The Thing About Golf Podcast

Every major victory is historic in its own right, but for Sir Bob Charles his 1963 Open win was a first on multiple fronts. Charles was the first left-handed player to win one of golf's big four, but was also the first player from New Zealand to do so and one of the last two players to take part in a 36-hole playoff for the title. Sir Bob sat down with Rod Morri to reminisce on a career in which he won more than 70 times as a professional, yet came about having only ever had two golf lessons in his entire life.

Few people in any industry can claim to have altered the direction of that industry, but David Leadbetter is one. When a playing career eluded him in the 1980s, he turned his mind and energies to coaching and from humble beginnings, has built one of the most recognisable golf instruction "brands" in the world. But along the way, Leadbetter's profile - and that of his successful clients - helped reshape the way golfers think about taking lessons, a change remaining in effect to this day. John Huggan sits down with Leadbetter to talk everything from his transformation of Nick Faldo's swing, to the one player he never got to work with but wanted to.

They're the voices that accompany our enduring memories of the game but TV commentators often have more to their story - and connections with the game - than we hear about. Such is the case for our guest on episode 138, Andrew Cotter. Cotter will be familiar to golfers and also viewers of rugby, tennis, athletics, the Olympics, boat racing and more. In this wide ranging chat with John Huggan Cotter talks about his start in broadcasting, his lifelong love of golf and gives a peek behind the broadcasting curtain and what it means to be a commentator.

One of the most underappreciated achievements in the professional game is longevity. Earning and keeping a PGA TOUR or DP World Tour card for years spanning into the double digits is rarer than we think and those who manage it -such as our guest on Episode 137, Soren Kjeldsen - have much to offer. In this wide ranging chat with John Huggan, Kjeldsen reveals not only a keen sense of humour, but a deep love, appreciation for and - perhaps most importantly for many - knowledge about how to play the game. A four-time European Tour winner (as well as a World Cup victory with Thorbjorn Olsen in our own backyard at Kingston Heath in 2016), Kjeldsen is thought-provoking and articulate and can now add "excellent podcast guest" to his Wikipedia.

Ask most recreational players their dream job and 'professional golfer' will be pretty high on the list. But not all who have the opportunity to join the pay for play ranks take that path and on episode 136, we meet just such a golfer. Colin Dalgleish is not only a long-time friend of our correspondent John Huggan, but a decorated amateur who chose not to pursue a professional career, despite winning the 1981 Scottish amateur championship and representing GB&I in that same year's Walker Cup. He later captained the team twice, in 2007 and 2009. Don't miss John Huggan's fascinating chat with one of golf's “lifers” and greatest contributors to the game.

Our guest this episode is one of New Zealand's most successful professional players, boasting four European Tour titles and nine victories in this part of the world, including two New Zealand Opens. But there is much more to Turner than just golf. The long-time touring professional turned course architect and commentator sits down with The Thing About Golf host John Huggan to talk all things golf and life in a compelling discussion which covers everything from his “just by chance” start in the game, to the current state of professional play.

Golf is different things to different people, which is part of the game's great charm. For some, it's clubs and gear which grab the attention, while others focus on the swing. But for a select few, it is the laws governing the game, and one of the best in the business - recently retired R&A rules guru David Rickman - joins John Huggan on this episode for a fascinating chat about life around the top echelons of the game and the ever-evolving rules we play by. 

He first burst onto the scene as a talented amateur with a sensational finish in the 2014 Australian Masters, followed by an 11-hour overnight drive to Sydney to qualify for the following week's Australian Open. It has been 11 years and five professional tournament victories since and Lucas Herbert has amassed some stories - and wisdom - along the way. Unafraid to share his opinions, Herbert is always a good interview and this sit down with John Huggan doesn't disappoint. From LIV, to Q School, to the mixed Australian Open format, the 29-year-old pulls no punches in what is an entertaining and thought-provoking chat.

It was a meteoric rise to fame for Karen Stupples when she claimed the 2004 Women's British Open with a final-round 64 after opening eagle-albatross on Sunday. However, Stupples was never guaranteed to get to the LPGA, nor even play golf for a living. In fact, if she didn't hate washing dishes so much, she might have ended up doing something else entirely.Stupples talks about that and much more in this delightful chat with John Huggan.

There are many in the golf commentary business who add little to a broadcast, but Sky Sports' Tim Barter is certainly not among them. From on-course interviews to breaking down golf swings, Barter is a master of multiple crafts and in this absorbing conversation with John Huggan, he tells the story of his journey to becoming regarded as one of the best in the golf broadcast business.

Rich Beem is one of the game's best characters of the past 30 years and his 2002 PGA Championship win over a charging Tiger Woods remains among the most entertaining finishes to a tournament this century. John Huggan sat down with Beam recently to learn about where he came from, what it's like to win a major, Team USA's best chance of winning the Ryder Cup away from home and plenty more. Beem is engaging, thoughtful and eloquent and knows how to tell a good story, which all makes for an excellent listen. 

John Huggan sits down with Seve Ballesteros' son, Javier, to talk life, golf, the Ryder Cup, the state of the world game and plenty more.Few golfers have made an impact on the game comparable to Seve. The Spanish magician entertained and thrilled crowds worldwide with his extraordinary skill and matador-like personality. He remains to this day one of the most popular players in history. John's chat with Javier for episode 129 offers a fascinating and compelling insight into events and people, past and present, from a perspective we rarely get to see.

There is perhaps no more familiar voice in the game than that of Jim Nantz, host of CBS' golf coverage, including almost 40 years of The Masters. In this candid chat with John Huggan, Nantz reveals his journey from humble beginnings in the game to his start in broadcasting and a career so successful, he now owns a home (with its own golf hole) at the iconic Pebble Beach. Nantz is charming, funny and articulate and has a knack for telling a good story, of which he has plenty.

At the age of four, Peter Baker wrote down that he wanted to be a professional golfer. At 14, he played representative golf with the seniors. At 21, he claimed his first European Tour title and five years later - the same year he represented Europe in The Ryder Cup - he added two more.A lifetime spent in the game has taught Baker much about both life and golf. In a fascinating episode 127, he sits down with John Huggan to reflect on a 37-year career playing the game for a living.

For most, golf is a passion, but for many others, it's also a business. The golf industry is both large and diverse, ranging from tour professionals and media companies to travel and retail equipment sales. So how does the game stack up in the world of sports business and what are the similarities — and differences — to other sports? Sports business expert and journalist Richard Gillis has a duel interest in golf, both as a lifelong player and having covered the game professionally. His takes on LIV, the media environment, the long-term viability of TV as a financial support and much more are intelligent and thought provoking — whether you are in the golf business or not.

Rarely has a player sported the green jacket with such style than our latest guest and one of golf's greatest assets, Trevor Immelman.However, there is more to the 2008 Masters champion than a pretty golf swing. The 2022 International Presidents Cup captain sits down with John Huggan to talk about his beginnings in the game, his thoughts on the Presidents Cup, the LIV/PGA Tour negotiations, where TV commentators get it wrong and much more. Immelman is one of the game's best ambassadors and after listening to this chat, you'll gain an insight into why.

Our special guest this week discusses the new media landscape, building a media business when you had no intention of ever doing so and the challenges of monetising what started out as a hobby.There is no shortage of underdog stories in Hollywood, but in real life - in the day to day news media - those narratives are harder to find. Media has changed, though, and with social media eliminating almost all barriers to entry, there are new players finding their voice - and an audience - in the space formerly occupied by legacy media. This is as true in golf as any other section of the media and Ryan French is one of the players in this space, although it is more by accident than by design.

This week John Huggan catches up with a true golfing stalwart who has spent more than 20 years plying his trade on the European Tour.Stephen Gallacher has four wins and a Ryder Cup appearance to his name, placing him in some elite company. Having grown up around golf with his famous uncle Bernard as a mentor, Gallacher still lives and breathes the game.With the senior tour fast approaching and a thriving junior foundation bearing his name, Gallacher is as busy as he's ever been and chats with John about everything from LIV Golf and the future at the top level, to why encouraging junior participation is so important.

He was part of one of the most epic duels in Open history, when he and Phil Mickelson went head to head for the Claret Jug last time golf's most prestigious tournament was held at Troon in 2016 ... and he is also John Huggan's latest interview guest.There is so much more to Henrik Stenson than a brilliant golf game … he also has a sense of humour and a perspective on the world a bit broader than many of his professional brethren.Stenson sat down with our very own John Huggan recently to reflect on a career which has produced some remarkable highs, but also some equally intense lows.

Few figures in Australian golf would boast a better pedigree, or could claim a longer contribution to the game, than 1997 Women's Australian Open winner and TTAG special guest Jane Crafter. An almost-25-year playing career has been followed by an almost equal number of years behind the microphone as an in court and booth reporter at events worldwide. Born into a golfing family, Crafter's journey in the game is unique and compelling, as you'll discover in this wide-ranging discussion with Rod Mori. 

He might not be the best-known name in golf, but England's Howard Clark was a stalwart of the European Tour in a time of major changes for the professional game in the 1980s and '90s. John Huggan caught up with the former Ryder Cupper at his home in England to talk life, golf and a life in golf.

A stalwart of the European Tour during the boom years of the 1980s and '90s, Mark James had a ringside seat to some of the most exciting times the men's professional game has known. In the era of Seve, Faldo, Lyle and Langer, the Englishman managed to amass 18 victories (32 globally) before going on to captain the 1999 Ryder Cup in one of the most infamous matches in history. In this fascinating chat with John Huggan, James reminisces on a career that spanned almost 20 years from his first European victory to his last and which included stints behind the scenes working to improve the Tour for the players.

There are few writers in golf whose words have appeared in as many publications and on as many different “new media” platforms as the prolific Geoff Shackelford. In this episode he tells Rod Morri what the future holds for the game's media landscape.  

There might not be a more polarising voice in modern golf media than Golf Channel analyst Brandel Chamblee and he doesn't disappoint in this wide-ranging chat with John Huggan. From why he thinks a brutal US Open is a good thing, to a breakdown of the type of player who wins at Augusta, this one is heaven for golf nerds.

He is known as one of the nicest people in golf, but he might also be one of the most thoughtful. Ian Baker-Finch, 1991 Open champion, sat down with John Huggan at Augusta National this week to talk the Masters, his career in both golf and television and his thoughts on the modern state of the game. 

Two-time Masters winner Ben Crenshaw is as much a part of Augusta folklore as any past champion. Now one of the game's leading course designers, Crenshaw sat down with John Huggan to talk all things Masters — and everything else to do with golf.

Three-time DP World Tour winner turned Sky Sports commentator Nick Dougherty is a firm believer in golf as metaphor for life and the 41-year-old has had his share of ups and downs in both. John Huggan recently caught up with the Englishman to talk about a lifetime in the game, highlighted by playing with Tiger Woods at his peak in the third round of the 2007 U.S Open. Dougherty also talks openly about the impact of losing his mother suddenly in 2008 and his struggles in the aftermath before finding a second career as a TV broadcaster.

From the humble courses of southern Sydney to the top levels of the game, Wayne ‘Radar' Riley has been in and around the game of golf for more than 50 years.Having started at the age of seven, he became a six-time winner at the professional level including one of the most iconic Australian Open victories of the modern era.Riley now spends his time analysing and critiquing the world's best on television as an on-course reporter for Sky Sports in the UK. In this wide-ranging chat with John Huggan, Riley looks back on a career and life that has been full of adventure and always plenty of golf.

Anyone who spends a lifetime in golf will have gathered plenty of knowledge and insight which simply can't be learned from a book. Yarrawonga Mulwala Golf Club Resort's Head Professional, Evan Droop, is one such golfer. Evan's father was the head professional at Yarrawonga before him and he has two sons, both PGA of Australia members, who may well take the job after him. In between, he managed five years on the Australasian Tour including a life and career-changing near miss at the 1992 Malaysian Masters. Droop recalls all that and more in this insightful and wide-ranging conversation with host Rod Morri.

From child prodigy to multiple European Tour winner, Ronan Rafferty has seen just about everything in golf. Popular wherever he went, Rafferty has a particular fondness for Australia — where he won five times between 1987 and 1992 — and credits his years spent Down Under as a crucial element in his international success. In this delightful chat with John Huggan, Rafferty reflects on his amateur career, what it was like on the European Tour in the halcyon days and how the game has changed over his lifetime.

Not every great amateur turns professional but that doesn't mean they can't make a living out of the game. Vinny Giles is one of the game's great amateurs having won the U.S and British Amateur titles as well as the U.S Senior Amateur. He also represented the United States four times at the Walker Cup, winning three times. What is less well known is his long-time business role as a player manager, having at various stages guided the careers of Tom Kite, Davis Love III, Lanny Wadkins, Beth Daniel and Meg Mallon.In this fascinating interview with John Huggan, Giles talks about how the game has changed over his many decades as both a player, businessman and devotee of the game.'

Some people have never known a life that didn't include golf and while they may not have a high profile those people are almost invariably among the most interesting and thoughtful in the game. Henry Cussell is just such a person. Head professional at Yarra Yarra Golf Club at the age of 20 and one of the earliest employees at The National Golf Club on Victoria's Mornington Peninsula, Cussell has likely forgotten more about the game than most people could ever hope to learn. In this wide ranging chat with Rod Morri, Cussell covers everything from 'foxing' balls as a youngster to the unique business he recently set up in Melbourne's Sandbelt with one of the great custodians of Australian golf history, Ross Baker.

Nine wins from 15 starts including all six Australian state titles and the national championship as well … If somebody told you a golfer had achieved all this in a single year you wouldn't believe them, but a golfer has and, ironically, that golfer struggles to believe it themselves. Nadene Gole has, not surprisingly, risen to the top of the Senior Women's Amateur world ranking and the former touring professional says she still has improvements to make. But the journey hasn't all been about golf for Nadene, who went almost two decades barely touching a club before accidentally falling back into the competitive game. It's a decision that's paid dividends as a new and improved Nadene Gole, at the age of 55, is finally living up to her potential.

In many ways Matt Fitzpatrick is an unlikely major champion. His game isn't as flashy as some but he works hard — and smart — to get everything out of his talent. In this revealing chat with The Thing About Golf host John Huggan, the Englishman looks back on his remarkable U.S Amateur/U.S Open double at Brookline, shares thoughts on the Ryder and Walker Cups, explains how he added 20 yards to his game off the tee and also why he switched to cross-handed chipping. The recent winner of the Dunhill Links at St Andrews, alongside his mum, has had quite the journey so far and the likeable 29-year-old looks far from done yet.

Few in Australian golf have seen as much of the game as Andrew Langford-Jones.From hanging with Tiger Woods to advocating for halving field sizes in Australia, he has been an integral — and active — part of the local professional scene for almost 35 years. As his career winds down ‘Langers' sat down with Rod Morri to reflect on an extraordinary life in the game. 

We like to complain about them but those who commentate golf on TV create the soundtrack of the game's history. Gary Koch, the 2023 Payne Stewart Award recipient, will likely be best remembered for his iconic 'better than most' line at the 2001 Players' Championship. But there is much more to his story than that shot, or even his more than 30-year TV career. A standout amateur and six-time PGA Tour winner, Koch sits down for a chat with John Huggan to reflect on a life intertwined with the game and some of its greatest players.

Professional golf can be a roller coaster but even by those standards England's Oliver Wilson has been on an epic journey. From leading amateur to successful professional to twice losing his game almost completely, the affable 43-year-old has seen and done just about everything golf has to offer. In this episode, Wilson sits down with John Huggan for a fascinating chat about life, golf and everything in between.

Search ‘Ryder Cup' on the internet and it won't take long before you find an image of Sam Torrance, arms raised to the sky after holing the winning putt at The Belfry at the 1985 matches. The Scot is the son of one of the game's greatest coaches. Bob, but also a pivotal figure in both the Ryder Cup as we know it today and the European Tour. On the eve of the 44th matches between Europe and the United States, Torrance sits down for a fascinating conversation with The Thing About Golf host John Huggan, to talk all things Ryder Cup as he reflects on a career spanning more than 40 years.

Some names are synonymous with the Ryder Cup and on the European side Bernard Gallacher is one. Eight times a player and three times a Captain, Gallacher oversaw a time of great change in the matches from before European players became part of the team to the height of hostilities at Kiawah Island in 1991. His chat here with The Thing About Golf host John Huggan is as compelling as you would expect and the understated Gallacher reveals more than one story that has never been told before.

There are few more thoughtful or interesting voices in the game than Northern Ireland's Graeme McDowell.In this wide-ranging chat with The Thing About Golf host, John Huggan, the 2010 U.S Open champion talks Ryder Cup, Pebble Beach, the move to LIV and why he doesn't think he deserves a voice on the DP World Tour. Agree with him or not there is one thing guaranteed with McDowell: you'll be entertained (and he'll make you think).

It's been just over five years since Australian golf lost one of its most popular players in Jarrod Lyle. On episode 100 of The Thing About Golf podcast, host Rod Morri catches up with Jarrod's wife, Briony, to talk about how the couple met, the realities of living on the road, Jarrod's legacy and what life is like as a non-golfer in a golfer's world.

Her voice is familiar to golf fans the world over but there is much more to Dottie Pepper than what we see in the televised golf coverage. A world class player, major champion, and passionate advocate for all forms of the game, Pepper is an intelligent, articulate speaker and thinker about the game. These attributes are on full display in this broad ranging discussion with The Thing About Golf host John Huggan, which covers everything from the Solheim Cup to the possibilities of Saudi Arabia increasing its involvement in the women's game.

One of golf's greatest assets, especially when compared to other sports, is the range of people who can enjoy it.Age, gender and even disability can all be accounted for in golf and in that last category one of the best in the world is recent inaugural G4D Open winner Brendan Lawlor.The Irishman captured the title at Woburn in May and in this wide ranging chat with Rod Morri delves into the fascinating — and frankly underrated world — of disability golf.

It's not often you get an insider's perspective on one of the game's most important championships but that's exactly what David Begg, former press officer for The Open Championship, gives us in this lengthy chat with John Huggan.From Jack Nicklaus and Lee Trevino to Greg Norman and Nick Faldo, Begg had a front row seat for some of golf's most memorable moments.

Rare is the person who swings from indifference, or even dislike of the game, to becoming a committed and passionate golfer but that has been the journey for our guest Dr Hannah Brown.An accomplished and highly regarded scientist, Hannah found the game later in life and brings a perspective that we in golf rarely get to hear.From what makes the game so addictive to the things we do that look so silly to the outside world, Hannah has some fascinating takes on what golf gets right — and wrong.

About the only people in golf who attract more criticism than the players are those who commentate on the game on TV. But not Judy Rankin.The 26-time LPGA Tour winner and former Solheim Cup Captain is universally regarded as one of the best to ever pick up a microphone and in this broad ranging chat with John Huggan she covers everything from her beginnings in the game to the future of the LPGA Tour.

Jim Furyk occupies an unusual place in the professional game.Without the profile and attention of the likes of Tiger or Phil or Rory, he more than comfortably held his own in that company for the best part of 20 years.A Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup stalwart, Furyk has some fascinating insights into the game and the people who play it as you will hear in this compelling chat with John Huggan.

Lots of professional golfers like fast cars but none can quite match PGA Tour of Australasia Legends Tour player Tomas Mezera.Mezera spent most of his life as a professional car racer including winning Australia's prestigious Bathurst 1000 in 1988. But at 50, his career took a different turn when he signed up for — and succeeded — at the Legends Tour Q-School.Mezera's is a remarkable story about much more than just golf and in this wide ranging chat with Rod Morri he talks about escaping communism in Czechoslovakia at 20, discovering golf at the age of 30, playing with Greg Norman as an amateur and now life on the over 50s circuit.

Winner of the 2006 US Open, Geoff Ogilvy is known as one of professional golf's best interview subjects and in this wide ranging chat with John Huggan he shows why.From growing up in Melbourne where being a caddie at Royal Melbourne gave him access to the course to playing and winning on the biggest stages in world golf alongside the likes of Tiger Woods and Seve Ballesteros, Ogilvy has done it all with a critical eye and an active mind.In this chat we find out where his love of golf architecture was born and how three months at the start of the century set up an entire career.

Among the most unique perspectives in professional golf is that of the on course reporter.Unlike the rest of the commentary team or the viewers on TV, those who walk with the players get to see everything, not just what the director chooses. For many years in Australia that voice belonged to Chanel 7's Pat Welsh, a Brisbane sports TV icon and one of the industry's most likeable characters.Welsh had a front row seat to some of Australian golf's greatest moments and relives many of them in this wide ranging chat with Rod Morri.

Peter Dawson has been as influential an administrator of the game as anyone in history.Appointed Secretary of the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews in 1999 it was Dawson who oversaw the creation of The R&A in 2004 to take care of the club's commercial operations, including The Open, through one of its biggest growth periods.Among the highlights of his tenure were announcing Tiger Woods four times as the Champion Golfer of the Year and several years refereeing at The Masters.Dawson and John Huggan have known each other many years and while they share a love of the game there is much they don't agree on which makes for a fascinating discussion.