What should I know before going to the Masters? What are the most underrated and overrated vantage points at Augusta National? How can I best appreciate the course architecture? Should I actually avoid the merch tent? If you’re planning to attend the Masters sometime in the future, these are questions you might ask yourself. To get some answers, Garrett Morrison talks with Andy Johnson, Brendan Porath, and Michael Wolf ( @bamabearcat ), all of whom are deeply familiar with the lay of the land at...
Apr 07, 2022•39 min•Ep. 354
Masters week is here! To preview the upcoming action, Andy Johnson welcomes Shane Bacon ( @shanebacon ), co-host of Golf Today on Golf Channel and host of the recently revived Get a Grip podcast, to discuss the five things they're looking forward to seeing at Augusta National. From Scottie Scheffler to Justin Thomas to a potential Tiger return, Andy and Shane cover the top storylines going into the 2022 Masters. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Apr 03, 2022•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 353
With the Augusta National Women’s Amateur wrapping up tomorrow and the 2022 Masters approaching, Andy Johnson and Garrett Morrison sit down to discuss the latest changes to America’s most influential golf course. They touch on the tree removal along the right side of No. 11, the lengthening of No. 15, and the short-grass expansions on several holes. They also talk about which renovations they hope to see next, and how the club’s philosophy of course design and presentation may be shifting. Read ...
Apr 01, 2022•41 min•Ep. 352
The 2022 Augusta National Women's Amateur begins tomorrow, and who better to talk to about it than Emilia Migliaccio ( @emiliamigliacc1 )? Emilia played in the inaugural ANWA in 2019, finished second last year, and will be in the field again this week. She talks with Garrett Morrison about the unique aspects of the event, the different challenges of the two host courses, her strategies for negotiating Augusta National’s greens, and the lessons she learned after coming up short in a playoff last ...
Mar 29, 2022•51 min•Ep. 351
Today we tell the story of one of the great lost elements of match-play golf: the stymie. A stymie occurred when one player’s ball on the green ended up between the hole and the opponent’s ball. Unless the balls were within six inches of one another, the ball closer to the hole could not be lifted. The player who was away simply had to figure out what to do next. When the governing bodies eliminated the stymie in 1952, more than a curious little quirk of match play was lost, according to our gue...
Mar 25, 2022•52 min•Ep. 350
With last week's Distance Insights update from the USGA and R&A, it made sense to bring in Geoff Shackelford ( @geoffshac ) to discuss the latest developments. Geoff has been writing about and covering the distance issue in golf for over 20 years. In this episode, he chats with Andy Johnson about what's coming, how players and equipment companies will be affected, and whether bifurcation has finally arrived. Andy and Geoff also catch up on two timely topics: the Saudi-backed LIV Golf league ...
Mar 22, 2022•55 min•Ep. 349
Andy Johnson and Garrett Morrison sit down (in person this time!) to discuss an array of listener questions. They talk about how the PGA Tour can better assess shot-shaping skills, which musical artist TPC Sawgrass resembles, how golf telecasts can improve, which golf books they would recommend, whether big-name architects are getting too busy, and what changes they would make to Augusta National’s course if they had their druthers. Many thanks to our followers on Twitter and Instagram for the q...
Mar 18, 2022•1 hr 12 min•Ep. 348
Former PGA Tour player Roberto Castro ( @cicioCASTRO ) talks with Andy Johnson about the marathon that was the 2022 Players Championship. From the weather to the final putt on Monday, Roberto shares his insights into what makes the tournament so difficult to predict, how Saturday gave us a glimpse into what a rollback might look like, and what he thinks the most difficult shot on the course is. The current state of golf course development is also discussed in the back half of the episode. In add...
Mar 16, 2022•58 min•Ep. 347
In February 2020, Garrett Morrison interviewed 1976 U.S. Open champion Jerry Pate about his win at the 1982 Players Championship, the first Players held at TPC Sawgrass. Jerry talked about his first impressions of the Pete Dye-designed Stadium Course, his post-victory leap into the pond next to the 18th green, and his fond memories of his friends Pete and Alice Dye. We used excerpts from Jerry and Garrett's conversation in our documentary podcast “ Making TPC Sawgrass .” Since it’s now the 40th ...
Mar 11, 2022•36 min•Ep. 346
It’s tradition around here to release a “Five Things About...” episode on Tuesday before a major championship. Since the Players Championship, in spite of the PGA Tour’s best efforts, isn’t quite a major, we thought “Four Things” would suffice. Andy Johnson calls up Sean Martin ( @PGATourSMartin ), the newly anointed king of editorial at PGATour.com, to chat about the latest happenings on tour and the most interesting storylines going into the week at TPC Sawgrass. See omnystudio.com/listener fo...
Mar 08, 2022•53 min•Ep. 345
Things have been moving quickly for Phil Mickelson. After his comments about the Saudi-backed Super Golf League made headlines, he was dropped by most of his major sponsors and pilloried by both the media and his PGA Tour colleagues. The backlash was surprisingly severe, even if much of it was well deserved. Mickelson’s knowing involvement with Saudi sportswashing was indefensible. But that doesn’t mean that everything he said about the SGL was nonsense. In fact, his basic position that the PGA ...
Mar 04, 2022•40 min•Ep. 344
Joshua C.F. Smith ( @joshuacfsmith ) has worn many hats in golf. From playing competitively in college to serving as superintendent at Orinda Country Club outside of Oakland, California, he has seen many aspects of the industry. He has also found time to become a renowned painter of golf landscapes and help found FlagBag Golf Co. ( @flagbaggolf ). In the latest installment of our Superintendent Series, Josh sits down with Andy Johnson to share stories about his wide-ranging career. The Superinte...
Mar 01, 2022•56 min•Ep. 343
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is making major inroads in professional golf. It holds lucrative annual events, funds a 10-event series on the Asian Tour, and hopes to lure the world’s best male players to a proposed Super Golf League. Recently, the SGL initiative has taken a hit because of Phil Mickelson’s loose lips, but Saudi Arabia appears committed to its golf strategy, and it’s clear that the country is engaged in a practice known as “sportswashing.” As one of our guests, Dr. Helen Lenskyj, de...
Feb 25, 2022•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 342
The third of our deep dives into the five 18-hole courses at Bandon Dunes focuses on Bandon Trails, built by Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw in 2005. Andy Johnson and Garrett Morrison talk about how the construction of Bandon Trails fit into the resort’s history, and they play an interview clip in which Coore discusses the origins of the course’s three-part identity. Andy and Garrett then launch into a wide-ranging discussion of Bandon Trails’ (many) strengths and (few) weaknesses. They cover, among...
Feb 22, 2022•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 341
With the final tournament of the West Coast swing upon us, it's a good time to catch up with Joseph LaMagna ( @JosephLaMagna ), Fried Egg contributor and author of the biweekly newsletter Finding the Edge , about the early part of the 2022 PGA Tour season. Andy Johnson grills Joseph on who has impressed and disappointed thus far and what he makes of the very low scores we've seen almost weekly. They wrap up their chat with what to expect at Riviera later this week and the specific skill sets the...
Feb 15, 2022•47 min•Ep. 340
In the latest edition of our Superintendent Series, Andy Johnson meets up with Eric Richardson ( @erichturf ), Director of Grounds at Essex County Club, at the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA) Conference and Trade Show in San Diego, California. Along with architect Bruce Hepner, Eric has worked to return Essex County to its Donald Ross roots. He has overseen projects such as enlarging greens, changing mowing lines, reshaping bunkers, giving the course a minimalist look ...
Feb 11, 2022•48 min•Ep. 339
Ben Cowan-Dewar is the co-founder and CEO of Cabot, the company that developed Cabot Cape Breton and recently purchased World Woods Golf Club in Florida. Ben talks with Andy Johnson about Cabot’s first U.S.-based property, which will be rebranded as Cabot Citrus Farms. They also discuss Ben’s unconventional path to becoming a golf course developer, the early days of Cabot Links, and his experiences working with Bill Coore and other great architects. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy inform...
Feb 08, 2022•39 min•Ep. 338
In the latest installment of our “What to Know About…” series on golf’s greatest architects, we focus on Perry Maxwell, the designer of many courses, including Prairie Dunes, Southern Hills, and Old Town Club. Garrett Morrison and Andy Johnson kick off the episode by talking about The Fried Egg’s upcoming event at Dornick Hills Country Club, the first course Maxwell built. We then present two conversations: one between Garrett and biographer Chris Clouser on Perry Maxwell’s life and work, and an...
Feb 04, 2022•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 337
Legendary golf course architect Bill Coore returns to the podcast for the first time in over two years. He and Andy Johnson have a lot to catch up on, and they cover a number of past and present Coore & Crenshaw projects, including Old Sandwich Golf Club, Bandon Trails, the Warren Golf Course at Notre Dame, and Brambles in Northern California. Bill shares his insights on the current boom in golf course construction and how it differs from the last upturn in the 90s and early 00s. He finishes...
Feb 01, 2022•1 hr•Ep. 336
In the second of their five Bandon Dunes deep dives, Andy Johnson and Garrett Morrison discuss what may be the resort’s most polarizing course: Old Macdonald, built by Tom Doak and Jim Urbina in 2009. Andy and Garrett start with a historical rundown, touching on the origins of C.B. Macdonald and Seth Raynor’s “ideal holes,” the decision to make Old Mac a tribute to those templates, and the unusual collaborative process behind the construction of the course. Then Andy and Garrett dig into the nit...
Jan 28, 2022•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 335
While visiting Scottsdale, Arizona, Andy Johnson met up with Tim Jackson and David Kahn of Jackson Kahn Design ( @JKDgolfdesign ). Tim and David got their start working for Tom Fazio’s organization, founded their own firm in 2009, and went on to do striking, ambitious work at Monterey Peninsula Country Club and Scottsdale National Golf Club. In this episode, they describe their design style, share stories of working for Bob Parsons (“kaboom, baby!”), and explain how a video game helped them conc...
Jan 25, 2022•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 334
In this second part of his most recent conversation with Andy Johnson, Tom Doak answers more listener questions, including ones about the upcoming Sedge Valley project at Sand Valley and the non-golf literature that has influenced him. Tom and Andy also discuss how golf course architecture finds itself at a crossroads, with established architects approaching retirement just as construction has started to boom. Finally, Tom answers the hardest question in Yolk with Doak history. See omnystudio.co...
Jan 21, 2022•48 min•Ep. 333
As the supply-chain crisis escalates, new golf equipment is becoming pricier and harder to get ahold of. So it might be a good time to take an interest in used clubs. Ryan Barath ( @rdsbarath ), lead content strategist at Tour Experience Golf , is one of the industry's most knowledgeable resources on that subject. Ryan talks with Garrett Morrison about how his golf nerdery started and how the equipment business has changed during his career. In the second half of the episode, Ryan and Garrett gi...
Jan 18, 2022•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 332
In the latest edition of our interview series with golf course architect Tom Doak, Tom answers listener questions about New Year's resolutions, forward-tee placement, and accounting for climate change in his designs. He also shares with Andy a number of new concepts and projects he'd like to explore, including a modern replica of Pine Valley, a course specifically for women, and a fresh take on residential golf. Look for part two of this conversation in the coming weeks. See omnystudio.com/liste...
Jan 14, 2022•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 331
Why aren’t there more women in the turf industry? What changes would be necessary for there to be more? Devon Carroll ( @turfgirl24 ), a doctoral candidate in turfgrass science at the University of Tennessee, has looked deeply into these questions. Recently she has been interviewing women who hold leadership roles in turf and finding out how more women might be recruited and retained. This topic has taken on additional urgency over the past several months as workplaces everywhere, including thos...
Jan 11, 2022•33 min•Ep. 330
Let’s be honest: the PGA Tour season doesn’t really start until the serene seascapes of Kapalua fill our TV screens in the first week of January. To prepare for the occasion, Andy Johnson calls up Joseph LaMagna ( @JosephLaMagna ), the sharp mind behind the Finding the Edge newsletter, to discuss what to expect from Ponte Vedra’s princes in 2022. They talk about the youth wave in men’s professional golf, the keys to Collin Morikawa’s success, and whether Rory McIlroy is “back.” Andy and Joseph f...
Jan 04, 2022•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 329
For our final episode of 2021, we talk about The Fried Egg’s roster of 2022 events. First, Andy Johnson and Garrett Morrison run through some FAQs: Why do we hold these events? How do we choose the venues? What’s the format? Can I register as a single? What if I’m not a particularly competitive player? (To address the latter two questions briefly: absolutely, and it doesn’t matter.) Then Andy and Garrett have an in-depth discussion of Lawsonia Links, site of the annual Steamshovel event. Lawsoni...
Dec 28, 2021•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 328
Over the next several weeks, we plan to record deep-dive discussions for all five 18-hole courses at Bandon Dunes. First up, in reverse-chronological order: Sheep Ranch. Before it was officially part of the resort, Sheep Ranch was a free-form course on which players could choose their own routings. Its 13 greens were designed by Tom Doak and the team at Renaissance Golf Design. When owners Mike Keiser and Phil Friedmann decided to incorporate Sheep Ranch into Bandon Dunes, they hired Bill Coore ...
Dec 21, 2021•54 min•Ep. 327
One of the most pressing issues in golf right now is the relationship between the game and the environment. As temperatures rise and water supplies dwindle, courses need to reevaluate the way they use resources and interact with their ecosystems. Sorting through these complexities is Parker Anderson’s specialty. Parker is the founder (and head beekeeper) of Greener Golf , a company that helps golf facilities quantify and improve their impact on the environment. In this episode, he talks with Gar...
Dec 14, 2021•44 min•Ep. 326
Earlier this week, Andy Johnson wrote an article for The Fried Egg website on the great remaining restoration opportunities in American golf. It generated a lot of discussion, so Andy and Garrett decided to sit down and discuss the topic further. They go in depth on Andy’s top four restoration candidates—Augusta National, Riviera, Pebble Beach, and the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass—and they touch on the 12 other courses that made the list as well as a few notable ones that were left off. Andy a...
Dec 10, 2021•1 hr 13 min•Ep. 325
