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00:00:01
Hello Friends, Welcome to the PAC-South Podcast
49 Plays1 month ago
Champions crowned, still more to be made. College Hockey and Professional Golf with their biggest weekends of the year. Plus, champions for college basketball and lots of drama involving WBB coaches.
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Transcript
Setting the Scene
00:00:01
Travis White
Hello friends. Welcome back to the PAC South podcast. Got them. Uh, we just got through March Madness.
00:00:05
Pat Q
Thank you.
00:00:08
Travis White
Um, we have our champions for
Michigan's Basketball Triumphs
00:00:11
Travis White
basketball. Frozen four will be this weekend, but first off, congratulations to both UCLA and Michigan to borderline blue bloods for basketball, Michigan now getting their second title, which is kind of crazy to think it's only their second, um,
00:00:27
Travis White
Arguably the underdog of the Final Four. They beat UConn, giving them their first title game loss. We're going to jump right into the men's game. um Were you shocked by this? i Obviously, I went into UConn. I really kind of went quiet on Michigan.
00:00:44
Travis White
um But still a great team in their own right. And maybe I just wasn't paying attention to them.
00:00:50
Pat Q
Yeah, for sure. um I don't want to say I was surprised because I did have Michigan in my Final Four. um And, you know, as we've discussed at length, originally Michigan was actually my national champion.
00:01:04
Pat Q
And then i switched that at like the 11th hour. And I was like, you know what? I picked Arizona 10,000 times and they've screwed it up every time. This would be the time that I don't pick them and they do it.
00:01:18
Pat Q
And they screwed it up again.
00:01:18
Travis White
Mm-hmm.
00:01:20
Pat Q
so go figure. um But I think that this was a really good Michigan team all year. um I do think that
00:01:30
Pat Q
I guess maybe the one reason people like slept on this team a little bit is because, you know, in that game against Duke, obviously it was really close, but they wound up losing. They kind of were a little up and down in the big 10 tournament, lost to Purdue before um they could win the big 10 championship. So maybe there were some questions of like, okay, well,
00:01:51
Pat Q
you know like We know Purdue's a really good team. We know Duke's a really good team. like Do they have it against the elites of college basketball this year? um And I think maybe we should have used that sample size of um the Feast Week tournament out in Vegas. as a better temperature check than the more recent performances, you know, like when they were beating teams by 30 and 40 points um and looking like they were on this whole other planet, maybe that should have been a clue, you know, that this is probably our national champion this year, but hats off to Dusty May. He's done a heck of a job there. They were eight and 24, just two seasons ago.
00:02:32
Pat Q
And in his first two years, he obviously led him back to the tournament and then makes this great national championship run. um So if they can hang on to him for a long time, i don't see a reason why Michigan isn't going to be consistently one of the top programs in college basketball.
Impact of NIL on College Sports
00:02:51
Travis White
yeah absolutely and i was going to bring that up with i mean two years ago this was a team that for Michigan basketball standards, rock bottom, just rock bottom.
00:03:01
Pat Q
Yeah. That's
00:03:01
Travis White
And I can't really say this is fully because NIL, but I mean, this is definitely a product of like NIL does not take a lot to flip rosters. You get the right coach in there.
00:03:13
Travis White
You talk to the right people about money and like being able to fund the program, giving the vision and it's there. And this is a great example of it. um We'll have to see kind of in football, if this quarter lays, because mean, this this is two years now in basketball where you have this situation.
00:03:32
Travis White
LSU is trying to do essentially the same thing with football, borderline in one with now, what it's gone over double, I think, what they originally anticipated offering per season for this year, because they've literally have come out and said, we're not building a program, you can do it in one year, why not?
00:03:34
Pat Q
Yeah. Yeah.
00:03:50
Travis White
Um, so this is kind of like the first precursor to that. So, I mean, big shout out to Michigan, the athletic department, and obviously Dusty May coming in and being the guy to do the job. Uh, kind of fun to see Wolverine basketball back on top. I have to say, uh, feels, you know, as a nineties kid, feels right. Um, women's basketball, UCLA getting it done. And I think kind of a similar situation for me. I,
00:04:18
Travis White
thought this was probably the last team that was going to get it done. They still very remarkable year. It was very fun having all one season, the women's tournament, very clear that all of them were very deserving of it.
00:04:30
Travis White
But i mean, UCLA, once they got there, just as all the teams very much dominated their regions, they very much showed, Hey, we're a one seed. We are, you know, the best here.
UCLA's Women's Basketball Victory
00:04:44
Travis White
UCLA kind of did that and ah in the Final Four. They handled Texas pretty well, and they manhandled South Carolina. We'll get back to South Carolina a few minutes with the second disappointing national title game. ah But nonetheless, UCLA, amazing national title. It's their first women's basketball title in school history.
00:05:06
Travis White
um Well, since the NCAA tournament, they do have the 1978 outside of the NCAA tournament championship.
00:05:09
Pat Q
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
00:05:15
Travis White
ah But, I mean, just a great story. Building it up now, I think pretty much they have six players currently projected for the WNBA draft coming up here. And Lauren Betts just was a glass cleaner.
00:05:31
Travis White
No one really had an answer for her. And it it really showed down low UCLA was able to dominate teams that typically dominated the board. So big shout out to the Bruins. I'll pass it over to you for your kind of analysis on the final four on the women's side and your Bruins flowers.
00:05:50
Pat Q
Yeah, yeah. i thought it was ah I thought it was a really entertaining Final Four on the women's half. You know, sometimes we unfortunately get those scenarios in the women's tournament where you've got one team that's kind of head and shoulders above everybody else and they just totally blow everybody out in the Final Four. And you kind of know by, i mean, we knew on Sunday, but you kind of know by halftime of the national championship game, like, oh, all right, like,
00:06:17
Pat Q
this thing's over, this is who's winning. But, um I mean, I thought the Texas-UCLA game was entertaining, competitive, obviously seeing 38, or probably more than that by the time they played. It was 38, I think. I don't know. um But whatever an O UConn team go down to South Carolina in that fashion, that was really, really...
00:06:39
Pat Q
surprising I think for a lot of the country who maybe just thought UConn was going steamroll through this tournament like they did most of it until the final four um
00:06:49
Travis White
Yeah.
00:06:50
Pat Q
and I will say yeah for UCLA I think it's a great model of how you can kind of do an anti Michigan, you know, Michigan won by portaling in its entire starting five this year from other schools where either those players weren't valued, maybe the way they should have been, or those schools just couldn't afford to keep them like Yoxel Lindenborg.
00:07:13
Pat Q
Um, where UCLA women's basketball, those are all four seniors who had been besides Lauren Betts, um, with the team for a majority of their careers. I mean, like Gabby Hawkins has been there the whole time. Um, um,
00:07:29
Pat Q
And obviously getting Lauren Betts from Stanford was absolutely massive, you know, but keeping that core together after last year's final four run is a testament to the job that they did in culture building and program building um where you could have easily seen maybe like one of those girls or two of those girls enter the portal.
00:07:34
Travis White
Yes.
00:07:47
Pat Q
Like we saw with Texas, I believe it was yesterday. um One of their top players entered the portal. So it's it's not guaranteed anymore, you know, and seeing a core stick together, fight through adversity and get over the top is a good thing, I think, for this era of college basketball.
00:08:08
Pat Q
But as you said, think you got a feel for South Carolina a little bit. This is the second straight national championship game that they've made and then totally laid an egg in.
00:08:22
Travis White
Yeah.
00:08:24
Pat Q
I don't know. i
00:08:25
Travis White
Do we think that, I mean, obviously the last 10 years or so has been South Carolina and UConn. You've had other teams come up for short periods of time, like Iowa, like Stanford, like Baylor. But those two have remained the same. Do you think that it's almost in a way the program has gotten so cocky that they're like, all right, I'm i'm in the national championship game.
00:08:49
Travis White
It's mine now because before last year, they were undefeated in title game appearances and they have three championships, arguably could be four going into that 2020 year before that got canceled.
00:08:54
Pat Q
Provedere.
00:09:04
Travis White
They were clearly the best team in the country that season. So very likely would have had another. Is this program like, is this now a wake up call being a second year in a row? i mean, they will have the roster next year to still make a run.
00:09:20
Travis White
is this Is this the wake-up call, or is there something bigger going in those like huge games
00:09:26
Pat Q
I don't know. I don't know if it's like wake up call necessarily, or maybe it's just like a sign, not just to South Carolina, but to the rest of women's college basketball that kind of like you mentioned, like that gap between our elite teams and we'll say like,
00:09:42
Pat Q
I don't know, the rest of the field is closing a little bit and that door is widening where more programs are ushering their way into that kind of top echelon, top spot. You know, Notre Dame was a great women's basketball program for years and years and years. And obviously they had a really nice run this year, but you've kind of seen them take a little bit of a step back as other programs like UCLA have kind of stepped up in the absence of, again, like Stanford was consistently really good. throughout most of the late 2000s, mid 2010s.
00:10:15
Pat Q
and Now we've seen UCLA kind of step in as the California school that's strong in women's basketball.
South Carolina's Struggles in Finals
00:10:22
Pat Q
One worrying thing I would say for South Carolina, though, is how Joyce Edwards played in both of those final four games.
00:10:30
Pat Q
I don't think necessarily like she played poorly against UConn. I think that would be unfair to say. But, you know, she's somebody who averaged think like 19 points a game this year, and she scored 11 points against UConn and eight points against UCLA.
00:10:41
Travis White
Yeah.
00:10:45
Pat Q
So like, is that a concerning sign that maybe Joyce needs, um, to work on her post game a little bit more in the off season? Is it a sign that when she gets up against stronger bigs, maybe she's going to struggle a little bit, you know, things like that, um, that I'm sure Dawn and company are going to look at going to talk to Joyce about, but yeah, it was, it was definitely a disappointing Sunday for South Carolina women's basketball. Uh, it kind of seemed like Tessa Johnson was really the only one who had it from the start. Um,
00:11:17
Pat Q
and nobody else really rose to that level. so
00:11:23
Travis White
Yeah, yeah, 100%. So we'll have to see. I mean, they're going to have a lot of bigs coming back, lots of injuries and other circumstances led the Gamecocks to be a lot thinner in the front court.
00:11:36
Travis White
You could say Joyce Edwards kind of did more than what was expected of her, given what the roster was supposed to be going into the season. But, of course, once you're in the Final Four, all bets are out.
00:11:47
Travis White
You just got to figure out a way to win.
00:11:47
Pat Q
Yeah. Yeah.
00:11:48
Travis White
We'll have to see. This could be, you know, what they needed for next year if they're able to get it done next year. However, if they don't, it will just leave Gamecock fans going, what if? um Speaking of South Carolina's Final Four, if you watched...
00:12:09
Travis White
the end of their final four game against UConn and, or have social media that would have followed any of the other games and go, huh, this is weird. There's a lot of pictures and videos of the coaches shaking hands and hugging and talking.
00:12:22
Travis White
Well, that's because Gino did not enjoy losing to South Carolina, apparently, or Don not shaking his hand. It's a whole situation.
00:12:33
Travis White
ESPN pulled a lot of receipts very quickly. Don't know if there was one that was not missed, but it was very funny because for five minutes, they basically were showing everything that he said did not happen.
00:12:42
Pat Q
Mm-hmm.
00:12:43
Travis White
um I truly believe that because of the way he reacted to that loss and just the moment in general, I think that Geno Foley was committed to, if he wins another national championship this year,
00:13:00
Travis White
he's done uh i mean that core mostly headed out the door um it would have been two two championships in a row an undefeated season he's now 72 think almost 73 but uh getting up there in age was like this could be my fairy tale sign off and then it got ruined um
00:13:21
Pat Q
Yeah.
00:13:25
Travis White
I do think that that is probably what happened and went through. He's now released two public statements about it. If you follow us on social media, we... commented on the first one um the but i i do think that that is probably what's going on on behind closed doors now gino obviously will not say that because he's probably like well i want to still go out on national championship given my career so now he needs to go back out and recruit and focus on things and uh you can't really recruit if you say i'm about to retire so that's my opinion do you do you share
00:14:01
Pat Q
Yeah, I do agree that I think if UConn had completed, you know, this dream undefeated season, um it probably would have been it for Geno, where he would have stepped aside and either one of his assistants would have, you know, come in, took over the program, or who knows, maybe one of those early years players could have taken over, like a Diana Taurasi or a Sue Bird, and filled the shoes of their former mentor.
00:14:25
Travis White
Yeah, yeah. yeah
00:14:29
Pat Q
Yeah. because I believe both have expressed interest in coaching in the future and things like that. But regardless, you know, I think that Gino did have this plan and then he watched it unravel in front of him and, you know, give South Carolina credit. It looked like UConn was in control during I'll say most of the first quarter, but then you kind of felt the momentum shift a little bit as we were closing that first quarter out and South Carolina made adjustments. Yukon struggled to make those adjustments. And I think that frustration also boiled over a little bit for Gina where, you know, like he's trying to get that more physical play to match the style and match the energy that South Carolina is bringing.
00:15:12
Pat Q
And it's just not working. And, you know like He went into the whole thing about the refs too during the mid-game interview.
00:15:20
Travis White
Yeah.
00:15:21
Pat Q
um but i agree. I think the way he reacted, even in that interview, um showed that he had a vision and that vision was quickly falling apart before his eyes.
00:15:34
Travis White
And now moving away from that situation, just talking about those games before we move on. Those two Final Four games were very hard-nosed, Texas, UCLA, and then UConn, South Carolina, very gritty.
00:15:45
Pat Q
Yeah. Yeah.
00:15:48
Travis White
It it was almost interesting. like You had obviously great defense in all of these teams, but great offenses as well. They all struggled to score in those games. It was very interesting. And really, you could say the only team that was able to score that weekend was UCLA in the title game because South Carolina obviously still struggled to score.
00:16:11
Travis White
was a very different struggling to score than all the teams in the final four round.
00:16:17
Pat Q
Yeah.
00:16:17
Travis White
But nonetheless, only UCLA was able to really, I guess, figure out those baskets. It was almost like, we're no it was like double rims in the first, in the first round of the weekend.
00:16:23
Pat Q
Rimgate? yeah action
00:16:29
Travis White
So it was very, very interesting to see those teams struggle and have to figure out a new way to win. But obviously we saw those games unfold. Uh, one final coaching situation, women's basketball. Uh, it can't even say developing story at this point. It's been quiet, but now it's getting super loud. Now that national title has come and gone, uh, Tennessee has one coat or one coach, one player tied to that program right now.
00:17:00
Travis White
Uh, lots of stuff coming out about Kim Caldwell that it's not going well. She's very hard to play for very hard to work with.
00:17:06
Pat Q
Mm-hmm.
00:17:08
Travis White
Um, sounds like Danny white kind of involved in like a, Hey, this is just how it's going to be. um which I don't think bodes well because then your backup plan, if you're a player is, you know, he, he's going to back up the coach that is all the issues. So lots of trouble brewing on Rocky top. I can't imagine this lasts very long though, given the legacy of ball basketball.
00:17:36
Travis White
Um, but Danny White also finding himself mixed up in this. Do you see Kim Caldwell making it through this offseason? i mean, i don't think she has any incoming recruits, and she'll have to hit the portal entirely.
Criticism of Kim Caldwell's Coaching
00:17:51
Pat Q
I feel like because of the like contract situation and because of the buyout, I was reading some stuff on Twitter um earlier about it. And I think that like it's in a position where it wouldn't make sense economically ah for Tennessee to move on from Kim Caldwell. So she's just going have to gut through it and build a roster through the portal mainly. i know they did pick up a commitment, think today, um from...
00:18:21
Pat Q
a transfer guard out of Liberty. So there's two players now, um, trending in the right direction. Um, but yeah, I think this has been a disaster. If you go on Twitter, if you go on, well, I don't know if there's a ball Twitter on or ball community on threads or blue sky.
00:18:41
Pat Q
Um, but they're quite adamant that, um, this was the wrong hire, right? That when the hire was made, They should have gone with the former Grand Canyon, now Arizona State head coach instead of Kim Caldwell.
00:18:57
Pat Q
But Danny White tried to, you know, keep it in house, keep it with somebody who has connections to the program. And yeah, they were winning games.
00:19:03
Travis White
And it did work at first.
00:19:07
Pat Q
This year is just kind of where it all just exploded.
00:19:10
Travis White
Yeah.
00:19:10
Pat Q
You know, she called her players soft and entitled and like, it it It was a whole thing. um And obviously when that happens, unless you're Dan Hurley and you're winning national championships, the players probably aren't going to like it too much.
00:19:26
Travis White
Yeah. yeah i uh i i think that rocky top is really firmly upset about this i mean it helps that you're getting little bit of success this isn't like it was 15 years ago and then like when pat summit decided to retire um or retired um and then you didn't really have any other sports to fall back on at least there's that a little bit of cushion nowadays um
00:19:49
Pat Q
Yeah.
00:19:55
Travis White
But still, I mean, this is if a South Carolina fan were to then go to losing, if a UConn fan were to then go to losing. So they have a lot of stuff. I would not be surprised if we hit May, though, personally, and they're still looking at five players that they're they're going to make the move. um But I think if Kim Caldwell wants to stay in Tennessee, she's going to need to A, survive this all season, and B,
00:20:25
Travis White
At least make the Elite Eight next year. um i Yeah, I mean, it's it's a tall task to go for, but if she wants to keep herself on Rocky Top while reinventing her image, what she's done so far, it's going take a lot of work, I think.
00:20:42
Pat Q
Yeah, yeah, not going to be great
00:20:42
Travis White
It's going to take a lot of work.
00:20:44
Travis White
Yeah, so unfortunately for the situation, I guess, can't really say for her because she's kind of dug herself into it.
00:20:51
Pat Q
quick.
00:20:52
Travis White
Um, but we'll have to see because I mean, Tennessee with women's basketball is just such a great program to have good is very good and exciting for the sport when they are.
00:21:03
Travis White
Um, and this is obviously kind of a massive development with coaches in and NIL era on to now. Our last major winter championship, I believe, now that it's April.
00:21:16
Travis White
Can you say it's winter championship?
Frozen Four Preview
00:21:18
Travis White
ah The Frozen Four is happening in Las Vegas, the greatest hockey town in America.
00:21:24
Pat Q
TM.
00:21:26
Travis White
Yeah. um Michigan, obviously getting through. Can't really say we had much surprise there. It be very fun to see a program like that having just won the men's the next weekend win hockey.
00:21:39
Pat Q
Yeah.
00:21:40
Travis White
I don't think the president of that school will be very happy. They're going to be giving out days off left and right. on Finishing out the final four, we have the North Dakota, Denver, and Wisconsin.
00:21:45
Pat Q
I
00:21:52
Travis White
Wisconsin getting in there on overtime win. Definitely kind of our Cinderella team out of this group. Do we think that Denver and Wisconsin have a chance here? Definitely Michigan and North Dakota are our frontrunners.
00:22:05
Pat Q
mean, yeah, I would say they definitely have a chance, especially Denver. They beat a really good Western Michigan team to make the frozen four. Um, So, I mean, that's the one beautiful thing about hockey is especially in one game or one-off games, you know, like it really can just be whoever's hot that game um and whoever's playing better as a team, let's say. um And because of that, I'm not going to say like, oh, of course, like Denver Wisconsin totally don't have a chance, but I would be –
00:22:45
Pat Q
Quite surprised if the national championship game is not Michigan and North Dakota.
00:22:52
Travis White
Yeah, I agree. i agree with that. um As much as I just said, it would be fun and cool to see Michigan win back-to-back and have a double in win or winter sports.
00:23:06
Travis White
I personally don't think it's going to happen. i I mean, this is the curse of TJ because if you look at my results in the Final Four in basketball, not great.
00:23:11
Pat Q
Yeah.
00:23:14
Travis White
I do like North Dakota. North Dakota fans are probably not happy to hear me say that. Yeah. But I'm always a big believer in North Dakota hockey between NHL talent that's come out of that program and just their success on the ice as a program.
00:23:30
Travis White
um
00:23:30
Pat Q
Yeah.
00:23:32
Travis White
I just really like this team, and I like North Dakota to get it done this year. Michigan, great season. Thank you. Wisconsin, fun run.
00:23:43
Travis White
Denver, Denver gets too much hate for me for hockey. I really need to stop because I think this is like – two out of the last three years where I've just like dogged. Not dogged in a way. I didn't didn't have anything nice to say about Denver this year, um which they don't really deserve that.
00:23:53
Pat Q
yeah
00:23:57
Travis White
But I'll come back next year with it. Come back next year with it. This year, North Dakota. um Did I gloss over your – you went Michigan, right?
00:24:10
Pat Q
oh i don't know if i think i think i just i think i just said who i thought was going to be in the national championship uh i am also going actually with north dakota here um so blame us north dakota faithful if it goes wrong um but i don't know like yes michigan's
00:24:12
Travis White
I was going to say, wait, hang on, hang
00:24:19
Travis White
There we go.
00:24:26
Travis White
If not, if not, we look forward to hosting a podcast slash show in not Fargo.
00:24:31
Pat Q
in Fargo?
00:24:35
Travis White
Where are they?
00:24:35
Pat Q
No, that's North Dakota State. um
00:24:37
Travis White
North Dakota States in Fargo.
00:24:41
Travis White
Hang on. We're doing live, live reporting, live research.
00:24:44
Pat Q
Library research.
00:24:49
Travis White
uh it is in oh man come on give me something this is the ever professional searching while we're going i cannot find it can you find it i cannot find it
00:25:10
Pat Q
Hold on, I'm Googling it. It's in Grand Forks. Grand Forks.
00:25:15
Travis White
grand forks that was my third option All right, Grand Forks. Y'all win it. We'll come do a podcast, and we'll ah live cover a game from the ice.
00:25:29
Pat Q
Book it. yes
00:25:30
Travis White
Um, okay.
00:25:32
Pat Q
What?
00:25:33
Travis White
All right. Just so we pissed off all of our North Dakota listeners. Uh, obviously if you listen to our intro and if you are watching the video version of this, you will see that it is master's week.
Masters Golf Tournament Anticipation
00:25:48
Travis White
Uh, we will finish up our show with real quick picks. Obviously the par three contest was today. I think that has now wrapped up.
00:25:54
Pat Q
Yeah.
00:25:57
Travis White
I was very excited. The little bit I was able to see, i tuned into a Tommy Fleetwood hole-in-one. Very happy about that result. But, yeah, this is the best tournament in golf to watch, hence why we were straying from our college sports stick to bring in a little bit of the outside.
00:26:20
Travis White
Yeah, I just – the passion, the pageantry – The tradition of Augusta National is kind of second to none. I mean, you kind of go into like football in the South and the SEC and like you talk about that pageantry and you're like, it's so great.
00:26:39
Travis White
In a much different tempo, that is the Masters for golf. I think if you ever were to try and watch a tournament, this is the one to start on. It's just literally unlike any other. And I hope that they have not trademarked that phrase.
00:26:56
Travis White
because because it is um i'm gonna give my two quick hits uh one i guess kind of who i could really see winning it from where i stand and like who i want really uh and then my vibes pick um i'm gonna go with my more probably realistic option and hideki matsuyama um
00:27:10
Pat Q
Yeah.
00:27:22
Travis White
I've been a big fan of his game and watching him play for the last six years now, and obviously in 21, him winning the tournament in that fashion. You have the picture of his caddy bowing to the course on 18 after they win, um which goes hand in hand with the tradition and like just respecting the course and the tournament. So I'd love to see Hideki Masayama win the green jacket for a second time.
00:27:47
Travis White
My Vibes pick, also a former winner, and he has not sniffed it any anywhere close since. That is University of Texas grad Jordan Spieth.
00:27:58
Pat Q
Mm-hmm.
00:27:59
Travis White
I love him, but man, ever since that 13th hole has been rough in Augusta, I'd love to see him just have a miraculous tournament and get one. I feel like he has just been coasting.
00:28:11
Travis White
He got a win last year but on the tour, but It just has not been the same for him for many years now. I'd love for him to catch fire and, you know, win the jacket one more time would be very funny.
00:28:25
Travis White
He still has a lot of years ahead of him in Augusta, but, you know, would just like see Jordan play some competitive good golf.
00:28:33
Pat Q
Yeah, yeah, for sure. um I'll do a similar layout.
00:28:35
Travis White
Pat, what were we thinking?
00:28:40
Pat Q
I'll go with like my guy who I think, in my opinion, should be like the pick to win. um Or like the guy who I actually feel like has the best chance of the names I'm going to give to to win.
00:28:52
Pat Q
Then I'll maybe tier below.
00:28:57
Pat Q
hereer below Just keep an eye on guy. um And then I'll finish off with just kind of a vibes type of pick.
00:29:00
Travis White
Yeah. All
00:29:04
Travis White
right. Yeah.
00:29:05
Pat Q
So the guy who I really feel confident about, who's playing great golf right now, um and, you know, from a professional standpoint, tends to excel.
00:29:18
Pat Q
At Augusta is, like you, a former Masters champ. And I'm going with the Spaniard, Jon Rahm, to take it home again this year. I've always been a big fan of Rom.
00:29:28
Travis White
yeah
00:29:32
Pat Q
He struggled when he first moved to live and getting that consistency back in his game.
00:29:34
Travis White
Yeah. Yeah.
00:29:36
Pat Q
But he's playing really good golf again. um think since conditions are expected to be a little firmer, that kind of can help a guy who strikes the ball like he does. um So I really like Rom this weekend. He's my, go-to guy, let's say.
00:29:53
Pat Q
um And my cut cut below guy, um who I am a big fan of, probably will not win, but um I think has done a lot to change his perception or his image in the golf community, is the hen dog himself, Russell Henley. I'm a Russell Henley truther, so seeing him be ranked as high as he is in the world rankings,
00:30:23
Pat Q
be playing as good of golf as he is, um, over the last, we'll say year, year and a half, uh, it's definitely awesome to see. So I would not be surprised if we see like a top 10, I'm not going guarantee a win, but top 10 out of Russell this weekend. Uh, and then my total vibes pick, I think it's odds. I did a pool this morning. So, um, I think his odds in that pool were like 84 to one. So like definitely do not put money on this guy to win. um
00:30:52
Travis White
Unless you like making money.
00:30:53
Pat Q
Unless you like making money. Yeah. Yeah. But just a vibes pick here. i really like Nikolai Hoigard to have a decent showing this weekend.
00:31:05
Pat Q
As you can probably tell, i know the hen dog isn't, but um I do fancy the Europeans when it comes to golf and just the finesse that they play with. So. Yeah.
00:31:15
Travis White
Well, that was like me last year. I was all in on Victor Hoffman and he made a good run at it, but didn't.
00:31:21
Pat Q
Yeah.
00:31:22
Travis White
finish it at the end of the day, but they finished fourth, I think kind of a slow Sunday.
00:31:25
Pat Q
Yeah. yeah
00:31:27
Travis White
ah yeah kind of same boat there. Obviously not this year when Japan and us All right. Be interesting to see. One national championship, one of the greatest sporting events in the Masters this weekend as well.
00:31:43
Travis White
Another great weekend of sports. We will see how rough it was when we get back next Wednesday. Thank you all again so much for listening and watching. For Pat, I'm TJ with the PacSouth podcast. We will see you all next week.