WEBVTT - Fire Drill 055: Off the Rails 0:00:03.840 --> 0:00:07.680 Welcome back to the fire Drill. Uh. This Sunday, not 0:00:07.760 --> 0:00:10.039 a lot of golf going on, but we still knocked 0:00:10.039 --> 0:00:14.319 out an hour long podcast. It goes on derailments, which 0:00:14.360 --> 0:00:17.079 I love, which I really love. But it started they're serious, 0:00:17.120 --> 0:00:21.000 there's funny. Um. We obviously started with the match Tiger Woods, 0:00:21.640 --> 0:00:26.640 Uh Jordan's Charles Barkley and what he adds Um. Michael 0:00:26.680 --> 0:00:29.960 didn't even know the match had happened, but he adds 0:00:30.000 --> 0:00:33.000 a lot to it too, about his thoughts about uh, 0:00:33.040 --> 0:00:35.120 Tiger Woods is placed in the game and those kind 0:00:35.159 --> 0:00:39.120 of things. We talked about Grant Wall. Alan talked to 0:00:39.200 --> 0:00:41.080 him before he went to the World Cup for about 0:00:41.080 --> 0:00:43.599 an hour, UM about a bunch of things, and they 0:00:43.600 --> 0:00:46.360 had worked together a long time, all three of them 0:00:46.400 --> 0:00:50.080 at Sports Illustrated and his place in the journalistic world 0:00:50.120 --> 0:00:54.240 and um, just how sad it all is, um. And 0:00:54.280 --> 0:00:57.560 then we talked about We went on a tangent about 0:00:59.000 --> 0:01:01.120 the movie straight out of Compton, and I'm not going 0:01:01.200 --> 0:01:04.600 to add anything to it except to just I promise 0:01:04.680 --> 0:01:07.080 it's towards the end. I promise it is worth the 0:01:07.120 --> 0:01:10.839 time to stay. Alan and Michael went to the movie 0:01:10.880 --> 0:01:13.680 and that's all I'm gonna add because the details of it, 0:01:13.959 --> 0:01:16.440 of them going is just well worth the wait. Is 0:01:16.920 --> 0:01:19.959 almost nothing to do with golf, except that we tie 0:01:20.000 --> 0:01:22.920 it into Alan and Phil Mickelson, which I think was 0:01:22.959 --> 0:01:26.959 a great uh comparison. It really is uh in a 0:01:27.080 --> 0:01:32.440 very microcosmic uh look into what it is to be 0:01:32.480 --> 0:01:34.679 a journalist sending out a story that that you know 0:01:34.840 --> 0:01:38.560 is going to kind of disrupt the golf world. Um. 0:01:38.600 --> 0:01:41.400 Before we uh send it off, I want to do 0:01:41.440 --> 0:01:45.720 a few things. Uh. First of all, our sponsors, power Points, 0:01:46.160 --> 0:01:49.440 don't make part download the app. Uh. It's a great 0:01:49.480 --> 0:01:53.800 way to keep scoring. Uh. It's awesome. You should try it. 0:01:54.320 --> 0:01:57.040 Once you try it, you'll be hooked. U power Points app, 0:01:57.400 --> 0:02:00.960 Android or Apple, Go get it. Um. And then dormy 0:02:01.120 --> 0:02:04.600 Workshop awesome club covers. I just have to say artisanal 0:02:04.680 --> 0:02:10.000 dial because I get tweets about using the words artisanal. Now, um, 0:02:10.040 --> 0:02:13.400 so I have to use an artisanal club covers. Putter 0:02:13.520 --> 0:02:18.120 covers really awesome, go check them out. And then before 0:02:18.120 --> 0:02:21.320 we get into the pod, a couple of house cleaning 0:02:21.480 --> 0:02:23.639 cleaning things that we have to take out of need. 0:02:23.680 --> 0:02:27.240 A fourth is an awesome new podcast, Alan, Michael, Jeff Ogilvie, 0:02:27.240 --> 0:02:30.839 and a mystery guest every week UM sponsored by Echo. 0:02:31.360 --> 0:02:33.520 They have a great contest going on with Links Soul. 0:02:34.080 --> 0:02:38.760 Go to our YouTube page, comment on the last UM 0:02:39.520 --> 0:02:42.240 Need a Fourth and be entered in a chance to 0:02:42.280 --> 0:02:45.360 win two and fifty dollar gift card from Link Soul. 0:02:45.639 --> 0:02:48.560 Brandon Chamberly was the last guest. It was very good, 0:02:48.760 --> 0:02:51.600 very different side of Brandle that a lot of people 0:02:52.480 --> 0:02:55.280 haven't seen. It's it's different than the personality you see 0:02:55.280 --> 0:02:57.400 on TV. It was very cool him and Jeff talking 0:02:57.440 --> 0:03:02.440 about the US Open, really really interesting. UM go there, 0:03:02.840 --> 0:03:05.239 check out our YouTube page. Lots of stuff besides this 0:03:05.320 --> 0:03:09.600 stuff I just mentioned, So subscribe there. Do that stuff. 0:03:09.639 --> 0:03:14.920 It helps us out. UM, there's Alpena stuff, there's uh, 0:03:15.080 --> 0:03:19.880 there'll be Grind episodes on there. There's Journeys need a 0:03:19.960 --> 0:03:24.120 fourth podcast. This podcast is on there. Jake's giving me 0:03:24.160 --> 0:03:27.079 the like, you gotta cut this out, it's time to go. Uh, 0:03:27.280 --> 0:03:30.160 he's giving me the high sign. But please do all 0:03:30.160 --> 0:03:34.120 those things that helps support what we're doing at fire Pit. UM, 0:03:34.160 --> 0:03:37.400 thanks for listening. Without further ado, here's the three of 0:03:37.520 --> 0:03:43.600 us talking golf. Mostly I got Dot, he can't get 0:03:44.800 --> 0:03:52.120 Jan nothing thing. What I'm thinking about can't get them 0:03:51.440 --> 0:04:04.480 out nothing. Think what I'm thinking about Christmas, Hanukah and 0:04:04.560 --> 0:04:09.320 Kwanza came early with Tiger Woods um playing in the 0:04:09.320 --> 0:04:14.200 the match. Uh, you know it was under the lights, 0:04:14.280 --> 0:04:17.320 it was on made for TV. What did you guys 0:04:17.320 --> 0:04:21.239 think of this spectacle? Did not know it was played 0:04:21.320 --> 0:04:25.200 until you just said it. This is the rigorous preparation 0:04:25.240 --> 0:04:30.080 that we like for this podcast. So great, right, it's 0:04:30.200 --> 0:04:35.640 amazing that it is amazing? Does he meant to play 0:04:35.640 --> 0:04:38.240 in the Father's Son Tournament? First? What's the order here 0:04:38.560 --> 0:04:41.960 that's on deck? You know this coming week? Well, well, 0:04:42.080 --> 0:04:44.960 Charlie Woods, the biggest star in golf by my calculations, 0:04:45.000 --> 0:04:50.280 will make his annual appearance. Um, here's my take on it. 0:04:50.400 --> 0:04:52.960 Here's my I also did not know it was on 0:04:53.120 --> 0:04:55.080 in the morning, Like I knew it was coming up, 0:04:55.160 --> 0:04:58.080 but I didn't know it was yesterday. But I said 0:04:58.080 --> 0:05:01.240 to my wife as we were watching it, is like, 0:05:01.279 --> 0:05:04.760 would I make any sort of special plans, cancel anything 0:05:05.600 --> 0:05:09.120 to to like watch it? Of course not, but like, 0:05:09.320 --> 0:05:11.640 was it fine TV last night on a Saturday night 0:05:11.680 --> 0:05:13.920 where there's no college football or anything? Yeah? It was fine. 0:05:14.000 --> 0:05:16.040 It was great. I mean it was it was fine. 0:05:16.480 --> 0:05:18.760 It wasn't it was, it was, it was. It was fun. 0:05:18.880 --> 0:05:20.599 I mean it was some septimes. What else am I 0:05:20.600 --> 0:05:23.200 gonna watch? Will? Fortunately? What time? What time did it 0:05:23.279 --> 0:05:28.839 come on for? We East Coast views seated up at seven? Michael, 0:05:28.920 --> 0:05:31.680 It was like an hour long pre pre damn and 0:05:31.680 --> 0:05:35.920 then an hour and obviously Tiger played pretty terrible. Um 0:05:36.040 --> 0:05:39.720 and uh, it was. I mean it had moments. Charles 0:05:39.720 --> 0:05:42.080 Barkley is by far the best part of the match. 0:05:43.640 --> 0:05:50.760 It's everything j Barkley repartee a little forced, but undeniably 0:05:50.800 --> 0:05:53.760 funny in spots like he had one great lines like 0:05:53.800 --> 0:05:56.760 the next match is gonna be Charles versus a plate 0:05:56.760 --> 0:05:59.560 of cheese fries like that that was legit, laugh out 0:05:59.600 --> 0:06:04.520 loud and um so, I mean obviously Tiger was the focus, 0:06:04.680 --> 0:06:07.479 especially after he pulled out of the World Challenge, and 0:06:08.600 --> 0:06:10.159 I thought it was weird. You know, he said he 0:06:10.240 --> 0:06:12.320 hadn't touched the club for two and a half weeks. 0:06:12.480 --> 0:06:14.240 I mean, we know that Tiger is a man of 0:06:14.320 --> 0:06:17.920 immense pride, and even though this has no meaning, he's 0:06:17.920 --> 0:06:21.440 still on very graphic public display. And I think it 0:06:21.480 --> 0:06:23.320 tells you how much he's fighting his body. If he 0:06:23.360 --> 0:06:26.760 didn't prepare at all. I mean, uh, and he was. 0:06:27.000 --> 0:06:30.279 His play was very scratchy, especially the first five or 0:06:30.279 --> 0:06:31.760 six holes, and then he kind of found it a 0:06:31.800 --> 0:06:34.960 little bit hit some shots. But um, that to me 0:06:35.080 --> 0:06:37.600 is a red flag, you know. And this this ongoing question, 0:06:37.640 --> 0:06:39.560 like how much golf is Tiger? Would he gonna play? 0:06:39.560 --> 0:06:42.880 I mean, prime time national audience. He didn't. He didn't 0:06:42.880 --> 0:06:45.320 even he didn't even hit a small bucket. So did 0:06:45.400 --> 0:06:49.160 he say why he had not hit balls before? I'm sure, 0:06:49.240 --> 0:06:52.280 I mean, I'm just assuming it's the plantar fasciitists which 0:06:52.360 --> 0:06:54.680 knocked him out of the World Challenge, But no, he 0:06:55.320 --> 0:06:58.000 said Alan, he said, what knocked him out of the 0:06:58.120 --> 0:07:03.520 uh the World Challenge is his inability to walk. I thought, yeah, well, 0:07:03.560 --> 0:07:05.520 I mean I think that might have been a little hyperbolic. 0:07:05.600 --> 0:07:08.400 What he what he said in the Hero World Challenge 0:07:08.440 --> 0:07:12.000 press conference, Like, um, because he was writing a cart 0:07:12.080 --> 0:07:14.640 last night, he presumably he could write a cart from 0:07:14.720 --> 0:07:17.960 his front door to his practice facility in his backyard. 0:07:18.080 --> 0:07:20.720 Like there's if if the foot really didn't cause him 0:07:20.760 --> 0:07:23.360 any discomfort, why didn't hit some balls? And it doesn't 0:07:23.360 --> 0:07:26.440 It doesn't track as Tiger talking about his body and 0:07:26.440 --> 0:07:30.040 his injuries often is confounding and mysterious and contradictory. I 0:07:30.040 --> 0:07:32.680 think this is another example because like if if, if, 0:07:32.840 --> 0:07:35.119 if walking is the issue, you can certainly hit some 0:07:35.120 --> 0:07:36.840 some balls on the range without doing much walking. So 0:07:36.880 --> 0:07:38.480 I don't know that that that was. That was a 0:07:38.520 --> 0:07:42.720 little mysterious, And you know, I've said it, and maybe 0:07:42.720 --> 0:07:47.040 you guys don't have the same feelings. Maybe you do. Uh, 0:07:47.080 --> 0:07:51.200 but but yesterday, like Tigers at least right now has 0:07:51.240 --> 0:07:55.520 become a ceremonial golfer, at least in the short term. 0:07:55.760 --> 0:07:58.160 Hopefully not in long term, but right now he has. 0:07:59.000 --> 0:08:00.520 And I don't know if I to it on this 0:08:00.560 --> 0:08:02.960 podcast or a different one, but like we used to 0:08:02.960 --> 0:08:04.760 go to the senior event near us when I was 0:08:04.760 --> 0:08:06.120 a kid, and my dad would always want to go 0:08:06.160 --> 0:08:08.360 watch Arnie right and Jack and they both were like 0:08:08.440 --> 0:08:11.000 well past their pride by that time, and I always 0:08:11.080 --> 0:08:13.200 was like, what the hell is he doing? Like who 0:08:13.200 --> 0:08:15.720 wants to go watch you know, a guy shoot seventy 0:08:15.840 --> 0:08:19.240 six on a pretty relatively easy golf course. And now 0:08:19.280 --> 0:08:21.960 I get it, Like there was some like, yeah, I 0:08:22.080 --> 0:08:24.680 just like to watch Tiger play golf. I would, of course, 0:08:24.680 --> 0:08:27.880 I wish he would have played better. Uh, But I 0:08:28.000 --> 0:08:31.720 just like to see him out there. Obviously I wish 0:08:32.080 --> 0:08:35.080 he was better than who cares about yesterday, But just 0:08:35.160 --> 0:08:37.560 in general, I hope he can teat up again. But 0:08:38.240 --> 0:08:41.360 I just think it makes me think of the fact 0:08:41.440 --> 0:08:44.320 that he was important too, that we were lucky to 0:08:44.400 --> 0:08:46.600 have him in our in the time that I grew 0:08:46.679 --> 0:08:49.640 up watching golf. I think that British Show Open was 0:08:49.679 --> 0:08:51.880 a big set back for him because I think he 0:08:52.200 --> 0:08:56.160 he prepared really hard for it, and I don't I mean, 0:08:56.240 --> 0:08:59.480 I swallowed the kool aid, drink the kool aid and 0:08:59.600 --> 0:09:01.640 and believe the hype. I thought he'd go out there 0:09:01.679 --> 0:09:04.600 and shoot for good scores, and of course when he didn't, 0:09:05.559 --> 0:09:07.439 he just made you look at Tiger, you know, when 0:09:07.520 --> 0:09:09.600 that was over, it made you look at Tiger differently. 0:09:10.360 --> 0:09:12.800 To your comment, Ryan Andy North told me a great 0:09:12.840 --> 0:09:15.839 story about Arnold Palmer that I can't remember the year 0:09:15.880 --> 0:09:18.400 of the tournament, but Arnold was saying his in his sixties. 0:09:18.440 --> 0:09:20.680 Now he's well beyond contending on the senior tour, but 0:09:20.720 --> 0:09:24.520 he was playing really well at the senior event, and um, 0:09:24.559 --> 0:09:27.959 I guess the second round, you know, the the penultimate round, 0:09:28.240 --> 0:09:32.760 he comes to the eighteenth hole island Green, shallow green. 0:09:32.840 --> 0:09:35.120 It's an automatic layup for everyone. You can't hold it 0:09:35.160 --> 0:09:37.400 with anything more than about a nine iron. Arnie hits 0:09:37.400 --> 0:09:40.880 a good drive and he pulls out like his three wood, 0:09:41.120 --> 0:09:44.840 and the crowd murmurs and gets excited, and he like 0:09:45.040 --> 0:09:48.600 rips one of course, bounces over the green, drops one, 0:09:48.880 --> 0:09:50.840 hits like three in the water. And he was and 0:09:51.080 --> 0:09:52.880 as North told it, like Arnie was on the edge 0:09:52.880 --> 0:09:54.440 of contention. You know, if he makes a birdie there, 0:09:54.440 --> 0:09:56.360 he's like in tenth place or something, he's got a chance. 0:09:56.360 --> 0:10:00.319 I'd be huge for TV. And everyone's before idle do 0:10:00.400 --> 0:10:03.760 he makes like a twelve or something. And afterwards off 0:10:03.840 --> 0:10:07.080 air because and North was commenting, he's like Arnie, what 0:10:07.120 --> 0:10:11.199 the funk man? And and Palmer goes. Those people came 0:10:11.240 --> 0:10:13.840 to see Arnold Palmer, and I gave them Arnold Palmer 0:10:14.679 --> 0:10:18.920 pretty great. He was like, like I pictured like clear Eastwood, 0:10:18.960 --> 0:10:20.680 you know, with a little sneer and the hat pulled 0:10:20.720 --> 0:10:23.480 though it I mean, it's ridiculous, but it's funny, but 0:10:23.520 --> 0:10:27.800 it's also it's insightful, Like there's just you know that 0:10:28.120 --> 0:10:31.240 Arnie had a role to play, and he embraced it. Um. 0:10:31.280 --> 0:10:34.520 You know, Jack Nicholas was more ambivalent about being a 0:10:34.720 --> 0:10:37.280 quote unquote semonial golfer. You know, he said he'd never 0:10:37.320 --> 0:10:39.560 be one, but then he did. And he's still hitting 0:10:39.559 --> 0:10:42.080 the first tea at the Masters, like he's actually grown 0:10:42.160 --> 0:10:45.240 comfortable with that. That the question for Tiger is will 0:10:45.240 --> 0:10:47.720 he embrace that role and what is it going to 0:10:47.760 --> 0:10:50.360 look like? Or does he have you know, so much 0:10:50.400 --> 0:10:52.360 pride and he still sticks to that I'm not gonna 0:10:52.400 --> 0:10:54.040 tee it up if I can't win kind of eat 0:10:54.080 --> 0:10:56.319 those like, what are we gonna see from Tiger and 0:10:56.400 --> 0:11:02.600 going forward? That that's a big question. Yeah, agreed. Uh, 0:11:03.120 --> 0:11:05.920 Yet yesterday, for the first time I felt like he 0:11:05.960 --> 0:11:08.760 was really a ceremonial golfer. I mean it was It 0:11:08.800 --> 0:11:12.319 wasn't good golf. He was obviously in a lot of discomfort. 0:11:12.520 --> 0:11:15.000 And I just hope it's the planner stuff and you 0:11:15.040 --> 0:11:17.320 can get back to I mean, we've talked about it 0:11:17.400 --> 0:11:20.320 last week. It's just a couple of times, one more 0:11:20.400 --> 0:11:24.600 time in his career even just be around, even near 0:11:24.720 --> 0:11:28.160 so we can discuss whether it will ever happen again. 0:11:29.040 --> 0:11:32.760 As Nicholas says, never ever, ever, ever, ever count out 0:11:32.800 --> 0:11:36.280 this Tiger Woods. But I think he must know on 0:11:36.320 --> 0:11:38.560 some level that when he won that Masters in two 0:11:38.559 --> 0:11:44.160 thousand nineteen, it was a gift. He played okay really 0:11:45.240 --> 0:11:48.680 uh and he squeezed one out and there's not gonna 0:11:48.720 --> 0:11:56.280 be another one. Now that's that's depressing but probably accurate. Um, 0:11:56.320 --> 0:11:58.520 and all right, that that was We kind of thought 0:11:58.559 --> 0:12:00.559 the two thousand nineteen Masters that was it, like that 0:12:00.600 --> 0:12:02.440 was the gift. But then you get greedy, like, well, 0:12:02.480 --> 0:12:03.840 if he did it, then you could do it again. 0:12:04.520 --> 0:12:06.600 And uh, you know, if he gets a firm, fast 0:12:06.640 --> 0:12:08.280 links course and he gets a good side of the 0:12:08.360 --> 0:12:10.079 draw and you can talk to off all kinds of stuff. 0:12:10.160 --> 0:12:13.080 But after smashing up his foot, I mean that it was. 0:12:13.800 --> 0:12:15.400 And I thought you were gonna say after smashing up 0:12:15.440 --> 0:12:19.800 that car, I mean yeah, we're saying that. I yeah, 0:12:19.800 --> 0:12:22.360 that up the side of the road, and we've been 0:12:22.360 --> 0:12:27.040 down this road before. He's yeah, I mean, by his 0:12:27.080 --> 0:12:31.440 own admission, his life changed that day. Yeah. Well that 0:12:31.520 --> 0:12:35.680 was a morbidly funny moment in the match where because um, 0:12:35.720 --> 0:12:38.200 you know, Justin Thomas and George Shore wearing shorts, so 0:12:38.280 --> 0:12:43.200 it led to the inevitable talk about calf muscles. And tigers, 0:12:43.200 --> 0:12:46.600 like I got a good calf singular. It was pretty funny. 0:12:48.280 --> 0:12:50.640 He went over George's peace and a few other people's 0:12:50.679 --> 0:12:53.600 head in the moment, but it was it was funny. Um, 0:12:53.720 --> 0:12:56.720 but yeah, that's the reality, you know. Uh, I mean, 0:12:56.760 --> 0:12:59.280 we never talks about his back anymore like that. That's 0:12:59.280 --> 0:13:02.439 what I thought was gonna back part of his body. Yeah, 0:13:02.800 --> 0:13:05.720 it's the one functional part of his body. Diffuse, FYI, 0:13:06.200 --> 0:13:08.319 how are you going to drive the golf ball anywhere 0:13:08.360 --> 0:13:11.800 with one good calf? He's driving it pretty well though. 0:13:11.840 --> 0:13:15.960 His ball speed was like up there with those guys yesterday. Yeah, 0:13:16.000 --> 0:13:19.000 I know he's you know, he's got some he he's 0:13:19.000 --> 0:13:20.640 got some of his speed back. And he mentioned that 0:13:20.679 --> 0:13:22.880 in the Bahamas that he's gotten some speedback, and he 0:13:23.520 --> 0:13:25.199 you know, he's not gonna have the ball speed of 0:13:25.240 --> 0:13:27.360 Rory McElroy, but he was up there with speed and 0:13:27.440 --> 0:13:31.320 even you know, threatened JT a few times. Like he's 0:13:31.360 --> 0:13:33.760 so physically strong in the upper body that it's like 0:13:33.800 --> 0:13:35.800 he could just jerk the club down through the hitting 0:13:35.800 --> 0:13:39.000 area with some speed. But um, you know, it's still 0:13:39.080 --> 0:13:42.360 it's not the most efficient or possibly repeatable action. But 0:13:42.400 --> 0:13:47.120 he's he's making it work. But anyway, yeah, who won 0:13:47.200 --> 0:13:53.320 the thing? It wasn't Tiger. Um, yeah, they It wasn't close. 0:13:53.920 --> 0:13:56.720 It wasn't close. The Tigers straight better ball for the 0:13:57.040 --> 0:14:02.400 twelve holds uh. One Club Challenge, Yeah, the one Club Challenge. 0:14:02.520 --> 0:14:05.280 They played one hole every and everyone got to choose 0:14:05.320 --> 0:14:09.000 which club and it was chaos. It was anarchy. It 0:14:09.040 --> 0:14:12.400 was fun. Guys are balling crazy places, trying to bend it. Tiger, 0:14:12.800 --> 0:14:14.679 I think he played down the wrong fairway on purpose. 0:14:14.720 --> 0:14:17.880 I'm not even sure. I thought it was gonna be ridiculous, 0:14:17.920 --> 0:14:19.880 and then it turned out to be like really fun. 0:14:20.000 --> 0:14:23.800 I was like, it was chaos, it was it was 0:14:23.840 --> 0:14:29.120 totally Yeah, and so Michael, when they played, you couldn't 0:14:29.240 --> 0:14:33.280 if like so JT and Justin went first, and they 0:14:33.280 --> 0:14:35.440 get to choose their clubs and you couldn't choose the 0:14:35.480 --> 0:14:39.680 clubs that they chose, so like those clubs, you know, 0:14:39.760 --> 0:14:43.440 everyone had to use a different club. Yeah, it sounds 0:14:43.440 --> 0:14:46.480 too gimmicky for me, but quick as side of four 0:14:46.520 --> 0:14:49.320 club tournament on the PGA Tour would be super cool. 0:14:50.880 --> 0:14:54.280 Oh yeah, well that's the whole point that, like Thomas 0:14:54.280 --> 0:14:56.160 made a really good part with his five would to 0:14:56.200 --> 0:14:59.240 win the whole and that was cool. Um so for 0:14:59.640 --> 0:15:02.720 a club hubs and an opportunity for Jones bag. Are 0:15:02.720 --> 0:15:05.440 they a sponsor of Irris Jones Jones Golf? Should be? 0:15:05.480 --> 0:15:09.120 But not yet. Well perhaps they will become one. I'm 0:15:09.120 --> 0:15:15.480 a user. Uh uh but Jones bag four clubs? Uh 0:15:15.840 --> 0:15:19.080 what clubs are they gonna be? And really manufacturer shots 0:15:19.120 --> 0:15:21.600 for four straight days? That would be really cool to see. 0:15:21.800 --> 0:15:24.280 That would be cool. What would be what would be 0:15:24.280 --> 0:15:26.720 your four club? Well, you know I play one every year, 0:15:26.800 --> 0:15:30.040 so now it's a very short course. But uh, driver 0:15:30.200 --> 0:15:33.800 six iron sandwich putter, because I can hood that six 0:15:33.880 --> 0:15:36.840 and turn into a for Yeah, I would go driver 0:15:36.920 --> 0:15:40.680 putter for sure, probably weds and then yeah, you gotta 0:15:40.720 --> 0:15:44.080 have like a I would go eight iron maybe maybe 0:15:44.080 --> 0:15:48.840 a But then then I was I was almost gonna 0:15:48.880 --> 0:15:53.800 say driver hybrid like seven iron putter, just because you 0:15:53.840 --> 0:15:56.720 can use a hybrid anything from one seventy to ten. 0:15:57.360 --> 0:15:59.480 You know, if you're you're in the wrong trap, you're 0:15:59.520 --> 0:16:01.520 gonna have a hard time getting out with the seven earned. 0:16:03.200 --> 0:16:05.720 That's true, that's true. Unless you want to go you 0:16:05.760 --> 0:16:07.640 gotta have a wedge of some sort. I mean, I 0:16:08.680 --> 0:16:12.280 that's fun, not a fun conversation. Yeah. And by the way, 0:16:12.320 --> 0:16:14.240 and it would have been cool if Jay Monahan would 0:16:14.240 --> 0:16:16.400 have said, you know, we're gonna spice things up here. 0:16:16.800 --> 0:16:18.960 We're gonna have a program Event're not a program. We're 0:16:18.960 --> 0:16:20.720 gonna have a mixed team event. We're gonna have a 0:16:20.720 --> 0:16:25.000 four club event. We're gonna have another kind of team event. Uh. 0:16:25.320 --> 0:16:27.400 You know, there was an opportunity there to do more 0:16:27.440 --> 0:16:30.600 than just bringing money. How about bringing bands. I know 0:16:30.640 --> 0:16:33.520 we've talked about this before, but really the starting point 0:16:33.640 --> 0:16:37.440 for this whole reconfiguration of what the PG door should 0:16:37.440 --> 0:16:40.320 be began with holding onto the players to making sure 0:16:40.360 --> 0:16:42.400 they get paid. But it should have been it should 0:16:42.440 --> 0:16:45.320 have begun with us, what's gonna make us watch? If 0:16:45.320 --> 0:16:49.520 it begin with us watching, the money would come. That's 0:16:49.560 --> 0:16:52.960 too well, Uh has nothing to do with it. I 0:16:53.000 --> 0:16:55.560 have to know. Well, I mean, you weren't here, uh 0:16:55.640 --> 0:17:00.440 for the Michael lighting conversation. Michael's lighting is different every 0:17:00.440 --> 0:17:02.840 week and wonderful this week. I don't know what it is. 0:17:02.880 --> 0:17:08.040 It's like a because he's holding a flashlight or we're 0:17:08.080 --> 0:17:10.600 not sure. But second of all, where's the baseball, Michael? 0:17:10.640 --> 0:17:12.399 I need a story on the baseball that you're holding, 0:17:12.760 --> 0:17:15.640 well just the ball. I don't know have I told 0:17:15.720 --> 0:17:17.879 this story on Uh. Michael and I have spent a 0:17:17.880 --> 0:17:20.560 lot of time together and we can uh we'll talk 0:17:20.560 --> 0:17:23.240 about it later of why, but lately on the phone 0:17:23.320 --> 0:17:27.440 in cars at hotels and uh, I'm driving with go 0:17:27.560 --> 0:17:32.560 to Hollow as well gold on Cold Hollow um or 0:17:32.680 --> 0:17:37.560 driving from Alpena to Cleveland, and I'm with like one 0:17:37.600 --> 0:17:42.400 of the greater running, greatest writers of our time, doing 0:17:42.480 --> 0:17:47.320 millions millions of like his like just he's interviewed, talked to, 0:17:47.600 --> 0:17:52.320 knows everybody. And I say, Michael, what's the most uh, 0:17:52.320 --> 0:17:55.000 what's your what's the piece that you love the most? 0:17:55.000 --> 0:17:57.239 Just an article, not a book or anything. And I 0:17:57.280 --> 0:18:00.159 was like, Oh, this is gonna be about Obama or 0:18:00.280 --> 0:18:04.600 Trump or a million other people. And he says, uh, 0:18:04.680 --> 0:18:07.040 I once went and wrote an article about the Cincinnati 0:18:07.080 --> 0:18:09.320 Reds and they were like forty games out and I 0:18:09.359 --> 0:18:12.679 want to to to uh write about you know, what 0:18:12.840 --> 0:18:15.199 professionalism meant and why they're still there. And I was 0:18:15.240 --> 0:18:19.000 like I'm sitting and I'm sitting on the edge of 0:18:19.000 --> 0:18:20.679 my seat and going like, oh, there's gonna be a 0:18:20.680 --> 0:18:23.680 guy who you know has cancer and he won the 0:18:23.720 --> 0:18:25.840 All Star Game and you know it's gonna be an 0:18:25.840 --> 0:18:28.080 amazing story. And I go, yeah, what happened? And he's like, no, 0:18:28.240 --> 0:18:31.880 that's the story. And I was like, literally, nothing happened. 0:18:33.440 --> 0:18:37.200 That's what happened. Nothing, And that was like and then 0:18:37.400 --> 0:18:39.199 I couldn't find it and Michael sent it to me. 0:18:39.240 --> 0:18:41.399 It's a great article. It's just like of all the 0:18:41.480 --> 0:18:45.159 stories that he's written, books, the people he's met, it 0:18:45.240 --> 0:18:47.400 was just the last we were. We were in Cleveland 0:18:47.400 --> 0:18:49.760 that may have sponsor and you're nice, you're nice to 0:18:49.800 --> 0:18:52.680 remember even the conversation run all. Let's make a quick 0:18:52.720 --> 0:18:57.639 nod to our former he this is inadequate, but uh, 0:18:57.640 --> 0:19:00.639 al and I worked for years with a wonderful college 0:19:00.720 --> 0:19:03.280 named Grant Wall. Many of you would know that anybody 0:19:03.280 --> 0:19:06.560 who follows soccer would would know the name too. I 0:19:06.560 --> 0:19:08.280 don't even know how to describe what he is. What 0:19:08.400 --> 0:19:10.720 Roger Angel was to baseball and what herb Wind was 0:19:10.760 --> 0:19:14.800 to golf, Grant Wall was too to soccer writing and uh, 0:19:15.000 --> 0:19:19.600 forty eight or nine he died in Cutter covering the 0:19:19.600 --> 0:19:26.920 World Cup. Just tragic loss for his family and great person. Yeah, Grant, 0:19:27.000 --> 0:19:29.920 I mean it's we came up together at s I. 0:19:30.080 --> 0:19:32.520 I mean I think we were hired the same year 0:19:32.880 --> 0:19:38.600 and say, yeah, you too, Michael, I mean you arrived 0:19:38.600 --> 0:19:41.679 with right and um. But you know, Grant I were 0:19:41.720 --> 0:19:44.720 the same aids, and we kind of progressed more or 0:19:44.800 --> 0:19:47.840 less at the same time. And we were never super close, 0:19:47.880 --> 0:19:49.600 but it was always a He was a he was 0:19:49.640 --> 0:19:51.640 a writing nerd like I am. So we would talk 0:19:51.680 --> 0:19:55.840 about stories and talk about journalism and just a wonderful 0:19:56.600 --> 0:20:00.960 human being, just so kind and generous and tremendous talent. 0:20:01.040 --> 0:20:04.320 I mean he he did college basketball for five or 0:20:04.359 --> 0:20:06.239 seven years before he did soccer, and he was an 0:20:06.280 --> 0:20:09.359 incredible college basketball writer. But his first love was with soccer. 0:20:09.480 --> 0:20:11.840 And that's that's you know, where he had had this 0:20:11.920 --> 0:20:18.159 international influence And yeah, it's I still can't believe it 0:20:18.200 --> 0:20:19.879 because right before he left for the World Cup, I 0:20:19.880 --> 0:20:22.200 talked him on the phone for at least forty five minutes. 0:20:24.119 --> 0:20:28.960 Yees this year you did a month ago? If that? Well, 0:20:29.000 --> 0:20:32.119 because Grant, you know, he spent the last three years 0:20:32.480 --> 0:20:34.680 he left s I, and he was he was really 0:20:34.680 --> 0:20:37.679 a pioneer of in some ways for in the sports 0:20:37.680 --> 0:20:39.679 writing world. For substack. You know, he was one of 0:20:39.680 --> 0:20:43.119 the first kind of blue chips sports writers to go 0:20:43.160 --> 0:20:47.159 to substack, and he'd done extremely well growing that audience. 0:20:47.359 --> 0:20:51.240 And um so as as here's the fire but collective, 0:20:51.280 --> 0:20:53.640 as we've talked about different ways to reach readers, we've 0:20:53.640 --> 0:20:56.040 had conversations with substacks. So I wanted I wanted Grant's 0:20:56.080 --> 0:20:59.439 take on it, and of course turned into wide ranging 0:20:59.520 --> 0:21:01.840 conversation about the old days at s I and various 0:21:01.880 --> 0:21:05.720 colleagues and what we're doing here at the collective. And 0:21:05.760 --> 0:21:09.800 he's very inquisitive, very thoughtful dude. So it was it was, 0:21:10.040 --> 0:21:12.159 I mean, were both like, oh, it's a busy day. 0:21:12.200 --> 0:21:14.320 I got maybe fifteen minutes and you know, it's just 0:21:14.560 --> 0:21:16.280 we just kept going. It was. It was really fun 0:21:16.359 --> 0:21:20.680 and um so yeah, all of it is is so stunning, 0:21:21.600 --> 0:21:23.919 up to including the fact like he was tweeting just 0:21:24.040 --> 0:21:27.959 you know, minutes before he collapsed and and then that 0:21:28.000 --> 0:21:29.960 was an emotional day and I got on this text 0:21:30.000 --> 0:21:33.719 right with old s I folks and um and I 0:21:33.720 --> 0:21:35.959 was reading some of the coverage and then I was 0:21:36.000 --> 0:21:38.119 I was curious was happening on social media. I went 0:21:38.160 --> 0:21:41.560 to Instagram and there's Grants like Instagram story pops up 0:21:41.560 --> 0:21:43.959 you know, he had just been putting out videos and 0:21:43.960 --> 0:21:46.159 and stuff. I mean just I think it said eight 0:21:46.240 --> 0:21:48.359 hours earlier and now he was gone. It was like 0:21:48.400 --> 0:21:50.399 so surreal, is like having a ghost in your phone 0:21:50.520 --> 0:21:54.880 and um, still trying to process the whole thing. Really yeah, 0:21:55.080 --> 0:21:57.119 I did not realize his wife was such trying to 0:21:57.119 --> 0:22:02.159 accomplished a medical doctor. Yeah, yeah, Dr Selene Grounder. So 0:22:02.200 --> 0:22:06.080 she um, she's been in an infectious disease expert for 0:22:06.160 --> 0:22:10.159 many years. And in fact, Grant did some great stories 0:22:10.160 --> 0:22:12.840