kick off this series, we have Tony Ruggiero sharing what he is paying attention to when it comes to his Tour Pros and their ball striking - full of great info. Use our discount code GSL for $75 off http://links.rapsodo.com/gsl-website-mlm-75off
Jan 08, 2021•31 min
We talk with Dr. David Harris who works at the University of Exeter in the UK, he’s a researcher in psychology and specifically interested in skill acquisition. He's done a lot of research in the world of VR, and has some conducted studies on quiet eye with VR equipment, and experimented with using VR as a way to practice. He offers insightful and relevant conclusions in terms of technology and sports.
Dec 04, 2020•18 min
Our Partner, Tour Coach with Tony Ruggiero had the chance to sit down with Chris Como. Como shares what he's learned from his coaching career, why Bryson and him work well together, his favorite players to watch, and what he does first when working with a new tour player.
Nov 19, 2020•25 min
Masters Roundtable with three amazing coaches: Jeff Smith, he works with Viktor Hovland, Chris O'Connell, who works with Matt Kuchar and Jamie Mulligan who works with Patrick Cantlay. They each have a ton of insights into how they're preparing for the masters - what they're doing beforehand, what they're doing there while on-site and some insights in strategy, jam packed with insights.
Nov 10, 2020•47 min
This installment is part two of our conversation with Gal Ziv. If you didn’t catch the first part, make sure you go back and give it a listen – there’s some really interesting stuff we talk about that’s sure to pique your curiosity. Today, we’re going to talk about gaze behavior and the quiet eye. The quiet eye as described by Gal, is “the final fixation on a specific area in your visual field before a critical movement.” In golf, this is usually your last look at the ball before you hit a shot....
Oct 30, 2020•23 min
In this installment of the GSL podcast, we’re going to take a deep dive into research as it pertains to golf and human behavior. As you know, we’re firm believers in data, backed by science. Our goal is to deliver it to you in a way that helps you better understand the game of golf and play your best. We’re privileged to be joined by Gal Ziv who has done a lot of work on “gaze behavior and enhanced or diminished expectancies.” This conversation is being broken down into two parts. In this first ...
Oct 22, 2020•20 min
We're sharing an episode from Tour Coach. Tonny Ruggiero and Sean Foley discuss candidly about how quickly coaching and pro golf is changing.
Oct 15, 2020•50 min
Adam Young, Jon Sherman, and Cordie Walker have a practical conversation about gaining accuracy in your golf game and what it actually means.
Sep 17, 2020•43 min
We sit down with Viktor Hovland to talk about how he's getting ready for the US Open at Winged Foot. We talk about what he's working on in his golf swing and the strategy he takes toward choosing targets and right clubs around a US Open venue.
Sep 10, 2020•21 min
Two questions we need to talk about when we look at the golf swing. #1 - When do you make a swing change and #2 - How do we do it. PGA tour coach Mark Blackburn talks about his process and how it played out while working with Kevin Chappell.
Jul 30, 2020•31 min
Today we’re talking through some unique concepts to explore if you want to increase distance and gain club head speed.
Jul 24, 2020•36 min
We look at 3 steps to gaining more distance and how to do it. Adam Young and Jon Sherman (Practical Golf).
Jul 17, 2020•52 min
Casual conversation about block and random practice with Adam Young and Jon Sherman (Practical Golf).
Jul 09, 2020•40 min
Adam Young (author of Practice Manual) and Jon Sherman of Practical Golf join host Cordie Walker for a Q&A session around "swing your own swing".
Jul 03, 2020•36 min
