I went into this Ryder Cup weekend wanting to write about golf—the golf and moments that make this event so special and unique. The pressure packed shots, the colossal momentum swings of match play, the raw emotion and national pride between teammates and rivals. There was no shortage of phenomenal golf played this week. The dominating performances by Europe in the Friday and Saturday team sessions, and a nearly impossible comeback from Team USA that came up just 1½ points shy when many people were predicting Europe to win in a historic blowout.

But let’s be honest: the golf wasn’t the story. It felt like a sideshow compared to what was happening outside the ropes. The fan behavior wasn’t rowdy or intense – it was vulgar, mean-spirited, and at times dangerous. A few moments that stand out include:

• An on-course MC whose sole job was to energize the crowd and lead simple U-S-A chants instead joining in on a full-throated “F*** you Rory” chant before later apologizing and resigning in shame.
• A beer can thrown from the crowd that struck Rory McIlroy’s wife.
• Justin Thomas, Cameron Young, and other U.S. players practically begging their own fans to be quiet so Rory and his partners could even hit a shot.

Not just a bad look or a tough scene; this was embarrassing and shameful.

Through all the excitement and hype leading up to this event I had been dreading this week for years. When the venue was announced back in September 2013, there was almost a collective gasp from fans and media. An uncertain mix of anticipation and worry that a traditionally rowdy event being paired with a course known for excessively… “rowdy” crowds could be a disastrous combination. I had been at the PGA Championship at Bethpage Black in 2019. Despite slightly subdued Sunday crowd size and atmosphere due to Brooks Koepka’s massive lead, the crowds still found ways to cross the line. Heckles hurled directly at players, sometimes in clear earshot of players family members could be heard throughout the day. And when Brooks Koepka, the eventual winner, began to struggle through the final nine holes large sections of the crowd didn’t rally behind him but began to openly cheer his wayward shots and missed putts. This was nothing new. At the 2009 U.S. Open, the line between rowdy and repulsive were crossed many times including fans making direct jabs at Phil Mickelson, widely considered the fan favorite at Bethpage. Add in the similar stories from the 2002 U.S. Open and a clear pattern emerges.

Turns out I, and many others over the last 12 years, were right.

I say all of this as someone who has played Bethpage Black myself. It’s a phenomenal and brutally difficult golf course, one I admire deeply and hope to play again, along with the other four courses on the property. Bethpage deserves to host more U.S. Opens and PGA Championships in the future. But if it wants to keep that place on golf’s biggest stage, the galleries must be held to a higher standard.

This wasn’t the first Ryder Cup marred by fan behavior. Brookline in 1999 has often been cited as another occasion where fan behavior overshadowed a thrilling finish. But this week felt different – like a genie we may never be able to put back in the bottle. And the contrast is clear even to more recent Ryder Cups held in the U.S. Videos have been circulating on X from the 2016 Ryder Cup at Hazeltine, an event criticized at the time for coming close to crossing the line. Watching them now, those crowds look like choir boys. It felt like the fans were there to support their team not just to insult their opponents. The energy was raucous but still respectful. Nine years later, it feels like a different world.

Been wondering all week if, over time, I had glorified the opening tee scene at Hazeltine a bit much. Was it really that good?

Then I watch the videos back and wonder how the vibe has changed so starkly at the last two US Ryder Cups. pic.twitter.com/JwORLixjPj

— No Laying Up (@NoLayingUp) September 28, 2025

No one absorbed more than Rory McIlroy. Since 2022 he has become increasingly polarizing among some circles being so outspoken on LIV, and never shying away from providing honest answers when asked in press conferences. Like him or not, Rory is the face of golf in the post-Tiger era.

The blatant hypocrisy makes it even worse. Of all the fans abusing Rory and his family, I couldn’t help but wonder what those same people were posting about in April, when Rory finally completed the career Grand Slam by winning his first Masters. Fans of all ages – but especially those in their late 20s and early 30s, people like me who grew up watching him—flocked to social media with emotional tributes. “I’ve waited my whole life to see him do this.” Even many wives and girlfriends posting that they never knew their husbands/boyfriends had such a connection to a golfer they had never met. How do you go from tears of admiration to the most heinous jeers in less than six months?

Through it all, Rory had every right to snap. I cannot blame him for telling fans to “shut the f*** up” after backing away from a shot in Saturday morning’s foursome session, a shot that he would go on to hit to only a couple feet from the hole. After Shane Lowry made a critical birdie putt on hole 17 of Saturday afternoon’s fourball session, I cannot blame him for turning to the gallery and pointing into the crowd one by one with a “f*** you, f*** you, f*** you.” I had immense respect and appreciation for Rory and what he means to the game coming into this week, and that has only grown after all he endured and how he performed. He played in all five sessions, winning 3 ½ points for his team. And when it was all over, amid Europe’s celebration, he went out of his way to comfort U.S. team captain Keegan Bradley’s young kids—another family that had also taken heat all week. That’s Rory McIlroy.

Many have already tried to shift the narrative, downplaying what went on in the galleries this week. “It’s New York! It’s the Ryder Cup! What do you expect? Europe has bad fans too — why don’t you ever talk about them?” As if geography or “everyone else does it” makes it acceptable. One fan, in a viral video on X, even tried to justify the abuse he and others hurled at Rory as being deserved before insisting he still “loves” him. Ironically, the same video also contained a clip of another fan shouting at a European player that they had poop on their shirt. Really impressive stuff. Good work, guys. Very classy.

“They deserve it…What do they expect?”
Asked a few of the home crowd at Bethpage what they made of the abuse thrown at McIlroy & Team Europe on an acrimonious 2nd day of the Ryder Cup pic.twitter.com/oQOoiPPVzN

— Dan Roan (@danroan) September 28, 2025

Even voices outside golf chimed in with flimsy defenses. Retired baseball player Chipper Jones, while denouncing the worst of the behavior, still suggested that some of the blame fell on the Europeans for bringing their wives, children, or other family members into a New York City venue known for fan vulgarity. Really? Is that the standard we want to hold ourselves to – that families should stay home because some golf crowds can’t be trusted to behave? That is a damning indictment.

Hi….my name is Chipper Jones. I played in NY 12-15 times every yr for 20 yrs and multiple times in the postseason. AT NO TIME in 2 decades was my family EVER allowed to go to a game in NY. What do u expect to happen? Is it right? No! But when u are public enemy #1….expect to be… https://t.co/7JE33ZOIC3

— Chipper Jones (@RealCJ10) September 28, 2025

As much as others want to ignore it or downplay it, this week was a symptom of something bigger. Public life has gotten darker and meaner. Social media and the ever-shortening attention span reward the loudest, the cruelest, the most viral. It feels like a virus that has infected every part of life. Sports, golf included, have been unfortunately dragged into it as well.

Attending other PGA Tour events, you see it everywhere. Fans, phone in hand ready to record and post at the tap of a screen. Shouts after shots or at players to get laughs from the gallery, heard on the TV broadcast, or likes on social media. I am sorry to break it to you, but yelling “GET IN THE HOLE”, “MASHED POTATOES”, “BABA BOOEY”, or any other combination of nonsense was not funny or original 15+ years ago when it first became a trend – and it hasn’t gotten any better over time.

Ok I’ll admit Roger Maltbie’s reaction to hearing his first “MASHED POTATOES” shout at the 2011 Chevron World Challenge was funny, but the novelty of these shouts wore off fast. Now it is just stale and predictable noise, and emblematic of a culture where people think the show cannot be complete unless they inject themselves into it.

If golf doesn’t want this to be the new normal, it has to act. That starts with accountability and enforcement. The PGA of America — which runs the Ryder Cup when it’s held on U.S. soil — needs to answer for a lot of this. Awarding Bethpage Black the host site 12 years ago wasn’t an accident. They knew exactly what they were going to get, and they still let it spiral out of control.

Codes of conduct can’t just be video board messages (which were loudly booed by the Bethpage crowd this weekend) or post-event press releases and apologies. Throw an object, abuse a family, or cross the line with a jeer? Automatic ejection and possible lifetime ban. No warnings. No excuses.

Golf already has a model to copy: The Masters. At Augusta, cell phones stay outside the gates. Outbursts aren’t tolerated – unruly patrons can have their badge numbers reported resulting in ejections and lifetime bans.  The result? The best atmosphere in all of sports. That’s not a coincidence.

The Masters is the best run tournament in the world. Why? IMO it's because they have a system in place, created years ago, and handed from chairman to chairman, that prevents them from making the same mistake twice. You consistently know what you're going to get…just a little…

— Peter Kostis (@peterjkostis) September 28, 2025

Not every tour stop has to be Augusta, and The Masters should remain unique. But wouldn’t the game be better off if more tournaments trended closer to Augusta’s standard — and further away from the circus atmosphere of the WM Phoenix Open? Events like the Ryder Cup can still provide rowdy, contentious, and charged atmospheres, but ones that players and fans alike can be proud of and remember with fondness.

We as golf fans enjoy a unique privilege that almost no other sport offers: the chance to get incredibly close to the best players in the world. Courtside seats at an NBA game can cost you thousands, but I’ve stood less than ten feet from Tiger Woods as he hit a golf shot. That kind of access is extraordinary. But player safety — and the safety of fellow fans — is directly downstream of fan conduct. If tournaments can’t guarantee basic respect and safety, that sort of access can, and probably should, disappear. Preserving it should be one of the sport’s highest priorities.

There’s plenty more to unpack from this Ryder Cup — from the brilliant golf we witnessed, controversial course setup decisions, to the ongoing questions about Team USA’s Ryder Cup process and struggles. But before any of that, I felt it was important to speak out against what we saw outside the ropes. Golf deserves better than what we witnessed at Bethpage, and so do the players and families who make this event possible. If there’s a lesson to take away, it’s that respect has to start with us, not just at Ryder Cups, but in real life, on the internet, on the golf course, and beyond.

Back in early March of this year, I finally took a leap that I had been putting off for far too long: starting this blog. Along the way, I wrote about a few professional events including my own trip to The Masters, but since mid-April this blog has been silent. Life, work, golf, and everything in between provided convenient excuses for why I couldn’t sit down and write. Still, even in that absence, I couldn’t stop thinking about what I wanted this space to be.

Much has happened in the world of professional golf in those four months. Three men’s majors and all five women’s majors have been played, LIV and the PGA Tour have both concluded their seasons, and the LPGA continues towards their December finish. American and European Ryder Cup team selections have been finalized leading up to the event at Bethpage Black later this month. Off the course, leadership changes at the PGA Tour have added more uncertainty to the ongoing battle between the Tour and LIV Golf. All of it served as a reminder of how fast the golf world moves when you’re not keeping pace.

My own season has been no less dramatic. What promised to be my best year of golf since returning to tournaments in 2023 quickly unraveled. Poor tournament performances, missed opportunities, and injuries – including a hand injury in late July that ultimately ended my season – turned excitement and anticipation into frustration and disappointment. Despite these setbacks I have shifted my focus onto rebuilding my mind and body for a bigger and better run in 2026.

As all these events unfolded, the weight of missed opportunities for this blog kept growing. At times it felt like this project was destined to be just another one of my ideas I never fully acted on. But I don’t want that. Golf has always given me so much enjoyment and meaning in life, and this site is where I want to put that passion into words.

Going forward I have made a commitment to myself to post at least once per week on this site. Along the way I’ll be rolling out some upgrades – including a slightly refreshed logo – and creating new social media accounts to help build a wider community around this project.

Over the coming weeks and months, I will be diving into a mix of stories:

• Professional tour recaps – reflections and analysis on the 2025 PGA Tour, LIV, and LPGA seasons.
• State of the Game – where professional golf stands today, where it may be headed, and how media shapes our interactions with the sport.
• Personal Stories – my own playing experiences, tournament prep, practice, and my history in this game and what it means to me.

and many more.

I want this blog to be more than leaderboards and scorecards. I want to tell the stories of how golf shapes us through the different times and seasons of our lives.

This is my fresh start, and I can’t wait to share the journey ahead with you.

On August 10, 2014 Rory McIlroy exited Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville with the Wanamaker Trophy and world of golf in the palm of his hand. He had just captured his fourth major, his second consecutive major of the year, and his third straight victory overall. At only 25 years old, it felt inevitable that he’d win many more majors in short order and take over as the sport’s dominant figure in the post-Tiger era. The following April he would head to The Masters for his first opportunity to become only the sixth player ever to complete the career grand slam. For a player who had all the power, talent, and a high right-to-left ball flight seemingly tailor-made for Augusta National Golf Club, it didn’t feel like a matter of if he’d win The Masters- but when and how many times. But as golf and life so often remind us, nothing is ever guaranteed.

While entire books could be written on all the ups and downs of Rory’s last 10 years and 249 days, each day this week felt like an epic in its own right – all culminating in one of the greatest shows golf and sports has ever seen on Sunday afternoon.

Thursday Rory looked to be in full control of his game and seemed poised to possibly grab control of the tournament. Standing in the 15th fairway, iron in hand, and at 4-under par only three shots back of tournament leader Justin Rose, he fired a rocket of a long iron that carried the water landing pin-high and bounding just over the back of the green. As Patrick Cantlay had demonstrated minutes earlier it was going to be a delicate shot but certainly not impossible for a player of McIlroy’s caliber. But over the next 45 minutes everything unraveled. He chipped the ball into the water on the 15th leading to a crushing double bogey, and made another inexplicable double bogey on 17. What could have been a statement round turned into a deflating even-par 72.

In just three holes, Rory had gone from looking to potentially be at or near the lead going into Friday to starting his second round seven shots back and completely deflated. “Same old Rory” many fans said. All the hype – all of the promise – only to unravel when it mattered most.

If the “same old Rory” of the last decade is what people expected – then Friday and Saturday delivered the version we have all been waiting for – the Rory that played to his talent and met our sky-high expectations of him. On Friday, he fired a bogey-free 66, fueled by birdies on 10, 11, and an eagle on 13. Saturday he came out red-hot, setting a tournament record with six straight 3’s, including an amazing chip in for eagle on the second hole.

After a few stumbles in the middle of his round, Rory then delivered what was then the signature shot of the tournament with a towering iron shot into the par-5 15th hole setting up another eagle. He ended the day at 12-under par and with a two-shot lead.

Just 18 holes stood between Rory McIlroy and history – the career grand slam. But his Sunday playing partner, Bryson DeChambeau, was not going to make it easy – and also seemed to have the mental advantage. Like it or not, Rory was carrying 14 years of baggage with him after his Sunday second nine collapse in 2011, almost 11 years without a major, and countless heartbreaks. The most recent heartbreak, and arguably the most gut wrenching, coming at the hands of DeChambeau last June at Pinehurst No. 2 in the US Open. Everything in our hearts seemed to point to this being Rory’s time. But our heads, scarred from years of letdowns and close calls, weren’t so sure. Layer in the additional drama and bad blood of the PGA Tour vs LIV Golf debate, the stage was set for either the crowning achievement of his career, or another crushing defeat.

For any fan rooting for McIlroy, Sunday could not have started out any worse. Rory opened with another disastrous double bogey on hole 1, his 3rd of the tournament. By the time he walked off the 2nd green, his two-shot lead suddenly became a one-shot deficit. It felt like the wheels were coming off. Again. On a Sunday. Against Bryson DeChambeau.

But Rory steadied the ship. He followed up with impressive birdies on 3 and 4, while Bryson continuing to fight his ball striking faltered with two bogeys. Even when Rory found trouble off the tee, he flashed his raw talent and shot-making ability with incredible recovery shots from the trees on holes 5 and 7. With a birdie on 9 and a four-shot lead, the stage was set for one of the greatest Sunday second nines of all time.

As the old saying goes on the broadcasts, “The Masters doesn’t begin until the second nine on Sunday” – and yesterday, it could not have been more true.

Nobody wanted to say it, but as Rory stepped onto the tee at 10 we all thought about 2011. The duck hook tee shot that landed among the cabins, leading to a triple bogey 7 that began his infamous spiral. Patrons on the grounds and fans watching on TV around the world all held our breath. But we could have saved holding our breath for later as Rory played two beautiful shots and made another birdie. He went to 11 still holding on to a four-shot lead even as Justin Rose charged through Amen Corner with three birdies.

Hole 11 is where things started to get interesting, as the leaders entered into the heart of the famous Amen Corner. After Bryson put his second shot into the water – effectively ending his hopes of a green jacket, Rory gave us our first real scare. His punch-out from the trees caught the slopes short of the green and stopped just inches shy of rolling into the same pond that had claimed Bryson’s ball, just as it had claimed the dreams of so many aspiring champions through the years. Rory would escape with a bogey, but it still felt like the largest crisis had been averted on the second shot.

Mcilroy played the iconic but treacherous hole 12 flawlessly playing to the center of the green, a disciplined approach long echoed by past champions Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods. Rory walked off with a stress-free par, while ahead of him, Rose faltered at hole 14 with a bogey to restore Mcilroy’s four-shot lead.

After two solid shots on 13, the real drama would begin. A seemingly straightforward pitch shot into the 13th green was inexplicably blocked right into the tributary guarding the right side of the green. It felt like all the oxygen had been let out. Rory had just surrendered his fourth double bogey of the week- his second on a par 5. His four-shot lead on the 13th tee had evaporated in minutes, as Justin made clutch comeback birdies on the 15th and 16th to move into a share of the lead at 11 under par.

A poor tee shot on 14 resulted in another bogey, and suddenly Rory found himself one shot behind Justin Rose. If hole 13 had let all the air out of Rory’s sails, hole 14 had turned the heat up to near-boiling.

Despite another bogey on 17, Justin Rose finished the round with a huge birdie putt on 18 to set the lead in the clubhouse at 11-under par after an impressive round of 6-under par 66 with 10 birdies. Young phenom Ludvig Åberg was still in contention with a couple holes to play. Even players once thought to be out of contention like 2018 champion Patrick Reed and Bryson DeChambeau, had been given new life by McIlroy’s missteps. As Rory McIlroy stepped onto the tee at 15, it was clear this tournament was far from over.

Rory once again showed off his raw power and talent with a massive 7-iron slinging draw, with his ball coming to rest inside 10 feet for another eagle. But a shaky putt led to just a birdie.

An impressive iron shot into the back right pin at 16 led to a birdie opportunity but another tentative putt yielded just a par. On 17, Rory unleashed yet another towering 8-iron to inside 5 feet from the hole. Rory retook the lead at 12-under par walking to the tee on the 72nd hole. All he needed was one par to avoid a playoff with Justin Rose.

It seemed that McIlroy had it all under control after a beautiful drive navigated the tight chute of trees on the 18th hole finding the fairway with less than 130 yards to the traditional front-left Sunday hole location. Everyone was thinking the same thing: “Just one more good iron shot, Rory, Just put it on the center of the green”.

But once again the evening took a dramatic twist when he hit another poor wedge shot that found the right greenside bunker. The expected serenade of cheers and standing ovations as he walked up the hill on 18 was instead filled with hopeful but anxious applause from the patrons. A solid bunker shot rolled up onto the green stopping about 5 feet from the hole and left him with a putt to win – The Masters and the grand slam both on the line. But, much like the final putt at Pinehurst last summer, it never even touched the hole. We were heading to a playoff- the first at Augusta since Justin Rose fell short against Sergio Garcia in 2017.

Rory’s walk to scoring must have been one of the loneliest walks of his life. Thousands of patrons had gathered all around 18 green in anticipation of witnessing history, chanting “RORY! RORY!”. Instead of the usual celebratory roar, there was an uncomfortable murmur as patrons wondered: if not now… when?

The pair returned to the 18th tee for a sudden death playoff, and both hit perfect tee shots. Rose put his approach shot in close, but Rory two yards closer than his previous wedge shot into 18, stuck it inside 3 feet from the hole. Rose would narrowly miss his birdie putt clearing the stage for Rory. A normal putt of this length would be routine for any professional but this was no routine circumstance.

Rory made the putt, the patrons erupted in cheers, and he collapsed to his knees in a scene of raw emotion. You could feel the weight of the last decade pouring out of him. It wasn’t just a victory – it was a release. This meant everything to him.

He had finally done it. He had slayed the demons of his past and stepped into rarified air among the legends of the sport – completing the modern grand slam alongside Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player, and Tiger Woods. Of that elite group, nobody had ever taken more than three attempts at completing the slam. Sarazen, Hogan, and Tiger all did it on their first attempts. Nicklaus and Player took three. Rory Mcilroy did it after 11 long years of agony and frustration – close calls and missed cuts alike. Last year’s champion, Scottie Scheffler, slipped the green jacket onto his shoulders, and with it a lifetime invitation to compete in The Masters.

Through his career Rory had always proven to be a prolific talent and frequent winner on tour – especially when his game has been firing at all cylinders. But what we hadn’t always seen was his ability to dig deep when his back was against the wall, and find a way to win. He made an astonishing four double bogeys during the week, surpassing Craig Stadler’s three double bogeys when he captured the green jacket in 1982. The only recent comparison was Tiger Woods, who also made three double bogeys on the first hole en route to his iconic win in the 2008 US Open at Torrey Pines. It wasn’t always pretty – but major championship golf isn’t supposed to be. Majors are meant to be tournaments that push players to their breaking points, to separate the good players from the great.

While it was easy to get caught up in the emotional swings of every shot, I felt it was just as important to take a step back and appreciate the moment – and the stage it was unfolding on. Dr. Alister Mackenzie’s masterpiece under the magnolias once again serving as the theater for a drama only The Masters can produce, year after year. Watching the patrons reacting in real time to the changes in the leaderboards revealed another layer of what makes Augusta so magical. In an age when any other tournament or sporting event has up to the second scoring available through our cellphones or giant LED scoreboards, we’ve lost sight of what it means to live and die in the present. But at Augusta, the slow and deliberate unveiling of the manual scoreboards turns every number into its own drama. The patrons collectively holding their breath as the leaderboard plaques would open, exploding in cheers with every birdie or gasps of agony at any bogey is something that you only see at The Masters.

In the press center wearing his newly awarded green jacket, Rory talked about what he would tell his younger self in 2011—after shooting a final-round 80 when he entered Sunday with a four-shot lead. He spoke about a young version of himself who probably didn’t know how or why he ended up in that position, and how much he has grown and matured since then, both as a person and a professional golfer.

It felt like an appropriate time to reflect on our own journeys since then. I was 15 years old and a high school freshman when Rory lost that 2011 Masters. When he last won a major in 2014, I was 18 years old—just two weeks away from leaving home for college for the first time. Now I’m 29, in my second job after college, and still often searching for what it is I want to do in this life. It made me wonder: what would I say to the younger version of myself from that same time? What have I learned? What have I overcome? What remains unfinished?

To paraphrase Wright Thompson’s Thursday vignette for ESPN: every April when we return to Augusta, we return to a familiar place. A place to reconnect with old friends—or make new ones. A place where we get the chance to meet old versions of ourselves. A comforting place to take stock of all the changes in our lives and the world around us, and to ponder the direction we’re heading.

If Rory’s message to his 21-year-old self would be to stick with it and never give up, I think we’d all do well to borrow that advice. We may not be trying to make history or end an 11-year major championship drought in front of thousands of patrons and millions of viewers, but each of us carries our own baggage. We all face personal demons that must be slayed to create the life we dream of.

There will be plenty of time to debate Rory’s legacy, where this tournament ranks in the pantheon of Masters and major championship history, and what the future might hold. But for now, it’s important to just sit back, take a deep breath, and be thankful we got to witness it.

Next April, we’ll reconvene once again in Augusta, Georgia for the 90th playing of The Masters. Rory will have his seat at the Tuesday night Champions Dinner. We’ll see the familiar sights of Augusta National and take in another chapter of Masters history. The echos of past Masters Tournaments whispering through the tops of the loblolly pines. And once again, we’ll be given the opportunity to take stock of our own lives—against the backdrop of the grandest scene in sports.

From a 21-year-old with unlimited talent experiencing his first heartbreak in 2011, to a 35-year-old husband, father, and now Masters Champion in 2025—Rory McIlroy reminded us that nothing worth having comes easy. And that greatness, while delayed, can still arrive right on time.

Until next April, Augusta National. Thank you for yet another classic chapter in your storied book of history. Truly, a Tradition Unlike Any Other.

As a lifelong golf fan each year the emergence of Spring and the arrival of April means only one thing: The Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club. Growing up in a cold climate the week of The Masters always signaled the unofficial beginning of spring. The promise that in short time the snow and ice would recede, the outside world would again come alive with color and life, and I would be outside playing golf. Months of anticipation gives way to four days of pure golfing bliss. But the week feels like it is so much more than just a golf tournament, so much more than the season’s first major.

If St Andrews Old Course is considered the ‘Home of Golf’, Augusta National Golf Club is its cathedral. A sanctuary devoted to the beauty, history, and tradition of the game we all love. The truly genius design and layout by Dr. Alister Mackenzie is to golf what Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel is to art – a sacred tapestry that comes to life and speaks to our souls. The week of The Masters, now expanded to include the Augusta National Women’s Amateur and Drive Chip and Putt championships, gives us a rare glimpse into one of the most prestigious and exclusive clubs in the world. For those of us not among the three to four hundred members of the club, Augusta is a place than can feel so far from us yet so close and familiar at the same time.

Each major championship carries its own unique history and traditions, but none more than The Masters. Despite being the youngest of the four majors, first being played in 1934, The Masters has been able to craft a truly one of a kind spot in the hearts of American sports culture and in all the fans. Being the only one of the four majors that is played on the same golf course every year gives fans across the world an opportunity to not only build an emotional connection to the tournament and the course, but the memories we forge with those we watch and experience the tournament with. An opportunity to sit down for four days with those we are closest to and share our memories of Masters tournaments of yesteryear while watching a new chapter of history written. A cross-generational bond that connects family members and links the cultural icons of our sport from Bobby Jones, Ben Hogan, Sam Snead, to Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus. From Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson to Jordan Spieth, Scottie Scheffler, and the new names just beginning to make their mark in Masters and golf history.

Personally I have so many memories of Easter Sundays with family all gathered around a TV set watching the Sunday second nine drama unfold on the most beautiful canvas in sports, a sun soaked Augusta National. Sitting on the edge of our seats watching Tiger and Phil’s dramatic Sunday duel in 2009 or watching in amazement at Bubba Watson’s hook shot from the pine straw on hole 10; during commercial breaks telling stories of different shots we remember from past Masters or debating our ideal Champions Dinner menus if we were lucky enough to win somehow. Jumping out of my chair as Tiger’s ball finally trickled into the hole in 2005, being left speechless after Phil’s daring shot between the pines on 13 in 2010, or calling home almost moved to tears after Tiger’s emotional comeback victory in 2019. These are just some of the many memories that come to mind when I think of the first week in April.

Since watching my first Masters in 2002, Augusta National has been on my bucket list to go and experience. Enamored by the history, beauty, and tradition of the tournament and the course, I was determined to make it there and take it all in. After years of striking out in the ticket lottery, the 2025 Monday practice round was finally the year the stars aligned, and I was able to get one of those sought after badges. It was a surreal moment for me to realize it was finally my turn. Plane tickets, hotels, rental cars were all booked within hours and the countdown to April 7^th, 2025 was officially on.

However, as the day drew closer the bad news slowly started to trickle in. First in mid-March it was announced that Tiger Woods had ruptured his Achilles tendon and would miss significant time including The Masters only weeks away. Next, as the forecast started to take shape it quickly started to paint a bleak picture of what was planned to be a day of a dream come true. Originally forecasted as light and scattered rain turned to all day rain, to potentially severe thunderstorms. The anxiety grew to a fever pitch, sometimes even waking up multiple times in the middle of the night to check every weather forecast I could find. I was desperate to find the weather model that would allow me to take in Augusta National in all its glory.

As I was leaving for Atlanta on Sunday morning, it wasn’t even a certainty that I would get on the course at all. My heart bouncing between determination to make the most out of whatever the day handed me and despair at potentially coming so close to fulfilling a lifelong dream only to be denied by the weather at the last minute.

Arriving in Augusta on Sunday afternoon after braving the 2.5 hour drive from Atlanta through intermittent downpours, the despair in me quickly gave way to excitement and reverence. Seeing the property, seeing the “Members Only” sign and looking down magnolia lane was enough to give me goosebumps. I had arrived.

After several trips by Augusta National and picking up dinner, the planning phase began. The outfit was laid out, the weather forecast was analyzed one last time, and a plan came together. No matter what happened with the weather, I was going to make the most of whatever opportunity I was given the next day.

In the morning I checked out of my hotel room before 5:30 and parked in a nearby grocery store parking lot. The news of the delayed gate opening would not change the plan. As soon as word came that the gates would open at 8 AM I sprang into action and got myself into good position to be among the first fifty Patrons inside the North Gate of the property.

Leaving my cellphone in the car was something I was long looking forward to. Augusta National is one of the last places in sports, and probably the world, that doesn’t allow cellphones. Practice rounds do allow cameras but come Thursday morning cameras and cell phones alike are not allowed on property. Some may look at it as a major inconvenience having to disconnect for an entire day, but I hope it is a policy the club will never change. Whenever you see photos of a player in mid-swing from other professional golf tournaments, everyone is holding up their phones – opting to experience the moment through a 5-inch screen rather than with their own senses. While only temporary, I believe a brief respite from interconnectivity gives us a rare moment of quiet in these turbulent times to simply enjoy the present moment and reconnect with our senses and inner self.

Holding only optimism and my digital camera, I eagerly awaited the guided “slow walk” through the gates to the course. The beauty of the course and the realization of what I was about to experience combining to almost give me heart palpitations. The golf shop was the first priority – time was of the essence with potential weather moving in later and every minute counted. After buying my merchandise (spending a little more than I had anticipated) I would make my way to Founder’s Circle to have my photo taken in front of the iconic clubhouse.

Words could not describe the feeling of taking the first step onto the green velvety grass of the golf course. Senses overwhelmed by the expanse of the property as well as all the iconic landmarks like the large scoreboard by the first hole, the clubhouse, the Eisenhower and Butler cabins, the par 3 course, Magnolia Lane. Standing in Founder’s Circle you were reminded of all the legendary figures in golf who have been in that same spot. The spirit of co-founders Bobby Jones and Clifford Roberts still emanating from their plaques in front of the main clubhouse entrance. It is an area of Augusta National that we have all grown familiar with from years of watching The Masters, but few ever get to see with their own eyes.

Only two things remained after the photo was taken: eat one of the famous pimento cheese sandwiches (which was PHENOMENAL – don’t let anyone on social media try and say otherwise) and to walk the course from hole 1 to hole 18.

In anyone’s stories of being a Patron at Augusta National there are common themes of the friendliness of the staff, and that the course is hillier than you see on TV. If anything those points are both not mentioned enough. The staff is as friendly as you could ever expect, being greeted everywhere you go with a smile and a “Welcome to The Masters” or “Welcome to Augusta National” and generously helping with whatever you may need. And the slopes of the course? So much more dramatic than words can do justice to with hole 10 looking like it keeps going downhill forever, while 8 and 18 look like they extend up to the heavens from the base of the hill.

As I walked the course I tried to balance taking photos of what I could with my digital camera, and also trying to just soak in the moment. See all the colors of the bright and blooming azaleas. See the contours of the fairways, the mounds, and the greens. All of this while memories of past tournaments and heroic shots seemed to echo through the tall pines, telling a story not just of the history of the sport and the tournament but reaffirming our connection to it.

The most poignant and moving moment of the day came while walking down the 11th fairway as the famed Amen Corner came into view. The site of so many Masters heroics and heartbreaks  and one of the best stages in sports for creating drama that keeps us holding our breaths with each swing of the club and stroke of the putter. I took a seat in the grandstand to soak it all in. Of the few groups out practicing that day in the rain I was lucky to be able to see their tee shots into 12 and the internal calculations and angst it can produce in even the most brave players. The backdrop of Amen Corner is without a doubt the most beautiful scene in all of sports, with eye popping azaleas blooming as far as the eye can see all the way down to the iconic 13th green.

As luck would have it I would be walking up the 18th fairway when the horn blew signaling incoming weather and for all patrons to leave the property. I snagged a couple last photos of the 18th fairway and made my way back out to the parking lots. Many of us waited outside through the rain and occasional heavy downpours hoping for the slim chance they would let us back in. In that time we all shared stories of what brought us here, where we came from, and even shared some of our favorite moments from this legendary venue. We already knew at that point the chances of being let back on the golf course were slim to none, but we all just wanted to be there and share the moment with each other. Perfect strangers from different places and walks of life all brought together and bonding over what felt like a shared set of memories. There is no other place and no other sport that can produce this sort of interaction in the way The Masters at Augusta National Golf Club can.

When the practice round was finally called off for the day around 3:30 PM I got in the car to head back to Atlanta with a lot of merchandise, photos, memories, and zero regrets. I don’t know if a single person there that day got more out of their hours on the course than I did. As I drove back through more driving rains all I could feel was a deep sense of gratitude. To be able to experience place so near and dear to me and the hearts of every golf fan in the world is not an opportunity to ever take for granted.

I have already made it clear that I will return to Augusta National in the near future, for both practice rounds and tournament rounds. I hope to be able to see Tiger in person on the course where he wrote so much history. I hope to be able to experience Augusta under brilliant sunshine, and find a spot to sit back enjoy pimento cheese sandwiches long into the afternoon hours. But more important than any weather condition or circumstance, I want to be there to experience another chapter of Masters and golf history be written.

Some dreams fade in the rain. Mine bloomed like the azaleas beneath it. Until next time, Augusta National.

The PGA TOUR’s ‘Florida Swing’ came to its final stop this past week at Innisbrook Golf Resort’s Copperhead Course for the Valspar Championship.

With the recent reconfiguration of the PGA TOUR schedule this event has been put in an awkward spot in a jam-packed schedule. Slotted after back-to-back signature events at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and The Players, and ahead of the pre-Masters tune-ups in Texas for the top stars, it also has to compete with the opening weekend of the NCAA Basketball Tournament for viewership. Yet, despite this awkward placement, this event still has managed to draw big names in search of form.

This week the Norwegian Viktor Hovland won his seventh professional event, and first since the 2023 Tour Championship, despite a rocky 2024 season and a recent run that had him missing three consecutive cuts at The Genesis, Arnold Palmer, and The Players.

It was not looking like Sunday would be his day when walking to the 13^th tee he trailed Justin Thomas by 3 shots, who was a couple holes ahead of Hovland. With the daunting “Snake Pit” finishing stretch of 16, 17, and 18 still ahead of him, Viktor would go on to make his charge with birdies at 14, 16, and 17. He was also aided by a critical bogeys from Thomas on the par 4 16^th and 18^th holes after Justin drove it into trouble on both holes. Hovland would go on to bogey 18 but it was enough to secure the one shot victory over Justin Thomas at -11 (273) for the week.

Dealing with illness this week I was not able to watch as much of the golf as I had hoped outside of Sunday’s final round but watching Justin and Viktor down the stretch on Sunday and listening to their post round comments, it was apparent this week meant so much more than the leaderboard could show.

In 2022 and 2023 it seemed like Viktor Hovland was on top of the golf world. He won the 2022 Hero World Challenge, finishing T-7 at The Masters, T-2 at the PGA Championship at Oak Hill, before his breakthrough PGA Tour win at the 2023 Memorial. He closed out the year with back-to-back wins at the BMW Championship, and Tour Championship en-route to winning the FedEx Cup. And to top it off he was a key member of Europe’s Ryder Cup blowout victory over the United States, picking up 3.5 points for the European team. He was only 25 years old and suddenly found himself at number 3 in the world golf rankings, and a golf swing that was the envy of golfers worldwide. I personally have spent hours breaking down his swing to use as a model for my own, and I will be featuring more on his swing mechanics in upcoming posts.

Fast forward to this past Monday he was arriving at Innisbrook Golf Resort the 19^th ranked golfer in the world, eighteen months removed from his last victory, and five changes in swing coaches. Coming off three consecutive missed cuts it would have been easy for him to not show up or to struggle to another missed cut, but he came out and won. In his press conferences all week he was lamenting his swing and his ball striking, even saying of his swing “it’s still not great” in his post-victory press conference on Sunday afternoon.

Justin Thomas is another player who has seemingly fallen on hard times the last few years with his last victory coming at the PGA Championship at Southern Hills in May 2022. His recent form also suggests he may be getting close to breaking through once again, but in golf there are no such guarantees.

Golf, especially in the competitive arena, is a game that can give us the highest highs and the lowest lows it feels like life can possibly hand us. When our swing is in the right spot it feels like we will never miss hit another shot again. It becomes like second nature to be able to slip into the zone, let go of all the outside noise, and precisely pick apart the golf course shot by shot. When we are going through a swing change, or just struggling, it feels like we may never play this game well again. The once crystal-clear visualization of a desired ball flight suddenly becomes muddled. The reliable “never go right/left” swings suddenly start going that undesirable direction. Every swing feels like it could be enough to induce a fit of anxiety. I believe there is no lonelier feeling in sports.

No matter how good a swing change may feel on the range or playing at home, there is no substitute for testing it under tournament pressure when the spotlight is the brightest. And for guys on Tour, it takes a tremendous amount of courage to work through their swing changes or struggles for the whole world to see. Public perception and pressure can swing as wildly as a player’s form. One good result and the world declares you are “back”. One bad result, and you are “lost” or “searching”. A few bad results in a row? You may as well retire. It is so easy to get lost in all the noise and start questioning not just the direction of your game, but also your purpose.

Yet Viktor’s victory this week proved an old adage: on our scorecards we just have to write a number, not draw a picture. The perfectionist in us will absolutely hate it. It will feel wrong. We will feel like we are getting away with something horrible. We all crave and expect the perfect swing with the same repeatable ball flight on every shot. But that isn’t golf. It’s a game of managing ourselves, our swings, and our mistakes. If you get the ball in the hole in fewer strokes than everyone else, you win. The picture in our minds may seem most important, but at the end of the day nothing matters more than the number on the card.

This week the eyes of the golf world were on TPC Sawgrass Stadium Course in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida for the 51st edition of The Players Championship.  Often referred to as golf’s “5th major”, The Players is the PGA Tour’s flagship event, and Rory McIlroy walked away today with his second Players Championship joining elite company.

Since 2019 when the event moved back to its traditional spot in mid-March, weather has seemed to play a much bigger factor than it did during its 12-year span being played in mid-May from 2007 to 2018. Days with colder than normal temperatures and higher winds have added even more unpredictability to this event, which has never been lacking on one of Pete Dye’s most diabolical course designs. Even the appearance of the course has looked radically different in March with lush green fairways and rough more closely resembling Augusta National than the dried out TPC Sawgrass we would see in May.

I may be in the minority on this, but I personally preferred the way the course looked and played in May, but that is a discussion for another day.

This year’s Players championship was no different, with several days being affected by high winds and a long weather delay on Sunday further softening the course and pushing the eventual playoff to be played on Monday morning.

Windy conditions wreaked havoc on Saturday which saw the two 36 hole leaders, Min Woo Lee and Akshay Bhatia, shoot rounds of 78 and 75 respectively effectively ending both their chances of walking away with the trophy. Relatively unknown JJ Spaun, the 57th ranked player in the world, entered Sunday with the lead sitting at -12. Despite not being a well known name among fans Spaun has gone on an impressive run this year with two (now three) top 3 finishes, in addition to his one PGA Tour victory at the 2022 Valero Texas Open. His caddie, Mark Carens, also had good experience at this tournament having been on the bag for Si Woo Kim’s victory in 2017.

Rory made his presence known early on Sunday with an impressive birdie-eagle start, then another birdie on the long par 3 8^th hole. Spaun looked shaky at times but made the turn with a 37 (+1) and was only one shot back of McIlroy after the horn blew for inclement weather.

When play restarted at 5:15 after a several hour weather delay, Rory started off quickly with a birdie on the short Par 4 12th to grab a commanding 3 shot lead with only 6 holes to play. For a few minutes it looked like this could be another runaway victory for McIlroy but a bogey on 14 and missed birdie opportunities on 15,16, and 17 left the door open for Spaun.

JJ would go on to birdie 14 and 16 and leave his potential tournament clinching putt agonizingly short on the 18^th hole. This meant the tournament would be heading to a Monday morning three-hole aggregate playoff of holes 16, 17, and 18, the first playoff in 10 years.

From the first tee shots Monday morning, it felt like Rory’s championship to lose. He went driver-wedge-two putt birdie on the Par 5 16^th, while Spaun scrambled for par from the front greenside bunker. But the true decisive moment would come on the second hole of the playoff, the famed and feared island 17^th hole claiming one more victim Monday morning. With only a 1 shot wind and a 20+ mph wind, Rory faced the most nerve-wracking tee shot in professional golf. His flighted 9 iron was a work of art finding the center of the island green. Moments later Spaun flew his tee shot into the water culminating in essentially a tournament ending triple bogey. It was gut wrenching to watch Spaun’s shot find the water after making such a great swing, almost hitting it too pure which penetrated through the strong headwind. Even in his post round press conference he seemed genuinely shocked he went long when watching the replay of it the for the first time. But those are the breaks of championship golf. Rory hit the shots he needed when he needed it. That is special stuff, especially on that golf course in those conditions. And Rory certainly further cemented himself into a special category with this win. With his 28th PGA tour victory, he also became only the 8th multiple time winner of The Players, and joined Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods, and Scottie Scheffler as the only players to win multiple majors and multiple Players championships. Not bad company to be in.

For JJ Spaun even though the week ended in heartbreaking fashion, I think he must look at this as a huge positive. One thing about The Players championships is that the cream always seems to rise to the top, and he was right there with a chance to win. Given his form this year, I would not at all be surprised to see him continue to contend in big events and maybe breakthrough for a second win.

Rory’s most powerful weapon, his driver, had a very uncharacteristic week hitting less than 50% of fairways. In almost Tiger-like fashion, he found ways to manufacture golf shots when he got out of position – shots that only a handful of players in the world can execute under tournament pressure. It’s hard enough to win on Tour with your A game, let alone finding ways to win when you don’t have your best stuff that week. That is one thing I feel like we haven’t always seen from McIlroy as much as we would have expected. Again, we may be spoiled from watching Tiger win tournaments with his A-game to his D-game and every grade in between. But it was almost refreshing to see him struggle a little this week and still find a way to win.

Per his talk with the Golf Channel Live From crew following his playoff victory it sounds like his next tour stop will be the Houston Open in two weeks. But undoubtedly this victory shifts all eyes to Rory going into the season’s first major, The Masters, in just 3 weeks in search of the final leg of the elusive career Grand Slam. This will be his 11th year going into Augusta with the opportunity to complete the career slam, and while his results have been solid it still feels disappointing for a player of his caliber. Since 2015 he has 6 Top 10s including a runner up finish in 2022, 2 Top 25s, and 2 missed cuts. Will this be the year Rory finally gets over the hump at Augusta and avenges his recent Sunday heartbreaks in majors? We will find out soon – but for today no one can question that Rory is the face of the game.

Being the first big name star to really emerge in the post-Tiger era, the pressure on him the last ten plus years has been immense, and probably even crushing at times. He has been a lightning rod for criticism in recent years with his very vocal takes on LIV and the current state of professional golf. Putting aside my personal opinions on many of his detractors, especially the internet armchair analysts, its clear golf needs a dominant and even somewhat controversial figure to be the face of the sport. No, he’s not Tiger Woods. There’s probably nobody who will ever be able to play up to the standard that Tiger set at the peak of his career. Those medium to short range knee knocker putts will probably always have us holding our breath in ways we never did watching Tiger. But it’s time to just let Rory McIlroy be Rory McIlroy. Appreciate greatness wherever we can watch it, and for however long we have it.

Sitting down and writing this first blog post feels like it has been several years in the making. I have long thought about how I wanted to dip my feet into the world of golf content, but the ideas have always stayed within the confines of my notebooks and conversations where I would make mere musings at the idea. I’ve always been shy around a camera and microphone, and everyone and their brother already has a podcast these days. Even in today’s wide world of social media it can often feel hard to come up with content that is unique and interesting enough for people to consume. Last year I created a website under a different name, but the idea fizzled out quickly when I realized what a massive undertaking it was going to be. There’s the famous quote about planting a tree that the best time was 20 years ago but the second-best time is now. If the best time to start was years ago, I am making the most of the second-best time – now.

Golf has always been a massive part of my life since the time I first picked up a club with my dad around the age of 7. But as many people do, I started to drift away from the game as I got older. I thought golf was going to be simply relegated to a mere hobby a few weekends in the summer, and a fond memory to reminisce about during cold winters, or long monotonous days behind a computer screen. But these last 5 years have been a journey of reconnecting with the game, and rediscovering who I am and what golf means to me. Golf is not just a sport I love – it’s a fundamental part of who I am. Now I have recommitted myself more than ever to push my limits, competing in high level tournaments, and seeing where this game can take me on and off the course.

Over time I will continue to post my reflections on my own golf journey, golf’s place in the changing sports landscape, the events on the professional tours, my own experimentation with new equipment and gadgets, as well as my own golf swing. There will be a lot to write about in the leadup and preparation for tournaments. Maybe I will eventually overcome my camera shyness and venture into video or podcast content. I’m sure my writing style will evolve (and hopefully improve) over time. For my first series of upcoming posts, Rediscovering My Golf Journey, I will take a deeper dive into my own life and how the game has and continues to shape me. With today also being the conclusion of THE PLAYERS Championship, I am planning to have a championship recap posted on Monday.

I will also feature articles, photos, reviews, and eventually discussions of golf course architecture of the many courses I have the privilege of playing along the way. While most will be in the Midwest, particularly around Michigan, I also hope to highlight golf travel opportunities across the United States and internationally. One of the most underappreciated aspects of playing this game is the opportunity to visit some of the most beautiful and historic places, while meeting incredible people from all corners of the world.

I’m still not sure exactly what this will become or where it will take me, but I hope for those that find this blog, they may be inspired to pick up the game, or reinvest themselves into the game they once loved.  I hope my own journey and perspectives through the game and life can resonate with people. And more than anything I hope someone reading this site could bring someone new into the game like my dad did all those years ago, igniting a lifelong passion and pursuit of learning who we are and what we can become through golf.

Welcome to One Time!