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Episode 67 - AC plays the Old Course and the lads preview The Open
20 Plays3 months ago
AC arrives back from his golf trip around Scotland and the boys look into the upcoming Open Championship at Royal Troon.
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Transcript
Podcast Return: Fortnightly Format
00:00:15
Speaker
Hello and welcome back to the Off The Tips podcast. We're not intentionally becoming a fortnightly release, but but we have been.
AC's Golf Trip to Scotland: Highlights
00:00:25
Speaker
Back from his great Scottish golf trip, his AC, He stayed up late for this one over there in London after a big shift watching the Euros. I see. How are you going, mate? You've been all around the globe. G'day, mate. G'day, listeners. Yeah, good to be back. Running the night shift today. um Just dedication to the cause, brother. But I'm keen to rip into the golf this week and yeah, just excited to chat some golf. It's a shame that we missed last week, but hey, we're back. We're back here on the tools.
00:01:01
Speaker
Do you want to talk to us a bit about Scotland and what unfolded? We understand you played some pretty epic golf courses. If you want to run the listeners through a brief kind of itarian and maybe how you went, how the boys shaped up, some off-field antics, I'll just let you take the reins here. Yeah, okay. Where do I start? Well, basically we're there for 10 days. We had one 36-hole day. So I think, yeah, we played about 11 rounds of golf all up. um I guess the the standouts for me were obviously getting to play the old course. um That was just incredibly special. i
00:01:41
Speaker
ah It's always been like a bucket list item for me, but it even exceeded those expectations. It's sort of hard to put into words the feeling you had there. I happened to get drawn with ah with a guy from Raglan and he said he was close to tears on the first first tee and he was probably mid 40s and just it sort of put him to perspective for me as well how lucky I was to be playing at the ripe age of 25 and hopefully a couple more trips back there um and I guess yeah the highlight of that was
00:02:17
Speaker
I guess I was a bit dusty on the first tee, not going to lie. and We didn't think we'd get on, ah but I managed to make a comfy par there. I hit one into the pub on the road hole and got thrown my ball over the fence. That was a bit of a highlight. um What else did I do? I took on the the camsmith up and down on the road hole and putted one into the bunker. and then And then Bernie Dadeen, with a little gallery there, you gave him a bit of a clap. So yeah, those were the those are the three things I probably remember the the most from my dad, St Andrews. But it was so special. um I sound like a broken record. And we'll we'll probably do a big pot on Scotland
Top Courses Played: Rankings and Conditions
00:03:00
Speaker
eventually. So I don't need to go too into details, but just an epic trip. um As we describe it, a lot of brown food.
00:03:10
Speaker
was eaten. Just a lot of chicken wings, pizzas, burgers at pubs. So I'm trying to get on the straight and narrow from now on, Cal. ah Made myself a ah good meal today and it's I need to start looking after myself. But hey, that's what happens on a lads golf trip. um Some reflective comments after. some it's boy i if i like I know you you said we'll do a Scotland Pond and we will do one. Just But just maybe give us your own course being obviously number one. What was number two and three on on the list of golf courses that you played?
Challenges and Performance in Scotland
00:03:52
Speaker
I'd go, oof, I think I'd go Royal Dornak 2 and North Berwick number 3. Those two I could probably interchange. We had a very windy day at North Berwick, the front nine, and it was at the first round, so I sort of blacked out on the front nine a little bit. It was just strip straight into the gale for for nine holes um and a bit of a reprieve and we tend turned down wind, but that was epic. um Yeah, those two and car noose D as well. That was a real highlight getting to play an open venue. ah That will be awesome when, when the opens back there, just having that extra sort of context around it. It was bloody difficult. It's tight, thick, rough. I'm actually the senior open there in a few weeks, I think. So that'd be good to watch as well. Um, that have been ramping up preparation.
00:04:46
Speaker
But yeah, we we played, we were so fortunate. We had good weather. We played a lot of a lot of awesome courses. But yeah, those those three were probably the standouts. Yeah, I can go on about all day. but It was just such
Scottish Open Reflections and Rules Discussion
00:05:01
Speaker
good fun. The golf was pretty fucking awful for me. I'm genuinely considering a full reboot. But yeah, like I'm just not happy with, with what I can do right now so I need to get my swing sorted and I think it needs some pretty wholesale changes but yeah I don't want to bore everyone with that but it was it was just hard work it was I i was my attitude was pretty good but I had to constantly tell myself just don't worry about your score because I was just hitting it terribly so we might get a maybe maybe the Hillary that's gonna be I'm gonna have to work back my timelines off off that
00:05:45
Speaker
If you start seeing someone, just yeah get that sorted. It's great to hear that you had a fantastic trip around Scotland and and hopefully it's not the you know not the last time you get up there because there's so much good golf to be had in that place. It goes without saying. and butll We'll stay on on Scotland briefly with the Scottish Open last week. Big Bobby McIntyre winning his National Open which is up there with one of the things you love to see. A.C., I doubt you caught much of the Scottish but and you didn't go to the Renaissance Club, did you? No, one of the boys did. They were there on the Saturday ah so they got to see
00:06:34
Speaker
see the crowds getting, getting behind Bobby Mack. So, but I did watch a little bit of it. I didn't watch the final round. I was, the Euros were on and it was a mate of mine's birthday, Swanie, our mate. So yeah, I was tied up on that Sunday watching Wimbledon as well. So didn't get to see a whole lot of that, but awesome story for Bobby Mack. And I think also what, which was good is the few storylines coming out of it. They had good weeks and we'll be pressing on to the open. Yeah, Adam Scott in a good week, just peeking his head at the right time, which is you know it's great for golf swing lovers around the globe. But one thing I will ask you about on the Scottish before we move on to the the main course, if you will, is Bobby McIntyre's drop at the back end of the of the final round.
00:07:29
Speaker
did Did you see that? And and if you if you did, what are your thoughts? like Clearly, it's within the rules. It just ah just didn't feel right to me. That's what I'll say. Yeah. I think a similar sort of thing. At the end of the day, he hasn't broken any rules, but it's just it's hard to It always feels a little bit deflating when someone gets a break that good and wins. I guess it's it was sort of karma from last year when Rory just buried the last two to rip his heart out. but
00:08:06
Speaker
Yeah. I just think it always sort of, which is a shame. It just makes it, and it doesn't feel quite as, as good as the one could have. It's kind of my, my take on it, but I, it's not, I don't think there's anything particularly, you know, uh, there wasn't anything criminal
Anticipation for the Open Championship
00:08:25
Speaker
about it. It just it was just the rules. It was well, the rules and for those that didn't see it, he was, it hit his drive. well, well off the fairway and he was in some proper thick rough. But when he made his stance to, to address his ball, he was standing on a sprinkler head, which if you, if that's impeding your starts or swing, you, you get relief and got, I think you got two club links and he was but's essentially out of the the deep rough, perfect
00:09:01
Speaker
or I'd say perfect lie, but great lie on the rough and made eagle. So iets like like, I had no idea how there was a sprinkler head there. so Yeah. Like waste high fish, but that's so random. and It is. It's, I heard the commentators talking and they were like, Oh, maybe standing on a ball. Like, but no, yeah. But anyway, it was, it was good to see a a Scotsman when I, I love, I love National Opens, as the listeners would know. And to see a hometown hero hoisting their their national trophy is it's one of the things you love to see. So he'll move on to the Open this week. and The best way you possibly can. A good week for Rory. Ludwig was a little bit disappointing on Sunday, but I'm sure we'll talk about that a little bit more. So I see memories of Royal Trune.
00:10:00
Speaker
and I'm pretty sure we'll probably just have the same ones. Yeah for me it was just the duel between Stenson and Phil. um That's all my real memory of it and basically just Stenson just Hitting the shit out of it with that three wood. And that's like all I think of when I think of stencils. I'm just putting that three wood down low and just standing there and belting them really. um I'm trying to think what else happened that week. I can't really, basically they just blitz the rest of the field. There was a bad side of the draw that basically meant half the field were ruled out. And that's all I can really recall. What about you?
00:10:48
Speaker
Yeah. Oh, just pretty much been going toe to toe down the stretch. Like you said, it was, I think that's really the only thing I can, I can take out of the, the open last time it was at Trune. I was living over there at the time. It was, so it was on of a great hour for a bloke that, you know, wasn't doing much during the week. So I did watch a lot, but just the memories fading a little bit, which is, which is not a good sign. Um, But mate, what are you looking forward to most this week? we've seen We've seen some great presses from Rory Tiger, but if you were just, what are you looking forward to most without bullshitting you?
00:11:32
Speaker
for me just watching pros play links golf on a proper links golf course i think the renaissance club is not it's not a traditional links um so watching them play and navigate their way around especially after playing a lot of it you sort of forget and become a bit numb to how different it is. So um I'm just looking forward to watching them play the golf course really and often also hopefully playing the elements at some time, at some stages during the week.
00:12:05
Speaker
I think 11, absolute bull buster of a par four, might be one of the hardest holes in the world. That'll be interesting to see. And the postage stamp always, always throws up some interesting golf. What about you? Mate, more of the same, the the storylines around the players are quite exciting. You know, Scotty Sheffler coming in after a few weeks off, Bobby McIntyre coming in after winning. his national open. And then you've also got the the Rory Bryson thing after what happened at Pinehurst. There's so much to look forward to. And as you said, all all those great golf holes and and the fact that that that we have these guys all together playing Lynx Golf. And I also am keen for the win to get right up. But I'm also not keen for it to ruin half the draw like it did last time. like i think
00:13:01
Speaker
Hopefully it's consistent across the day. Like you don't want blokes just going out in beautiful weather at 6 a.m. posting eight or nine and then it absolutely gailing in the Arvo and and one or two is a good score. So look, just a fair test, which is what Lyns Gulf is. and and And the Open is is my probably my favorite event of the
Rory McIlroy's Preparations and Mindset
00:13:24
Speaker
year. And we were we were disappointed last year when you were on the ground. So we drew a good one. t Yeah, for sure. And even though it wasn't ideal, I think attending the Open in person made me appreciate even more even just the branding. um It's just such an iconic thing in golf. All the yellow scoreboards, the navy, the navy blue stuff. It's it very iconic. um And yeah, as you say, I think I don't want to say it first because we go on about them so much on the pod, but I think
00:14:00
Speaker
The Rory redemption story is probably one of the, one of the headlines going into this week. It's just going to be so interesting to see how he deals with it. Well, yeah, you're, so you're staring down the barrel of a and five months of the podcast where crushes kept on your, on your melon. So I actually feel fricking good about it, man. I yeah i do. Yeah. I'm a believer. Well, you you did send us a great article on on Rory, which, you know, da delved into the the near misses and and kind of looked at his career from a, you know, a bigger perspective. ah What did you kind of like about what he was saying in his presses about about those misses and how it probably won't define his career?
00:14:59
Speaker
ah he I know, he just seemed pretty upbeat to me. I think obviously he would have been so disappointed right off the fact, but there's a lot of positives and I think he could see where he went wrong. He says his pre-shot routine got a lot longer. He said that's literally one of the things he's been working on the last couple of weeks is just making sure that that doesn't change and that can be something that you can rely on. and which is Sort of a basic mistake that he made a lot of he sort of went away from his process, but you can see how that happens, but I think you know of
00:15:36
Speaker
We're not going to know. I think, I think he's going to start the tournament. Wow. We're not going to know about the scar tissue until he gets in the heat of the moment again. And that's so interesting to me because I don't think he's going to worry about it rounds one, two, three. But if he is near the lead again, round, round four. Oh, it's going to be, it's just going to be such an interesting storyline, how he handles it. Yeah. And this, this pop. The follow-up podcast is just going to sound like a repeat of Pinehurst or AC might not show up again. So look now front. Okay. but That's good to hear. But yeah, we're, oh, it is interesting. What surprised me about what Rory was saying was how quickly he gets over these, these things like, like,
00:16:31
Speaker
It just shows the the mentality of these kind of elite athletes. Like he was disappointed at the moment, famously didn't do the press, which yeah, like we were pretty critical on this podcast of, but the fact that he was kind of over it days later, went back and watched it, which I can't imagine was easy. bad just so that's ah That's how they get to that level. on Obviously, he has some God-given talents, but you know it's hard work and you've got to have have the bit between the ears. He's bounced back a lot over the course of his career. You're only going to think to when he folded at the Masters, he came out when the US Open by eight shots.
00:17:22
Speaker
2013, that's when he swapped to Nike and he was just horrific.
Analyzing Players' Chances in the Open
00:17:27
Speaker
He was walking off golf courses. Next year he wins two majors. I don't know. I don't expect too much baggage to come this week. We'll talk about and just a couple of players each. Ludwig had a good 54 holes last week and then Sunday, the Sunday skerries got him. ah He was my pick to kind of, to win this, win this thing, but he hasn't broken 70 on a Sunday since the Masters. So that, that is a concerning kind of stat for me. I know he had those injuries, but, and and you were saying to me earlier in the week that he is untested in the wind.
00:18:21
Speaker
which Which would you want to kind of fill the listeners in a bit more about what you you think about Ludwig's chances this week? Oh, I think they're great. i think I don't think he's going to worry about too much those Sundays. i think Some of it can be a little bit handpicked because if you're chasing as well, you might blow out. Like he's not someone who's playing for fifth place. And what I mean is like in other tournaments, you know, he might have been able to shoot a decent score, but he's, yes, he's had a yeah tough, tough week in that Pinehurst. That was not good to see.
00:19:02
Speaker
Um, I thought he played well at Augusta. I don't know. I don't think it's, I think he just had a bad day. One thing to watch is when he's playing with slow players. He's obviously very deliberate when he plays, like quick when he plays and he was getting a little bit frustrated apparently with Bobby Mack. Um, and then I see he's paired with Bryson and Tom Kim to start this week, my god which is one to watch. Uh, yeah. some good style i say Yeah, I heard on another podcast. ah okay ah Yeah, I haven't got that from some source of ours that should be named. But yeah, which I thought was a really interesting thing. um Yeah, it is. ah
00:19:51
Speaker
Yeah, I didn't, um, they didn't talk about the, the pairings weren't out when they were talking on the, talking on the pot about him getting annoyed about Bobby Mac. But I, when I saw him drawn with those two, I was like, Oh shit.
00:20:05
Speaker
Yeah. Did you reckon it could be a deliberate ploy if you were in the heat of the battle with Ludwig, just slow it all down a little bit. And genuinely could be, but you see it in tennis and stuff. Some people can play, can change and play slow. I don't know. Tennis is very different, but you know what I mean.
00:20:31
Speaker
Mate, do you, do you have any kind of red hot favourites you think going into this week? We've discussed Rory and I suppose top of that list is is Scotty where, you know, I don't think we need to delve too deep on on his chances this week. He's Obviously the bookies favorite, been playing great, had a bad week at Pinehurst, but that's all I think it was, was just a bad week. And he'll be right up for this. I think with how well he is playing and as crazy as it sounds, only winning one major in 2024 could almost be seen as a bit of a failure.
Betting Odds and Player Insights
00:21:18
Speaker
for Scotty because he is that much better than everyone. That is very true. I don't know. I think he's just going to bounce back to where to where he was really, but I don't think he's running away with this thing. I really don't. No. um But yeah, I think just going down the board, some of the things that surprised me was Tommy Fleetwood's like sixth favorite, obviously great open record. I like his chances this week, but he's $21 and then you can get someone like Brooks at 41s, which is seems like good shopping to me. I'm going to have a little nibble at that. um Just so there's a few surprising things like Max Homer is 101 to one.
00:22:10
Speaker
Aaron Ry is 61 to one. I tell you who would I'd rather, who I'd rather back. ah You've got people like Alex Norrin, a head of Max Homer. Sungjae, I'm pretty sure Sungjae doesn't have a great open record. and as It's very interesting. The odds are all over the show. um Bobby Mack is 31s, which is like, yeah. Oh, I couldn't touch that with a 10 foot pole. No, that's so short. it is um Yeah, so basically, yeah, John Rahm at 23. If you'd told me that last year, holy shit, I wouldn't believe you. Did he have some catastrophic injury or something? um He's just hasn't really featured. He's sort of a bit forgotten. I don't know of what you think of his chance this week. I don't, I couldn't touch him. It's slow, I think. like i
00:23:05
Speaker
I think he's having a terrible year. Like I think in his own head almost, I think he massively regrets his decision. You get seen in all these like live clips, just getting stroppy. Uh, and it clearly looks like he's not enjoying himself. I saw something great last week was Brooks Kepka rolling up to the tee with the England jersey on and like, Sergio, he's paired with Sergio and John Rahm, and obviously England played Spain in the Euro finals, but they, Sergio kind of engaged in the banter a bit and and John Rahm just looked disgusted, but not disgusted in the fact that he was wearing an England jersey, just disgusted with general life. hate He just did not look like he was enjoying himself. Like I get it.
00:24:02
Speaker
fly He's playing a tournament about to tee off. He probably wants to lock in a bit, but man, it doesn't do great things for Philip, you know, that the the carry on and and the way John Rahm is reacting to yeah some of the things that happened to him. I don't think it's a great reflection and it's probably not great from John Rahm either. Like you're getting paid allegedly $500 million US dollars to to be there. like that you should really be an ambassador for that tour, whether you like it or not. and And he's not being that. But to circle back to your question, no, I don't think he's a chance this week. ah ah just I don't think he has the competitive reps under his belt. He's disappointed in all the other majors. So I think but this will probably be no different, to be honest.
00:25:01
Speaker
Yeah, it's hard to it's hard to like him this week, isn't it? But the one thing I will say is like, can he actually just pull his finger out his ass and start being Jon Rahm? I don't care if yeah you're not happy. like Put that chip on your shoulder and come up and and show who you are as a player. because Like it's so much better when he's involved. So I hope, I hope he can show something this week. I think he'll be great, but and I'm not expecting too much out of me either.
Spotlight on New Zealand Golfers
00:25:34
Speaker
Yeah. Uh, I'm not, we can, we can move on from, from Johnny boy, but just round off a couple x Zander and Brooks, like both major champions, uh, Zander more recently, uh, this will play different to Val Harlem, though.
00:25:53
Speaker
champion. ah Those two two guys are as charged as anyone, do you think? Yep. Yeah. I'm going to steer clear of Xander, but I'll have something on Brooks. Brooks at 41 is just like... Just the price. i can't I can't ignore that. It's just like the bookies can always disregard him. Like I suppose do they I don't know. i say just been educated like yeah like so that Is it just all stats-based when you're making odds? Because that is just outrageous for a five-time major champion and a major. like yeah He probably isn't at the the majors that he would have liked this year, but man, he's
00:26:49
Speaker
Like, fuck, if he gets in the mix, and especially if he gets hard, mate, like, 41 bucks for Brooks Kepger is great shopping. And like you said about Max before, like, hasn't been having a great season, but when you rattled off the guys that were in front of him, that's pretty insulting too. So, yeah, like, if I don't get on Max in a hundreds, when am I where am i going to get on him? Yeah, exactly. by Anything to add on the open? It's been a pretty brief podcast, but... I think just the four Kiwis. I can't remember a time where there's four Kiwis in the field. ah So obviously that's Foxy, Cabrari, Hillier and Henry. hindri sorry
00:27:36
Speaker
Um, yeah, I, I just think it'd be great to follow. It'd be great if two or three at least could make the car, which I think is more than achievable. Um, yeah, just great to see the representation there. I think they all could make the car. I think Michael Hendry has won recently in Japan, uh, Foxy and Hilliard of great caliber and Cabrari and like some of the hottest property in golf. Jeez, the future is, well, the present is looking great for New Zealand golf this week. And I saw that play a practice round together yesterday, which is things you love to see. That was cool. Yeah. I think, I don't know, but I can't, surely we haven't had four in an open championship before.
00:28:27
Speaker
but no I should have searched this up, but I'd be hard-pressed to think of it in the era where we would have. Maybe back in like the how like Greg Turner, Michael Campbell, and Phil Tuthat. Frank Noblow. Noblow, maybe the late 90s we could have, but yeah that'd be the only time. ah and By all means, listeners, reach out if we've if we've had that many before. If you've got any niche Kiwi golf stats for us, that'll be thatd be great. But you yeah, mate, it is great to see. It's great to see, you know, the New Zealand Pathways program producing major golfers and long may it continue,
Open Championship Predictions and Humor
00:29:14
Speaker
really. I think we've but we've been pretty spoiled
00:29:18
Speaker
with the way these guys have played over the last couple of years, even though we've been a little bit critical of Foxy, but that's only because we we're expecting him to contend at these big events, not not because he hasn't kind of exceeded the the general public's expectations and and got himself into the top 20 in the world. But yeah, it's fantastic to see, and I'm really looking forward to watching them. And hopefully we get a decent amount of coverage of them. that's That's all I can say. I think that will be unlikely. But but the action will be good for the majors. you can You can always, if you actually dig deep, you they've they video nearly every shot. ah So you can get in the weeds on their scorecards and and see what's happening. um Just having a scroll through cow and one guy at Big Odds, a pod favorite, Marcel Seem, can you guess his odds for me?
00:30:15
Speaker
Oh, yeah. 500? A little bit more. He's 600 to one. do you Do you expect me to put some of my hard earned on that? Because... Oh, no, you don't have to. I'm just floating the idea, brother. Well, if it becomes a passion fest on Sunday, then we know who's winning. yeah Actually, I think I'll say 600. Could you make a case for him? No. Can you? ah Maybe a top 20. I might have a dab on that. He's been playing really well, so maybe. Played well at the Open before. Well, I also see Zach Johnson's at 750 to 1, so he's a major champion. Two-time major champion. A bit past his use by late, but hey.
00:31:14
Speaker
Maybe. And one of the great nerds. Maybe dreams are free for Marcel. Yeah. Well, I'm excited for what we're going to see from the 7.8 of this week. And more importantly, what kit we're going to see. Yeah. is that Something provocative. Yeah. um I say, I think that'll do us for this week. ah Thanks for staying up late. I know it's past your bedtime and I should probably be in the workplace and some at some point soon. But guys, enjoy your open championship week. we We'll be active on socials, so make sure you keep your eyes out. And yeah, it's it's going to be a great week at Royal Trood. And rip and tear, like and subscribe. And we'll we'll catch you all next week to break down everything that happened. Oh, do we have something else?
00:32:09
Speaker
they Just before you go, let's let's put our names or something. give me Give me three you think the winner's going to come from. Three names. Sheffler, Aberg,
00:32:24
Speaker
and Marcel Seem. Okay, I'm going. I'm going Rory Brooks, Ludwig. Love it. Catch you guys next week and oh enjoy the opening.