WEBVTT - Sizing Up the U.S. Ryder Cup Team 0:00:00.080 --> 0:00:02.520 I miss a green, for example, I'm already upset. 0:00:02.640 --> 0:00:04.920 When I find my ball in the bunker, I'm really upset. 0:00:05.040 --> 0:00:08.360 And when I find my ball in Egg Friday, Egg 0:00:08.440 --> 0:00:12.640 Frida Egg, Frida Egg Bride, Egg Lie, I'm about ready 0:00:12.640 --> 0:00:14.120 to run off the golf course. 0:00:34.640 --> 0:00:39.440 Welcome back to another edition of the Frida Egg Golf Podcast. 0:00:39.720 --> 0:00:42.839 I am Andy Johnson and uh we are back with 0:00:42.960 --> 0:00:47.640 another episode with Joseph Lamanna. Obviously, this week there was 0:00:47.720 --> 0:00:52.040 big news with the American team Ryder Cup selections, so 0:00:52.400 --> 0:00:56.640 the captain's picks came out. I decided to have Joseph 0:00:56.800 --> 0:01:01.680 on to discuss the merits of the picks, the American 0:01:01.720 --> 0:01:05.600 team in detail, and then also we dove into the 0:01:05.640 --> 0:01:08.280 European team a little bit as well, and just the 0:01:08.319 --> 0:01:11.360 event in general. It was a really fun chat and 0:01:11.720 --> 0:01:15.399 always love having Joseph on to kind of tackle these 0:01:15.400 --> 0:01:20.560 bigger subjects. So along with that, just news for Frida 0:01:20.560 --> 0:01:24.320 Egg Golf. We have a sale in our pro shop 0:01:24.360 --> 0:01:27.280 that's Proshop dot Thefrida Egg dot com. It's a Labor 0:01:27.360 --> 0:01:32.480 Day sale, so it is hummin' all weekend. It is 0:01:32.600 --> 0:01:35.600 fifteen percent off everything that includes all of our prints. 0:01:36.080 --> 0:01:38.640 So you need to use the code Labor Day fifteen. 0:01:39.280 --> 0:01:41.480 We've got a bunch of merchandise in there. Obviously we 0:01:41.560 --> 0:01:44.640 did the rebranding. If you want some collector's items, if 0:01:44.640 --> 0:01:48.120 you want some retro fits, now's your time to go 0:01:48.160 --> 0:01:50.520 get that old egg logo. We have a bunch of 0:01:50.520 --> 0:01:54.200 stuff in there with that, it's fifteen percent off, and 0:01:54.240 --> 0:01:58.400 we'll have some new merchandise rolling into the store next week. 0:01:58.880 --> 0:02:03.920 It'll be the Shotgun Start fifth anniversary. So that for 0:02:04.000 --> 0:02:08.040 that sale fifteen percent off go to proshop dot Thefrida 0:02:08.040 --> 0:02:11.440 egg dot com. It's Labor Day fifteen. It is a 0:02:11.480 --> 0:02:15.440 great discount for the princes obviously, as well as the 0:02:15.680 --> 0:02:23.320 other merchandise. So without further ado, here is Joseph LEMANA. 0:02:24.120 --> 0:02:28.400 All right, Joseph, welcome back. It is always a pleasure 0:02:28.639 --> 0:02:31.799 to chat with you. How are you doing with golf 0:02:31.840 --> 0:02:33.080 off season? How are you feeling? 0:02:33.560 --> 0:02:36.760 I'm great, I'm fired up for this conversation. Actually heading 0:02:36.800 --> 0:02:40.440 to the US Open, the tennis tournament this weekend. Have 0:02:40.560 --> 0:02:41.280 never been to a. 0:02:41.200 --> 0:02:46.840 Grand swam so I'm pretty excited, honestly, Like two of 0:02:46.880 --> 0:02:50.360 the highest things on my bucket list are US Open 0:02:51.240 --> 0:02:54.919 tennis and Wimbledon. Like those are two things that I 0:02:55.400 --> 0:03:01.440 need to accomplish before I die, And Yeah, I like 0:03:01.520 --> 0:03:03.880 the US Open one of the things I'm pumped about. 0:03:04.160 --> 0:03:07.520 I've been in the Midwest for like the last month. 0:03:07.960 --> 0:03:13.040 I'm going back to California tonight and US Open tennis 0:03:13.280 --> 0:03:17.200 is unbelievable in California because those matches they go to 0:03:17.320 --> 0:03:21.160 like two or three Eastern in the morning and it's 0:03:21.200 --> 0:03:24.640 like midnight in California. I remember last year it was 0:03:24.720 --> 0:03:26.360 we were in a heat wave and you know, we 0:03:26.400 --> 0:03:29.639 don't have ac I'm just the house is cooling down 0:03:29.680 --> 0:03:35.520 by the minute as I'm watching ya the Cinner Alcoraz match, 0:03:35.560 --> 0:03:38.080 which to me was one of the best tennis matches 0:03:38.080 --> 0:03:40.160 I've ever watched. Yeah, who are you seeing? 0:03:41.400 --> 0:03:44.160 Well, I don't know. I'm this is somewhat controversial, but 0:03:44.200 --> 0:03:46.560 I do. I am kind of a Novak Djokovic fan, 0:03:46.600 --> 0:03:48.200 and I'm hoping to see him at some point. 0:03:48.280 --> 0:03:49.440 I have a lot of respect for. 0:03:49.440 --> 0:03:52.400 His competitive fire, so I hope to see him. I've 0:03:52.440 --> 0:03:54.920 gotten more into tennis over the last couple of years, 0:03:54.920 --> 0:03:56.920 and the US Opens sneaky become like one of my 0:03:56.920 --> 0:03:59.400 favorite events of the year to watch of any sport. 0:03:59.760 --> 0:04:00.480 So I'm with you. 0:04:00.560 --> 0:04:04.760 It's amazing what elite competition on primetime TV does. 0:04:05.480 --> 0:04:08.760 Yeah, yeah, you got a we're gonna talk Ryder Cup. 0:04:09.120 --> 0:04:13.880 Let's talk about the American picks. They came out yesterday, 0:04:14.400 --> 0:04:16.800 and I think there's there's there's gonna be a healthy 0:04:16.839 --> 0:04:20.280 discourse about the US Ryder Cup picks. No matter which 0:04:20.440 --> 0:04:23.920 direction they went, whether they went with the kind of 0:04:23.960 --> 0:04:26.760 the what they went with was the team. You know 0:04:26.880 --> 0:04:29.880 a lot of people could call it the Buddies, Buddies Club, 0:04:30.200 --> 0:04:33.080 you know, the old Boys Club. They went that direction. 0:04:33.160 --> 0:04:35.839 If they had gone data, if they had gone just 0:04:36.080 --> 0:04:39.080 off the points list, there would have been discussion about, oh, 0:04:39.160 --> 0:04:41.640 how do you not how do you not pick Justin 0:04:41.680 --> 0:04:45.280 Thomas or Ricky Fowler who technically didn't qualify on points, 0:04:45.320 --> 0:04:47.360 you know, if they had done that. So I think 0:04:47.400 --> 0:04:50.159 it was a no win situation. But you know, the 0:04:50.240 --> 0:04:52.159 fun of this whole thing, it's one of the rare 0:04:52.240 --> 0:04:55.320 times that we get a really kind of off the 0:04:55.360 --> 0:04:59.080 field event, off the course event that that generates significant 0:04:59.080 --> 0:05:03.200 buzz debate and uh interest in the sport. So yesterday, 0:05:03.680 --> 0:05:07.520 UH Zack Johnson in a made for TV special that 0:05:07.600 --> 0:05:12.000 maybe shouldn't have been made for TV announced his six 0:05:12.120 --> 0:05:16.720 captains picks. It was Sam Burns, Ricky Fowler, Brooks Kopka, 0:05:16.960 --> 0:05:22.039 Klin Morikawa, Jordan Speeth, and Justin Thomas. They joined the 0:05:22.160 --> 0:05:25.880 group of already qualified six players, which were Scottie Scheffler, 0:05:26.120 --> 0:05:31.320 When Clark, Brian Harmon, Patrick Cantley, Max Homer, and Xander Schoffley. 0:05:32.680 --> 0:05:34.680 Do you want to start on the on the program 0:05:34.720 --> 0:05:36.719 just the whole the whole way it it kind of 0:05:36.760 --> 0:05:39.239 went down. Do you want to talk about that first? Uh? 0:05:39.320 --> 0:05:42.239 And and and what? Were kind of just general thoughts 0:05:42.279 --> 0:05:47.440 about about Zach Johnson and his his presentation of who 0:05:47.440 --> 0:05:49.440 he's picking and and reasoning behind it. 0:05:49.960 --> 0:05:52.440 Yeah, This's that's why I'm excited for this conversation. There's 0:05:52.480 --> 0:05:55.719 a lot of different angles to to talk about. Was 0:05:55.760 --> 0:05:58.640 not impressed by Zach Johnson showing I don't think it 0:05:58.720 --> 0:06:02.480 inspires a lot of confidence. It's in the process. At 0:06:02.480 --> 0:06:05.640 the same time, I think generally what's gonna happen is 0:06:05.680 --> 0:06:08.920 you can make bullet points for all these players, and 0:06:08.960 --> 0:06:11.239 then the captain they knew who they wanted to pick, 0:06:11.279 --> 0:06:13.320 and then you just kind of pluck from the bullet 0:06:13.320 --> 0:06:16.240 points as to why it's not always consistent I think 0:06:16.279 --> 0:06:19.040 there were better cases for some other players. I don't 0:06:19.040 --> 0:06:22.679 agree with the captain's picks. I don't think the message 0:06:22.720 --> 0:06:24.840 was super well delivered, and frankly, I don't think Zak 0:06:24.920 --> 0:06:28.400 Johnson understands some of the core stuff very well, which 0:06:28.440 --> 0:06:32.120 was evident based on some of his commentary. So I 0:06:32.120 --> 0:06:36.039 think Steve Stricker was a sneaky, excellent captain, not just 0:06:36.080 --> 0:06:38.640 because they blew you're up out. He handled this process 0:06:38.760 --> 0:06:40.600 very well from the start. I don't feel that way 0:06:40.600 --> 0:06:43.960 about Zach Johnson as as of now, at this moment. 0:06:44.240 --> 0:06:47.600 I think that's the one of the things as I 0:06:47.720 --> 0:06:50.520 started to think about it with the Ryder Cup that 0:06:50.839 --> 0:06:55.320 really stands out is just how how like all the players, 0:06:55.400 --> 0:06:58.279 you know, they have bad performances, they have great performances, 0:06:58.400 --> 0:07:01.719 but at the end of the day, maybe nobody has 0:07:01.760 --> 0:07:04.800 more pressure than these captains. It's a black and white thing, 0:07:04.920 --> 0:07:09.240 like I've never heard somebody lose and one of these 0:07:09.279 --> 0:07:12.200 team competitions and people be you know, maybe on the 0:07:12.200 --> 0:07:15.760 President's Cup side, just because it hasn't been as close 0:07:15.800 --> 0:07:18.520 of a like I think most people said, hey, Trevor 0:07:18.640 --> 0:07:22.520 Mullmans was a great captain, right, but on the Europe 0:07:22.640 --> 0:07:27.280 American team. I've never heard a losing captain be referred 0:07:27.280 --> 0:07:31.200 to as a great captain, you know, And I've you know, 0:07:31.400 --> 0:07:33.960 and rarely is a winning captain ever, Like you know, 0:07:34.040 --> 0:07:39.200 he won, but this wasn't This was not a good captaincy, right. 0:07:39.440 --> 0:07:41.720 It's like, if you win, you're a great captain, You're 0:07:41.720 --> 0:07:44.640 gonna get another captainship, You're gonna make a lot of money. 0:07:44.720 --> 0:07:48.400 Like one of the things, like the little sneaky secrets 0:07:48.400 --> 0:07:50.960 about this is being a Ryder Cup captain is worth 0:07:51.120 --> 0:07:54.760 a lot of money, like a substantial sum of money 0:07:54.920 --> 0:07:58.360 between corporate appearances and different different things. So if you win, 0:07:58.520 --> 0:08:01.520 you got another chance of another go around, and you're 0:08:01.560 --> 0:08:05.600 always a winning Ryder Cup captain. So with Zach Johnson, 0:08:05.640 --> 0:08:08.520 obviously he has a huge a lot to gain from 0:08:09.000 --> 0:08:12.080 winning this Ryder Cup. Nobody's won. No American captains won 0:08:12.200 --> 0:08:15.640 in Europe in thirty years, fifteen tries. 0:08:16.240 --> 0:08:17.920 Yeah, I hope it's not lost though in some of 0:08:17.960 --> 0:08:20.360 that is the American team has been favored in some 0:08:20.440 --> 0:08:24.120 of those, it's not some impossible tasks. So I hope 0:08:24.120 --> 0:08:26.600 that the captains are judged based on the merit of 0:08:26.640 --> 0:08:29.120 their decisions and not necessarily the results. 0:08:29.600 --> 0:08:32.000 Though the result, it is important. 0:08:31.600 --> 0:08:35.160 To evaluate how somebody played with respect to whether or 0:08:35.160 --> 0:08:37.120 not they were a good pick. You can't go overboard 0:08:37.120 --> 0:08:39.719 with that. We know how high variance golf can be. 0:08:40.120 --> 0:08:42.360 But I have skepticism about some of the decisions that 0:08:42.400 --> 0:08:45.400 were made, and I do think people should be held 0:08:45.400 --> 0:08:46.840 to account for those decisions. 0:08:47.120 --> 0:08:50.480 All right, let's talk a little bit about the course 0:08:50.520 --> 0:08:52.800 and the course fit, since that's one of your kind 0:08:52.800 --> 0:08:56.840 of grievances here with Zach and obviously like when somebody 0:08:56.880 --> 0:08:59.720 asked him about the course fit, he said that it 0:08:59.760 --> 0:09:03.840 was confusing to explain. You know, there's technology and whatnot 0:09:04.520 --> 0:09:09.800 involved with it. You wrote a great article earlier this 0:09:09.880 --> 0:09:13.800 week in your newsletter, Finding the Edge. It's a substack 0:09:13.880 --> 0:09:16.880 that's free that everybace is subscribed to. About a little 0:09:16.920 --> 0:09:19.480 bit about the course fit that do you expect? Can 0:09:19.520 --> 0:09:26.360 you divulge kind of what from your expert angle is 0:09:26.400 --> 0:09:28.080 the course fit at Marco Simoni. 0:09:28.760 --> 0:09:31.840 I think it's gonna be pretty hardcore accuracy test off 0:09:31.880 --> 0:09:35.679 of the tee. It's not just about with the fairways, 0:09:35.720 --> 0:09:37.720 which I think we get carried away with when we 0:09:37.760 --> 0:09:40.360 talk about how accurate you need to be at golf courses, 0:09:40.760 --> 0:09:44.400 it's also it's largely about how much of a penalty 0:09:44.480 --> 0:09:46.040 is there for a small miss and how much of 0:09:46.040 --> 0:09:48.360 a penalty is there for a wide miss. And at 0:09:48.360 --> 0:09:51.520 Marcos Simone, there's gonna be plenty of areas where, yeah, 0:09:51.559 --> 0:09:53.080 even if you're just a little bit off the fairway, 0:09:53.080 --> 0:09:54.840 it's going to be penal. But once you get way 0:09:54.880 --> 0:09:57.600 off the fairway, there's going to be thick fescue, there's 0:09:57.600 --> 0:10:00.320 gonna be some hazards. You can't go out there and right. 0:10:01.200 --> 0:10:04.920 It's also, despite the length on the scorecard not being 0:10:05.400 --> 0:10:08.360 super long, some of the reason for that is that 0:10:08.400 --> 0:10:12.079 there are multiple semi drivable par fours. There are three 0:10:12.120 --> 0:10:16.600 of them, and though those are short on the scorecard, 0:10:16.640 --> 0:10:19.960 there's some of the most highly correlated holes with distance, 0:10:20.480 --> 0:10:22.320 So you have to look at more than just a 0:10:22.320 --> 0:10:25.360 scorecard to understand how distance friendly a course will be. 0:10:26.000 --> 0:10:29.720 This is going to be a pretty distance heavy course 0:10:30.040 --> 0:10:32.359 where accuracy is highly rewarded. 0:10:32.400 --> 0:10:33.080 Off of the tee. 0:10:34.080 --> 0:10:36.760 You're going to have to be an elite striker, and 0:10:36.840 --> 0:10:38.520 if you're somebody that makes a lot of their money 0:10:38.559 --> 0:10:41.440 on the PGA Tour or on live or wherever, with 0:10:41.480 --> 0:10:43.800 your wedges and your putter. That's not the type of 0:10:43.800 --> 0:10:46.079 player that I would be prioritizing. So I get a 0:10:46.080 --> 0:10:48.800 little bit frustrated when people say things like, oh, well 0:10:48.800 --> 0:10:50.600 this player is such a great putter, which you need 0:10:50.640 --> 0:10:54.040 in the Ryder Cup. That's not always true. And you know, 0:10:54.520 --> 0:10:57.640 Tommy Fleetwood and Francesco Mullinari are not people you think 0:10:57.640 --> 0:11:00.160 of as great putters. That's always been a deficiency, and 0:11:00.160 --> 0:11:03.439 they smoked people in Paris. So I just don't like 0:11:03.520 --> 0:11:06.160 that argument, and I don't think it's I think there's 0:11:06.160 --> 0:11:08.880 some fallacies that get thrown around when we talk about 0:11:08.880 --> 0:11:09.319 this event. 0:11:09.880 --> 0:11:13.920 I think that that is a huge misconception with match play, 0:11:14.160 --> 0:11:17.440 and I have always thought of it. You know, the 0:11:17.600 --> 0:11:21.880 type of player, just anecdotally that you do not want 0:11:21.880 --> 0:11:26.000 to play in match play is someone who's steady, someone 0:11:26.240 --> 0:11:31.200 who who can overwhelm you with their ball striking, the 0:11:31.240 --> 0:11:33.800 type of player that every time you look up and 0:11:33.880 --> 0:11:38.000 watch one of their approach shots, it's landing fifteen ten 0:11:38.040 --> 0:11:41.360 feet that never gives you an inch. You know, it's 0:11:41.840 --> 0:11:48.240 to me, the great match play trait is consistency, especially 0:11:48.320 --> 0:11:51.760 Te de Green because and if you think about Sergio Garcia, 0:11:52.120 --> 0:11:55.600 I mean, he embodies this right, Like, what is the 0:11:55.640 --> 0:11:58.720 one thing throughout his career that Sergio Garcia brought to 0:11:58.760 --> 0:12:04.040 the golf course every day effectively was elite, elite, top 0:12:04.080 --> 0:12:08.120 of the end, top end tee to green play You 0:12:08.160 --> 0:12:11.400 think about some other like great Ryder Cup players, Monty 0:12:11.760 --> 0:12:16.120 was a just a thoroughbred tee to Green, right, it 0:12:16.160 --> 0:12:19.400 is that is what is about putting is streaky. Putting 0:12:19.480 --> 0:12:23.040 is variable. What's hard to beat and what what wins 0:12:23.320 --> 0:12:26.360 a lot of matches over a big sample size is 0:12:26.440 --> 0:12:29.440 guys that bring you know, that are and that's not 0:12:29.520 --> 0:12:32.719 necessarily I think that's where it runs counter. It's not 0:12:32.800 --> 0:12:36.959 like winning a tournament. Winning a golf tournament is about 0:12:37.320 --> 0:12:40.720 marrying great ball striking with a hot putting week, really 0:12:40.920 --> 0:12:43.640 like or an above average putting week, or for somebody 0:12:43.679 --> 0:12:46.480 like that's hitting the ball like Sky Scheffler, an average 0:12:46.480 --> 0:12:51.920 putting week. You know, with match play, you're playing people 0:12:52.000 --> 0:12:55.920 on singular days. It's about the guy that doesn't shoot 0:12:55.960 --> 0:12:59.080 seventy two, that shoots you know, sixty eight over and 0:12:59.120 --> 0:13:01.760 over again. Sure he's get beat sometimes by somebody playing 0:13:02.040 --> 0:13:05.400 better than him, but if you're consistent day in day out, 0:13:05.720 --> 0:13:09.000 that's what to me, makes a great match play player. 0:13:09.280 --> 0:13:12.880 And it's not saying that putting doesn't matter. It's if 0:13:12.880 --> 0:13:15.960 a players makes their money with their putter, they're probably 0:13:16.040 --> 0:13:17.880 deficient in some of the areas that are going to 0:13:17.960 --> 0:13:21.160 be particularly important at Marcos Simone. There are certain setups 0:13:21.240 --> 0:13:22.760 where I would prioritize putting more. 0:13:22.800 --> 0:13:24.119 This is not one of them. 0:13:24.160 --> 0:13:26.040 So not to throw a player under the bus, but 0:13:26.200 --> 0:13:29.520 like a Danny McCarthy, right, who is one of the 0:13:29.559 --> 0:13:32.640 best putters on tour and does well on particular setups, like, 0:13:32.679 --> 0:13:35.000 that's not the kind of player I want at Marco Simoni. 0:13:35.360 --> 0:13:38.000 So I would be. 0:13:37.760 --> 0:13:42.320 Prioritizing these really accurate drive, really good drivers of the 0:13:42.320 --> 0:13:43.320 golf ball who are. 0:13:43.280 --> 0:13:44.720 Proficient with their long irons. 0:13:44.840 --> 0:13:46.920 And I don't know if you want to go right 0:13:46.920 --> 0:13:48.880 in depicts, but we did leave a couple of those 0:13:48.920 --> 0:13:49.360 off the team. 0:13:49.880 --> 0:13:50.160 Yeah. 0:13:50.240 --> 0:13:53.400 I so like, based off of what you're saying, I 0:13:53.520 --> 0:13:57.439 just you know, I you know, looking through the two teams, 0:13:57.720 --> 0:14:01.479 I think we would look at the the American team 0:14:01.760 --> 0:14:04.160 and you say, like, all right, if we're going to 0:14:04.280 --> 0:14:09.480 prioritize long and accurate players, to me, like the really 0:14:09.800 --> 0:14:12.720 elite drivers of the golf ball on the American team 0:14:12.760 --> 0:14:17.880 are obviously Scottie, Scheffler, Wyndham Clark would come to mind. 0:14:19.320 --> 0:14:24.040 I think Patrick, Cantlay and Xander are above above average drivers, 0:14:24.200 --> 0:14:29.200 not not elite elite. Brooks is above average. I wouldn't 0:14:29.240 --> 0:14:33.160 say he's elite, but that that's about it, right, And 0:14:33.200 --> 0:14:36.520 I think this is this is a team, yeah, accurate, 0:14:37.640 --> 0:14:40.320 this is this was a team that was you know, 0:14:40.560 --> 0:14:43.600 we left whistling straight saying like they're like, look at 0:14:43.600 --> 0:14:46.880 this power advantage this year, driving like they have the 0:14:47.120 --> 0:14:50.640 capabilities to drive the ball so much better than the Europeans. 0:14:50.640 --> 0:14:53.280 The Europeans are never going to win again. Now two 0:14:53.400 --> 0:14:57.200 years later we zoom out and now like, look at 0:14:57.200 --> 0:14:59.920 the driving advantage right at the top, Like it's very 0:15:00.040 --> 0:15:02.120 evident right at the top of the top of the 0:15:02.160 --> 0:15:05.640 each team. You know, Europe is going to roll out 0:15:05.840 --> 0:15:12.040 Victor Hovelin, Rory McElroy, and John Rahm arguably you could 0:15:12.080 --> 0:15:14.240 probably you know, I think Scott he's right in there, 0:15:14.520 --> 0:15:17.040 arguably the three best drivers of the golf ball in. 0:15:17.040 --> 0:15:20.520 The game of golf and one that's not on either team. 0:15:21.200 --> 0:15:26.400 Yeah, it's maybe one that got left off Cameron Young, Right, Yeah, exactly, 0:15:27.160 --> 0:15:29.560 So I think like, and then you go down the 0:15:29.600 --> 0:15:33.000 European team, you got some other like Fitzpatrick's turned himself 0:15:33.040 --> 0:15:34.680 into a pretty good driver of the golf ball, a 0:15:35.160 --> 0:15:37.560 drastically different driver of the golf ball than he was, 0:15:38.160 --> 0:15:42.800 especially at at Whistley Straits when we last saw him. 0:15:42.840 --> 0:15:45.520 So I think like in a way like it's really 0:15:45.720 --> 0:15:51.200 amazing how in two years, how how drastically different the 0:15:51.360 --> 0:15:54.480 two teams makeup are and how they appear on paper. 0:15:54.960 --> 0:15:56.880 Absolutely, I think when you look at these teams at 0:15:56.920 --> 0:16:02.320 a high level Europe, the top three for Europe in Rory, 0:16:02.480 --> 0:16:05.360 Ram and Hoveland, I think you have more confidence in 0:16:05.440 --> 0:16:08.960 those three on this golf course than any three on 0:16:09.040 --> 0:16:12.240 the American team. I do believe that it get The 0:16:12.440 --> 0:16:15.800 European team is clearly not as deep. But I do 0:16:15.840 --> 0:16:18.880 think Zach Johnson with I agree with four of his picks. 0:16:18.920 --> 0:16:20.320 I don't agree with two of them, and I think 0:16:20.360 --> 0:16:21.840 that those two. 0:16:23.200 --> 0:16:23.840 You just you have. 0:16:23.920 --> 0:16:25.920 You can't leave any stone unturned when you're trying to 0:16:25.960 --> 0:16:28.480 win over in Europe on what should be a pretty 0:16:28.480 --> 0:16:31.920 close fight here. So the golf course is relevant, and 0:16:31.960 --> 0:16:34.200 I think Europe sets up, especially at the top of 0:16:34.240 --> 0:16:35.280 their roster. 0:16:35.560 --> 0:16:37.240 They set up very well for this golf course. 0:16:37.760 --> 0:16:40.840 Yeah, especially if they bring in like a you know, 0:16:41.680 --> 0:16:46.280 a guy like Ludwig who drives drives the ball extraordinarily well, right, 0:16:46.400 --> 0:16:49.160 if that's their type of if that's the captain's pick, 0:16:49.240 --> 0:16:53.120 that it seems like it's a very relevant you know, 0:16:53.160 --> 0:16:56.960 he's playing with Nicholas Cole, starts and uh and Molinari 0:16:57.120 --> 0:16:59.920 this week. It's it seems like that is, you know, 0:17:00.120 --> 0:17:03.120 starting to come to fruition that Ludvig Aberg, the rookie 0:17:04.320 --> 0:17:07.439 player on the PGA Tour, who is by all you know, 0:17:07.560 --> 0:17:11.120 early stats, an ultra elite driver the golf ball, will 0:17:11.160 --> 0:17:21.120 be on the European team. Now for a quick word 0:17:21.160 --> 0:17:23.240 from our sponsor ag One. 0:17:24.560 --> 0:17:24.879 Listen. 0:17:24.920 --> 0:17:29.280 I started taking ag one late last year and I 0:17:29.440 --> 0:17:34.480 really was looking to be more healthy. I wanted a routine, 0:17:34.520 --> 0:17:40.240 a morning routine, and a foundational nutrition supplement that supported 0:17:40.359 --> 0:17:43.359 whole body health. And I drink it every day. So 0:17:43.760 --> 0:17:47.159 it's a super simple. I mix eight ounces of water 0:17:47.720 --> 0:17:50.280 with a packet of AG one or a scoop of 0:17:50.280 --> 0:17:52.119 AG one, it depends. 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Get that vitamin D and so you 0:18:53.200 --> 0:18:56.240 get that free one year supply of Vitamin D and 0:18:56.480 --> 0:19:00.399 five free ag one travel packs as I mentioned, awesome 0:19:00.400 --> 0:19:03.000 when you're on the road with your first purchase, go 0:19:03.040 --> 0:19:06.120 to drink ag one dot com slash the fried egg. 0:19:06.520 --> 0:19:10.040 That's drink ag one dot com, slash the fried egg 0:19:10.160 --> 0:19:19.480 and check it out now. Back to Joseph Lamonia. Let's 0:19:19.480 --> 0:19:21.920 get into the two picks. So you said, which four 0:19:22.000 --> 0:19:22.800 do you agree with? 0:19:23.440 --> 0:19:26.080 I agree with the Koepka pick, I agree with Spief, 0:19:26.720 --> 0:19:31.080 I agree with Morikawa, and I agree with Fowler. The 0:19:31.080 --> 0:19:34.880 the Burns pick doesn't doesn't kill me, and I think 0:19:34.880 --> 0:19:37.800 there are players who deserved it. Deserved as a term 0:19:37.840 --> 0:19:39.919 that we can we can debate, but I think there 0:19:39.920 --> 0:19:42.840 are two players I would have preferred over Justin Thomas 0:19:42.840 --> 0:19:45.800 and Sam Burns. Sam Burns could play well in Paris 0:19:45.960 --> 0:19:50.160 or sorry in Rome. Don't think Justin Thomas. I'm sure 0:19:50.160 --> 0:19:55.840 we'll get into but in my opinion, Cameron Young was 0:19:55.880 --> 0:19:59.040 a player that I would not He was the player 0:19:59.200 --> 0:20:02.119 you don't leave at home, especially with how well he 0:20:02.160 --> 0:20:03.960 fits the golf course and how well he's played in 0:20:04.000 --> 0:20:06.320 big events. I think he could have come out and 0:20:06.359 --> 0:20:08.720 crushed this course, and he could have been the type 0:20:08.760 --> 0:20:11.520 of player that you're like, all right, five matches for 0:20:11.640 --> 0:20:14.960 us or four four matches for us, like somebody who's 0:20:14.960 --> 0:20:17.800 dominant on this setup. And then the other player that 0:20:17.840 --> 0:20:23.760 I think just didn't get discussed enough in a really 0:20:23.840 --> 0:20:26.040 strong case to be on the team is Russell Henley. 0:20:26.520 --> 0:20:28.879 And I think he's a great course fit and almost 0:20:28.960 --> 0:20:32.680 any argument you use on short term or long term form, 0:20:33.080 --> 0:20:36.040 Russell Henley just did not get talked about. Everyone's focused 0:20:36.040 --> 0:20:38.880 on Keegan and Russell Henley had a really strong case 0:20:38.920 --> 0:20:40.359 to be on this team and he should have been 0:20:40.359 --> 0:20:41.040 discussed more. 0:20:41.280 --> 0:20:46.639 All right, let's zoom in a little bit on Cam Young. Obviously, 0:20:47.440 --> 0:20:50.080 I don't think this was the best year for Cameron Young. 0:20:50.280 --> 0:20:54.800 He was kind of in and out, pretty inconsistent. Year before, 0:20:55.119 --> 0:20:58.119 you know, left us with I think one of the 0:20:58.160 --> 0:21:03.400 issues was the year before golf with extraordinarily high expectations 0:21:03.440 --> 0:21:06.439 for this year of Cameron Young, and he's still a 0:21:06.840 --> 0:21:11.680 relatively green player on the PGA Tour. That being said, 0:21:12.280 --> 0:21:15.239 you know, in you know, he didn't he made the 0:21:15.240 --> 0:21:18.719 FedEx Cup playoffs, he didn't get get past you know, 0:21:19.200 --> 0:21:23.240 the top fifty Earth and we get to you know, 0:21:23.320 --> 0:21:27.040 the Open Championship. He leads the field in driving and 0:21:27.400 --> 0:21:30.959 approach the green. So he's the best ball striker in 0:21:31.000 --> 0:21:33.600 the field at the Open Championship with the best players 0:21:33.600 --> 0:21:38.440 in the world. And to boot, he's ninth in Ryder 0:21:38.480 --> 0:21:43.920 Cup points. Ninth, not tenth, not eleventh, not twelfth, very 0:21:43.960 --> 0:21:47.360 close to being eighth in fact, like not very far 0:21:47.440 --> 0:21:49.720 away from eight. He was. He was a ways behind 0:21:49.800 --> 0:21:52.879 Kepka at seven, but he's he's closer to being eighth 0:21:53.400 --> 0:21:56.600 than you know in a spot where like I wonder, 0:21:56.800 --> 0:21:59.960 like if he's eighth in points there, I don't think 0:22:00.080 --> 0:22:04.000 you could leave him at home really at ninth? Is 0:22:04.040 --> 0:22:06.480 that like it? To me? It seems like if you're 0:22:06.560 --> 0:22:09.560 ninth in points, you're a course fit. I don't know 0:22:09.600 --> 0:22:11.160 how you leave that person at home. 0:22:11.960 --> 0:22:14.919 I'm not the biggest fan of the points system and 0:22:15.000 --> 0:22:17.240 using points for some reasons that maybe we'll get into, 0:22:17.400 --> 0:22:19.439 like Keigan Bradley, So I don't put a lot of 0:22:19.440 --> 0:22:23.439 stock in the points, but I put a lot of 0:22:23.440 --> 0:22:25.080 stock in some of what he's done on the course 0:22:25.240 --> 0:22:29.280 in the last eighteen months, and he's contended in four 0:22:29.320 --> 0:22:32.480 of the last eight major championships. He was playing around 0:22:32.520 --> 0:22:34.520 with like a new ball and stuff for parts of 0:22:34.520 --> 0:22:38.399 this year, had some changes with the caddy, didn't play 0:22:38.440 --> 0:22:40.520 great during the summer. But when you zoom out when 0:22:40.520 --> 0:22:42.800 you look at his year, it's not bad. I agree 0:22:42.800 --> 0:22:45.080 with you that it didn't live up to expectations set 0:22:45.119 --> 0:22:48.159 by last year. But he contended at the Masters this 0:22:48.280 --> 0:22:51.159