Driven Golf Podcast

In this episode of the Driven Golf Podcast, host Jim Colton interviews Chandler Withington ( @chandlerwithington ), a longtime head professional at Hazeltine National and founder of Archive 22. Withington shares his inspiring path from his early days in golf to his career as a PGA professional at Seminole, Merion, and eventually at Hazeltine (site of the 2024 U.S. Amateur). Listeners will gain ins...

In this episode of the Driven Golf Podcast, host Jim Colton interviews Justin Bardgett, the Director of Player Relations for PGA Tour Pathways. Bardgett, who has deep Midwest roots and a background in college golf, shares insights into his journey from St. Louis to Champaign and now to Ponte Vedra, Florida. He discusses the significance of PGA Tour U, the evolving landscape of professional golf, a...

In this episode of the Driven Golf Podcast, first Jim, Andrew and Joseph reflect and follow-up on the topics covered in Volume 2 of Angle of Attack. Then Andrew interviews Matthias Tayala, a former NCAA-champion track star who has shifted his focus on golf content and golf improvement. Matthias started @GolfProWannabes which has grown to over 135,000 followers and recently launched the Golf Challe...

This episode is a compilation of all the Angle of Attack segments from DGP Episodes 12 to 19. Golf coach Andrew Lewis and Jim discuss the lowest hanging fruit items for whittling down your scoring average (from 80 to 78, 78 to 76 and 76 to 74) over time. Even if you aren’t a junior golfer or parent of one, I truly believe there is something there for everyone to help in your golf journey. 08:40 Fr...

In this episode of the Driven Golf Podcast, Jim and Joseph are joined by Hall of Fame caddie, Thomas Trinchitella (@ThomasAtNo2), known for his deep insights and long tenure at Pinehurst. Trinchitella shares stories from his career, including his experiences caddying for golf greats like Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy. Trinchitella discusses the unique aspects of Pinehurst, its history, and its prep...

In this episode of the Driven Golf Podcast, host Jim Colton welcomes Ryan Frazer from Agora Golf (Twitter: @AgoraGolf). Frazer provides a valuable data service to college coaches and assistants and provides advice to parents and juniors looking to navigate the junior golf landscape and the recruiting process. Frazer delves into the importance of starting early in the recruiting process and being p...

Brentley Romine joins Jim to discuss his career covering primarily the college and amateur game for Golf Channel and NBC Sports. Brentley discusses the growing interest in both men's and women's amateur golf, and how that growth was jeopardized after the NCAA season got off to a bumpy start with the failed transition to Spikemark for live scoring and rankings. The NCAA regionals are set an...

Steve 'Pepsi' Hale joins Jim to discuss his long career as a caddie on the PGA Tour and Korn Ferry tour. You may know Pepsi as the caddie who was on Keegan Bradley's bag for the 2011 PGA Championship at Atlanta Athletic Club. Or may you know Pepsi as the caddie who got into it with Miguel Angel Jimenez at the 2015 World Match Play. These are just a few of the stories that we get into i...

PGA Tour rookie Raul Pereda joins Andrew to discuss his journey from the Latin America tour to getting one of the five coveted PGA Tour cards at Qualifying School last fall. Raul shares his experience navigating the stages of Q School and the critical shots in the final round that helped him secure his PGA Tour card for 2024. Raul talks about adapting to life and the competition of the PGA tour, f...

Andy Johnson, the founder of Fried Egg Golf and Shotgun Start podcasts, discusses his journey in the golf industry and the leaps of faith he has made in following his passion fo the game and the impact that has made in the golf media landscape. In this conversation, Jim and Andy chat about how Fried Egg Golf has made golf course architecture accessible for a wider audience. The conversation touche...

Kate Smith, a professional golfer and co-owner of Ground Under Repair, discusses her background in golf growing up in Minnesota and her college golf experience at the University of Nebraska. She also talks about her partnership with Shane Bacon and their graphic design business. Kate shares her insights on the recruiting process for college golf, the progression of her golf skills, and her experie...

Andrew Lewis chats with Chris Mayson, one of Golf Digest's Top 50 Best Teachers in America, and instructor to many top amateur and professional players. Chris discusses his start in the game as an elite junior player in the UK, how that led to opportunities to play college golf in the U.S. and eventually led to a professional and coaching career. Chris has some great stories about when he knew...

Jim chats with Tony Pancake, the Director of Golf at Crooked Stick Golf Club in Carmel, Indiana. Tony talks about his 40-year career as a PGA professional, recently culminating in being honored as the PGA of America Golf Professional of the Year for 2024.  Tony tells some fascinating stories about his 20 years at Crooked Stick, including a round with Pete Dye during his job interview, memories fro...

This episode is a compilation of all the Angle of Attack segments from DGP Episodes 2 to 9. Golf coach Andrew Lewis and I cover the whole spectrum from getting your junior golfer started in tournament golf to how to best prepare leading up to an event. Even if you aren’t a junior golfer or parent of one, I truly believe there is something there for everyone to help in your golf journey. 01:13 Star...

Jim chats with Ryan French, a.k.a. Monday Q Info. Ryan’s passion for golf and those chasing their dreams has led him to be the trusted source for the compelling stories of heartbreak and breakthroughs that occur nearly every week on the fringes of professional golf. I hope you’ll see the parallels between Ryan’s story and the professional golfers that he covers.  In Angle of Attack, Andrew & J...

In this episode, we chat with Kye Goalby, long-time golf course shaper and architect. Kye discusses his unique upbringing in Belleville, Illinois as the son of a Masters champion, how he shifted from a finance career into building golf courses and how he's worked all around the world shaping for top golf course architects such as Tom Doak and Gil Hanse. Kye goes in-depth on his most recent pro...

Brian Schneider, a golf architect based in Charleston, South Carolina.  Brian talks about getting his start with Tom Doak over twenty years ago and the influence that he and other great architects have had on his work and his career. Brian also discusses his latest project at Old Barnwell, a co-design with Blake Conant, that has helped turn Aiken, South Carolina into the latest hot bed in golf.  I...

Josh Smith is a golf superintendent, renowned oil painter of golf course landscapes and founder of the Flag Bag Golf Company.  He is truly one of the most interesting and talented people in golf. He discusses his junior golf background in Portland, college golf at St. Mary’s, his work in golf course construction, oil painting, his career path in turfgrass at Cal Club and now Orinda Country Club in...

Brian Hilko is a PGA professional and owner of The Golf Factory, a new indoor golf facility outside of Chicago. Brian takes us through his life in the game, from his work with junior golfers to most recently becoming a small business owner.  Brian also provides some great insights for anybody looking to invest in a launch monitor or build out a simulator space in your home. In Angle of Attack w/ A...

Will Smith is the co-founder of National Links Trust, a non-profit organization focused on reinvigorating the three municipal golf courses in Washington D.C. and advocating for muni golf courses across the country. Will and his co-founder Mike McCartin have leveraged their experience and expertise in golf course architecture and deep relationships in the game of golf to strengthen the bond between...

Jarrett Phillips is a strength coach and owner of TrainPMT in Southlake, Texas. Jarrett’s tireless work and growth mindset has put TrainPMT at the cutting edge for developing speed and strength for golfers and baseball players. Jarrett discusses the data-driven approach using the latest technology to create positive outcomes for the athletes he trains.  In "Angle of Attack with Andrew Lewis" (1:08...

Peter Flory is an accomplished amateur golfer from Chicago and a golf historian with particular interest in researching golf courses that are NLE (No Longer Existing). His tireless work to create a digital version of The Lido Golf Club, C.B. Macdonald's lost masterpiece, led to Pete being involved in bringing it back to life at the Sand Valley Golf Resort in Wisconsin. Pete provides a great ov...

Andrew Lewis is a Dallas-based golf instructor and one of Golf Digest's Best Young Teachers in the U.S. He's also the father of a competitive junior player. We discuss ideas and lessons learned on raising young kids into the game and how Andrew walks that thin line between coach and parent. We also discuss how he forms special relationships with the junior players he coaches. Andrew provid...