The Cookie Jar Golf Podcast

Bruce & Sam catch up with the gang at CDP again, this time to talk to Frank & Ed about the life and work of Harry Colt. In many ways, Harry Colt was the first professional golf course architect and created the profession as we know it today. Debuting with his work at Rye at a young age, he would go on to be the most prolific and arguably most influential figures in golf course design in history with over 250 courses of his own. Frank is one of the worlds leading experts on Golden Age course restoration and offers a fascinating insight into the work of Colt.

Lots of action from the previous week, and we get together to compare notes! Westwood, Justin Thomas, and of course a few Bryson takes in there for good measure! 

We couldn't walk past the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill at the weekend just gone and not cover some of the excitement from the event, including Bryson but of course special mention to Lee Westwood, and Jordan Spieth. We also look ahead to the start of the Players at TPC Sawgrass.  Bruce, Sam and Tom make 3 picks each - are they letting their hearts rule their heads? Time will tell, but if we don't get ANY through the cut come Friday night then this podcast will lost any of its remaining credibility!

In line with the event this week at Bay Hill, Tom & Bruce speak to world renowned Golf historian David Normoyle about his work with the Palmer family on developing the legacy of Arnie and talking about his career. David is a fascinating person to talk to about the game and he offers some really fresh insights about how golf as a sport can do more to keep these stories alive!

The boys get together for a short sharp 30 minute debrief on the latest from the tour. With loads happening in the game at the moment, we take time to digest how good Morikawa performed at the weekend, as well as some notable returns to form for others. Bruce also looks at Rory's latest performance and what his new role as Chairman of the players committee might mean for his future in the game, as well as sympathising with Brooks' club snapping fiasco. 

This week, Bruce and Tom chat to Adam Young, acclaimed instructor and author of the bestselling book ‘The Practice Manual’. Adam offers a fresh take on how we, as golfers, can hope to get improve at this often frustrating sport. In this pod we take a deep dive into the distinction between technique and skill, how to practice more effectively, and we hear about Adam’s own journey towards what he calls ‘golfing enlightenment’. If you’re planning on 2021 being your most productive playing season yet, then this is a good place to start!

Great catching up with Richie while he was in quarantine after his trip to the Middle East. We wanted to know what life in the Bubble is like on The European Tour, where he sees the future of the tour with the PGA taking a seat on the board as well as the latest distance report from the R&A and USGA.

Trouser trailblazer Erik van Rooyen joins us this week to talk about his career, adjusting to a PGA tour season having moved out to Florida 18 months ago, his approach to the mental side of the game. Majors, his injury at the back end of the season and the exciting year ahead! Great catching up with this cool-cat!

With a career throughout golf, Daryl now heads up RocketYard sports! A sports marketing & sponsorship agency that represents some of the best athletes in the game as well as rights holders. Fascinating discussion about the world of endorsements behind the scenes in the game, as well as why 7 out of every 10 sponsorship deals wind up with the company wanting out prematurely!

Recapping the Saudi International, as well as talking about the current European Tour schedule, and the action from the Phoenix Waste Management Open at TPC Scottsdale... Enjoy

We had a blast chatting with Ronan about his career,  with all the war stories from his time on the European Tour. In this monster 2-hour podcast we also got to talk about Ronan’s time in the Ryder Cup, narrowly missing out on the Claret Jug to Nick Price, as well as all his adventures growing up around the game which saw him playing top level amateur golf from a very young age! We think all of our podcasts are good - but none more so than this one! Enjoy 

Round up from the weekends action at The Farmers & Dubai Desert Classic. Big win for Paul Casey out in Dubai with a masterclass in ball striking, and Patrick Reed picks up another PGA tour win, despite only finishing 63rd in GIR for the week, leaning on a prolific short game and benefitting from some helpful relief in places (couch cough).....

We're really excited about this! Our fondness for this club is well documented, and when we spoke to Nick and Sam, who will be taking over at Cleeve Hill on the 1st April this year, we wanted to record a pod with them to talk about their plans! Congratulations to childhood friends Nick and Sam who, as local boys growing up in the shadow of the hill, will be making a dream, a reality in the next few months! Hear more about what they have in store!

Great to welcome Mike back onto the pod, with Chairman of CDP Design Ed Cartwright. Not only are we bringing some special news only just announced in the last few hours regarding the new development at Seven Mile Beach in Hobart, but we also talk about the dreaded golf club committee and how that shapes the golfing landscape over time - sometimes for worse, sometimes for better....

After a great final day out in Abu Dhabi, we get together to chew through the weekends events, including Tyrell Hatton's exceptional final day performance, some mediocrity from the chasing pack, and a few notably absences from the weekends affairs. Also, with the much discussed HBO Tiger documentary now airing in the UK, we offer up our two penneth. Other trivial nonsense discussed includes Bruce's new haircut, Tom confusing himself with the latest caddy line up across the European Tour, and Sam getting shouted down for getting his facts wrong (again).  

Short - sharp podcast this week with Tom & Sam. A quick recap on the goings on in the world in golf, wit some obscure takes and look back on some of the recent PR disasters! From the PGA to player, we talk about some of the quick PR disasters of 2021 in the game, as well as the concept of leaving breadcrumbs to find your way back with the game..... 

To coincide with the second part of our Tour film from Scotland on YouTube, we’ve got this Tour memories podcast from our trip to East Lothian, including Renaissance, Gullane, Muirfield, Kilspindie and Musselburgh Old. 

We get together to relive some of the highlights from 'the Jar' in 2020, with some exerts from some of the most memorable parts of the pod, our favourite moments and guests, the high's and low's from the professional game this year, and Sam leads the year end appraisals live on air! 

To coincide with the launch of our Pt I of first Tour film in YouTube we’ve recorded a two part podcast from our adventures in Scotland! Sandy and acidic diaries is about the finest links golf on the UK, a nod to the fast draining ground that’s absolutely ideal for play all year round!

We’re joined by Gil Hanse to hear about his work at Castle Stuart to coincide with the launch of our latest film from the Scotland series, including his work with the late-great Mark Parsinen, as well as hearing about what it takes to build a modern day masterpiece in today’s world and his work at Ohoopee Match Club, and when you hear the way he talks through the principles he approaches a golf course with, it’s no surprise he is considered a modern day genius of golf course architecture. 

In Part 2 we possibly have the greatest story ever told on the Cookie Jar Golf podcast.... but you'll have to wait till the end! We also get to hear about David's visits to Pine Valley, how to attack fresh golf course you've never played as well as golf in The Netherlands. From Ardfin to Bandon, Silloth to Noordwijkse - its all in here! Hope you enjoy!

This is a cracking two part podcast with David Davis (AKA @Top100GolfTraveller). David has played all of the worlds Top 100 rated golf courses in his pursuit of knowledge and adventure, and picked up some stories on his way! In part 1 we talk about why and how he fell into this, as well as how he came to appreciate golf architecture on his first international golf tour!

We catch up with Richard Mansell off the back of his recent promotion to the European Tour! After a turbulent final few weeks on the Challenge Tour, with a rich run of form, followed by a positive Covid-19 test, Richard managed to play in the finals out in Mallorca and secure his European Tour card for next season at the 11th hour! One of only 5 people this season due to the pandemic, and on his debut season on the Challenge Tour, Richard is enjoying a rapid ascendancy into the top tiers of Professional Golf! On top of his own game, we also talk about his outlook on golf, setting new goals and the first hole in one of his career from a meer 375 yards! 

This week we're joined by Zane Scotland - former European Tour pro and a coach to many up-and-coming talents in the game. We hear about Zane's rapid early success - which saw him qualify for The Open at the age of just 16 - and talk about his journey into coaching, and how we can make the game that we all love more accessible to people from all walks of life.

Whilst it wasn't the nail-biting final day we've seen in recent years, it was still a great spectacle! We get together to chew through the detail on the first ever Masters in November and talk about the big (and not so big) stories! From arty coverage to anchoring putters, did the course play longer or was it a legitimate par 67? It's all in here!

This year, the wait for The Masters has been excruciating with set backs and lock downs, so who better to celebrate our 50th episode, a prelude to Augusta this week, than with friend of the pod - Chris Trott from TaylorMade. Inside the ropes and behind the scenes, talking about one of the most anticipated tournaments in history... what will the course look like, how do the players prepare for the event, and whats going in and out of the bag for the worlds best as we approach Thursday! 

We got to catch up with Sam about van life and the first leg of his journey as he, his wife Harriet and the dogs travel the coast of the UK playing 192 of the best inks courses across the country. Battling against the never ending Covid-19 restrictions, hopping from town to town in search of the next adventure it's great to hear how his plans are always changing. Now over on the East Coast, having covered much of the West Coast of Scotland, namely Kintyre, Ayreshire and up over the North Coast 500 playing some lesser known courses, it's refreshing to hear about the courses that often fly under the radar or the areas that are less well travelled by the everyday golf tourist!

While we were in Scotland, we spent some time with Malcolm Duck, proprietor of the Ducks Inn, in Aberlady. Malcolm is a famous local figure in the golfing world, hosting anyone who’s anyone as they meander their way through East Lothian’s smorgasbord of wonderful courses. Malcolm was closely involved in the inception of Renaissance, in fact Tom Doak designed Renaissance right from Malcolm’s green room in the pub, and interestingly, a famous local sport (Barstool Putting) was born in these very walls, so we thought why not record a pod to tell you all about it!

We’ve been looking forward to this for some time! Lou is a self confessed golf nut and data nerd, and through his work with Scott Fawcett and DECADE he has an immense level of understanding of the stats surrounding the professional and amateur game! This is a great insight into the numbers behind the game of golf, with some shocking stuff around how to better use stats in your own game as well as the fine margins that separate the worlds best from the rest of the professional golfers. We hope you enjoy, and maybe take a few of these principles out onto the course as well!

Lukas rejoins the pod to chat to Bruce & Cal about his first major championship appearance at Winged Foot. After his initial appearance on the pod earlier this year before Covid-19 hit, we get to hear about what he’s been up to in the USA in between the US-Am, US Open and The Masters in November! From digging bunkers and driving bulldozers, to teeing it up with the worlds best! 

We spent some time with Jasper Miners and Sam Cooper from Evalu18 who are doing some incredibly exciting work with their website helping to simplify golf course architecture and celebrate the rich history of golf courses up and down the UK, as well as bringing it to homes around the world with some truly stunning artwork. We had a great time chatting away about how courses are ever evolving, and how the current renaissance of GCA is shifting the focus on how we see & enjoy golf in the UK. 

To coincide with the launch of our latest ‘Story of a Golf Club’ YouTube film, we are joined by Golf Club Atlas contributor Sean Arble, and course architect Robin Hiseman who both share a special connection with Cleeve Hill. The course is planning to shut in March next year, as the council have deemed golf there as not being financially viable in today’s climate. This course is the epitome of golf in the Auk. Stunning, historic, fun and most of all accessible for golfers of all abilities and budgets! The story of Cleeve Hill is a sad one, but we hope, that Golf on the Hill can be saved for future generations!

The boys are joined by Trottie (who after his first guest appearance couldn’t stay away) to talk through Bryson’s win at Winged Foot in what many see as a watershed moment for the game. Wherever you stand on the distance debate and the strategy Bryson has used this year, it’s certainly got people talking! We are also in middle of club champs season, and Trottie could resist telling us about his recent (nett) win at Goat Hill last week! Enjoy

The full squad reconvene to recap the three prestigious Amateur events that have been played on British soil over the past couple of weeks: the Amateur at Birkdale, the Women’s Amateur at West Lancs, and the Varsity Match at Muirfield. We also hear about Cal’s latest putter acquisition and dissect a couple of controversies emerging in the professional game: the format and purses of the PGA Tour Playoffs and Sophia Popov’s exclusion from the ANA Inspiration. Finally, we look ahead to the US Open at Winged Foot and make our picks…

The second part of our special series on the life of Bobby Jones, winner of the Grand Slam in 1930 and arguably one of the most influential people in the world of golf, if not sport more generally. With Jones having won the UK leg of the grand slam at Royal Liverpool and St Andrews, we head over for the second half at Merion and Interlaachen. We also look at the legacy Bobby Jones has left on the game, including the Masters, designing Augusta with Mackenzie, and his affinity with the town of St Andrews! It’s been a pleasure doing these, and we hope you enjoy! 

Part one of our special series on the life of Bobby Jones, winner of the Grand Slam in 1930 and arguably one of the most influential people in the world of golf, if not sport more generally. Heading into the Tour Championship at East Lake felt like the perfect time to release this two-parter around his life and career, beautifully narrated by golf historian and Jones fanatic Sid Matthew from Tallahassee, FL. We’ll be dropping part two later this week! Enjoy!

The full squad are together to catch up on the latest developments in the game, we get to hear from the latest tinkering in Cal’s workshop in search of the fabled wand as he moves onto putter #26, and we look at whether the stats in the Amateur game are totally bogus, or really help players!

Bruce, Sam & Tom recap the highs and lows from Harding Park, and the superb return to Major Championship golf. An emphatic performance from Collin Morikawa as well as Englands own Paul Casey, trash talking by Brooks, whiffs from Rickie, and confusion for Kaymer! 

Tom, Sam and Cal recap some of the latest news on both sides of the Atlantic, including Eddie Pepperell's withdrawal from the HERO Open, as well as the danger Fire Ant's pose to golfers in the modern era. Most importantly we talk through some predictions for the PGA at Harding Park this week in what feels like an eternity since major golf and get to hear about the latest activity in Cal's workshop!

Does Trottie have the coolest job in golf? If he doesn’t, then it’s not far off! We got to chat with Chris about his ascendancy in the world of golf, from PGA professional to club fitter to the elite TaylorMade players on the tour including the likes of DJ, Paul Casey, Rory, John Rahm and Tiger! Trottie is not only a world class equipment junkie and golf nerd, but a superb orator and all round top guy! Enjoy!

As well as recapping Collin Morikawa's win in Ohio, we take the chance to research some of the caddies throughout history that have changed the game of Golf - Some of them modern household names, most of them not! Stretching over a century of caddies that have not just been a support to their players, but often influenced golf in many different ways!

The full squad are together as we head into a double header at Muirfield Village, Nicklaus’ most revered course design. We use the chance to go through the record books and look at the career of The Golden Bear more closely and establish if he is the true GOAT (as well as some obligatory Bryson remarks which we couldn’t walk past)!

Sam, Tom & Bruce recap the news on tour from the last week, with DJ shooting career lows after changing the short stick, some impressive performances under the gun from Will Gordon, and shots being fired about the rulings in place for OWGR pts! We also try (and fail) to find the essence of short par-4 holes and what makes them truly exciting! 

The four boys get together to review the recent events at Harbour Town and Colonial post lockdown, also talking about the Rose Ladies Series and debriefing on the Macmillan 72 hole challenge!

Today Bruce and Tom are joined by Jonathan Yarwood. Jonathan is a teaching professional ranked in the Top 100 in America by Golf Magazine. He’s worked with winners at every level, including 2005 US Open Champion Michael Campbell, and, formerly, Jessica Korda and Robert Rock. We enjoyed chatting to him about the Tiger v Phil match, his career in teaching, and also his views on the state of modern golf instruction.

From the ban on the game by James II, all the way to the new age designs we enjoy today, we get together to try and piece together the history of golf course architecture from the beginning. As long time fans of great courses, with next to no prior knowledge we each take an era, research like mad, and try to find out why the trademarks of those era’s are so different! 

Harry Cloke from Shorehill Analytics joins the pod to talk about how his firm are using big data to influence course design, and golf architecture!

With the benefit of reflection through the hiatus in golf, we get together to discuss what would make it into our golfing Room 101, and banished from the sport for eternity. Some of the picks unanimous, most of them not! 

We got chatting to Nic, President of Mackenzie Golf Bags, and wanted to share their fascinating story with you! Nic and the team of artisans offer something really different and are at the vanguard of new and emerging trends in the golf industry. We’re a huge fan of the work they do, with bespoke equipment enticing more people to strap up and carry! Their business has some fascinating origins, and it was great hearing about it from the man at the helm! 

We had a great time chatting to 3-time winner Richie Ramsay! On top of a successful career on the European Tour, Richie was the first Brit to win the US-Am in nearly a century, as well as playing Walker Cup. Fascinating getting to hear first hand about the ups and downs of life on Tour

We got to catch up with Brendan Lawlor about his journey in the game, hearing how he has risen to the top ranks of world disability golf playing pitch and putt growing up in Ireland, competing at a high amateur level and now growing the sport! Brendan isn’t just a great talent and a great guy, but a brilliant ambassador for the game

We got to chat with Mike Clayton about his career as a professional, and the world of Golf course architecture. Mike is at the forefront of the current renaissance in course architecture, either helping restore layouts back to their original design principles or building new and exciting courses like Barnbougle Dunes, and has a refreshing perspective on how the game has evolved, as well as the courses we play, and some thoughts on what’s to come in the future!

Back together for Part Deux of the Ryder Cup picks, this time the boys try to reach agreement on the 12 names to represent the USA. Plenty of heated debate as we scour the rankings, performances and try to unpick the recent performances which have seen America flatter to deceive. With no shortage of controversial choices in the face of hard facts, get ready to roll your eyes!

We were lucky enough to be joined by Dr Gio Valiante, a world renowned sports psychologist, voted as one of the top Sport Psychologists in the world by Golf Digest and sports psychologist of the year by the Golf Channel. 

He is the author of Fearless Golf and a renowned performance coach. He has worked with golf champions, including Tiger Woods, Jordan Speith, Justin Rose, Matt Kuchar, Davis Love III and many, many more. During his career, he has helped players win more than 50 PGA Tour events and has been featured in The New York Times, The Financial Times and Golf Magazine. His is also the founder of Fearlessgolf.com.

We were lucky to get him on and his insight into the game is truly fascinating!

The boys get together to try and reach consensus on what the European side would look like with 12 Captains picks in lieu of 2020 rankings and usual measures! From the obvious to down right stupid, we cover the length and breadth of the European squad to get to a final dream team for Whistling Straits later this year

Today we are joined by David Cannon, who has taken pretty much every iconic golf photograph in golf in the last 38 years - and that might not even be an exaggeration! 

Recognised as one of the leading golf photographers in the world. He has photographed over 120 mens majors, copious Ryder Cups, every Solheim Cup played, Walker Cups and over 500 tournaments around the globe. 

In this pod we talk through his journey into golf photography, his most famous pictures ever taken including Seve in 1984 and Jack Nicklaus in 1986. He tells us of his decision to run down the fair way with Van De Velde's 18th at the open in 1999. We talk through his changing role in the Ryder Cup and how he fell into official photographer for the European team and the miracle of Medinah.

We loved taking to David and I hope you guys enjoy!

If you haven't already heard of the Buck Club, it is a fascinating project headed up by PGA Tour pro Zac Blair. We talk to Director of Golf, Max Arden, as the club moves from concept, brand and killer merch into a reality, not to mention with the support course architect of Rob Collins.

Sit back and enjoy Max Arden talk about the journey and what's still to come.

Mark McDonnell joined us for this fascinating pod about the life of a golf agent. He & One Direction star started up management agency Modest! Management after he had worked for TaylorMade for years. We dive into how he got into golf management and what the life of a manager entails. We go through everything from the day-to-day tasks to obtaining sponsorships for his players. Mark goes on to talk about his fund raising, directing the Horan & Rose charity event that has raised over £2.5 millions pounds to date. Sit back and enjoy to this cracking episode.

This epic story is about two adventures Adam Rolston & Ron Rutland. Adam & Ron decided to play the longest hole in golf by playing from one extreme side of Mongolia to the other, Culminating with a sneaky 8 foot downhiller left to right to finish! This story is incredible and we are honoured to bring it to you! I hope you enjoy!

While held up in St Andrews during lockdown, Iona spends an hour with Bruce, Sam and Tom shooting the breeze on her golfing career, as well as her broadcasting roles with Sky Sports & Golfing World. We learn what life is like inside the ropes and talk about the health of the women’s game!

We take the opportunity to chunter through the impact lockdown is having on specific players, who is going to be thankful for the break and who left TPC Swagrass with form and momentum, and most importantly will it still be there when we return?

NY Times bestselling author Tom Coyne joins the podcast this week for a transatlantic chit chat! From his initial novel, turned big-screen hit ‘A Gentleman’s Game’ right through to ‘A Course Called Ireland’ and ‘A Course Called Scotland’, & into his latest adventures, Tom shares his insights that are not only fascinating about the modern game but also make him one of the eminent and most revered golf writers for a generation! It’s an absolute cracker

The boys get together to have a chat with Lukas Michel before his Masters appearance in April. In part 2, we talk through his love of golf architecture, and his preparation for the Masters.

The boys get together to have a chat with Lukas Michel before his Masters appearance in April. In part 1, we talk through his route into golf, winning the Mid Am and a monster 7-iron shot! 

We were lucky enough to get Sam Clapham, a club support officer for England Golf. His role includes helping to develop the game at grassroots level and helping all clubs within his area to achieve its goals. Sam has some really insightful views involving developing the game and we dive into these topics and more.

Incredible turn of events this week across the globe. Sam, Cal and Bruce talk about the cancellations on tour and postponement to The Masters, as well as the impact this will have on the club and amateur game. With courses shut across mainland Europe and measures being taken in the UK, where will this lead...

We climb into Azinger on his controversial comments about the European Tour, news from Qatar, a nod to the legend that is Mr. Arnold Palmer and we field some of the questions from our listeners this week!

The full squad are back, talking about their exploits on the windy shores, controlling ‘traj’, gambling (and losing), and news from the tour as we cover the Honda Classic in Florida and the Oman Open!

We chunter through Brooks' recent interview about 'Sand-Gate', talk about the recently announced closures to municipal golf courses in Glasgow and about the giddy heights at the WGC in Mexico

Joined by our 4th regular host Cal, we talk through the latest from the Genesis invitational, along with some of the best Tiger stats we found and the impact of the Coronavirus on the European tour!

In today's episode we are joined be Sir Bruce Fizpatrick as the team discuss the new UPGA and R & A distance report, the Pebble Beach Pro Am and Sr Bruce's recent victory at the Presidents Putter.

Graeme McDowell clinches the Saudi International, things are hotting up down the straight at the Phoenix Waste Management in Arizona and two idiots complain about playing golf in the cold and wet!

Two idiots discussing their own golf and 2019 rule changes. 

The full squad are back together for a debrief of this past week's professional tournaments, and to take dead-aim at some loaded topics in our sport: purse disparities between the men's and women's games, the place of hoodies on the golf course, and Matt Fitz's choice words on the distance debate. 

We recap a dramatic weekend of golf (and weather!) at the Scottish Open, where Aaron Rai emerged victorious at the Renaissance Club. The gang also dissects Sergio’s new method of putting with his eyes closed, and we hear about their own golfing exploits this past week: Bruce’s pondering of swing mechanics, Tom’s round at Woodhall Spa, and Cal’s bold strategy for winter ball striking…