Distance Debate

SOG Ep 093: Bob Denney on AW Tillinghast

With the PGA Championship set to return to the Bethpage Black course in New York next week there will be plenty of discussion about course design AW Tillinghast. While known mostly as a course architect, Tillinghast had many more strings to his bow including a well known – though little understood – tour of the US during the depression years to advise courses on more financially sustainable management practises. What is less known is the extensive records he kept of that period and PGA Historian Bob Denney joins Geoff Shackelford, Mike Clayton and Rod Morri on Episode 93 to delve into the life and times of one of the game’s great contributors.

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SOG Ep 092 Master Coach Denis Pugh

Denis Pugh is a 40 year overnight success story. In his early years as a coach his theories were often scorned but having worked with more than 200 touring professionals – including Colin Montgomerie, our own Mike Clayton and of course the reigning Open Champion Francesco Molinari – his thirst for knowledge and communication skills have been proven. Denis talks everything from what it takes to succeed at the top level in the modern game to how he helped Molinari go from merely very good to truly elite.

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SOG Ep 091 The Masters Big Picture

Tiger Woods winning his fifth green jacket was something special but The Masters is about so much more than just the 72 holes each year. Join Geoff Shackelford, Mike Clayton join Rod Morri as they break down what the 2019 Masters means in the bigger picture, from changes to the course (in particular the fifth hole) to media, technology and the role of the Augusta National Women’s Amateur. Oh, and there’s mention of the possibility that distance might be an issue as well.

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SOG Ep 090: Old Course Rough and Rules, Rules, Rules

Is golf going into meltdown or are we just having a rough patch because of the new rules? Geoff Shackelford, Mike Clayton and Rod Morri delve into the seemingly weekly rules snafus in the professional game while also touching on the ‘enhanced’ rough we can expect at the 2021 Open at St Andrews and what might happen if the pro game made its own rules.

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Episode 89: SOG Ep 089: Saudi Arabia, Hao Tong Li and Augusta National

The storm over the European Tour’s visit to Saudi Arabia is only intensifying but it’s not the only controversy bubbling in golf. There is still lots of disquiet over the penalising of Hao Tong Li in Dubai as well as discussion about Lucas Herbert’s explanation of his actions in removing loose impediments with his club in wasteland in the same event. It’s not all bad news though, with Geoff Shackelford believing changes to the 5th hole at Augusta National made public this week suggesting the course may be moving back in the right direction.

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SOG Ep 089: Saudi Arabia, Hao Tong Li and Augusta National

The storm over the European Tour’s visit to Saudi Arabia is only intensifying but it’s not the only controversy bubbling in golf. There is still lots of disquiet over the penalising of Hao Tong Li in Dubai as well as discussion about Lucas Herbert’s explanation of his actions in removing loose impediments with his club in wasteland in the same event. It’s not all bad news though, with Geoff Shackelford believing changes to the 5th hole at Augusta National made public this week suggesting the course may be moving back in the right direction.

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SOG Ep 088: Lucy Li and the Rules of Amateur Status

New rules in 2019 always suggested there would be a rules controversy in January but the one involving Lucy Li isn’t what most were expecting. The 16-year-old is in danger of losing her amateur status after appearing in an ad for the Apple Watch with the USGA now investigating. It’s a difficult situation for the ruling body who will no doubt be damned if they do and damned if they don’t but Geoff Shackelford says the situation is really one of their own making.

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Episode 88: SOG Ep 088: Lucy Li and the Rules of Amateur Status

New rules in 2019 always suggested there would be a rules controversy in January but the one involving Lucy Li isn’t what most were expecting. The 16-year-old is in danger of losing her amateur status after appearing in an ad for the Apple Watch with the USGA now investigating. It’s a difficult situation for the ruling body who will no doubt be damned if they do and damned if they don’t but Geoff Shackelford says the situation is really one of their own making.

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SOG Ep 087: Ru Macdonald and the power of Instagram

What’s the best social media platform for golf? Geoff Shackelford says its Instagram and with the help of Scottish Golf Podcast host and European Tour Social Media team member Ru Macdonald he explains why to co-hosts Rod Morri and Mike Clayton in episode 87 of State of the Game.

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Episode 87: SOG Ep 087: Ru Macdonald and the power of Instagram

What’s the best social media platform for golf? Geoff Shackelford says its Instagram and with the help of Scottish Golf Podcast host and European Tour Social Media team member Ru Macdonald he explains why to co-hosts Rod Morri and Mike Clayton in episode 87 of State of the Game.

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