Fore Play

The hilarious 2-time PLAYERS champion Steve Elkington joins the show for the third time (25:13 - 57:27). Elk calls while strolling the range at Sawgrass, running into Pat Perez and commentating on Brooks Koepka chipping right in front of him. Elk weighs in on the course conditions, Patrick Reed’s situation, swing advice, Rory’s game and MUCH more. The crew also previews The PLAYERS and takes several From The Galleries, including if Tiger would have had more or less success if he were a left-handed golfer!

Riggs & Lurch return from the 2020 Dadbod Classic and recap the week at Pebble Beach, Spyglass Hill & Spanish Bay. After, we react to Bay Hill including Bryson’s thoughts on how “the physics stopped working,” discuss the PGA considering a move from Harding Park in San Francisco to TPC Sawgrass in Florida due to Coronavirus, PLAYERS Championship week, at what age will Tiger Woods not be able to compete at the Masters, how many golf balls we’ve lost our careers, and MUCH more!

Riggs & Lurch are off to Pebble as the whole crew’s back together to discuss what would happen if Augusta canceled the Masters, if you could take some of Tiger’s talents but it meant he loses his, and the latest with (maybe) Justine Reed’s burner account!

Gil Hanse (24:45), one of golf’s most renowned course architects, joins the show for nearly an hour. We talk building The Cradle short course right in Pinehurst’s front yard, creating Pinehurst’s new no. 4 course, restoring Winged Foot ahead of this summer’s U.S. Open, and what he would do with Augusta’s 13th hole. The crew also talks Old Man Golf Media popping back up, a potential Justine Reed burner account, and the Honda Classic!

The death of golf stuffiness is upon us, and Brooks Koepka has championed the cause. We breakdown Brooks’ recent GQ profile (we loved it) and Tiger’s teleconference reliving the 2019 Masters. Then, we hit you with a 10-minute excerpt of prolific course architect Gil Hanse chatting with Riggs. The full interview will be in next Tuesday’s show, but you get a taste of what it took to reshape the 16th hole, thumbprint green at Sleepy Hollow!

Patrick Reed, amidst plenty of controversy, wins in Mexico. Does he deserve the hate he gets? What about Bryson? We discuss this, the NHL trade deadline (not a hockey podcast), the Premier Golf League, and MUCH more!

Scott Brown (26:30), fresh off a T2 finish at Riviera, joins the show. He tells the story of making an ace while playing with Tiger, playing Palmetto with Kiz & the Fore Play crew in November, and being in contention down the stretch at Riviera. Then Elliot and Adam (69:10) from Bridgestone join to discuss working with Tiger to create his new golf ball, what Tiger likes and doesn’t like, and what distance regulations could mean for ball manufacturers going forward!!!

David Feherty (35:23) joins us in studio for a phenomenal and funny chat about a myriad of topics. We get into the behind the scenes of a broadcast, the problems with having a hot mic button, and David’s thoughts on players from Rory to Reed to Tiger and more. The crew also talks Genesis Invitational coverage, Riviera, and Adam Scott’s VERY impressive win!

Alfonso Ribeiro, the famous actor, and host twists our brains into pretzels with his analytical approach to golf. He breaks down what it’s like playing the Pebble Beach Pro-Am, working with Kevin Na’s swing coach, and giving us advice on how mentally to better our own games. He also discusses bringing that analytic approach to his career. Afterward, we ponder microchips inside golf balls to help players find their ball!

Frankie’s a mess and Commissioner Riggs announces Pinehurst will host the 2020 Barstool Classic Championship. He and Lurch recap a weekend reconnaissance trip in North Carolina. In Headlines, Tom Brady quote tweeted a Fore Play tweet to roast Peyton Manning, Tiger’s hosting at Riviera this week (where he’s never won), Phil and Spieth showing signs of improvement, and Rory’s back to no. 1 in the world!

Analyst Brandel Chamblee checks in with us to talk pretty much everything. We discuss Patrick Reed’s cease & desist letter, Brooks Koepka vs Rory McIlroy, Tiger’s current swing being perhaps his best, the new distance report, Phil’s game and MUCH more!

When you finish a hole, do you say “I made 6” or “I shot 6”? We debate, and things get heated. We also react to yet another incredibly candid interview from Rory McIlroy, Tony Finau coming up short yet again, and Spieth missing the cut in Phoenix. Lurch details his weekend playing Harding Park, Pasatiempo, and running just an awful Instagram story!

Kirk Minihane sits down with Riggs in Miami and poses the question: “If Fore Play had hard, damning Tiger Woods news, would we break it?” We debate that and discuss the mysterious Premier Golf League, what we dislike and like about golf coverage, which players have underperformed, how good of a job Ernie Els did as International Presidents Cup captain, and a lot more. Anytime Kirk hops on, things get interesting!

The tragic accident that took 9 lives, including Kobe Bryant’s, was shocking news that affected everyone in some way. We react to the horrible tragedy then breakdown Tiger Woods’ 2020 debut, everything that went down at Torrey Pines including Patrick Reed getting no TV time, Bryson getting a slow play warning in Dubai, Spieth falling outside the top-50, and much more!

Kiz joins the show for his yearly checkup. Per usual, he weighs in on our golf games, if Rory could beat Frankie blindfolded, if Riggs has a chance in the 5-iron match, how he likes his chances at this year’s majors, what’s going on at Augusta National and MUCH more!

Torrey Pines is next which means Tiger Woods is back. Despite winning the Farmers Insurance 7 times, Tiger’s not the first or second favorite. We talk Torrey, Brooks vs Bryson, new photos of a dormant Augusta National, Lee Westwood’s career, Lurch suffers a major ping pong setback, and much more!

Frankie Borrelli is forced to publicly apologize to an anonymous Tiger Woods fan account, jacked Bryson fires shots at Brooks Koepka, new slow play policies are rolled out, and Jack Nicklaus makes more comments on Tiger Woods. We discuss this and much more with the full crew!

Chris DiMarco joins the show (~53:10) for the first time. DiMarco, unfortunately, had the best seat in the house for Tiger's famous chip-in on 16 at Augusta in the final round of the 2005 Masters, eventually losing to Tiger in a playoff. We discuss battling Tiger Woods, Patrick Reed's handling of the bunker incident, how golf can improve slow play, and MUCH more. Before DiMarco joins, we react to Charlie Woods' golf swing, the Sony Open finish, and Trent's severe addiction to sugar!

We react to the Geoff Shackelford interview, providing our thoughts on how it went, what we wish we would have brought up, and people's reactions. Then we talk all things, Patrick Reed, at Kapalua. Reed says he didn't hear the heckler, Commissioner Jay Monahan believes him, and Chris DiMarco had an outrageous tweet about Reed. We also talk Abraham Ancer saying the media twisted his comments about playing Tiger, we're getting Mr. Borrelli the S7K putter, and what the exact diameter of a golf hole makes Frankie want to fight Lurch!

Geoff Shackelford (~3:24)  joins the show to discuss the infamous Old Man Golf Media vs Fore Play saga. We debate each other's place in the golf media landscape and things get everything from contentious to funny to enlightening. Why did Geoff take a shot at Fore Play? Were we justified in firing back? Is there space at the table for all of us? After Geoff joins, we breakdown the crazy finish to the Tournament of Champions at Kapalua!