The Shotgun Start

We react to the final round of the men’s major season, celebrating Shane Lowry’s triumph at Royal Portrush. We relay a fun story about Lowry coming up in Irish junior golf in the shadow of superstar Rory McIlroy and then review his work from the weekend to win The Open. We also consider the hot take that this was actually a bad year for major Sundays. Then we get to Lee Westwood’s day of yippy put...

This special Saturday edition of the Shotgun Start delivers some instant reactions to the third round of The Open. We begin lamenting the fall of Westy, who put it in neutral for much of the afternoon following a rousing tease in the first five holes. Does he have any hope playing from behind and is there a different game within the game to watch for on Sunday? We review the 54-hole leaderboard an...

This special Friday afternoon edition runs through some instant reactions to the first 36 holes at The Open. Andy cannot contain his Lee Westwood excitement with the hard-luck Englishman rising near the top of the leaderboard again. We run down Westy’s chances, as well as the entire top 10, and look for some names outside that group to make a longshot, given the history, run at the Claret Jug. We...

Brendan and Andy hop on the horn for some instant reactions to the first day at Royal Portrush, but not without first relaying some information exposing the junk science behind the fraudulent physicist’s golf ball ad. Andy also reveals some amusing intel about the physicist hitting seven tee shots into one hole during an Open practice round before finally proclaiming it “impossible.” Then they mov...

It’s Open eve and we begin this Wednesday episode full of gratitude and anticipation and  a few reasons why each of us have come to hold this major as our favorite on the men’s schedule. We drive off the cliff and discuss the Barbasol field for longer than we should before getting back on track, reviewing some fun quotes coming out of the pre-championship press conferences. First we go to Brooks K...

This Monday episode begins, apropos of nothing, with a story about Monty. Then we move to the heartland and weekend at the John Deere Classic. We discuss Dylan Frittelli’s career arc and the last player to win on Tour while wearing glasses. We also get into the JDC’s spot on the schedule and if it has been unfairly squeezed. We then move over the Scottish Open and the absolute pillowfight of a pla...

This Friday episode begins with a review of the early action at the John Deere, where almost everyone (but not Cameron Champ) is living under par. We discuss Bobby Diaz separating himself slightly at the top, Hosung’s miraculously leading in a strokes gained category, and Robert Allenby’s activities around the Quad Cities region. We also discuss some low early scores at the Scottish Open, the yard...

A rollicking Wednesday episode begins by immediately taking a hard left turn off the planned route to discuss the Senior Players Championship, specifically the major getting away from some recent excellent venue choices and intel on Monty’s prep at a local suburban Ohio retail store. We then get into the KFC Tour’s event in Colorado, which gives Andy an occasion to disabuse the notion from overhyp...

After a long holiday weekend, we return with a loaded Monday episode following a thrilling finish to the Sticky Note Open. We discuss Matthew Wolff’s immediate success on the PGA Tour, winning in just his third start as a pro. Where does he go from here? Andy gets to the heart of all our concerns: Does he have FedExCup status or is he still in the no-man’s points land? We also review Collin Morika...

It’s July which means it is now the European Tour’s time to shine so this holiday week episode begins with a discussion of the Irish Open at Lahinch, the classic links layout on the west coast of Ireland. We lament its weak field strength but contrast it with the dartboard tour’s venue in the upper midwest. Andy also worries that the new compacted schedule is eroding interest in some of these even...

After a full weekend of golf we begin in the obvious starting point: Zach Johnson’s tumble out of the top 100 in the world rankings and if his Kaboom Baby! equipment is to blame. Rory Sabbatini’s top five finish in Detroit then leads to a serious take about how his switch in nationality has screwed the International team at the Presidents Cup. Then we get to Nate Lashley winning the Rocket Mortgag...

This Friday episode begins with a discussion of the Pace of Play report that Andy published to strong reviews after a couple weeks of hype on the podcast. We discuss a few key findings and some recent comments from Bryson. Then we get into early reactions from Detroit, where the ball is flying, the dartboard is receptive, and the scores are low. We bring up the new addition to the contrived three-...

This Wednesday episode bobs and weaves and meanders through the schedule for the week, with many relevant and irrelevant digressions. We begin with a hot tip on Justine Reed’s latest efforts to get Pat Reed back on track up in Detroit. Then we discuss BMW leaving as title sponsor of an FEC Playoffs event and the amount of money required to land such a sponsorship. Then we get into the Tour’s retur...

After 11 long years, Chez rule returns to the PGA Tour. We celebrate Reavie’s win at the Travelers, marveling at his consistency and where he could go from here. Should he be on the Presidents Cup team to mix it up in Melbourne? Also from Travelers, we discuss Brooksy’s ambivalence, Keegan’s ugly finish, and Jason Day now taking orders from Stevie Williams. On the LPGA, we get to Hannah Green’s fi...

As they say around the office, “It’s Friday!” and we lead off with Louis Oosthuizen’s big crossover night at the NBA Draft. We then head to the weekend with a quick check-in on some of the early action, including the setup for the Women’s PGA at Hazeltine. We discuss Michelle Wie’s tough opening round, her comments about maybe not having much golf left, and her career as a whole. Then we get to th...

Andy and Brendan are back with a slightly delayed Wednesday episode turning our attention away from the week that was at Pebble Beach to a new full week of golf around the world. We begin with the next major, the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship at Hazeltine, which gives Andy an opportunity to lament the uninspired venue choice. Then we get to the Travelers Championship and a discussion of that loade...