Fire Drill 065: Super Sunday

Please go do do that. Uh. This week on the Fire Drill, we tried something new. We watched we I mean we all wanted to watch the Super Bowl, so uh we watched the last uh minutes of the Watt Management Open kind of live on TV. We talked about uh Tiger and whether we thought he'd make the cut. We talked about how Michael knows what year he was married and it's an amazing ending to the podcast, so stay tuned for that. Uh. We talked about a couple of awesome dudes that gave me some tickets to give

away to families and uh. It was a lot of fun, as it always is. So thanks to golf Tech for supporting the grind thanks to Jake, our producer who's behind the screen. Uh, without further ado, here's the three of us talking golf. I got dots in my head. Can't get Jan nothing what I'm thinking about. Can't get him now think what I'm thinking about. Hello, this is Alan schip Knuck back for another Fire Drill podcast, joined as always by Michael Bamberger and Philly and Ryan French. In

the heartlands of America, um So the Phoenix Open. There's a debate every year about is it good for golf? Has it gone too far? Is it too much? Um? It was another rousing week in the desert. Um Ryan, you appear to have some thoughts on this jump in. I think it's perfect once a year, and anyone who says differently, I just I just like they're probably like the anti hoodie crowd. Uh listen more than once a year. Totally agree. It would be way too much. Okay, it's ridiculous.

It's like people running dressed up. There was a streaker, pretty good streaker. Good work by that guy, by the way. Uh made it all the way to sixteen, all the way to seventeen, jumped in the pond, got onto the letters of the waste management and they couldn't do anything about it. Um more than once a year ridiculous once a year perfect, good for golf. I think ninety eight

percent of the players, maybe a little less. Maybe of the players love it once a year again, and uh, I think it's great for maybe ten eighty like it, ten tolerated and ten hate it. Is that is that fair? I think that's okay. Michael. You're the voice of the establishment at times, um, but also a cool guy, so I know you're you're probably conflicted here. Let's let's just give it to a straight no judgment once a year. I absolutely think it's great, and the only people who

don't like it are the hoodie crowd. Well, someone who's already said that. I'm completely I know. I really am with Ryan here. I have to say it did take me years for it to grow on me, but now I'm sort of getting it. Just Super Bowl weak and all the rest, and it's different And as long as long as nobody's getting hurt and people are having a

good time, I'm totally unfair to it. But as you if you really truly if another tournament tried to do it, I think it would be it wouldn't work for the other tournament, and it would and it would diminish the greatness of not the greatness but the fun of this one. So I think right now they've got it just where they want it. When you say nobody getting hurt, does

that include alcohol, poisoning or other bad decisions? You know, hangover to hangover, but you know, falling off the top like you dropped yourself phone that you're at the Ryder Cup, oh man, from the top of a bleacher that you don't want, but you know, as long as I like it,

I mean, it's it's great fun. I was on the grounds just for a quick cameo because, as some of our listeners know, we were out in in Phoenix for as guests of Golf Tech, and so I went out to the course on Tuesday, and I had actually been the Phoenix Open and probably a decade. I used to go a lot, and I sort of forgot even on a Tuesday practice around like the crowds they had on Tuesday, any other tournament on tour would have killed for those as Sunday crowds. It is just an unbelievable crush of

humanity and also how efficiently the whole thing operates. I mean, they've got it down to a science. The the parking, I've never seen so many porta potties in my life. There's tons of people picking up trash. There's the infrastructure is so dialed like that. I don't think any other place could pull this off, including Augusta National. I mean, it's just the way the way they run the whole thing,

the Thunderbirds and others is deeply impressive. And I don't know if this is true, but a couple of people responded on Twitter about it. Um is that they have never officially sold out. They usually just keep selling tickets, and it got so popular this year that they shut

off ticket sales on Saturday and Sunday. It's like it, I mean, it is waste management has done it right and and honestly, the biggest conversation is like, I don't even know if they really needed it to be an elevated event, because I think the tournament is one of the few times of the tournament is the show, right, Like no one really cares who's on sixteen, Like everybody was going absolutely ape ship last year when Sam Ryder made a hole in one. It really doesn't have to be.

It's not It's not about the players. The show is the show. The fans on the sixteenth hole don't even know who any of the players are anyway, so it doesn't really matter. That's a good point I will say before we move on from the question is it is it fun or not fun? Or good for golf or not good? I do I do? In this era of social media and everything else, there's a fatigue factor I think about like Thursday or Friday. I'm already a little over it because it's just from from Monday morning on,

it's NonStop. Just to catch people up because we're talking about the sixteenth, we're watching, we're trying something new, we're kind of watching it live as this goes. And Scottie just pulled it left against the grand stand on sixteen, not in a good position. The pin is tucked left. This is dangerous to say since it will be Rooks later, but he's making four. Yeah, you don't want to miss left there. Um, So yeah, that's my only complaint is it's just too much Phoenix open by a certain point

in the week. But that's all. I've got a rate. I've got a great cure for that four hole shotgun start. Yeah yeah, Field. Um, but you mentioned the elevated status, Ryan, I mean, you're right, but it has elevated the whole thing. I mean this leaderboard, Scheffler Rom, justin Thomas Jordan's speech, Um, you know he's gone backwards a little bit. But and how about Nick Taylor is gonna win this golf tournament over all of these people. He just hit it to the Oh got slowed down. Oh my god, it just

went off. I apologize. I thought, well, yeah, you're right. This is the perils brodcasting live on a very firm golf course. The ball just keeps trickling. Yeah. I was like, oh, he's gonna win. But just to be clear, I mean I agree with you. I mean I'm looking at the at the leaderboard, Scheffler, Rom, j T, Jason Day, Ricky was up there for a while. And Nick Taylor of all people, I know he has two p G A Tour wins, but you know, very nondescript player for the

most part. And well, you know, you make a really good Ryan. Like when you were saying that it doesn't even need to be a an elevated event, I was saying, oh yeah, it really doesn't need to be except you frequently forget nobody plays unless it is an elevated event. In other words, we could have a great show, but you're not gonna have these players. Uh, not one of them. Not one of these. You know, ricky Er plays every year, doesn't he? Yeah, because he's a home game. Although even

even his nerves are are afraid. Like he got into kind of an altercation with the Fae ends of someone was shouting at him and dropped the F bomb. He stopped and glared for a long time. Um, yesterday, So everybody just hit it over the green on seventeen. Rom Scheffler and Nick Taylor. It's such a sucker pin you gotta hit about one sixties seven, not one seventy five. I mean, spoken like a true caddy right there. Look

at him, still got it. If only you've been on Tom Watson's bag, I'm gonna say it was like an hold of Turnberry could have kept from going over that green. Michael, I don't know, As you know, Alan, my close personal friend Neil Oxman, and he really is a close personal friend. Mike David some Live the third who is I have a nice friendship with, but Neil tom Watson's goutt He is truly a close personal friend. First off, Neil wasn't involved.

Second off, the chances of we're really going down the road here, but the chances of any caddy telling Tom Watson anything anywhere ever is zero one two. He had he had a perfect shot. It just took a hard bounce. Well he can't. He carried it too far. I will go to my grave. I was standing right there and I was watching a lot of shots come in and you just had to land at ten yards short of where he landed it Like you would think that the master of all links talking about Tom Watson, not you,

Michael would know that. But anyway, you know who completely agree you know who completely agrees with you? Stewart sink absolutely yeah far, But now he doesn't say he says for but for you know, that's asking a lot on the Links course. You know, the guy was pumped full of adrenaline, like it's likely he's going to carry a little too far unless he accounts for that. But without going down the turn very rabbit hole, which wasn't would you write that? What'd you write that night? I um?

I wrote all the guys who blew it. If I recall correctly, and I've told the story for but not a long time. Everyone always forgets Lee west which should have won that thing. He three putted the string second hole to miss the playoff by one stroke, and I followed him into the locker room and it was it was It was a cool seed. You know, the fabled locker room is not a thing like golf fans believe. You know, the guy's clear out a lot. There's very

little hanging out and card playing and telling tales. He maybe in the old days, but not anymore. But this was an exception. I don't know why. There was just there was a bunch of players in there drinking and watching the finish, and Westwood came in and they were hooting and holler in, you know, because things were happening, and Westwood walked in and went dead silent. It was

like they had actually seen a ghost. And you know, I was behind him, so I couldn't see his face, but um, he he just sneaked through this sort of byzantine locker room and wound up laying on this bench hyperventilating, and it was no one was there, and I wasn't gonna ask any questions. I just kind of observing. But some point it's like, do I need to go called medical personnel? Like it was serious, like it it tells you like these guys put on a brave face, but man,

what's going on inside is different. I'll never forget that. Um. But so this is now the first full field elevatedd event. We had Cappalua, which always just feels like a little bit like an exhibition, and even though they added some non winners to buff out the field, this was the first time we had a lot of guys there and

had like the Nick Taylor's of the world. I mean, I think as as Ryan is alluded to, and it's it's all the talk of the tour that the elevated events next year gonna go to seventy players, no cuts and just basically be w g cs. I think this this week is a great rebuttal I mean, you had a full field, you had a Monday qualifier, you had all kinds of long shots and dreamers. You have one guy who might actually pull it off. Um, So I

would I would be I would wonder. I mean, obviously you have to see how they build the fields, but I would guess the last couple of seasons that's Nick Taylor has had, He's probably not even a part of this field. That's seventy uh and so very borderline. Yeah yeah, So it's like again, I just and this has nothing to do well it has something to do with lift.

Is that we all say it's boring because there's no cuts, that w G c s didn't make it because it's boring and no cuts, and you know, just it never worked. So now we're going back to that just like it boggles my mind. Quick question, just for clarification, is it a done deal seventy I think that would be a growth.

So where where is it? It's just in the stages of discussion erect did there's a vicious bad happening behind the scenes amongst the middle class and the ruling class the pg tour and well, if the ruling class were a little smarter, for one thing, they would definitely want full field with the gut because for one thing, they're rulers today, but when they're thirty six, they'll be looking to get in. That's number one. And number two is

you're gonna kill the PGA tour. As we know if you go all these events seventy no cut, it would say. It's not even a conversation though. And I'm not even talking about Ryan's thing about protecting Mondays, which I think is great in the yargue to beautifully in the story the other day. I'm just talking about the life gloob with the PGA Tour. For the ordinary fan to show up there any time Thursday Friday and you know you're gonna watch golf, to have two waves, to be hanging

on that board Friday night. Just see if you make the cut or nut. That's the PGA Tour. You're you're actually gonna kill. I hate this word your product if you do that. Well, I mean this tournament is the rebuttal to that, though, Michael, because what do we say, we're all we're all jolly because the leaderboard, Scottie Scheffler, John rom justin, those are the names were excited about. You had to make a thirty six so cut there

to be there on on Friday. Every one of those guys had a moment on Thursday where they were going south. Not necessarily everyone, but some of them certainly did where they turned it around. Uh So I don't I don't know. I don't agree. Let's about to Like Michael said, he's got a fifteen fter Yeah, yeah, interesting. I mean, I mean obviously very bias. I want Monday qualifiers. But even if if that doesn't happen, it just has to be in my opinion, it has to be full field, dred

and thirty two. However you make it up, uh or D twenty or whatever, it just cannot it cannot be seventy. It just like, I just don't know how we say that Live is a mess because there's no cut and all that kind of stuff, and then we and w g C suck and then we come back and do it. I just don't get it. Now. I do understand that the top players in the world are looking at their people who have left cam Smith, Brooks, Bryson, I'll getting paid at no cut events. So I get their point

of it. Uh, They're like, hey, we have negotiating power. Where the where the reason all this money comes in? We want to get paid. But I think they are in a lot of ways. So that's just my take. I'm just saying they're not entirely wrong, because it's the stars that make the events memorable, the big events, and um, I know it's an unpopular view, but I think that the casual fan is enjoying seeing these pack leader boards with a bunch of big names. You know, you had

it at Cappelua, you have it here. We'll see how Rivera plays out. But on such as strong golf course, I would expect that you'll have a bunch of top ten, top twenty players fighting it out line. I think the fans may not share our purest instincts and they're enjoying the star power. So, um, it's going to be an interesting part of the debate. I mean, I ought to be curious if the if the PGA Tour commissions any focus groups with actual fans like I would. I would

love to know. Maybe I'll put up on Twitter and we'll just get we'll get a little bit of an insight into it. But um, it's it's a fascinating question. Don't we have Don't we have a historic that the w g c s didn't work? I mean, we already have a historic revalence, Like I don't know. Uh, I hope I'm wrong. I hope I hope they switch. I don't want any part of seventy no cut fields and all these players, and it's going to be impossible to break into And how do you move up the money

list when you're missing every event? If you're seventy first player, how do you move up by winning seven non elevated events? And I just don't get it. One problem with the w g C comparison is that there are tournaments that had no history or tradition and they just going to

change the history of tournaments that have. But obviously, you know Caplua has that, Rivera has that, Phoenix has that, so you're you have more of an emotional attachment to these term nament when also they have the title world in it and they went up hanging out in Akron and Tucson in places like that, like they never fulfilled

their mandate and they just went to boring course. Here's here it is like, listen, I know I'm in the minority, but we are looking at the number one player in the world if Scotty wins, and the two hundred and thirty second player in the world, Nick Taylor, and they're going blow for blow and it's entertaining. It's entertaining as hell, And uh again, I don't I don't know how they'll

make it up or whatever. But Nick Taylor would definitely prior to this week assume if he wins would have been on the outside looking in at this event, I would I would guess. Here's Scheffler's part. Putt Oh, Michael, you're wrong. He did not make four. He made it three dead center, fifteen feet son of a business outstanding. That's all world three right there, especially with you know that if you miss that put, they're gonna just rain down booze on you man. And that makes Nick about twelve.

He really didn't drop. He did not drop. Great. That is some That is some up and down there. Quick question for you guys there there's a we all know about paramutual betting, but I learned this morning there's another thing called in the world of internet betting called custom betting. What I wanted to do was bet chef look at this and it's going zero miles per hour when it falls in. He's waving like, oh yeah all day long. But that ball could have been short. Um, there's another

thing on the internet called custom betting. You know what I wanted to do this morning, but they didn't want to give up all the personal information you've got to give up like where you are to some you know, offshore company. But anyway, what I wanted to do was bet shecheffler Wyn Phoenix and the Eagles I live in Philadelphia to win the Super That would have been easy

in combination with each other. And that's called I would have thought that's called paramutual betting because you've got two things going on sort of, But it's actually called making a custom bet. Do you guys have any experience with us? Have you ever? Uh? I love when Michael discover something new about the Internet that you can actually there's actually online betting. Who knew it? He's like, I used to just call my bookie. Is that is that things people

don't do? I got the line out of the Philadelphia Inquirer and I called my bookie. Yes, people people make fun, crazy custom bets. And Michael, you can do anything insane. You could do a three way bet with the coin flip is gonna be ahead and uh, there's gonna be a streaker on the sixteenth again and the Eagles are gonna win by seven. You can do whatever you want, right, And whether Sheppard, graph and Agassi's kids will make it to a Wimbledon final, lay it now, Charlie Woods. I'm

sure there's odds whether he went to Masters. Here comes Taylor. But my custom is you have to screenshot the bet and put on social media so everyone can haze you or root along with you or whatever. Um. That is a great part of this podcast when Michael is like, did you know that you could and rent a car and it's not even it's not even a rental car place,

it's a personal Do you know that? When and when Alan, even Alan younger than I by a lot, first jog in British opens, you didn't get a rental car, You've got a higher car. But now, wow, that's bad. Put the uh. But now when you go to the UK, even they say it's a rental car. Nobody uses the phrase higher car anymore. That's sad because I love I love all the old like that, like the UK guys that they'll say going to the referring to her person. It's not that his name is that he's called this

guy called Mike who lives in Philadelphia. And just to make little things like that always making me smile. Um, Mike's Mike's Gonta hospital because his pinkies broke on the hospital. I learned a new one from Paul McGinley. I was just interviewing him and we were tunneling deep on old um. It was about when this is from my book about Live of course, when the Strategic Alliance was born and the PGL was trying to forge a a an alliance

with the European Tour and then Monahan swooped in. It's actually really fascinating part of the whole thing that nobody I don't think has paid attention to. McGinley was a board member for the European Tour and he's talking about Monahan, you know, came in like guns blaze and then he's like he showed us the color of his eyes. Was like, that's a good one. I'm gonna keep that one fall.

That's a good one. Yeah, especially his eyes. And he's I mean that is one of his defining characteristic Yeah, but that's that's an Irish ism for you know, when you're when you're really serious about something. And I loved it. But anyway, we digress. How about this for an irishism? I was. I was Michelle Smith, the Irish swimmer UH won a bunch of medals at an Olympics and she got way faster at a way older age than anybody ever did. And I'm at a bar and I'm like,

how I'm going to report the story? You know what? The question was whether she was performance sensing drugs or not. And the guy at the buyer says to me, you'll get your stary man, and said, what do you say that? He said, oh, dear, now I've started this, I hope you're allowed to even use these terms. That magic and the black lady with the yellow beard, So what are you talking about? Get a stout, mad, I'm afraid of

getting fired for the wrong thing. As I'm saying, there's really nothing Alan chake Way in on that is if I'm gonna get fired for telling that we xiz because I'd like to keep this job. Getting fired out this it's getting canceled by popular culture. And and you know, Matt not even in popularity. That's uprisings of the people. That's Michael. Michael will learn he's been canceled in the Philadelphia enquire in three days. Yeah, he'll be the last

to know. Yeah, Yeah, that's funny. So it looks like sky Shuffler is now in going to win this tournament. He's going to go back to number one, and quite a performance because he sets a down earth, happy, go lucky guy, clearly great at golf, but never clear to me how hot the fire is burning inside. But I love that he came out. And you know, obviously John Rahm and Roy Mcarroe even playing insane golf for the last six months or longer, and there's been a debate

are they number which is the real number one? There's camp Smith loyalist who put him in that conversation. No one has mentioned Scotty Scheffler a long time like he He started two thousand and twenty two on fire and he cooled off a little bit. But him saying I want to be number one and and then going out and doing it, that's pretty ballsy. I'm I'm count me

in on Scotty Shuffler, Kay. Can I just in a quick comment on Scotty Shuffler where I really didn't know anything about him until the Master's Uh what really what won me over was when he talked about that Sunday morning crying in his wife's arms. I don't know if I'm ready to do this, and I mean it was one of the most honest to God one of the most revealing personal quotes I've ever heard from professional athlete anywhere. It was so unexpected from such a young guy. Um

So I think I think things. He's he's young, an age only Michael. He's like an eighty year old twenty year old. Amazing is if you look at like college pictures, he looks like he was eighty back then. I mean, it's just he's he's timeless in a certain way. He's he's like he was born old and he's always gonna be old. But this is this is a random Monday que fact. Okay, you're on this podcast, Ryan, go ahead,

and fair enough. Uh. The Utah Open in uh In, Utah is a corn ferry event and the Monday qualifiers played on a very wide open not short, but because it's at elevation short uh three five par fives and uh they take twelve players and it's often sixty three and better. There's usually like a sixty all the way down to sixty three. Two players tied in the two thousand eighteen Monday qualifier for T eighteen, missing by two strokes after shooting both bogey free. Sixty six is one

Wills Alatorus too. Scotty Scheffler t eighteen corn Ferry Monday shot sixty six didn't get through. Now both top five players in the world. I mean, I don't know what Will is, but he would be if he wasn't injured. Yeah, I agree with that. Yeah. I really became a Scheffler fan at the Ryder Cup at Whistling Straits. I mean, he just played incredible and if you remember, John Rahm was just a machine like he was, he was stealing

souls out there. Nobody wanted to play him on Sunday and Scheffler beat him and beat him soundly, and that that was. That was a big time moment. And all week long he was hitting great shots and just seemed to thrive in that environment. And there's a long history of players having that that bounced from the Ryder Cup going all the way back to Fred Couple's you know whomever. But uh, Scheffler went to a different level that week, and he's just never stopped getting better. Here's my serious

take on this. As we talked often about how Live has taken all of the villains and where I don't I don't know, I don't know if we miss them, but how great would it be right now if it was instead of Nick Taylor, No offense, Nick Taylor. Good

for him, he's having an amazing tournament. How great would it be for the golf world if it was Patrick Reid and Scottie Scheffler going, you know, shot first shot right now, one of the most or probably the most hated professional golfer in the world against a guy who's you know, super nice and well liked and all of those things. Like that is where live has too many villains, so it doesn't work because they don't have any good guys. Uh, and the and the PGA Tour has lost all their villains,

you know what I mean. You know where you might have you know where you might have that rynd during the dessert course Tuesday night and Augusta. But seriously, it would be great if it was like we miss the villains, like we might not miss him, but like right here, would be so awesome if it was Scottie and Patrick

going head for head. You know, I guarantee you that before Keith Pelly closes his eyes every night, he's saying a little prayer to the golf gods, begging for the European Tour to lose the court case that was just heard in the UK um that would and that if if the European Tour loses, the live guys will get to play in Europe pretty much as much as they want.

And that would be a tremendous turn of events for the European Tour, which has just been bleeding stars for two decades and can't keep its homegrown talent, and all of a sudden that would become a regular currents because um, you know, there's there's, there's there will just be more mixing. Otherwise it's just gonna be the majors, which will add of course, as we've discussed a lot of fristion to

the majors. But you know, Augusta, you have to be sort of on your best behavior and you get to the PGA and and the and the US Open, and that it's the stakes are so high, the courses are so challenging. Like that stuff is can take a back to see a little bit. No one's gonna no one's gonna want to get sucked into that stuff. When when there's a major championship on the line, but a week a weekly tour event either in Europe on the p that would be epic, So I agree with your Almans.

Others have suggestion, how about instead of a President's Cup, a live versus PGA Tour Cup. I asked a couple of guys about that um actually earlier this week and on the PGA Tour players, and they basically dismissed it, saying that the live guys would have all the motivation. It's kind of like it's like Golden State Warriors versus

the Memphis Grizzlies. Like the Warriors don't consider the rivalry because the other teams not in their league, and you know, they're they're irritated that people even consider that to be a thing, and I think I think the tour guys feel that way as well, like they have everything to lose and nothing to gain. The live dudes would be, you know, fighting for their life out there and um, which of course is why we should have it, because

that it would the energy would be spectacular. But even if you go all the way up to the Pondo Vetra Beach level, I don't think the tour wants to associate in any way, shape or formm but it is fun to talk about and it's fun to It would require such a massive sense of humor on the PGA tourist part to even entertain the idea. We know that funny is not really there. What's the level of shock about Tiger Eldrick Woods playing next week at the Revere

Revera Tournament. Shock? True? Shock? Yeah? I mean, you know it's his tournament. He's the host. Um, it's it's he's doing a solid to the sponsors, you know, he's It's where he played his first event and he was sixteen. If there's any regular tour event he was going to try and soldier through, it's definitely gonna be that one. So is he going to take a sled down the first hole? Like? I mean, how is he going to

manage that hill? That place? I caddied so last year Mark Ballin played, got paid to play in the the pro am. I caddy. That place sucks. I mean that walk up eighteen will kill you. Well, yeah, that's a big hill, but once you get to the first ferry, from the first fairway to the eighteenth ferry, it's not that bad. It's a relatively flat piece of land. I mean it's very flat, honestly, but yeah, that finishes. No,

that is true. That's a really good point out. Once you get down there, it's really a valley until until about You know, when you talk about the great flat golf courses in the world, reveres in that conversation that's really I never thought in my mind at the Old's hilly, but it really isn't august National's hilly that that place

that places. But also it's gonna be dry. I think had it been wet, I don't think you know, if you're coming on of course, coming off the course is you often are Riviera Los Angeles wonder weather being so unpredictable, I don't think you would have played. But when the weather showed, you know, it was straight week of sunshine, and you know, you know if you're gonna cheat up, you're gonna finish the round. I think that made it much more palatable. I'm totally guessing, but just knowing. Does

Tiger Woods make the cut Allenship they have a cut? Um, I'm gonna say no, but excuse me. I mean, like like everyone in this time of year, every professional golfer of a certain stature is is gearing towards Augusta like you hit Florida, which is the week after l A and it's all about the run up to the Masters. And so I think for Tiger, you know, the end of his of his of his season last summer was

such a dud. Um. He's trying to figure out where he is and the hero world challenge, you know, is not it like he's gotta he's got to be forced to walk tough conditions, really challenging golf course. And oh my god, oh my god, Michael watched this lipout. Watch this lipout. I'm ahead of the things. That's what, uh, what makes the cut there? One forty ish? Yeah, let's

look last year totally the way. When I say lip out, Nick Taylor, I mean did a full three sixty even par one forty two aid the cut last year at Revere, but nineteen under one. It incredible. If there was a way to, uh to make a proper bet on whether Dagger whis was gonna make that, I'm gonna be mix the cut because, for for one thing, he grinds out the last four holes on Friday better than probably anybody who's ever played. If the cuts on the line, he's

done it numerous numerous times. Well, that's the that's the old Tiger. I mean, no one's ever gonna question his grit, But what will his body let him do with a few spine and one leg? Like it's not a question of his desire, but can he actually make his body move the way he wants to when it really matters,

Like that's an open question. And um, you know, if if he gets if he has like a late early draw and he's got to get up at two in the morning to get ready for his second round and the winds whip in like it's just I don't know, it's it's a big gask. It's fun to even talk about because it's Tiger Woods. But um, you know, Alan, he's going to get a late late draw. He's gonna be the one guy with the late late draw. Just a quick side on watching this, Uh this, this is

the live effect in a very weird way. Ricky Fowler showed up in a Cobra ad and Tiger Woods his own self showed up in Taylor made ad and and that's the liver of echoes. There's nobody around who can sell golf clubs except for those two. The uh side note to Scotty Scheffler, who's gonna win? Now, who's a head by he's had by three heading to the team.

But Ted Scott has done well for himself. Wow, I mean did very well with Bubba and uh you know, and they separated and he picked up a pretty decent bagh. He he has done very well for himself, starting by the fact he survived well. Said he went from one of the he I mean, I never thought about that side of it. He went from like one of the probably the hardest on caddies to like Scottie Scheffler, who would like probably doesn't say a sideways were to him the whole time. Yeah, I mean it in this era

of inflated purses. H I know for a fact that some players are no longer paying ten for a win. But even if you're making seven percent of two point seven, that's three point six two point six. Yeah, that's an it. I think. I think on't the winner get two points seven? I think it's three point six. Might could be wrong, but yeah, you're right right and three point six million to the winner. That's um, that's a good day. That's a good day for Ted Scott. That's a good day

for Scottie. Oh and John just hit it right in the middle of the drink. I think no, in the bunker, only skips it out, skips it out of the bunker into the fairway. Oh man, that's gonna go in the water. No. Uh, I thought you said it was in the drink. Good. I thought it just something. I don't rely on Ryan for your play by play. The Uh. John Rom standing more upright to the ball than he used to be. Um, possibly a fraction, but okay, I mean he's Kenny standing up.

He's a short fellow. He's thick though, man with two scenes. John Rom speaks English better than certainly anybody on this podcast, but really probably in the top point zero one percent of anybody in golf. He's a great interview. I just love listening to the guy. He's just he must be very bright. Yeah, he's so thoughtful, so precise. And do you know how he learned English? Michael, You may not

know that listening to No, I don't. When he came to Arizona State from Spain to speakin English, he just listened to hip hop lyrics. That was how he learned. Like he can freestyle Kendrick three days. It's impressive. Um, but that's neat. He should have come with it. He should have come with us to the movies that night. Still done that story? Uh? Just one to the movies ran when you finally hear the story, there's some story we went to the movies. You've done that a lot.

We'd go bowling if we could find a bowling alley. I mean whatever, Uh well, what else do we need to discuss before at least the listeners. This could be one of the rare fire drills. This could be a record uh short fire drill. Andy ogle Tree, we can discuss any of the Andy Ogletree. I tweeted about him today, like I mean, like lost as loss can be. I think I tried to I meant to look back. But I think that first live event he finished last bye,

I think at least seven strokes. I mean, I think he fired eighty four and I don't think there was anything he was hurt. In his defense, he was he went over there. I agree, I know, but exactly I totally agree. But that event probably saved his career because I gave him some money and wins on Asian Tour last year and then has played great another top ten this this week, to back to backtop tens and the

PGA Tour can't do anything about it. He's coming to the PGA tour, he's gonna get through Q school, and they're gonna hate everything about it. Uh unless well, you know, they try to hold up some band for anybody that played over there. Right. Well, in his case, he wasn't a tour member when he went over there. That's where he's different from Um, you know a lot of these other guys, and the tour is on a little bit

of shaky footing and they know it. So they're just gonna They're gonna stand aside and let him resume his career because they have no chance of winning that lawsuit. So but yeah, and Andy, it's funny the players who have emerged as focal points in this in this new world order. The Andy Ogletree is the Taylor Gooch is um players who we didn't give a lot of thought too. But because they were in the right or the wrong place at the right or the wrong time, they take

on this this deeper meaning. It's um. You know, they're both gonna they're both gonna factor in this live book

I'm writing because their stories are very interesting. Well, we have to watch Scotty hit a second shot, so we have to come up with something because if he does something crazy like put it in the stands and we're not here, we we've done this show to like as a like, uh, we're gonna kind of do it live have reactions and what if like Scotty shanks it into the water or something and we're not here to Is there any uh who do we know from who's on site,

player Caddy or otherwise at this uh Phoenix Open that's actually going to the super Bowl joint? Has that been discussed this week question? I don't know. I would assume a lot of guys, A lot of guys are going from what I heard. I don't I don't have a list. But the last time the super Bowl was was in Phoenix during the week of the tournament. I did both myself and it actually wasn't that bad. I mean, guys

were trying to organize helicopters and stuff. It was a pretty easy drive because I think people get to Super Bowl so early to tailgate and soak it all in. Like I just roared up and um Keikan Bradley and a couple other guys I think web sites and they told me where they're sitting. I was trying to find them in the crowd, but it was it was a challenge, but yeah, it's definitely a thing. I'll be curious if, you know, if the cameras find them at all, that'll

be interesting. It wasn't I can't remember what it was. I was like, I think it was Monday night football. Weren't Tiger and Jordan's speech in um like a luxury suite in the camera panned and they didn't recognize Speed. He was just sitting there with that a hat on and completely unremarked upon. Am I remembering that correctly? It was like early Speed but it was so funny. Wow, I just looked it up. I was wondering, when was the last time I went to Phoenix? Who? Who would

make a guess what was Johnny? Johnny Miller's last broadcast was Phoenix. He played a lot of good golf in Phoenix, and uh, would anyone care to guess what was Johnny? What was the year that Johnny Miller did his last TV broadcast? Two thousand seventeen. I was gonna say sixty. It was only it feels like he's been taking a shout out, a shout out to uh. I just got a d M from one of the families that got

to go. Tom Hogi and UH and Hayden Buckley both um gave tickets to me to give away to the Boys and Girls Club, And I mean I found the Boys and Girls Club, and I found another family that wanted to go, and Uh we paid the foundation paid for parking and everything. And just get a nice long message from the young girl and her family that went and how much it meant to them. Those two guys.

UH didn't know Tom was a follower or whatever. But I had put out something about Hayden giving me tickets, and he sent me a message and said, hey, I have ten tickets left. You want to give him away? So super nice dude. They yeah, made made somebody's week or month or whatever. Cheffer placed this shot. That's terrific. Run Ryan, What is your insight into Aaron Rodgers situation at at Pebble You've you know his game. The darkness is actually Ryan's basement. He's going into Ryan's basement. Yeah,

that's the darkness. He's coming out to Hubbard Lake, Michigan to to get away. I refused to disparage. I'm glad that they won at the Pebble beach program. Uh seemed to be as he had a good good week, shot a little less than his handicap, and good friend a lot less at less stuff. Now, in fairness, they signed the handicaps. You don't choose your own handicap. I've never known anyone anywhere who ever said upon getting too many shots, Yeah,

you've given me too many shots. That's a factual statement. And I actually thought that on the U t I. At the U T I on the third day, I had a we had a seven stroke lead, and my because of the chipping hips, my handicap is legitimate. But also in a in a best ball situation ideal if you can ham an egg it and that I was going to say something that, no, this is this is right, it's accurate, And luckily I didn't say anything because we

blew a seven shot lad in the foul day. Uh. Yeah, Well, a place like Bandon you can put from off the green so easily that it sort of negates your your weakness, right because you hit the like like a scratch golfer. It's over. Uh. This is the shortest fire pit fire drill ever forty two minutes. What are you talking about? This is well we could talk about Bryson de Shambo leaving UM, leaving UM Cobra, which is and then Cobra

just ripping him apart. Like that was years of pent up from That's what what did like like, you're a monster and don't you on the way out? I'm paraphrasing, but that was pretty much it. Yeah, it I think the exact quote, and I could be wrong, So this is I think it was something like the guy doesn't live in a reality of like where you know, he wants distance and control when he doesn't hit it on the center of the face basically, you know, and they're like and the article went on to say, it's like,

I mean, Cobra went all in. They had a whole research team just for Bryson, and I mean, the guy is he's he's not, he's not He's tough human to deal with from all I've heard, So, uh, what you're gonna do? What? What kind of clubs is he gonna play in the meantime? I mean I was gonna tweet this out, but I just didn't want to deal with it all. Like Bryson de Shambo, I mean, it wasn't long ago. He was one of the best players in

the world. He has gone like gone gone, like he missed the cup by seven at the Asian Tour event. And we're not talking like a real deep field there, you know, like this guy is he can't and do it like he's It's it's astonishing. Yeah, I mean it happens when when players have physical injuries and they compensate in their swing and then they kind of they lose their swing. I mean, whether it's David Duval or whoever.

I mean, it's not unheard of, but um throwing the change in his body and changing from the tour to live. There's been a lot of tumble in the guy's life, most of it of course self induced. But um, it's fascinating. I mean, he's a young guy and he's he was he was on very much of a Hall of Fame trajectory. You win the nt L A Championship, the US Amateur, the US Open at wingfoot. I'm you're two thirds of the way there at that point, and um, we'll see

what happens. He had the respect to Tiger Woods. Tiger. I mean, I almost can't believe that I'm saying, but I saw it with my own eyes. Tiger actually standing. They were listening to Bryce and I saw it a memorial. I saw it at Rivera and they played together. Yeah, all right, I want to watch the super Bowl, all right, Johns, I have to do this. Michael, can you quickly tell us about the piece of art hanging above your head? You're nice to notice the artist ism named HeLa may Jose.

Christine and I went to Haiti on our honeymoon. We fell in love with Haitian art and we probably have twenty or more pieces. Did you get married? Well? Here do we go there? We went there after Papa Doc was out of office. Well I should know this because I know what. You already got married to cover the phillies? Did you come with the phillies? And that's how you remember when you got married? Beat your on? Yeah, well we don't want to we wanna do. Let's make that

the social Yeah what Beattie was on with? How you didn't think that? Michael? You can't say that out loud. That's that's dangerous. Okay, I love it. That's a great way. And everything I love about this I'll praise to Christine Barberger. She's just unflammable, that's true. Yeah, that's true. All right, thank you guys. All right, well, um go Eagles, and um thanks for listeners out there for sticking with us. This has been another fire Drill podcast. That was Ryan France.

I'm Alan Schipnik. Michael Bamber is now in detention at home. But um, we'll do this again next Sunday, as we do every Sunday. For now, let's go watch some football. I bendig and a play to win. Made a fortune with my ship game. I ran the table and thought I could fall. Then the winter hit me like a cannon the ball and now can shake this losing the street. Every road I take is a dead hand street. I got thoughts in my head. Can't get him out, trying

not to think what I'm thinking about. I gott thoughts in my head. I can't get him out, trying not to think what I'm thinking about,