The Fried Egg Golf Podcast

Justin Ray (@JustinRayGolf) has an unrivaled ability to present statistics and historical facts in a way that gives golf fans a better understanding of players and their performances. He and Garrett Morrison chat about Justin’s methods and his background in media before diving into the key storylines of the 2021-22 PGA Tour season so far. They explore some numbers and notes related to Scottie Scheffler’s rise, Collin Morikawa’s incredible early-career performance in majors, and Rory McIlroy’s [fire emoji] final round at the 2022 Masters. They also discuss some of the big questions they hope to see answered as the year unfolds. More of Justin's work can be found at Twenty First Group, where he is Head of Content, as well as on The Athletic and PGATour.com.

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Scottie Scheffler played so brilliantly at the 2022 Masters that, for much of the final round, the outcome wasn’t in doubt. But what this Masters may have lacked in competitive tension, it made up for in rich storylines. To think through some of these deeper narratives, Garrett Morrison speaks with three guests: Jaime Diaz (@JaimeDiazGC), a veteran golf writer who is currently an analyst for Golf Channel; Bob Crosby (@Otey71), a golf historian; and Joseph LaMagna (@JosephLaMagna), the analytics whiz behind the Finding the Edge newsletter.

For more reflections on the Masters from the Fried Egg team, go to our Masters hub.

Timestamps:

(3:40) Jaime Diaz interview

(29:11) Bob Crosby interview

(49:18) Joseph LaMagna interview

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What should I know before going to the Masters? What are the most underrated and overrated vantage points at Augusta National? How can I best appreciate the course architecture? Should I actually avoid the merch tent? If you’re planning to attend the Masters sometime in the future, these are questions you might ask yourself. To get some answers, Garrett Morrison talks with Andy Johnson, Brendan Porath, and Michael Wolf (@bamabearcat), all of whom are deeply familiar with the lay of the land at Augusta National. They give recommendations for what a first-time Masters spectator should do (and not do), and they discuss their favorite spots on the property.

For more Fried Egg Masters coverage, check out our Masters hub.

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Masters week is here! To preview the upcoming action, Andy Johnson welcomes Shane Bacon (@shanebacon), co-host of Golf Today on Golf Channel and host of the recently revived Get a Grip podcast, to discuss the five things they're looking forward to seeing at Augusta National. From Scottie Scheffler to Justin Thomas to a potential Tiger return, Andy and Shane cover the top storylines going into the 2022 Masters.

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With the Augusta National Women’s Amateur wrapping up tomorrow and the 2022 Masters approaching, Andy Johnson and Garrett Morrison sit down to discuss the latest changes to America’s most influential golf course. They touch on the tree removal along the right side of No. 11, the lengthening of No. 15, and the short-grass expansions on several holes. They also talk about which renovations they hope to see next, and how the club’s philosophy of course design and presentation may be shifting.

Read Andy’s article on the changes at Augusta National and Meg Adkins’s piece on how the format on the ANWA could be improved.

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The 2022 Augusta National Women's Amateur begins tomorrow, and who better to talk to about it than Emilia Migliaccio (@emiliamigliacc1)? Emilia played in the inaugural ANWA in 2019, finished second last year, and will be in the field again this week. She talks with Garrett Morrison about the unique aspects of the event, the different challenges of the two host courses, her strategies for negotiating Augusta National’s greens, and the lessons she learned after coming up short in a playoff last year. In addition to being an elite amateur golfer, Emilia is also an accomplished writer and a Golf Channel reporter, and she explains why she has decided to pursue a career in journalism instead of turning professional in golf.

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Today we tell the story of one of the great lost elements of match-play golf: the stymie. A stymie occurred when one player’s ball on the green ended up between the hole and the opponent’s ball. Unless the balls were within six inches of one another, the ball closer to the hole could not be lifted. The player who was away simply had to figure out what to do next. When the governing bodies eliminated the stymie in 1952, more than a curious little quirk of match play was lost, according to our guest Stephen Proctor. In a conversation with Garrett Morrison, Stephen argues that the stymie embodied a larger attitude toward the game—an attitude that fell out of favor in the mid-20th century, but one that is worth remembering, and perhaps reviving, today.

Stephen's book The Long Golden Afternoon is available for pre-order now.

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With last week's Distance Insights update from the USGA and R&A, it made sense to bring in Geoff Shackelford (@geoffshac) to discuss the latest developments. Geoff has been writing about and covering the distance issue in golf for over 20 years. In this episode, he chats with Andy Johnson about what's coming, how players and equipment companies will be affected, and whether bifurcation has finally arrived. Andy and Geoff also catch up on two timely topics: the Saudi-backed LIV Golf league and the Masters. You can read more of Geoff's musings in his Substack newsletter The Quadrilateral.

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Andy Johnson and Garrett Morrison sit down (in person this time!) to discuss an array of listener questions. They talk about how the PGA Tour can better assess shot-shaping skills, which musical artist TPC Sawgrass resembles, how golf telecasts can improve, which golf books they would recommend, whether big-name architects are getting too busy, and what changes they would make to Augusta National’s course if they had their druthers. Many thanks to our followers on Twitter and Instagram for the questions!

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Former PGA Tour player Roberto Castro (@cicioCASTRO) talks with Andy Johnson about the marathon that was the 2022 Players Championship. From the weather to the final putt on Monday, Roberto shares his insights into what makes the tournament so difficult to predict, how Saturday gave us a glimpse into what a rollback might look like, and what he thinks the most difficult shot on the course is. The current state of golf course development is also discussed in the back half of the episode. 

In addition to hosting the Course Record Show podcast, Roberto runs his own golf consulting business, Castro Golf Consulting.

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