Larry The Golf Guy

Damon Hack is a major talent for The Golf Channel, where he co-hosts Golf Today and Golf Central, among other duties. Damon actually started his professional life as a print journalist, and we discuss his passion for both sports journalism and sports broadcasting as a kid growing in LA, his 15+ years as a print journalist which included notable stints at The New York Times and Sports Illustrated, and his transition to broadcasting at The Golf Channel. We also talk about his memorable experiences with some of the game's greats, including Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods, as well as his thoughts on equipment regulation and the changing format of the PGA Tour.

John Blanch grew up in Sussex, England, earned his PGA credential while working at a club in England, and was most recently GM at the iconic Wentworth Club outside London before becoming GM at Loch Lomond Golf Club in Scotland in 2024. In between earning his PGA credential and Wentworth, however, John spent 30 years in a series of fascinating jobs all over the world, from Portugal to Germany to a number of countries in Asia, before returning to the UK in 2020. We talk with John about this remarkable journey and all that he learned along the way.

Jim Nugent has worked in the golf media space for many decades. Having watched the impact of the internet on print golf journalism, Jim had the idea of launching a digital only golf news publication, and so was born Global Golf Post in 2010. We talk with Jim about how he was introduced to the game as a caddie and the pivotal role that played for him in shaping his life, his career in golf media including his time at Golfweek Magazine and his founding of Global Golf Post, his long time involvement with the AJGA, his work with the Annika Foundation and the Amateur Golf Alliance, and other topics.

Mark Cannizzaro has been writing about golf (and other sports) at The NY Post since 1993, having covered well over 100 majors. We talk about which majors have been the most notable for him, what the public doesn't know about The Masters, his thoughts on the overall careers of Tiger and Phil, what is going on with LIV, his thoughts on Brian Rolapp's plans for the PGA Tour, and much more.

Sam Farmer has been an award-winning sportswriter at the LA Times for over 25 years. Though Sam is most well known for his stellar NFL coverage, he has covered golf during his career, and we talk with Sam about those experiences, including the 2019 Masters, the 2023 US Open at LACC, the 2026 US Women’s Open at Riviera and more. We also discuss what it was like to play a round of golf with Donald Trump.

With the 80th anniversary this week of the PGA Tour Event at Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth, Texas (which is the longest running tournament on Tour played at the same course), this is a great time to speak with the Club's leader, Frank Cordeiro. Frank grew up in Southern California, and after serving in leadership positions at clubs in California, he has been leading the iconic Colonial Country Club for nearly 6 years. We talk about how he got started in the club business, his early experiences in the industry, and his challenges and accomplishments at Colonial where he has overseen significant capital projects with respect to both the golf course and the F&B operation. We also discuss his views on best practices for successful clubs and the pitfalls they need to be mindful of.

Brad Klein is a long-time commentator and consultant on golf architecture, having spent 30 years as the architectural editor at Golfweek. Brad's journey in the game is an interesting one, and we discuss how he was smitten with the game growing up on Long Island, and then spent a number of years as an academic while also caddying and doing some writing, before pivoting full-time to golf journalism in the late 1980's. We also get Brad's insights into what he is seeing today in golf architecture, as well as his thoughts on the distance debate.

Mark Newell and I were partners at Latham & Watkins LLP for many decades, and we worked together in management as Mark was Vice Chairman and Chief Operating Partner from 2002-2011 and I was global chair of the tax department from 2000-2011. Mark retired early from the firm and became General Counsel at the USGA from 2011-2012 and ultimately served as the 65th President of the USGA from 2018-2019. Mark's time at the USGA was truly consequential, as his accomplishments included chairing the USGA Rules Committee (where he led the rule change on anchoring and then played a key role in the rules simplification process which led to the 2019 major revision of the rules), authoring the 2020 Distance Insights Report, co-chairing the World Handicap Initiative and revising the governance structure of the USGA. We talk with Mark about how he got started in the game and what led to his involvement with the USGA, we touch on his various accomplishments, and we go deep on the various rules initiatives he championed and the distance issue.

Tripp Davis was a celebrated junior golfer and was an All-American selection at the University of Oklahoma in 1989 and a member of the Sooners' 1989 NCAA championship team. Rather than pursue a career as a player, however, Tripp got a masters' degree in Landscape Architecture and over the past 30+ years he has had a notable career as a golf architect. We talk with Tripp about what made him decide to become a golf architect, what his architectural style is, how he compares restoration work to original designs, why Golden Age architecture is so popular today, what golf architects he most admires, and his thoughts on the current period of golf architecture.

Kevin Vitale, who recently retired after a 22 year run as the GM/COO of the iconic Baltusrol Golf Club, is one of the most well-respected leaders in the private club industry. We talk with Kevin about his upbringing in the Boston area, how he got started in the hospitality industry and how that led to his stellar career in the club industry, and the highlights of his time leading Baltusrol. We also get Kevin's views on some of the issues facing private clubs and best practices in that regard.