The Fried Egg Golf Podcast

Acclaimed musician Drew Holcomb joins the podcast to talk about music, golf, and the intersection between the two. Drew tells Andy about how he got into golf later in his life, the way his career in music progressed in relation to his golf game, and the new courses he has played this year (along with some musical artist comps for those courses). They also touch on music on the golf course, the holiday-music genre, and which major could use a theme song.

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For the second of our two Thanksgiving-week Yolk with Doak installments, Andy and golf course architect Tom Doak tackle some more listener questions. Among other topics, they discuss Doak's recent Sedge Valley and Pinehurst No. 10 projects, designing short par 4s and shot courses that challenge elite players, difficult vs. "fun" courses, a wild idea for an Olympic course, and the pros and cons of blind shots.

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Tom Doak is back for the first of two new episodes. In this first one, Tom addresses a variety of listener questions. He talks about the revival of his original High Pointe design outside of Traverse City, Michigan, and how it has been a unique project for Renaissance Golf Design. Andy and Tom then discuss the takeaways Tom has from Lido after a few days on site in October.

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Former PGA Tour pro Roberto Castro joins the podcast to discuss the TGL, the indoor, tech-infused golf league featuring the likes of Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy that will launch in January next year. Roberto has been helping the TGL design its gameplay, and he provides information and perspective on the league's genesis, format, and potential. Before digging into this topic, however, Roberto and Andy discuss Roberto's recent experiences playing with retro equipment. Toward the end of the episode, they talk about the direction of the PGA Tour in the "Framework Agreement" era.

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Bruce Hepner, former Vice President of Tom Doak's Renaissance Golf Design, was at the forefront of many current trends in golf architecture, from the Golden Age restoration movement to the revival of the design-build method. So we figured he would have an interesting perspective on the evolution of modern golf course design. Bruce and Garrett start by chatting about Bruce's passion for music and his recent renovation of Percy Warner Golf Course, a municipal nine in Nashville. They then discuss Bruce's epoch-spanning career, touching on his work in the early 1990s with Ron Forse, his experiences on Doak projects like Pacific Dunes and Ballyneal, and his thoughts on how the golf course restoration game has changed in recent years.

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A couple of weeks ago, Garrett spoke with architect Gil Hanse in front of an audience at the Pearl Street Warehouse in Washington, D.C. Their conversation was part of the National Links Trust Symposium on Municipal Golf, so they focused on Gil's résumé of municipal designs, from Rustic Canyon and Soule Park in the early 2000s, to the recently opened Park in West Palm Beach, to his ongoing projects at Maggie Hathaway in Los Angeles and Rock Creek Park in D.C. Garrett and Gil touch on a variety of larger topics, such as the importance of architectural minimalism to affordable golf course development and the recent changes in both the golf architecture industry and Gil's own workload. Many thanks to the National Links Trust for asking Garrett to be involved in this year's symposium, and for letting us share this conversation with our listeners. Find out more about the NLT's work HERE.

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Garrett joins Andy, aka "Sheddie Hackett," in the Fried Egg Golf Shedquarters for the first multi-person pod recorded entirely within the four uninsulated walls of Andy's backyard shed. They celebrate this momentous occasion by picking a "Dream 18" for Sand Valley in Nekoosa, Wisconsin. They select their favorite holes at each number (1 through 18) from the resort's five existing courses: Coore & Crenshaw's Sand Valley, David McLay Kidd's Mammoth Dunes, Coore & Crenshaw's Sandbox, Tom Doak and Brian Schneider's re-creation of C.B. Macdonald's Lido, and Tom Doak's Sedge Valley. Andy also gets in a few digs at large flagsticks.

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Australian golf architect Mike Cocking returns to the pod for the first time in five years. Along with OCM design partners Geoff Ogilvy and Ashley Mead, Mike has been working more in the U.S. recently, so he and Andy have a lot to catch up on. They cover a variety of topics, including the best Ben Hogan story Mike heard while renovating Shady Oaks Country Club in Texas, how to design and build site-specific bunkers, the differences between Sandbelt golf and American golf, and some off-the-wall design concepts he'd like to try . Mike and Andy also dig deeply into two of OCM's current projects: an ambitious renovation of Course 3 at Medinah Country Club, which will debut at the 2026 Presidents Cup; and a 36-hole new build in Georgia, which will feature both a heathland-style and a Sandbelt-style course.

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With the Ryder Cup in the rearview mirror and the competitive season winding down, Andy brings on Shane Bacon (@shanebacon) and Kyle Porter (@kyleportercbs) for a rollicking discussion of the year in golf. They rank the top five people and things that golf has been best to in 2023, and the conversation veers in a variety of directions, touching on playing Augusta National, coaching vs. parenting, and of course Blockie.

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Dan Hixson is a golf architect based in Portland, Oregon, who has designed and built several excellent golf courses in the Pacific Northwest, including Bandon Crossings, Wine Valley, the reversible Craddock/Hankins layout at Silvies Valley Ranch, and the new Bar Run. Sitting in his home office, Dan tells Garrett about his varied career in golf course design. He begins by talking about his ongoing renovation of Lake Oswego Golf Course, a municipal facility in the Portland suburbs. He then delves into how he got interested in golf architecture as a kid, his foray into international competitive golf, his time as a club pro, and his sudden transition into golf course design. In the second half of the episode, Dan and Garrett touch on some of his most significant design projects—all of which are open to the public.

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