PGA Tour board and Monahan fatigue, LIV’s puny Hong Kong Course, and SGS Golf Advice

Andy and Brendan are back for what is now an SGS Masters tradition -- daily podcasts reviewing all the inanities, amusements, and play both good and bad. This Thursday review begins with the incredible golf of Justin Rose, and quickly turns to the challenging course conditions of the first round. The firmness made hitting fairways an actual priority or reward and some of the elite ball strikers from tee to green moved up the leaderboard. They debate the most disappointing and most surprising opening rounds, their favorite horrible shots, and talk themselves into some unintended drive-bys of the kids just trying to navigate their way around Augusta. Gary Player’s idiot kid inserting himself in the honorary starter ceremony is panned. There’s a fashion review as well, from the Nike designs and colors, to the suspenders, to another spin of the Patrick Reed sponsor roulette wheel. They close with a bit on Rory, Spieth, and make/miss the cut predictions for some top names.

9 Apr 202151min

Andy gets up off the mat after a sick day for this late night amuse bouche of an episode as the Masters tees off on Thursday. He and Brendan begin with a Masters fact of the day on the honorary starters just continuing to play a round in carts after the pomp at the first tee. Then they get to their one-and-done picks to have those in under the wire. Some of their favorite tee times are highlighted for these first two days, the nominees for adding to your My Group shot-by-shot (or baton twirl by twirl) feature, and picks for the Chuck Hoffman Memorial first round leader. Some spicy quotes are reviewed -- like Rory potentially having to face impeachment as President of the PAC, Phil saying the golf course has not had to be respected due to softness, and Bryson on the onerous task of having to read greens with … your eyes, imagine that. There’s also the topic of his frisbee warm-up. This week has become a Masters SGS tradition and it is brought to you by the Shotgun Start blend of Bixby coffee—subscribe here and you will be able to join a live virtual and interactive happy hour during Friday’s round of the Masters.

8 Apr 202138min

This special bonus Tuesday edition of the Shotgun Start features old friend Fried Egg Paulie. Perhaps you’ve heard, but gambling and daily fantasy have become a part of the golf scene, especially at the Masters. There are a lot of Johnny-come-latelys riding this wave but Paulie is an original not looking for hype and most importantly, willing to indulge two know-nothing idiots. Andy maps out a daily fantasy lineup with Paulie’s help. Brendan asks how oddsmaking has changed since it’s rapid escalation as part of pro golf. They debate Bernhard Langer’s new equipment deal and Ian Woosnam’s breakfast of champions. They discuss Brooksy’s injury, low values, and hopeful amateurs. This has become a Masters SGS tradition and it is brought to you by the Shotgun Start blend of Bixby coffee -- subscribe here and you will be able to join a live virtual and interactive happy hour during Friday’s round of the Masters.

6 Apr 202138min

This Monday episode begins with news of Andy’s arrival back to the Land of Matt Fitzpatrick after some time-zone struggles. Then Brendan and Andy get into the first major winner of 2021, Patty Tavatanakit and her two-shot win over Lydia Ko. Her no-leaderboard watching policy is debated, Ko’s charge is extolled, and the Poppie leap is graded. Then they’re onto to the national open at TPC San Antonio, where Jordan Spieth got his first win since the summer of 2017. Both talk about what they felt seeing him get it done again, the Texas Open otherwise stinking, and delight of that late crappy 8-iron down the stretch to keep us on our toes, per Spieth protocols. A clarification is issued on the Redneck Riviera before Stephan Jaeger’s continued credentials as the KFT are debated. The first of two digressions on the Drive, Chip, and Putt takes place, with apathy and confusion the conclusion. Saturday’s second ANWA is praised, even if the play was underwhelming -- the Tour did have to take a backseat, after all. News hits on Brooksy and likely Rahm playing the Masters, the course looking dialed in after the weekend exposure, and Waffle House ignorance from two native midwesterners.

5 Apr 202155min

This wandering Friday episode features fantastic intel on the procurement of Patrick Reed’s apparel but begins with a quick announcement on some Masters week community gathering at a virtual Bixby House. Then Brendan and Andy catch up on Masters facts of the day, which include the alleged real pimento cheese recipe ANGC uses as well as old stories about caddies shagging balls on the range. Then they get to the tournaments at hand, reacting to the cut at ANWA and the tough scoring conditions. The ANA reactions focus on Shanshan Feng coming off the bench after a year away to post 67, the LPGA moving the tee up with the wall down at 18, and Michelle Wie’s impressive opener. Texas Open thoughts hit on Spieth’s early work, Phil’s implosion and level of care, and some low Cameron odds. News covers a hefty slow play fine for one LPGA rookie, DJ’s champions dinner menu, Brooksy’s engagement announcement, and the weird police procedure around disclosing the cause of Tiger’s accident. Precision Pro Flashback Friday serves up a smorgasbord of facts and stories on the earliest days of the ANA, then the Colgate Dinah Shore Winners Circle -- from the toothpaste executive that made this a lavish one-week party in the desert to an over-crowded Easter Sunday service on the 18th green to how it quickly became an event without peer on the schedule. Lastly, Andy chimes in with some facts and alarming history on Poppie’s Pond.

2 Apr 20211h 2min

This Wednesday episode begins with a fun Sabbo story on his preferred drink order. Then there’s a debate on the merits of orange juice. Andy and Brendan eventually get into the schedule for the week, where the women at both the professional and amateur level have the stage. The ANA Inspiration is up first, where news of the blue wall coming down has dramatically changed that finisher. Andy ponders the wildlife in Poppy’s Pond, which Brendan argues is essentially now a swimming pool. There are “three things to watch” proffered for the Augusta National Women’s Amateur, where we might get a peek at a course that, according to Jordan Spieth, is rumored to be playing as firm as ever. They cover some of the top women in the field and also have a debate over the “Real USC.” Texas Open one-and-dones is a trip down Hoffman memory lane. They close with news of the Canadian Open going to Congaree and the TOUR selling a ketchup popsicle to an ISP in white gloves as another title sponsor for its regular season top 10.

31 Mar 202149min

Andy and Brendan hobble into a new week after a tedious Sunday at an otherwise enjoyable WGC Match Play. They react to the baton boy, the motormouth, the Town Crier of Ponte Vedra moving into the Swedish Pancake Club. Andy delights in his self-admonishments that became the soundtrack of the event. Then they get into his modest goals for the rest of his career -- winning the grand slam and the Players and making and captaining every team event. The Kevin Na and Dustin Johnson contretemps from Friday is reviewed, as well as the run of sudden death playoffs, which feel like format flaw. Inbee Park, a true living legend, is praised for her win at Aviara, where there was a plea for relief from a fountain geyser. Joely D’s big win in Punta Cana and Danie van Tonder’s victory in Kenya are also covered. News covers a report that there may be no fans at the U.S. Opens in California.

29 Mar 202146min

The great Kyle Porter of CBS joins for this Friday episode with Florida Man Andy on family vacation. Brendan and Kyle dive into the first two days from the WGC Match Play, delighting in Sergio’s camo pants, Bryson’s 46-yard drive, Spieth’s surge, and Rory’s walkabout in the wilderness. There’s also intel about the dangers this week in Austin with balls flying over the range net into play. Kyle talks about his upcoming trip to Augusta and what’s jumping out to him as the Masters bears down on us. Bryson’s underwhelming NFT rollout is reviewed, as are comments from his agent that the lack of demand was due to golf simply being a niche sport. They also discuss the Punta Cana finishing stretch being named “The Devil’s Elbow.” Precision Pro Flashback Friday is a two-scoop treat with Kyle bringing his own research on that time Tiger massacred someone not named Stephen Ames, and Brendan looking back on the year that absolutely no one showed up and the 90th ranked player in the world went through the bracket.

26 Mar 20211h 8min