Probably one of the best rounds, the best thirty six sold matches in the USGA history there. I mean, that was unbelievably impressive and I was super happy just to have a front seat to that. And at the end of the day, looking back, it's really fun to watch, and you know, I'm really proud that I made him go out and earn it.
That got thoughts.
Can't get him John, and not the thing what I'm thinking about. Can't get him John, Not the thing what I'm thinking about.
Hello, this is Alan Chipnoocket back for another Fire Drill podcast. I'm back home after a two week vender covering the US Women's Amateur and the US Amateur. It was great fun, presuming a lot of you listeners out there too. To the US am it was a spectacular week at Cherry Hills, and the championship match was a barn burner. Nick Dunlop prevailed. He is obviously a star in the making and quite a stud. But I think a lot of golf fans' hearts were with Neil Shipley, who put up a great
fight and was a fun character all week. We're delighted to have Neil join us, so thanks for doing this, sir.
Yeah, thanks Alan, thank you for having me on. Appreciate the time.
Yeah, So what is this whirlwind been like? You know, you showed up as a somewhat unknown college golfer and in the space of a week became a folk hero and everyone's favorite golfer. And what's your life been like in the last forty eight hours since the amateur ended.
It's been a whirlwind. You know. We got back to Columbus and I had team meetings right away Monday morning at nine am and sat through an hour and a half of some compliant stuff and just kind of got back home decompressed. But it's funny even out here out in the Shady Side neighborhood in Pittsburgh, a really nice area where there's a lot of shops, and like got
recognized once or twice down there. I got my hair trimmed up this morning and was in downtown Mount Lebanon and a few people came up and said hi to me. So it's been it's been quite the adventure. It's a little different. I had to make my Instagram public. I did that this morning because I had I added about three thousand followers or four thousand followers so it's been been hectic and different, but I'm just trying to embrace it all.
Did you go through and delete any old posts that might be inappropriate for a public consumption?
No, No, you kept it clean and PG thirteen for everyone since the beginning. You know, got my parents on there and Grandma on there, so they're not trying to get myself in trouble anytime soon.
Good. The big headlines can come out of this podcast as you got a haircut, well, I mean that's as you probably know, your Lush just locks for the subject. There was so much commentary on the telecast that that's a big deal. I mean, here you're messing with your brand. What inspired that?
Well, I mean we took about like about an inch off just to try and keep the hair healthy and you know, just get it reshaped up a bit ready for a big growth this fall and a big fall season, so you got to keep it looking good and it takes a lot of time and maintenance to do that. It's it's really is. I put almost as much time into my hair as I do my golf game.
So I mean in the new n I L landscape, like you know, panteens out there for you, Paul Mitchell. I mean, forget Calae and Taylor made like you. This's a whole a potential revenue stream, right.
Yeah, I mean I was. I'm you know, maybe targeting head and shoulders, become the next Troy Paul Malu for the Pittsburgh region, you know, maybe get on some commercials locally. So we'll see what that, uh, if anything materializes there. It is.
It's funny, you know that having a great run in the US Amateur always came with tremendous spoils the Masters and the US Open invitations and other opportunities. But now have you hired an agent and the nil stuff is a real thing.
Yeah, yeah, it is. You know, I've been over the summer with some good play, I garnered some attention from a few different agencies, and I've been They've been smaller and more boutique, and I've been going through that process of trying to figure out who I'm going to go with, and more recently after this week, had some more people pop up. So I'm going to have to do a little bit more filtering and stuff like that to figure
out who I'm going to go with. But it's significantly as intending maybe in January or February to sign with somebody, but that timeline's definitely gotten moved up quite a bit now because you've got to try and take advantage of what we can get now and just get things set up and ready to go for the Masters, so have a little smooth transition into spring season.
Yeah, I mean, it's a it's a whole new world out there. Have you gotten a lot of old high school buddies and other people who've checked in wine to caddy for you at Augusta.
Yeah, I mean we've I think I've said to a bunch of people, or I know my old high school team Jimmy Myers, He's like, oh, he told me you could caddy for me at Augusta, And I was like, oh, geez, dude, you mean you better get in line. But uh now I've I don't know who's going to caddy for me
out there yet. I haven't figured that out. I know, uh, my good friend Carter who stepped in on Saturday, he caddy Frost and Greecer when he made to the semi finals as well, and he went out to the Masters with Greaser but didn't caddy for him out there, So maybe I might. I might put him on the bag. We'll see. No promises, not not Carter. I'm not saying you're gonna be on the bag, but he's definitely on a short list. Yeah.
I talked him after the round on Saturday. He's he's a sweet kid. And you, guys, go back to what you you're ten, eleven, twelve years old. It sounds like you grew up on kind of a pretty humble nine hole golf course. Can you tell folks about your sort of your entry into into golf, how you fell in love with it and where you played and that sort of thing.
Yeah, well, when I was really young, I played at Mount Leven and Mumunicipal Golf Course, which is I actually haven't played in a while. It's not super nice. It's just kind of what you'd expect out of a nine hole UNI. But you know, i'd play in the Thursday. They had a junior league in the mornings where we'd
go off at like seven o'clock in the morning. They'd have tea times blocked off for us for like two hours, and there's a lot of juniors that played, and I think that was a great place to get my start in the game, and then when I got older more into the game, my parents we joined Saint Clair Country Club, which is just south here of town and it's probably
one of the premier golf courses in Pittsburgh. And my parents made a big sacrifice in doing that for me and getting me the resources I needed to really improve. And that's where I met Carter. He was probably ten years old when I was thirteen or fourteen, and I mean I kind of took him under my wing from there because he just played a lot of golf together
all the time. And he ended up following me to Pittsburgh Central Catholic High School and he was on the team when I was a senior, he was a freshman. We won the state championship that year and did a lot of cool things together. We're the only two kids that lived in the South Hills, so as his uber driver for Prenanci the whole year and take him all around. I mean, we had a lot of ate, a lot of pizza together, and a lot of McDonald's things like that on the road, and it was ton of fun.
And you don't come from it sounds like there's not a big golf tradition in your family who actually sent you down the path of wine wine to play.
You know, my parents don't play. But when I was four years old, I think I watched VJ. Singh. I think it was I think it was the for PGA that VJ. Sing won, and my dad had a TV on and I was watching, and you know, the next day, I knocked his golf clubs over and started swinging around his you know, full sized golf club in the backyard. And from there he got me my own set and took me the driving range. And that's kind of how
I got my start. I was always a I always played baseball and basketball most of the time throughout most of the years, so that was my primary sports for a while. And it wasn't really until maybe my eighth and ninth grade year that I really knew that I wanted to play college golf and do it competitively.
Who who kind of brought that dream to life? You mentioned VJ. Sing was inspiration, which you don't hear very often, which I think is cool. But were there other sort of mentors or people who were important in getting you, you know, rooted in the game and pushing you along.
Yeah, I mean, for sure, once I joined Saint Clair Country Club. It's actually funny. I got a text from him. His name is Grant Angle. He was much older than I was when I was in when I was in middle school, he was probably senior in high school. He won the state championship individually in Pennsylvania and went to Ohio University to play golf. And when I was young, guys like the guy I wanted to be. I told
him that tech. I shot him a text and told him that, and he was really flattered about it, and it was it was. It was pretty cool. And I think after that. You know, I have my swing coach that I started him when I was thirteen years old. He's done in Saint Lucie, Florida. His name's way Ishmael
and he is a cool story on his own. But he he took me under his wing and I've been with him since then and still text a lot now and he still works with my swing and you know, it's we have a really good relationship and it goes beyond just player coach and more just as friends now too.
That's awesome. It's funny. I was at the two thousand and four PGA and a whistling Straights and on the seventeenth hole, it's that really long hard part three and VJ. I mean I think it was like a two iron. He just the way he was, he was silhouetted by the lake and the angle I have. I said, that might be the best golf swing I've ever seen, and he hit it. He hit it tight, and that was a huge moment him winning that that championship. And he's not a guy that the people name check very often.
But was that someone that you sort of modeled yourself after. I mean, people around you said you've got a tremendous work ethic, and obviously that was Vj's stock in trade. But you know, there's a lot of golfers saw Jack Nicholas's swing and they read his books and that became a touchstone. But did you stick with VJ or with other people who you kind of patterned your game after.
You know, when I was watching VJ, I was maybe three years old, so that was and you know, I
wasn't thinking that analytically about it back then. Good point, but I think, you know, he has the type of swing with his great tempo and you know, it's a little bit longer, but which I've always been a guy who historically he's gotten the club a little bit deeper and longer, and I think the way he gets the club backshallowed out and kind of into the slot is something that didn't maybe model myself after, but was pretty It was something that like we looked at and you know,
it's like, Okay, if I can just keep get the club in the slot and the way down, especially when he's younger, it's like, you know, if I can get the club in the slot on the way down, you know I can play golf from there.
That's cool. Yeah, I mean Phil Mikcholson told me, like the there was one swing of sebbi bi Astero's It was the thirteenth hole of Augusta on Sunday from the nineteen eighty six. You would watch that one swing over and over on this VHS tape he had until he wore out the tape. Like it's funny how these these things that get burned into your brain as a golfer. So I love that. No where where does Oakmont Country Club come in because I think people probably heard of
the telecast you did some catting there. Everyone knows Oakmont is one of the greatest courses in the world unbelievable US Open tradition. So how did you get started there? What did you learn and what was the scene like for a teenage caddy?
Oh?
Yeah, so I started there. It was actually I think during COVID or right before COVID, and you know, I just wanted to make make a buck or two here and there for some spending money, and just one one of my friends us A members set me up with a caddy master, And you know, I started off back then probably cattying once a week, you know, or whenever
as home. And you know, now it's not as much because I travel so much, but you know, the ability to play there on Mondays was huge because you're playing one of the most difficult golf courses and you just learn a lot about your game because you really have to have everything there to score well. Once you play around there, you know, ten times you figure out how to maybe manage your game and round in seventy five not playing your best, but to go shoot sixty nine
to sixty eight. You got to have it going. And I think it's just a it's a great test of golf, and it really tests all of your abilities from ball striking to putting to short game, and I think the speed and firmness of the greens really, uh, it really exposed as your weaknesses. I'd say it's.
Like doing high altitude training. You know, if you play a lot of golf Oakmont, then you go to a place like Cherry Hills and some kids have never seen a setup that tough, and for you is like, oh, I know this golf, Like is it sort of desensitized you to tough setup. So after having an Oakmont.
Background, definitely, it really desensitizes you to fast greens. I mean, I mean Cherry Hills is probably running at twelve and a half or something like that, and here in Pittsburgh, twelve and a half is the kind of the norm, you know. I think because of that, I felt super comfortable on the greens and that's one of the reasons my speed putting was probably strength of mind throughout most of the week.
One thing that I think people might not realize is what a scholar athlete you are. Like, tell the listeners about your academic achievements, because they're pretty substantial.
Yeah. So I graduated from James Madison in three years. I had my degree in quantity to finance, and I had minors in math and economics, and then I just finished up my master's in data analytics, and I think I have a few all American scholars sprinkled in there. I'm not really sure which years.
Or whatnot, but so modest I love it.
Yeah, I mean that one if that one's yeah, that one's not. You know, if you're a solid student, most guys get it. So but that's it's a good thing to go on the resume, and it's just that's been really important for me and my family. My sister was a straight A student throughout all of her years. She got into some of the most prestigious universities in the the country and decided to go to Notre Dame, where my mother went, and she's set the bar super high.
And even though I was a AB student in high school, I kind of looked like a slouch just because because of how elite she was. But it was it was really cool to kind of have her pushing me and my brother along and kind of setting the bar high for us.
So now you're a graditude in the fifth year at Ohio State, you must be a little demotivated to hit the books. I mean, what what what, after all, you've already accomplished, what are you studying and how are you going to apply that to your future?
Yeah, so I'm getting I'm getting a certificate in public management this year. Be honest with you, it's something that it's a type of it's a type of program that a few football players would do for the fifth years
and things like that. So it's not going to be quite as rigorous, but I still think it's going to add some value to my skill set just in terms of managing people and companies and just giving myself a you know, giving yourself kind of like a top downlook at companies more so, and how to manage finances and things like that throughout them, because I think a lot of things I did is was, you know, it's quantitative finance.
We're looking at the little details of financial models or pricing options things like that, or you know, just how to create person portfolios or manage risk. And then in data analytics, it's here's this data set, what is it telling us? And then I think this managing one, managing managing one is going to help me kind of apply that more towards a whole company. Not not saying that I want to do that, but I think professional golf is really what I'm looking to do here after this year.
But it's gonna be a really good backup plan. Yeah.
I mean, Padrick Harrington famously got his like accounting certification. He was ready to be a CPA if it didn't work out. I mean, it's good to have a backup plan. But you might be the only guy on the PGA tours. You look forward to the Wednesday pro ams because you can like pick the brains of all these CEOs and nerd out on some of this stuff.
Oh yeah, for sure. It's fun to talk to some of my friends who are in finance down out on Wall Street and just kind of see what's going on, or even just look at the markets and just kind of maybe have a greater understanding of the patterns of things going on, especially right now the Federal Reserve and everything. I'm going to start nerding out if I get down that line. But it's just it's cool, and I think it's just an interesting world to be in.
I love that you know, you and I talked about this. I think was after a Saturday's round, I mean a year ago. Your World Amateur Golf ranking was in the seventeen hundred's. Part of that was because you know, James Madison is a mid major. You weren't playing in stacked fields, and the system was kind of weighed against you. But I think you always had that belief you could be an elite player. People around you recognize that, But now
you're actually doing it. I mean, have you had a chance to think about how much your golfing life has changed in one year? Basically?
I mean, it's kind of crazy to think about. Honestly. You know, you kind of go along and you improve every day and you don't really see the big progress from year to year unless you really kind of think about it. And I'm just really proud of where I'm at now and what I've been doing. And I don't think the kid sophomore year, Neil Shipley at James Madison would have ever had them playing in the Masters in
twenty twenty four. It's you know, man, he probably was picturing Masters twenty twenty eight maybe, But it is kind of the accelerated path that I've been on in terms of my development's been just super cool and super thankful for the opportunities I had at James Madison. I think it really prepared me to take advantage of the resources that we have at a higher state, because it's it's ridiculous actually all the stuff we have there to help improve and at GMU you had to really use what
you had to get better. And I think having more to how to state and using that, like I'm using what we had at James Madison's help me improve a ton.
So now that you've gotten a taste of the big time, I mean, how much does that light your fire and make you want to just keep get to the next level and the next level? I mean, what is the depth of your ambition right now?
Oh gosh? I mean playing with that many people watching you and like in a big field like that and big tournament, it's it's going to make this first college tournament feel a little bit anti climactic, but I you know it, really I want to get back to that stage. I'm super excited to play those two majors and just have the chance to compete event against the best in the world. And you know, I don't see a reason why I can't compete well against them and make cuts
and things like that. You know, those guys are really, really, really good. But you know, I feel like I got a lot of game, uh that could stack up against them.
One of the things that always interested me about golf in particular. I mean, every athlete has to learn to perform under pressure as big crowds, the media, all that stuff, and that's a challenge. But you know, golf attracts these kind of loan wolf personalities. A lot of kids gravitated towards it because team sports aren't for them, and you're just alone on the driving range and you're living in your own head. And as you have success, all of a sudden you get put on these these big stages
and that doesn't agree with everybody. You know, there's a there's a personality type that that that I think shrinks from that attention a little bit. But obviously, anyone who saw your celebration on the seventeenth hole after you hit it stiff, I mean, what did what did the crowds do for you? Because you know, to be embraced like that, probably for the first time of that scale, must it must have felt amazing. But also can you know you can start it can mess with you a little bit.
So how did you manage that emotion and how did it, you know, help your golf game.
Yeah, I think, you know, just not putting expectations on yourself because you have that many people watching or that many people were doing you on. You know, I feel like you can put maybe extra pressure that you you know, you feel like you have to perform for these people.
But you know, I feel like at the end of the day, if I just thought about hitting each shot as best as I could, and you know, when you made a big pot here or hit a big shot there, you know, get the crowd hyped up and use that energy. I think that was a big key for me. Those crowds really helped me kind of spur a comeback there once. I want, you know, eleven and twelve, you could kind of feel the energy shift in that match against j M, and you know, we it is really cool to kind
of use that energy. And I mean it got crazy on seventeen and I mean I kind of blacked out a bit there from the walk from my ball to the whole It is just, yeah, it was awesome. And watching in fact that video, it's just kind of gives me chick. That's kind of a moment that I'm going to remember forever and kind of put in the memory bank of you know, look I can compete and I can you know, do things really cool like that.
Yeah, I mean I wrote this in the moment. But what made that such a fun clip. It was just the purity of it, right, Like, this has been a very messy golf season on the professional level, and it's been acrimonious, and it's been all about the money and then everyone suing each other and there's all this press conference bitchiness and I think it's turned off a good number of golf fans. But there was something about that
moment that was just it was just so sweet. I mean, it was just pure joy, not just from you but everyone around you. And you know that even though you didn't go on to win the US Amateur, to me, that was sort of the defining highlight of the whole thing because that's what it's about. I mean, it's still it's a big time tournament and all this and that, but there's just something that feels right about about the US Amateur because it's guys who are just playing their
hearts out. There's no paycheck at the end of the week. It's just really for pride and for history. And I think that moment just embodied the whole thing, So kudos. I mean that that, Yeah, it's kind of once a lifetime thing. I mean, if you go on to have a twenty year PGA Tour career, they're still gonna be playing that clip. And it's pretty neat to have transcendent
moments in the sport. So let's just go to the championship match because I've I wanted to ask you this, like, you played incredible golf the next day and you know, unofficial sixty six in the morning round. When when when you're done with eighteen holes, are you thinking like, dang, I just played some really great golf. I don't have a lead. But was there any sense of being deflated, like I'm not sure what more I can do here and I can't shake this guy?
Yeah, I mean it was a little tough because I mean, damn, you shoot five under on a USGA setup and you'd think you'd have at least one shot lead or did you mean one up or something like that. But uh, my thought process going into is like, look, I played awesome. I can keep that up, and there's no guarantee that Nick is going to keep playing that good either, you know, so let's just let's get out there and let's make
some birdies and see what can happen, you know. And I think Nick played just probably one of the best rounds or the best thirty six sole matches in USGA history there. I mean, that was unbelievably impressive, and I was super happy just to have a front of a seat to that. And you know, at the end of the day, looking back, it's is really fun to watch, and you know, I I'm really proud that I made him go out and earn it. You know, I feel
like a guy. Sometimes if guys play that good, they might have such a big lead going into the eighteen, you know, after eighteen or you know, going into you know, a few holes, it's they're almost out of reach. But I kept him kind of within touch for most of the match until kind of the end there, and I made him go out and make a ton of putts and do something really special.
I mean psychically say that you learn more in your defeats than your victories, and what will you take from that final match to kind of propel you forward?
Yeah, I mean, at the end of the day watching Nick, you know, he's a great golfer, but I don't think he does. He does a lot of things really well. But I saw a You know, you play with great players and you realize, like, man, I'm just as good as them, Like I can do that too. They're not They're not going out there into anything too crazy. And he made a lot of putts and things like that. But you know, I've had days like that before too, so you know, you kind of when you play with
the best players. And I realized this too, more so my Jamu years when I'd play with great players, is like, man, that guy just shot sixty four and you know, I don't feel like you did anything special. He wasn't like going out of his mind crazy. You know, I think it makes you realize that to be the best player in the world, you just need to be really consistent and just really persistent in your preparation.
That's awesome them. Well, it's great chatting with you, Neil. I know you got a lot going on there, so we're gonna we're gonna let you get back to class or the co eds, whatever else is happening in your new life. But thanks for taking this time. Best of luck going forward. I think I speak for every golfer and I say, we're cheering for you and it's gonna be fun to be on this journey. So just keep going. I mean, as you said, you're good enough. You just
gotta you just gotta keep doing what you're doing. So thanks the time.
Thanks, I appreciate you having me on.
Yeah, you got it all right. Well this is Alan Shipnak. That was Neil Shipley. This has been another fire Drill podcast. Thanks for listening. I'll be back in the here soon and that's the end.
I'm been big again. I plead the wind made a fortune when my ship game. Then I ran the table and then I thought I could fall down the win and tell me hit me lack a can in the ball and now okay and shape this losing streak. Every road I take, it's a dead end street. I got thoughts in my head, can't give them out, trying not to think what I'm thinking about.
I got thoughts in my head, can't
Get them out, trying not to think what I'm thinking about