The Amateur Golf Podcast by AmateurGolf.com

Luke Clanton knows Pinehurst well. He played in the 2019 U.S Amateur at the famous No. 2 course as a 15 year old. He missed out on match play in a 27-for-3 playoff. Three years later, Clanton is still a junior golfer who has committed to Florida State. Clanton details his memories from 2015 at Pinehurst, including a story about playing with 49-year-old Jackie Nicklaus, then Clanton brings us insid...

Matt Nunez is the tournament director for the all the North & South amateur events at Pinehurst. That includes the men’s, women’s, junior, and senior tournaments. He also is in charge of the Pinehurst Country Club events, the Donald Ross Junior, and Wake Forest invite. Matt talks with us about his role as tournament director, what makes the North & South amateur so special, how players can...

Jensen Castle burst onto the golfing scene last summer when she won the US Women’s Amateur. Since then she has played in two US Women’s Opens. First at Olympic Club and this week at Pine Needles. She competed in the 2021 Curtis Cup and was selected for the 2022 competition at Merion this June. If that wasn’t enough, Castle also competed in the Augusta National Women’s Amateur. It’s been an incredi...

Brendan Walsh has been the head pro at The Country Club for the last 25 years. He came to Brookline in 1998 from Patterson Club in Fairfield, CT where he served as the head pro for seven years. Brendan has been described as generous and outgoing. It’s hard to disagree. There are myriad pros throughout the country that have come through The Country Club under Walsh’s mentorship. He was kind enough...

Jim Stracka has mixed golf and business for more than two decades. He is the founder and CEO of StrackaLine, which makes green reading books and yardage books. We cover Jim’s love of playing golf (especially when there’s a bit of money on the line…), how he started StrackaLine, what goes into the process for making a green-reading book, the controversy around the books on the professional level, a...

Aaron Jarvis is a self described grinder. His victory at Teeth of the Dog this past January in the Latin America Am was a perfect example of his toughness on the course. He finished his round with a flurry of excellent shots and watched as the final groups came through 18. When all was said and done, he won and had an invite to The Masters. Jarvis is the first golfer to represent the Cayman Island...

Beverly Bell is the author of “The Murder of Marion Miley.” In 2020 the book was a finalist for the USGA Herbert Warren Wind book award. The story itself was lost in history, as Miley’s murder was washed from the front pages when Pearl Harbor was attacked and World War II stole everyone’s attention. Miley was an exceptional amateur golfer. From 1931 to the murder in 1941, she won 20 amateur events...

Rachel Heck’s golfing life moves fast. Since recording this podcast she has collected her eighth individual title and her Stanford team shot a record-breaking 50-under par at the Gunrock Invitational.  Heck has ascended to the very top of college and amateur golf, however, her story stretches beyond the golf course. She is enrolled in the Air Force’s ROTC program (Reserve Officers' Training C...

Billy Mitchell has played golf all over the world. He spent the bulk of his 20s playing on mini-tours in Australia, Asia, and Canada from 1985-1995. After ten years away from the game where he focused on his family and building a training business, Billy returned to golf in 2005 and has enjoyed a lot of success, playing in 17 USGA event. During our discussion we cover a variety of topics including...

Chris "Soly" Solomon is part of No Laying Up, a golf media company that has changed the way a lot of golf fans think about, play, and consume the game. My discussion with Soly has nothing to do with his work behind the mic and keyboard, but instead it’s about his own golf game and the Gasparilla Invitational that kicks off on February 17 at Palma Ceia in Tampa Bay. Soly has played in the...

Peter O’Keeffe is an amateur golfer from Ireland. In 2021 he became the first player in 26 years to win the Irish Amateur Close and Irish Amateur Open championships in the same year. The last player to do that was a young Padraig Harrington. O’Keeffe’s experience in the game is wide ranging. He played his college golf in Louisiana. After graduating he returned to Europe and battled on the Challeng...

Dr. Bob Winters has an illustrious resume. He has been involved in golf at every level as a player, coach, and sports psychologist. He has made a huge impact on players of every age.  For the last 17 years, he has been the Resident Sports Psychologist for Leadbetter Golf Academy World Teaching Headquarters at Champions Gate, Florida, working with some of the best golfers in the world.  Dr. Bob als...

Ludvig Aberg was named AmateurGolf.com’s 2021 player of the year. The Texas Tech junior has a long list of accolades. He was a 2021 PING All-American, a GCAA All-American scholar, All-Big 12 First Team, and a Haskins Award finalist. During our chat, Ludvig talks about growing up and learning the game in Sweden, the choice to attend college in the United States (and Texas Tech in particular), his i...