Welcome back to the FRIDAYGG podcast. Today's episode is powered by Tdammerior Trade. Every stroke counts on the scorecard and every penny counts in the market. That's why Tedamerior Trade is committed to straightforward pricing with no surprises, so you're free to swing with confidence. Visit tedomritrade dot com. Slash Frida Egg member SIPC. Welcome back to part two of our podcast with Ryan French from Monday Q. If you
miss part one, be sure to check it out. We dive it a little into Ryan's story and how he got started with the Twitter account and website Monday Qualifier info. In part two, we take a deep dived instead of some of the lesser known qualifiers for the US Open, which is up next week. It's crazy how fast it came.
This new schedule's kind of got major after major, so yes US Open essentially week starting this weekend, as we get ready for the season's third major championship, you learn about some of the guys that hopefully one or two of them make a run this weekend. So thanks for Ryan to Ryan again and enjoy part two of our conversation.
I miss a Green for example, I'm already upset. When I find my ball in the bunker, I'm really upset. And when I find my ball in arid egg Friday Egg, the dreaded Frida Egg Friday, Frida Bride egg Lie, I'm about ready to run off of the hump. What a what?
What? It's the sentiment? I think this is like one of the most ridiculous things. And this is probably a good transition into talking about you know, US Open players and section alls that just happened.
But what's the polls on?
Like the fact that the web dot Com event of web dot com scheduled again last year they didn't have one,
but the year before they had one. Schedule an opposite event of the US Open, like the the National Open, the Open where anybody can win in web dot com players are now being forced to choose, like do I sacrifice a week on the web dot Com Tour to play in the US Open or do and it's really two weeks because you're playing a thirty six holes on Mondays, not really a way to prepare for a you know, a web dot com event, but sacrificing you know, web
tour card, you know, potential PGA tour card versus playing in a major championship.
Yeah, I mean, I I think it's it's very unfortunate, especially because it's the only way to the PJA Tour and every start is so valuable. You know. I talked to Brian Ritchie on the on the on the range at the Chicago event and he's like, he's played. I think this week will be a seventh in a row. But he's like, hey, I'm whatever. He is ninetieth on the money list. He's like, I can't you know, I had a twenty, he had like a top twenty the week before. He's like, I can't take a week off
right now, I gotta play. So you make guys choose, you know, Canadian guys this this week. You know a lot of guys go up there and play. They're missing on a week again. So now you're looking at missing two weeks. Possibly you get through a sectionals and you're a Canadian, you're missing two weeks and it's your only way to the tour.
And yeah, you finished top fifteen in the US Open. It doesn't do anything. Yeah, exactly like Andrew Landry that happened to a couple of years ago.
Exactly. I mean, outside of a top ten, and the top ten doesn't really mean much. Now. It could get you into the Web playoffs or whatever, but you're already a Web member. Like, it's almost impossible to go the route of Monday qualifying with no status and get to the PGA Tour. Besides money like good money. A top fifteen at the US Open is a guy who is
fiftieth on the Web dot Com Tour. His fifteenth at the Web event is way more valuable to him than a fifteenth outside of monetary than a fifteenth at the US Open.
I wrote an article about this said, yeah for Aaron Hills, but so Jack McGuire.
Yep.
So Jack McGuire was He was a standout at Floria State. He was playing on the Web Tour that year. He was one of I think fifteen players that played the US Open from the Web Tour yep. Okay, So he was the low Web Tour player that week. At the US Open, I think he finished like t twenty seven yep. And he ends up on the season finishing eighty second
yep on the money list. So top seventy five get into Web Tour finals and have a legit shot at their PGA Tour card so he finishes eighty second, and I you know, I made the argument, like, you know, if he finishes, if he's the low guy of the fifteen guys, if you extrapolate that out to a WEB field, that's a top ten finish in a WEB event.
And he literally could be on the PGA Tour because he has four good weeks. I mean, Max Homa is a perfect example of that. He had a terrible season and four good weeks A terrible is too strong word. He didn't have a very good season, snuck in the playoffs, so that week, you know, potentially cost Jack McGuire a PGA Tour card hypothetically.
And we see it with like Doug Gimbs played really well in a couple PGA Tour events, but he didn't play the webs those weeks yep. And like, so do you think there should be some way for them to share?
Yeah, I mean sort of points. Yeah, it's gotta be some sort of points if you're gonna play events. I mean, how is it that you know, Ryan Yep or anybody any of the can Indians that are playing this week, Like, if he finishes fifteenth, he just beat a way stronger field than he would have down at a WEB event, So there has to be some sort of points. Now, obviously you have to limit it so people just don't
go play PGA Tour events. But like Canadians are not going to give up, or guys are not going to give up a chance to play in the US Open or the Canadian Open Open. Yeah, it's their national Open. Like Ryan can't turn down a chance to go play in his National Open for a million dollars, Like he just can't do it. So there has to be some sort of reward for doing that and making the cut.
Especially since they're run by the same.
Organism exactly, and the goal is to.
Get USGA but like, you know, you're getting fed. They're getting fed accident exactly, Like how.
Are he's not getting Web points exactly? Yeah, I mean it is. You can't ask guys to go play in the thirty six hole qualifier, get through, make the cut, and then besides mount there's no reward for zero like none. It's crazy and actually a penalty because the guys who didn't get through are at a WEB event all moving ahead of you.
It kind of like illuminates like the struggle of like the you know, the the guy that the grinder is like, no coverage.
But then also the system does no benefits whatsoever.
Yeah, monetarily or you know the system itself. You know Kyle Thompson who I interviewed, who's retired and or playing this semi retired, mostly retired. It is like, you know, I finished fiftieth on the money List. I'd walked into a seven eleven. I knew the cashier was making more money than I was. Like, you know, he's like, I had a family of three. Steve Wheatcroft I just interviewed and he's I think he's just okay to say, but he's looking for a job currently. Like he said, if
I found a good job, I would leave. He said, I'm at that time they had played four or five events. He was like fiftieth on the Moneyless and he's said, Ryan, I'm twenty seven. After my bills are paid, I was about twenty five thousand dollars in the hole for the year. He's like, what job.
He's like, I'm and you're one of the five hundred best players.
He's like, I'm one of the right. I'm like one of the five hundred best, and my job has cost me twenty seven twenty five thousand dollars this year.
It's an interesting paradigm though, because part of me, like on the flip side, thinks that Tiger Woods might be the most underpaid athlete in all the world.
Like you look at the the.
De economy of like Lebron James makes forty million dollars a year and this is like, you know, a cap, but like veteran minimum in the NBA is less than a million, right, So like Tiger woods en course earnings is going to be say six million dollars this year, yes, and like the the middle of the road PGA tour players making two yeah, like that that's completely out of whack too.
Yeah, for sure. And I mean there's been tons of that. I've looked up a PGA tour player or a guy who's like lost his status, and I mean Brian Davis would be a perfect example. Like if I said before I knew that Brian Davis had fourteen million dollars in PGA tour warnings, like how much he has no wins, zero wins, he has a European tour win, but like how much money has he made? I would have guessed five million. I mean you mess. He made fourteen million dollars, like it is.
The ultimate reward against it is a tour. And I think Roberto Castro said something fascinating on the podcast was like I had I think he's He said something like, I think the biggest mistake players make is they get
on tour and they're like, I'm going to play every week. Yeah, because what happens is it normalizes the fact that you're playing for seven and a half million dollars every single week, yep, or seven million dollars every week, and like I have to limit my schedule so that that feeling is special because then you're you treat it the right way, like what an opportunity as opposed to just another week?
Right? Yeah? Yeah, I mean, uh, Chip McDaniel got through. He's one of the few players that a US Open could actually mean something. He's uge, Yeah, I mean huge. I mean he like just has to make the cut. Yeah. If he makes the cut, he has you know, he's
in web finals, you know. So, but of all the other players that don't have met like this is a it's a great week from the standpoint of you got to get to play in the US Open, But from like a career standpoint, it's somewhat meaningless outside of a top ten.
Chip McDaniel's like one of the best stories of Yeah.
Yeah, for sure.
He's kind of like TJ Vogel was last year, but actually playing well in events.
Yeah, exactly. And his backstory, I mean he tweeted out yesterday. I mean he grew up on a nine hole course in a tiny little town in Kentucky. I mean the fact that he's going to be a PGA tour or at least a web dot Com tour member next year is pretty crazy. I mean, he went to Kentucky, had a good junior but I mean he grew up in a tiny little town. I mean he calls it the course. He grew up on hick pebble and like, I mean, he grew up in a tiny little town. I don't
it's in King County. I don't know what the town is.
But like Perry Maxwell, grew up in a tiny town. Oh really, there's a nine really.
Yeah yeah, yeah, that's why I piqued my interest. Yeah, so let's talk about so Chip McDaniel. He's a guy he got through sectionals. Yes, what are what are some other guys that are are Monday Q sensations.
Yeah, yeah, we can watch, uh sure up at a pebble.
So, I mean the local guy from Chicago, Andy Pope. I mean Andy's been at it for a long time. He turned pro in two thousand and six. I've heard did you know that, like he made a living or helped make made a living at Golden Tea. Do you know that?
No? Yeah, so my one of my good college buddies, Yes, played as it was number two on Glenbard West.
Okay, okay, so like ag yeah, So, I mean he's from Glenn Allen obviously, but I heard so I posted about Andy, you retweeted it, and a bunch of guys sent me some things about Golden Tea. I guess he'd have to confirm it. But who's like top five in the world on Golden Tea and like help like monetize or help support his his playing career.
Unbelievable.
Yeah, it's a pretty crazy story. But I mean he's been at it since like two thousand and six. I mean he's only you know, he's uh five, he only has five PGA tour starts, and four of them are the US Open. I mean he's this will be his six PGA Tour start and four of them are US opens. I mean he's qualified months, he's sectional qualified in four of the last five years. It's pretty crazy. He's so he's been a pro for two thousand, since two thousand and six, been a Q school twelve times.
Where's he playing right now?
I mean he doesn't play, you know, he plays floor to Florida Mini tours. Yeah, I mean he plays a lot of West Florida Golf Tour, Minor League Tour, Florida Elite Tour, those kind of places.
Last time I saw something about Andy Pope was some random Golf Channel guy was posting about their club championship and Pope one.
Yeah, it was like Andy Pope. Yeah, so he's Monday. I think he musty qualified into one WEB event this year. But yeah, I mean he's playing like small mini tour.
I think, just like a perfect example of like the financial like yes, realities. Yes, like this guy probably knows like if he doesn't, if he doesn't play around him, he's just gonna hamorrhage cash.
Yes, I mean that's because the mini tours are so small now there's no reason to travel. I mean the Hooters Tour, you know, a winning check was forty grand, so people would come. But now mini tours are so fractured, no one gets more than you know, thirty forty. Yeah, yeah, you get like three grand, Like you're not you might as well just stay at home and play small tours.
Yeah, that's the thing is like a Canadian tour so expensive, Latin American tour so expensive to play.
Yeah, I mean you're only playing for spots up there. You're definitely like burning through cash, even the web tour. Yeah, I mean for sure. I mean I stayed at Ryan's house and this was Ryan Yepp's house, and I mean, you know, he's like, I'm not making any money. He was struggling to like stay afloat. I mean Kyle Thompson ed loaher you know, I mean ed Lard's like won some events in an Asian He's like, I've burned through that cash a long time ago. He's like that's long gone.
So I mean there's only one place to really play.
The European Yeah sorry, yeah, yeah, so what uh?
Who? So shipping down Eric Dietrich is a good story. Eric. He got through at Washington, he won by four. He played the mckensey Tour the last three. This will be his third year. I mean last year he made two of ten cuts. His best finish was a T forty seven. He made fourteen hundred thirty four dollars and fifty cents last year on the McKinsey Tour, so he was probably in the whole about twenty grand, twenty five grand. And then he went to a minor league tour event at
the end of last year and shot eighty eight. I posted about it. I mean, he had two nines and a ten shot eighty eight. Got then at the beginning of twenty nineteen, got through McKenzie Tour School or Q School again for the third time, made the first cut, and then shot sixty seven to sixty five or something like that yesterday and again. I think that just speaks
to the talent that is out there. Like this is a guy obviously went through some struggles, but like he has done nothing as a professional and wins a a sectional pretty easily, and it's going to play in the in the US Open. I mean, the guy shot eleven under one by four.
And winning by four is the thing. It's not just eleven.
Right, Eleven under doesn't mean much except when the next best score of seven hunderd.
I think this Cam Young from Wake Forest gonna be a really good player. And I saw he was the only guy under part is sectional and he got four under it and I was like, that's another reason I like it. And he was kind of he's like a little bit under the radar college stud but like it's like another reason to like him.
Yeah, I mean, I think a lot of people know Nate Ashley's story. I'm Nate Lashley story. I mean his parents and girlfriend were killed in a car crash. He got through, so you know that's a great story.
He was like prolific on the Latin American.
Yes, yes, he had a pretty outstanding uh. And then speaking of of PJA Tours, Colum Terran is a a kid from England and you don't hear much about China, but his China season last year was one of the most remarkable many tour. I mean he won the Order of Merit without winning, so he had he made fourteen or fourteen cuts. I think his worst finish of the year was T twenty nine. I think he had twelve top top twenty fives, nine top tens, ten top tens,
something like that. I mean he won the Order of Merit over Charlie Sackson and Charlie sacks Charlie had made every cut and had two wins and he still didn't win win the money. So he got through. He shot. He shot fourteen hunder with two doubles, so I mean he's had a decent year on the webd but he got through. Another guy, another guy, Guiermo Pira, is from Chile and has really struggled in the Latin American Tour until this year has had He's made every cut and
has had like six top tens and eight events. He got through. I mean, you know, rub Roberto Castro got through Connor Arundel is a is a good story. He went over to Europe and really struggled. He's only had twenty eight web starts and made eight cuts over here. He has one of the He got into nine playoffs over a two year span on the web Mondays and didn't make one. Oh my god, yes, I think it was nine or eight. I mean he would shoot, you know, sixty five, sixty six get into a playoff and losing
a playoff. It was like eight or nine over a two year span.
So that he's had like the worst bad beats.
Yeah, yeah, I mean that's that's pretty bad. There's not It doesn't get much worse than that. I mean, at least if you just go shoot seventy two, you know you can you can go home? Yeah, right, like, yeah, I didn't have it today, right, Like, I mean he was six strokes away from having assuming he plays well in the thing in the event like web status. I mean, so he got through uh t K Kelly unfortunately Yeah, yeah, I mean he tweeted about it. Uh doubled the last and then and then bogie the I.
Saw Garber play the last four or four over. Yeah, in his place, he was I think one shot out.
Yeah. I mean TK is first alternate, so should he has a chance to get it tough?
He had tough where he I think he finished six on the Latin American Tour money list two years ago, and it's like he he only got one start on the web.
Yeah, he finished.
You play on a tour all year long, and this is one of the things about it. It is like he finished six on the money list, played great. I mean he's you know, a couple thousand dollars then, and he's got nearly any status.
I mean, that's why they're changing it next year is because, I mean, like Charlie Saxon is a perfect example. I talked to Charlie at the at the Chicago event. Had he not played well at the beginning of the year, he could have had no status on the web dot com. And he had two wins and made fourteen or fourteen cuts in China. He's an all time money leader, all time wins leader, and he literally if he didn't play well at the beginning of the season, would have had
virtually no status. I mean, the PGA Tour has to change, had to change that. You can't expect guys to go play, invest all that money, to go play a full season, finish in the top five, and then not give him status based on that. I mean, that's insane.
It's in placing instead more important of three events that are played over exactly six week eight week period exactly.
I mean. Michael Bluticavelli is a you know, it has been like really good to the account he won. He won the season ending Latin American the Tour Championship and end up finishing third on the money list, but his stat is stunk. He said in hindsight, I would have skipped the Tour Championship, rested and gone to final stage because because it's a week before, because it's a week before. He's like, I would have just rested and played well at final stage in my status would have been way
better than it is now. He's like, I burned myself out, didn't play well, didn't play well at final stage, so didn't improve my status any And I'm like behind a ton of guys hardly getting into any events.
And that's the And I think that's the same thing that happens too. Like to me, the guy that finishes second on the web money list, yeah, or like third, right, Like that's way more impressive to me. I've been finishing
ninetieth on the PGA Tour money list. Yeah, But they go in and like, if you don't play well, you're you're in over eight weeks, you're sol Like the system rewards mediocrity on the PGA Tour, which to me is is going to be very detrimental in the long term because of the way the game's changing, where the young play. These guys they the tour, I don't think there's as many twenty, there's no there's not as many twenty year
superstars anymore because of what's happened with technology golf. We did a podcast with an economist that it's like we're in this transition period where youth is going to be you know, and I think like from the tour standpoint, they need a massive overhaul because of like some of the best players in the world aren't playing, yes, and like Scottie Scheffler is a perfect example right now. How could you not say he's one of the one hundred best players in the United States right now?
Yeah, and if he doesn't play, assuming he doesn't win the money title on the web dot com, if he doesn't play well the first you know, in the fall or whatever, he literally could miss a ton of starts. Yeah, and his card has gone almost instantaneously, assuming he doesn't have a great finish in the middle of the year.
And that's what this news schedule to me is illuminated with the PGA tour is like, so we go from the PGA, which is a major nobody's getting into, right we go to Colonial, which is a limited one hundred and twenty two person field, and they're giving exemptions to to Drew Love and Tucker Watkins guys with no status, right,
you know, Drew's got conditional status on Canada. Tucker Watkins might be playing it might not actually be playing professionals off, I think he's working, right, And then and then you go from that to Memorial, which is an invite only it's like some of these guys haven't played in two months.
Yeah, I mean Max Homa is a perfect example of what I think the tour might miss out on had he not Monday qualified into into the Waste Management, played well there, then top ten at Genesis, whatever the next week's was.
I think, itis, he's.
Never winning, and we're missing out on a great story and be a great talent obviously, and a great personality exactly like the talent that there's a lot of guys behind Max Homa that have the same status as Max that didn't play well or didn't Monday qualify in I mean, he was already at the Waste Management, which is the first third of the season, was already at Monday qualifying status.
And had he not done those things in succession and one, we would have never I mean, obviously a lot of people know about Max, but not to the extent we know about him now because like we didn't get to excess there's a lot of fans who didn't know Max prior to his win and didn't get to see that personality. And there's a lot of guys who don't have status even though they top twenty five money list on the Web last year.
It's an interesting it's a dilemma that golf has because it seems to me, like twenty guys or that get all the vacuum. It's like the vacuum and like that that's also like detrimental to the game because like, I mean, how many NBA players can an NBA fan rattle off? Yep, hundreds, Yes, like I could rattle off hundreds of NBA players yep, But like for average for a regular PGA Tour fan, right, like they only care about twenty people.
Yeah, I think you know. It was kind of uh. Keith Mitchell was a perfect example. Like they were like, oh, he's a nobody, Like he's had a pretty good career, like like he didn't get through Q school, went to the Latin American Tour, played really well, went to the Web, played pretty well, and got in the PGA Tour. One he's not in the top.
Ten like he mondayed into valspar top ten.
Yeah, Like, I mean he's not like that's a guy who's a really good player who a lot of people saw his succession is that would end up where he's ended up.
Like, what's amazing.
I was looking the other day his caddy Crunchy Pete has more Twitter followers than he does he's a PGA Tour winner.
Yeah exactly. I mean that's I think think that the tour, the Champions Tour especially or like a lot all the tours need to like focus on the story of these guys and how talented they are and the struggle that is their reality, because I think it's a human interest story and I think it humanizes these guys more than what people think pro golf is. Like it's not private jets and caddies that travel with you and those kind of things. It's guys who are broke, flat broke. Well.
I think like that's like the Max Homa thing is a perfect exact I think he tweeted out right after he wins, he wins one point two million dollars, yes,
and he's flying coach yep, right after he wins. But like that's a perfect guy that understands like I mean, he played an entire season on the PGA Tour and made nine thousand dollars, and like, you know, the the young guys that make it out there right away, like you see it every like Grayson Murray bought uh Or Maserati and like to her, players are like what are you doing?
Like you know, the instant success.
They don't have the perspective that Max Homa has, where Max home is so much more relatable to an everyday guy because he's gone through a lot of shit.
Yep. Yeah. And and I mean I think from a marketing standpoint, people think of golf as an elitist sport, whereas there's, especially in the professional game, such a large majority of players that are definitely not I mean, I had a guy staying with me in a pony room, so that is like, it's not an elitist sport. It's guys who are ultra talented, who've come from places like Ball State or like South Florida, you know, a small
universities who are just trying to make a living. And I think it makes him much more relatable on a human level and helps the game. Not that you shouldn't market Tiger Woods and all those guys. Obviously he could, but there's another large element of the game that's not being covered.
I mean that I was unbelievably like astonished at Ben Silverman's story. And I didn't know anything about Ben Silverman and I do a little research. You didn't start playing golf till he was seventeen.
Yeah, I mean he shot one hundred cooking school.
Yeah, but golf at a cooking university.
Yeah. He shot one hundred and eighteen as a junior or senior in high school at a at a junior event. I mean, like he's he's a long of long shots.
He said right after each told it, right, you start playing golf, I'm gonna play professional golf, yeah, like you used to start playing at sixteen.
Yeah. I mean how many people must have told the guy he's crazy? Yeah? Yeah, Because I mean he's the guy who I've run into is like I'm going to play pro golf and like, oh no, you're not.
Yeah, And that's like so, like, you know, the ability with golf.
I think one of the unique things is like you see, like Zach Johnson played golf at Drake Yep.
You know, Adam.
Spenson played Division two golf.
Yeah.
Ben Silverman played at a cooking school. Yeah, before he went transferred to Florida Atlantic. It's like golf. One of the things about golf is like a lot of times the campus guy misses and you get these obscure guys that like are better stories in a way because they came from nowhere.
Yeah. Yeah, I mean they're I'm always amazed. To your point is, I'm always amazed every time I look up a player and they're like Barry University or you know. I mean I caddied for I talked to two guys who played at a Steven M and Zach I can't remember Zach's name, but they played at at a junior college together. No, it's a Indian Hills is a very good community college. But the fact that they had to go to a community college in order to go on
to a four year school, like that's pretty crazy. I mean they are, like there's so much depth of talent out there that didn't come from the Alabama's, Florida's those kind of things. I mean, Joe Gunnerman walked on at Tones and State. I mean, it's it's not a golf school, it's a it's just a school to play that happens to have golf.
Yeah, so, uh, what's Uh, we'll get you out of here with a couple of quick errors. Who's who's your pick for for low low qualifier? You know, non tour ron major tour player, uh in in the US Open.
Yeah, I mean it's gonna be two guys I think. I mean Colin Terran and Chip McDaniel. I mean Chip has played really really well this year. Uh, he just needs an opportunity, a weekly opportunity to play. But I mean he's been in the mix at every Monday. If he didn't get through, he played well in Puerto Rico top five, made the cut at the Valero. I mean Andy has a ton to play for. A made cut means you know, he has a place to play regardless next year. So and if he plays really well, you'll
have temporary membership. So I'll go with him or column tern. I think Column you know, I had a had a great year last year, having a solid WEB season. Uh.
Nick Hardy could be.
Nick Hardy very good too.
He's gonna be one of the best players without status.
Yeah, very very true. And he's played well in Mondays and had some bad luck.
Yeah, third third US opens, Yeah, and he made a cut he made the cutout chambers.
Yeah, so yeah, he's lost I think twice in Mondays for sure, that I know. Yeah, playoffs like next day playoffs one of them. Yes, that's rough, that's right, Yeah exactly.
And then, uh, what's the what's what's the what's the next big thing to look at? I look for from the from the Monday Ques perspective.
I mean, uh, we're gonna do some fun stuff. I mean, hopefully some podcasts a podcast get going. We gonna have some like behind the scenes stuff with I'm going to Caddy in an event. We might have miked up things. We're gonna follow some players through the year. I mean, I think the stories are are always new every week. So I appreciate you having me on and look forward to doing some more stuff.
Yeah, thanks for coming on. We'll have to do something before like U school or something. Ye do another so good people can find you. You're a case of the golf one at a case of the golf one on Twitter.
And in hindsight, in hindsight, head I'd known this would be this, I would have taken more time to come up with a better handle.
But I wouldn't have named my company after a common food, that's true.
Yeah, I've made my bed now, it's already the ship has sailed, so all right.
Well, thanks for coming on and excited to have a little more color behind these guys and you
So thanks man,