In the Footsteps of Giants

At the end of last year friends of the show, Matt McClean and Steven Gracey headed to the LIV Promotions event in Saudi Arabia. Earlier this year Steven came into the studio to recount some stories from that most unusual adventure.  New ITFOG episodes will appear in early September following our summer break. You can still interact with the podcast via X @ITFOG_podcast, Instagram @ITFOG or BlueSky...

The 153rd Open is in the books and major season is over. Martin, Des and young Mike sit down to discuss their various experiences at Royal Portrush over the last few days. Scottie was a worthy winner but did he suck the juice out of the final day by showing no weakness or emotion. Who were the other winners/losers from a glorious week on the north Antrim coast. Which ITFOG panellist won the predic...

Martin & Des (and young Mike?) discuss the unusual conundrum that appears to affect the US Ryder Cup team selections for Bethpage. Will Keegan Bradley be a playing captain in September? Also we discuss the current state of PGA Tour/LIV negotiations as we are now 2+ years on from the infamous Framework Agreement. With the Open Championship only 10 days away we make our pre tournament prediction...

Martin meets up with an old friend, Mike Wolsley, a former European Tour player and also golf coach based in California. They discuss stories from Mike's time on tour, his friendship with Freddie Couples, his time coaching Jean Van DeVelde, his teaching philosophies and his opinions on today's top players. A unique look into Mike's life in golf and the trials and tribulations of bei...

A different episode this week as Martin sits down for a chat with the Chairman of the Championship Committee for the 2025 Open Championship. What is different at Royal Portrush for the upcoming Open, what lessons were taken from the 2019 event to make this year's tournament even better. A fascinating chat with Ian Kerr who carries the responsibility for delivering the facilities and course to...

Martin and Des debate the outcome of a soggy final couple of days for the 2025 US Open. great result for JJ Spaun and a few other interesting performances in a Ryder Cup year. The boys also discuss Shane & Rory's current attitudes and interactions with the press and how it is affecting their status with fans. Interact with the podcast via X @ITFOG_podcast, Instagram @ITFOG or BlueSky @ITF...

Martin and Des chat about Erin Hills and the US Women's Open, Scottie's 'next' win at the Memorial and some Ryder Cup implications. Des also updates listeners on his recent tour to County Sligo. The boys also discuss the upcoming US Open at Oakmont and put in their selections for the year's third major championship. Interact with the podcast via X @ITFOG_podcast, Instagram...

The USPGA Championship from Quail Hollow is in the books and Scottie Scheffler again proved to be the best player in the field. Martin and Des hit the studio to discuss a whole range of storylines from Charlotte. Will Scottie complete the Grand Slam, who can challenge him if his B game was enough to win last week, was Rory's non conforming driver a factor, was Bryson unlucky, who has played t...

Martin and Des meet up to discuss the last couple of week's results but mainly to record their predictions for this week's USPGA Championship at Quail Hollow. Young Mike zooms in later to add his own predictions. A few answers but many more questions in this Ryder Cup year where European players are dominating on the PGA Tour. The next few weeks will be critical to the makeup of both tea...

Martin manages to "find" Des and discuss the ramifications of Rory's Masters win a week on from that epic night. Updates on the RBC Heritage, Corales Puntacana and the China Open start the show but then the boys look back at their predictions and what might happen going forward. Interact with the podcast via X @ITFOG_podcast, Instagram @ITFOG or BlueSky @ITFOG-podcast

The last four days have put golf fans through the ringer as we all watched, with bated breath, Rory's best chance to win the Career Grand Slam and enter the Pantheon of golfing gods. The outcome remained in doubt until the very last putt (at the first extra hole), could Rory beat his demons and deliver major number 5 or would heartbreak prevail. An epic story spanning nearly 11 years finally...

A busy week at the ITFOG HQ where Martin & Des attempt to rectify their previous poor call, catch up on on the news from around the golfing world and preview the 2025 Masters. Where is young Mike when the work needs to get done? Plenty of stats and predictions for Augusta plus a few strongly held opinions as we head into the "major" season. Can Rory get a green jacket in what looks t...

Martin and Des review the Players Championship from one of @ITFOG_podcast favourite courses, the legendary TPC Sawgrass. Possibly one of the few overseas courses that once you play it you will remember every hole. Great win for Rory but JJ Spaun could have spoiled the party late on Sunday evening, the distance between triumph and disaster can be very small. The boys also discuss how Phil Mickelson...

Martin, Des and special guest Mark give their thoughts on the third season of Netflix's golfing docu series "Full Swing". This season covers events on the PGA Tour in 2024 which included Scottie's infamous arrest, Rory & Bryson's battle for the US Open at Pinehurst plus a host of other stories from around the Tour. We also catch up on a couple of redemption stories fro...

The full team is back in the studio to discuss the recent European successes on the west coast culminating in Ludvig Aberg's big win in the Genesis Open. Does this bode well for team Europe at Bethpage Black later in the year or have they peaked too early? Also having seen LIV's published financials for 2023 we debate the insanity of this loss making venture and speculate on the deal (ru...

Martin and Des welcome Steven Gracey back to the studio to talk about his recent trip to the LIV promotions event in Saudi Arabia where he caddied for top Irish amateur (and his best mate) Matt McClean. Plenty of fun stories from their spontaneous adventure plus a roundup of the weeks results including a big win for Rory.  As usual you can interact with the podcast via X @ITFOG_podcast or via Inst...

Martin and Des look at the weekends results which bode well for the European Ryder Cup team later in the year, albeit there are also some concerns surrounding two key players from the winning 2023 team. Martin chats with two local Foggies about their predictions for the major season and whether they agree with the choices made by the ITFOG "experts" from the last episode. The boys cover...

A new year and the boys return to cover all things that interest us as fans from the world of golf. Martin & Des discuss the Sentry Championship from Kapalua and whether the course is now too easy for the top pros. Mike joins via Zoom to provide his input to the ITFOG predictions for the 2025 major season and the Ryder Cup. All the team answer the question we left hanging from the last episode...

With Des and Mike already on their holidays it falls to Martin to tidy up a few loose ends from the 2024 ITFOG postbag. Joining Martin in the studio is Debbie who articulates the questions sent in by the "Foggies" over the last few weeks.  With thanks to all our loyal listeners in 2024 and our hope that you all have a lovely Christmas and a peaceful new year. We will return with new epis...

Martin, Des and young Mike meet at ITFOG HQ to debate who warrants a place on the "nice list" for 2024, but more entertainingly who makes the "naughty list" at the end of another golfing year. Plenty of spirited debate and a few surprises along the way. Many thanks to the Foggies who have continued to support and interact with the podcast over the last 12 months. As we have sai...

Martin is back on the road again, this time with his lovely wife, Debbie, to report from Dubai on the DPWT Race to Dubai finale for @ITFOG_podcast. A fantastic few days at the Earth Course watching some incredible players but not everything was as relaxing as the golf. Find out what it is like to attend one of the premier tournaments on the DPWT and a few pitfalls along the way. Some winter sunshi...

Martin, Des and young Mike finally catch up about many of the current issues in golf. Plenty of chat about the HSBC Championship from Yas Links in Abu Dhabi, where our on course correspondent somewhat melted! Why are LIV players playing in the DPWT finals? How close is a deal between the PGA Tour and Mr PIF and how will that impact the DPWT, Martin espouses a new theory on this subject. Plenty of...

The Renegade Players Tour head to Portugal for our 35th anniversary tour and a couple of new courses to our resume. A short tour but still packed with many laughs and a couple of good stories. Were we impressed with the courses at Val do Lobo or did "new kid" on the block, Ombria Golf, create the bigger impression? This "on the road" episode features contributions from all of o...

We're back after a slight delay in scheduling. Martin and Des catch up on events from around the golfing world including the most pointless tournament on the DPWT calendar. Another great week of action at the Andalucia Masters which tied a particular record on the European circuit and a preview of our own upcoming tour to Portugal. We have a qick look at standings on the OWGR and who might st...

A busy couple of weeks on the DP World Tour and some great golf to talk about. Martin and Des catch up on the action from Wentworth, revel in the heroics of a new Spanish hero, discuss the limited appeal of the President's Cup in it's current format and then look at other stories of interest from around the golfing Twittersphere. We disagree with golf Digest's new ranking of the top...