The Fire Pit Podcast

Few reporters have been closer to Tiger Woods than John Hawkins. In the latest Fire Drill podcast, Hawk joins Michael Bamberger and Alan Shipnuck on the eve of the PGA Championship to riff on how Woods has (and hasn’t) evolved through the years.   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this Fire Drill podcast, Ryan French and Laz Versalles join Michael Bamberger and Alan Shipnuck for a non-traditional PGA Championship preview. Ryan gives the backstory on some of the longshot club pros in the field while Laz delves into the legacy of the Tulsa Race Massacre through the eyes of Bill Spiller, Jr., whose father, a Tulsa native, shamed the PGA of America into abolishing its Caucasian Only clause. This eclectic foursome also tees up their favorite storylines heading into this PGA Championships.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the latest Fire Drill podcast, Ogilvy, Bamberger and Alan Shipnuck go deep on the charm and challenge of Southern Hills and relive its previous major championships, highlighted by Tiger Woods’s inspired play at the ’07 PGA. Typically discursive, the conversation also touches on Perry Maxwell, Gil Hanse, Scottie Scheffler, Retief Goosen and, from Ogilvy, exactly how different a major feels versus an everyday Tour event.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is a chaotic moment in professional golf. For this Fire Drill podcast, Alan Shipnuck and Michael Bamberger brought in the Jerry Maguire of PGA Tour agents, Mac Barnhardt, to help make sense of the shifting landscape. Mac brought decades' worth of insight.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This PGA was supposed to be Donald Trump’s crowning moment in golf; everything changed on January 6th. Now Trump is in league with the Saudis, whose toxicity sent Phil Mickelson into exile. In his first big piece for FPC, Michael Bamberger untangles the tentacles.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Michael Bamberger is the greatest golf writer alive, author of various classic books and winner of innumerable awards, including this year’s lifetime achievement citation to be presented by Jack Nicklaus at the Memorial. The intellectual curiosity that informs his writing has led Bamberger to leave corporate media for a scrappy upstart. With typical modesty, Michael did not want a splashy announcement that he was joining the Fire Pit Collective, preferring instead a substantive discussion with Alan Shipnuck about their shared history and Alan’s forthcoming Mickelson biography “Phil: The Rip-Roaring (and Unauthorized!) Biography of Golf’s Most Colorful Superstar.”                                                                                                                   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the latest episode of the Fire Pit podcast, Matt Ginella is joined by Colt Knedler and Patrick Koenig as they recap their recent Journey to Kauai. Throughout the conversation, seven guests from the show pop in and out of a Zoom call offering their reflections on the story of where they call home and they reiterate how and why the “act like a guest” mentality isn’t just critical for visitors to the Garden Isle. Farmer Samuel checks in from, well, his farm. Keli’i Alapa’i calls from his backyard near the pig smoker. Hualani Duncan is in a golf cart cruising the back nine of Hokuala. And Mayor Derek Kawakami provides more insight from his office in Lihue. Plus, Zeke Alamida, Kellie Hines-Akana and Mary Bea Porter King on cultivating the game on an island.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Geoff Ogilvy, Alan Shipnuck, Ryan French, Laz Versalles and Matt Ginella put a bow on the 86th Masters. From Scheffler’s dominance to Tiger’s grit, Rory’s Sunday 64, crowds, course changes and our Aussie friends provide a whole new description for Cam Smith. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Matt Ginella and Alan Shipnuck reflect on an action-packed Friday at Augusta National, featuring a Tiger rally and more Scheffler mastery.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When Andy Ogletree won the 2019 U.S. Amateur, his future seemed unlimited. But injuries and the impact of Covid on the pro golf schedule have left him on the outside looking in. Ogletree joins the Fire Drill podcast to relive his Amateur triumph and the tee time at the Masters with Tiger Woods that came with it.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.