• 1 hour 25 minutes
    Can Every City Build a Place Like The Park?

    Can a golf facility be fun, affordable, and welcoming for the local community while maintaining an elite course and golf experience that attracts committed golfers from around the globe? 


    Brian Conley knows it can; he sees it every day, and he believes it starts long before any of them hit their first tee shot.


    As the General Manager of The Park in West Palm Beach, Brian has helped build one of the most celebrated public golf experiences in the country. But this conversation goes well beyond architecture or rankings. It's about creating a place where people feel welcome, where every decision serves a mission, and where golf becomes a vehicle for community rather than exclusivity.


    In this episode of The Bag Drop: Untold Stories in Golf, host Matt Considine and co‑host Dr. Kevin Moore (a.k.a. “The Professor”) sit down with Brian Conley (GM at The Park) to discuss why "fun" became the north star for The Park, what public golf can learn from private clubs (and vice versa), how to think about pricing without compromising accessibility, why walking matters, and whether this model can realistically spread to more cities.

    If you've ever wondered why certain golf courses become gathering places while others remain just another tee sheet, this one's for you.

    The conversation dives into:


    • Why every successful golf project needs a clear "why"
    • The philosophy behind The Park's "Open Golf" approach
    • Stripping away unnecessary traditions without losing what makes golf special
    • The balance between accessibility, sustainability, and premium public golf
    • Building community through programming, leagues, events, and local ownership
    • Why walking-first golf creates a better experience for players and operators
    • Lessons learned from Bobby Jones Golf Course and bringing those ideas to West Palm Beach
    • Whether The Park is a one-of-one or a blueprint for the future of public golf

    The Park
    https://theparkwestpalm.com


    Follow The Bag Drop

    📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thebagdrop
     🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/thebagdropgolf
     📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBagDropGolf


    Listen to The Bag Drop

    🎧 Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-bag-drop-untold-stories-in-golf/id1430328006

    🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2xRWtUBJH8RazdLw14oaGH

    🎧 Transistor: https://thebagdrop.transistor.fm/


    Join the NewClub community

    🌍 Website: https://www.newclub.golf

    📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/newclubgolf/

    🐦 X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/newclubgolf

    📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@newclubgolf

    💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/newclub


    Support our Partners

    🐝 NewClub: https://www.newclub.golf

    🏌️ Titleist: https://www.titleist.com

    🌐 Golf Blueprint: https://www.golfblueprint.com

    Connect with Matt & The Professor

    🎙️ Matt Considine — 🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/consequential85 | 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/consequence18/ | 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matt-considine-103bb21/

    📚 Dr. Kevin Moore ("The Professor") — 🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/kevcmoore | 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kevcmoore | 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-moore-177b30b3/


    Chapters

    00:00 The why comes first
    01:07 Back in love with golf: swing video, flow state
    09:00 Professor's time fact: plants can tell time
    11:25 Partner break — Titleist AIM golf balls
    13:13 Brian Conley joins the show
    15:11 The only non-negotiable: fun
    16:31 Stripping out the norms — what "open golf" actually means
    19:19 Coming up in golf, and learning to be different
    22:42 Why golf is so afraid to test and fail
    24:26 Pricing without apology: the Mercedes problem
    27:50 Protecting the locals in a transient, premium market
    34:42 The recruitment: a 20-minute tour, a January phone call
    39:20 Does the model travel? Scale vs. replicability
    46:16 Sustainability, philanthropy, and funding The Path
    50:41 A 50-year city lease — and a new event teaser
    52:17 Mission over profit, and living outside the box
    56:20 Walking-first in the heat: caddies, loops, and the data
    1:03:35 The Professor's cart confession
    1:06:16 Serving every kind of golfer at once: culture and people
    1:07:03 The kid in the tank top and the Augusta member
    1:13:16 The fake version: how to spot an imposter
    1:17:59 What keeps him up: culture and getting the word out on The Path
    1:20:49 The parrot: the story behind the logo

    What is The Bag Drop?

    The Bag Drop features weekly stories from the culture, community and characters shaping golf today. Produced by NewClub Golf Society, each episode blends authenticity and expert insights for passionate golfers at all levels. Special guests from clubs, courses and every corner of the changing landscape join us for thoughtful, in‑depth discussions on all things golf.


    What is NewClub?

    Founded in 2017, NewClub is the premier private golf society in the United States. It blends the community and access of a private club with the variety and affordability of public golf. Members enjoy thousands of reserved tee times, competitions, and events at exceptional partner courses across our local chapters, as well as signature trips and exclusive perks. NewClub is in the business of belonging, making the game more meaningful for those who love it.

    3 August 2026, 10:30 am
  • 1 hour 43 minutes
    Why Australian Golf Hits Different

    A country that loves a drink almost never drinks on the golf course. That's not temperance — that's the whole story.


    In this episode of The Bag Drop: Untold Stories in Golf, host Matt Considine and co‑host Dr. Kevin Moore (a.k.a. “The Professor”) sit down with Scott Warren (New South Wales Golf Club member and co-host of the Australian Golf Passport podcast) to explore what Americans get right and badly wrong about Australian golf — and why the difference comes down to a single word: competition.


    The conversation dives into:

    • Golf as a sport, not a pastime: comps 5-6 days a week, markers, no gimmes, and why nobody's drinking on the course
    • Mixed-gender golf that works at the club level — and Scott's critique of the co-ed Australian Open
    • Stableford done properly, technology, and the case for a rollback so a ball bounces again
    • What Australian golf actually costs, from Barnbougle to top-tier club fees, vs. the US
    • The fight to save civic golf in Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide (North Adelaide, Moore Park)
    • Under-credited architects Alex Russell and Mike Clayton, and Greg Norman's cultural weight
    • Junior golf, the eroded pathway to the pro ranks, and the next five years of the Australian Open and LIV Adelaide
    • A Bluey tangent worth staying for: Bandit, and the Custard connection

    Connect with our guests

    🇦🇺 Australian Golf Passport podcast — https://australiangolfpassport.com/
    🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/ausgolfpassport
    📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/australiangolfpassport/

    Follow The Bag Drop

    📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thebagdrop
     🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/thebagdropgolf
     📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBagDropGolf


    Listen to The Bag Drop

    🎧 Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-bag-drop-untold-stories-in-golf/id1430328006

    🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2xRWtUBJH8RazdLw14oaGH

    🎧 Transistor: https://thebagdrop.transistor.fm/


    Join the NewClub community

    🌍 Website: https://www.newclub.golf

    📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/newclubgolf/

    🐦 X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/newclubgolf

    📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@newclubgolf

    💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/newclub


    Support our Partners

    🐝 NewClub: https://www.newclub.golf

    🏌️ Titleist: https://www.titleist.com

    🌐 Golf Blueprint: https://www.golfblueprint.com
     

    Connect with Matt & The Professor

    🎙️ Matt Considine — 🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/consequential85 | 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/consequence18/ | 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matt-considine-103bb21/

    📚 Dr. Kevin Moore ("The Professor") — 🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/kevcmoore | 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kevcmoore | 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-moore-177b30b3/


    Chapters

    00:00 Introduction: coffee, eating on golf trips, and why men host podcasts

    08:22 Partner break: Titleist, New Club fittings, and finally putting the seven wood in the bag

    10:02 Scott Warren joins: what Americans actually get right about Australian golf

    11:48 The depth question: the 35-40 courses we romanticize vs. the ~450 that exist

    13:41 Golf is a sport, not a pastime: why Australians don't drink on the course

    16:43 A day at the club: comps 5-6 days a week, markers, no gimmes

    19:59 Mixed-gender golf: why it works at the club and why the co-ed Australian Open didn't

    28:28 Scale, technology and the case for a rollback; a persimmon what-if

    29:38 Stableford done right — and Scott's issue with the American version

    34:20 Playing from the wrong fairway: Tiger at Firestone, Greg Norman over the oak

    38:20 Norman's cultural weight; Aaron Baddeley and the ones who nearly made it

    44:15 Junior golf, pennant, and the pathway to the pro ranks that's eroded

    53:36 The next five years of Australian pro golf: LIV Adelaide, the Open, the money

    1:01:28 Civic golf under fire: North Adelaide, Moore Park, and who these fights really hit

    1:07:31 What an Australian club membership actually costs vs. the US

    1:15:39 Bluey, Bandit, and the Custard connection

    1:19:09 Getting in: waitlists, proposers, and the quiet power of a members' list

    1:23:24 The origin of the Australian Golf Passport, and golf media that won't just say everything's great

    1:33:17 Under-credited architects: Alex Russell and Mike Clayton vs. the McKenzie romance

    1:39:25 Barnbougle, King Island and Seven Mile: destination golf that's still affordable

    1:43:01 Spiders, snakes, and selling the family on Australia



    What is The Bag Drop?

    The Bag Drop features weekly stories from the culture, community and characters shaping golf today. Produced by NewClub Golf Society, each episode blends authenticity and expert insights for passionate golfers at all levels. Special guests from clubs, courses and every corner of the changing landscape join us for thoughtful, in‑depth discussions on all things golf.


    What is NewClub?

    Founded in 2017, NewClub is the premier private golf society in the United States. It blends the community and access of a private club with the variety and affordability of public golf. Members enjoy thousands of reserved tee times, competitions and events at exceptional partner courses across our local chapters, as well as signature trips and exclusive perks. NewClub is revolutionizing golf membership, making the game more meaningful for those who love it.

    27 July 2026, 11:15 am
  • 1 hour 9 minutes
    Sympathetic Renovation with Dave Zinkand

    For fifteen years, Dave Zinkand's name never made it onto the scorecard. He was the guy in the field for Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw — Bandon Trails, Bandon Preserve, WeKoPa— learning to be an editor of his own work. Now the decisions land on his desk, and his name is the one members attach to the outcome. In this episode of The Bag Drop: Untold Stories in Golf, Dave Zinkand of Zinkand Golf Design joins host Matt Considine and co-host Dr. Kevin Moore (aka "The Professor") to talk about what actually changes when you step to the front of the room — and why the entire craft might come down to a single word a stranger handed him at Port Marnock: angles.

    The conversation dives into:

    • Restoration vs. renovation, and the "sympathetic renovation" middle ground — including Old Elm, where Harry Colt designed a course he never saw, Donald Ross took liberties in his absence, and Dave's team finally built Colt's torn-edge bunkers for the first time, a century later.
    • Reversible golf at Medinah Country Club: a nine-hole, par-31 course routed through a floodplain with two double greens — and the rare owner (Bill Cosgrove) who greenlit the fun idea first, before the "serious" work. 
    • Saddle & Cycle Club: three acres of golf inside a Chicago social club, and the case for sub-three-hour experiences as the missing rung on the ladder that brings people into the game.
    • Naturalized bunkering, native areas, and the honest maintenance math behind the rugged look — plus why a great superintendent's buy-in matters as much as the drawing.

    Connect with our guest

    Dave Zinkand — Zinkand Golf Design: https://zinkandgolfdesign.com/
    📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/zinkandgolfdesign/
    💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-zinkand-a689a64/


    Follow The Bag Drop

    📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thebagdrop
    🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/thebagdropgolf
    📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBagDropGolf


    Listen to The Bag Drop

    🎧 Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-bag-drop-untold-stories-in-golf/id1430328006

    🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2xRWtUBJH8RazdLw14oaGH

    🎧 Transistor: https://thebagdrop.transistor.fm/


    Join the NewClub community

    🌍 Website: https://www.newclub.golf

    📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/newclubgolf/

    🐦 X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/newclubgolf

    📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@newclubgolf

    💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/newclub


    Support our Partners

    🐝 NewClub: https://www.newclub.golf

    🏌️ Titleist: https://www.titleist.com

    🌐 Golf Blueprint: https://www.golfblueprint.com


    Connect with Matt & The Professor

    🎙️ Matt Considine — 🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/consequential85 | 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/consequence18/ | 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matt-considine-103bb21/

    📚 Dr. Kevin Moore ("The Professor") — 🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/kevcmoore | 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kevcmoore | 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-moore-177b30b3/


    Chapters

    02:14 Introducing Dave Zinkand 
    04:38 The Professor's fact of the day: the octopus
    07:35 Partner break — Titleist GTS drivers and MOI
    09:02 From the field for Coore & Crenshaw to your own name on the door
    13:40 Editing your own work, and being open to your team's ideas
    15:11 Strategy and playability: the one word is "angles"
    18:59 The Dreer Award — Hoylake, Rye, and learning the links
    22:41 Firm vs. soft: designing angles for wet Ohio Junes
    27:03 The superintendent relationship and earning buy-in
    30:13 Rugged, naturalized bunkering and the maintenance trade-offs
    35:37 Restoration vs. renovation, and "sympathetic renovation"
    40:20 Old Elm: Harry Colt's intent, Ross's liberties, and bunkers built at last
    44:17 Saddle & Cycle: three acres of golf in the city
    49:50 Short courses, the "ladder of learning," and sub-three-hour golf
    54:37 Reversible golf and the Medina par-31
    1:05:02 What's different when you route a course to play both ways
    1:08:28 The best reversible not named the Old Course: Doak's Loop
    1:12:36 One habit that travels everywhere — and the Irishman's word: balance


    What is The Bag Drop?

    The Bag Drop features weekly stories from the culture, community and characters shaping golf today. Produced by NewClub Golf Society, each episode blends authenticity and expert insights for passionate golfers at all levels. Special guests from clubs, courses and every corner of the changing landscape join us for thoughtful, in‑depth discussions on all things golf.


    What is NewClub?

    Founded in 2017, NewClub is the premier private golf society in the United States. It blends the community and access of a private club with the variety and affordability of public golf. Members enjoy thousands of reserved tee times, competitions and events at exceptional partner courses across our local chapters, as well as signature trips and exclusive perks. NewClub is revolutionizing golf membership, making the game more meaningful for those who love it.

    20 July 2026, 1:40 pm
  • 1 hour 9 minutes
    How to Actually Qualify for a USGA Four-Ball

    Everyone tells you golf is an individual game. Zach Healy and Jack Larkin Jr. are quietly proving how much better it gets when it isn't.

    The two former University of Georgia golfers — roommates for all five years, four-ball partners ever since — join Matt and The Professor to talk about the format that's given them a second golf life: USGA Four-Ball. They've made a habit of tearing up the amateur scene, and this year they finished T2 in stroke play and came a single shot shy of the championship's single-round record with a 63.


    What the conversation dives into:

    • Why the best four-ball teams aren't the perfect ones — and how one early bogey stopped mattering
    • The 63 in the Arizona desert: six birdies in the first eight holes, cocktails in hand, trading who could one-up the other
    • The unglamorous re-navigation back into competitive golf after college, and why you have to be willing to shoot 80 in a qualifier to get sharp again
    • Getting smarter as you get older: swapping a 15-year putter for a "spaceship," and checking the ego at the door
    • Gamesmanship inside the ropes — walking fast, talking a lot, and where the line actually is
    • Jack Larkin Sr., the family blueprint for playing high-level golf at 65, and who wins when three Larkins tee it up

    Connect with our guests

    Zach Healy — 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/z_jhealy | 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zachary-healy/

    Jack Larkin —  📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jlarkin_uga | 💼 https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-larkin-b738a4126/



    Follow The Bag Drop

    📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thebagdrop
    🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/thebagdropgolf
    📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBagDropGolf


    Listen to The Bag Drop

    🎧 Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-bag-drop-untold-stories-in-golf/id1430328006

    🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2xRWtUBJH8RazdLw14oaGH

    🎧 Transistor: https://thebagdrop.transistor.fm/


    Join the NewClub community

    🌍 Website: https://www.newclub.golf

    📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/newclubgolf/

    🐦 X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/newclubgolf

    📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@newclubgolf

    💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/newclub


    Support our Partners

    🐝 NewClub: https://www.newclub.golf

    🏌️ Titleist: https://www.titleist.com

    🌐 Golf Blueprint: https://www.golfblueprint.com


    Connect with Matt & The Professor

    🎙️ Matt Considine — 🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/consequential85 | 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/consequence18/ | 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matt-considine-103bb21/

    📚 Dr. Kevin Moore ("The Professor") — 🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/kevcmoore | 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kevcmoore | 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-moore-177b30b3/


    Chapters:
    00:00 One season, one complaint — doormen, summer, and the Midwest golf report
    05:30 Meet Zach & Jack: how the Professor first crossed paths with the Georgia team
    06:08 The Professor's teach: which clubs have hosted the U.S. Amateur most
    09:16 Partner spotlight: Titleist, the GTS, and matching your ball
    10:41 How do you actually qualify for the USGA Four-Ball?
    12:35 Why the best teams aren't perfect
    13:31 Steady Eddie vs. the EKG machine: how partners complement each other
    17:00 The 63: six birdies in eight holes and a run at the record
    19:45 Birdie juice — transfusions, screwdrivers, and desert superstitions
    22:49 How they met, and five years as roommates
    25:19 Walking into UGA and realizing you're not the best guy anymore
    30:32 What makes a great teammate
    34:29 Zach's shot at pro golf, and the pay-phone moment he hung it up
    39:44 Jack the working man, and the hard road back to competitive golf
    45:00 Getting smarter with age: efficiency, ego, and the spaceship putter
    52:24 Jack Larkin Sr. and the family blueprint for golf longevity
    56:08 Course selection, home-site traps, and football-weekend regrets
    1:01:00 Match play, momentum, and a two-down-with-two-to-go comeback
    1:04:30 Gamesmanship: walk fast, talk a lot, never cross the line
    1:09:00 Why team golf makes the whole thing more fun

    What is The Bag Drop?

    The Bag Drop features weekly stories from the culture, community and characters shaping golf today. Produced by NewClub Golf Society, each episode blends authenticity and expert insights for passionate golfers at all levels. Special guests from clubs, courses and every corner of the changing landscape join us for thoughtful, in‑depth discussions on all things golf.


    What is NewClub?

    Founded in 2017, NewClub is the premier private golf society in the United States. It blends the community and access of a private club with the variety and affordability of public golf. Members enjoy thousands of reserved tee times, competitions and events at exceptional partner courses across our local chapters, as well as signature trips and exclusive perks. NewClub is revolutionizing golf membership, making the game more meaningful for those who love it.

    13 July 2026, 10:30 am
  • 1 hour 37 minutes
    Shop Different, Play Different

    What does it actually take to write someone else's story in their own voice?

    In this episode of The Bag Drop: Untold Stories in Golf, host Matt Considine and co‑host Dr. Kevin Moore (a.k.a. “The Professor”) sit down with New Club Chicago's 2026 captain (and reigning club champ) Zander Nethercutt to trace an unlikely path: a 2017 essay about the Apple Store, a Facebook message six years later, and three years of near-daily phone calls that turned into Shop Different: How Retail Revealed Apple's Genius — the book he ghostwrote with Apple Store founder Ron Johnson. It's a conversation about writing as thinking, the discipline of changing your mind, and why the best clubs (and the best stores) are built around people, not product.

    The conversation dives into:

    • What a rainy monthly medal at Oak Brook tells you everything about a club: consistency, ritual, and showing up for guys you actually care about
    • How Zander beat Ron Johnson in their first round together — and why that round became a book
    • The decision to stop writing about Ron and start writing as Ron, and the dinner-party question that flipped the whole project
    • Ron's first memory — and the unconditional love that shaped a career
    • The green-vs-blue text myth, and why Zander now thinks his viral take got Apple exactly wrong
    • Launch, deepen, restore: how the Apple Store was designed from the customer backward, and what golf retail could steal from it

    Connect with our guest

    Zander Nethercutt
    📖 Amazon Book Pre-order: https://bit.ly/4esvV8Q

    💼 Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zander-nethercutt-0583b683/
    📝 Substack: https://substack.com/@zander/notes
    📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/zandercutt/|

    Follow The Bag Drop

    📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thebagdrop
     🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/thebagdropgolf
     📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBagDropGolf


    Listen to The Bag Drop

    🎧 Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-bag-drop-untold-stories-in-golf/id1430328006

    🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2xRWtUBJH8RazdLw14oaGH

    🎧 Transistor: https://thebagdrop.transistor.fm/


    Join the NewClub community

    🌍 Website: https://www.newclub.golf

    📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/newclubgolf/

    🐦 X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/newclubgolf

    📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@newclubgolf

    💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/newclub


    Support our Partners

    🐝 NewClub: https://www.newclub.golf

    🏌️ Titleist: https://www.titleist.com

    🌐 Golf Blueprint: https://www.golfblueprint.com

    Additional Links:
    ✍️
    Zander's 2017 Essay "The Luxury Network": https://zandercutt.com/2017/11/15/the-luxury-network/
    📖 Preorder "Shop Different: How Retail Revealed Apple's Genius": https://bit.ly/4esvV8Q


    Connect with Matt & The Professor

    🎙️ Matt Considine — 🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/consequential85 | 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/consequence18/ | 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matt-considine-103bb21/

    📚 Dr. Kevin Moore ("The Professor") — 🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/kevcmoore | 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kevcmoore | 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-moore-177b30b3/


    Chapters

    00:00 Introduction

    03:11 The Role of Competition in Golf

    05:50 Understanding the Role of a Club Captain

    08:32 Xander's Journey to Becoming a Writer

    11:18 The Impact of Writing on Personal Growth

    14:05 The Story Behind 'Shop Different' Book

    17:08 Lessons Learned from Ron Johnson

    19:47 The Personal Journey of Xander Nethercutt

    34:45 The Call to Retail: A Personal Journey

    38:48 The Shift: From Writer to Ghostwriter

    42:55 Revisiting Perspectives: Apple as a Luxury Brand

    47:26 The Evolution of Apple: From Humble Beginnings to Iconic Stores

    51:09 The Pressure of Leadership: Balancing Speed and Strategy

    56:43 The Role of Action: How Doing Shapes Thinking

    01:01:27 The Power of Kindness in Leadership

    01:04:59 Cutting Stories: The Art of Editing and Its Impact

    01:09:37 Lessons from High Performers

    01:16:08 Self-Actualization through Golf

    01:21:17 Redefining the Golf Experience

    01:27:29 Finding Passion in Golf


    What is The Bag Drop?

    The Bag Drop features weekly stories from the culture, community and characters shaping golf today. Produced by NewClub Golf Society, each episode blends authenticity and expert insights for passionate golfers at all levels. Special guests from clubs, courses and every corner of the changing landscape join us for thoughtful, in‑depth discussions on all things golf.


    What is NewClub?

    Founded in 2017, NewClub is the premier private golf society in the United States. It blends the community and access of a private club with the variety and affordability of public golf. Members enjoy thousands of reserved tee times, competitions and events at exceptional partner courses across our local chapters, as well as signature trips and exclusive perks. NewClub is revolutionizing golf membership, making the game more meaningful for those who love it.

    29 June 2026, 10:30 am
  • 55 minutes 21 seconds
    Where Does the Water Go?

    Every golfer has stood over a putt and guessed. Erik Belgum learned to ask one question instead: where does the water go?


    In this episode of The Bag Drop: Untold Stories in Golf, host Matt Considine and co‑host Dr. Kevin Moore (a.k.a. “The Professor”) sit down with Erik Belgum —  a design associate with Billy Fuller and Tom Kite, and right now he's elbow-deep in the dirt at Otter Creek in Columbus, Indiana — a Robert Trent Jones original being reimagined into cradle-to-grave golf. He walks Matt and the Professor through the parts of course design nobody romanticizes: the AutoCAD, the budgets, the order of operations, and the moment a green gets approved before it's actually ready.


    The conversation dives into:

    • How a kid pulling a cobwebbed pull cart in Iowa City ended up self-taught at Atlanta's Bobby Jones muni — on a $300 junior pass, with a five-questions-a-day limit from the pro shop
    • The church pew that changed his life: ending up in a congregation with two working golf architects, Bob Cupp and Billy Fuller
    • The real story of the Billy Bunker — how a highway shoulder, a McDonald's playground, and Dow Chemical turned into the industry standard
    • The Cayman ball: the McGregor experiment Jack Nicklaus commissioned to make 5,000 yards play like 7,000, and the 13 dozen Erik inherited from his mentor
    • Why constraint breeds creativity — bunkerless greens at Setting Down Creek, and slope as strategy at Otter Creek

    Connect with our guest

    💼 Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/erik-belgum-2a587874/

    📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/billyfullergolfdesign/

    Follow The Bag Drop

    📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thebagdrop
     🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/thebagdropgolf
     📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBagDropGolf


    Listen to The Bag Drop

    🎧 Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-bag-drop-untold-stories-in-golf/id1430328006

    🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2xRWtUBJH8RazdLw14oaGH

    🎧 Transistor: https://thebagdrop.transistor.fm/


    Join the NewClub community

    🌍 Website: https://www.newclub.golf

    📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/newclubgolf/

    🐦 X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/newclubgolf

    📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@newclubgolf

    💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/newclub


    Support our Partners

    🐝 NewClub: https://www.newclub.golf

    🏌️ Titleist: https://www.titleist.com

    🌐 Golf Blueprint: https://www.golfblueprint.com

    Connect with Matt & The Professor

    🎙️ Matt Considine — 🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/consequential85 | 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/consequence18/ | 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matt-considine-103bb21/

    📚 Dr. Kevin Moore ("The Professor") — 🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/kevcmoore | 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kevcmoore | 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-moore-177b30b3/


    Chapters

    00:00  Cold open: back to loving chipping

    00:35  Bermuda vs. bent — reading lies and no margin for error

    05:48  Setting up the episode: who Erik is and why now

    06:14  Fact of the week: reading before bed and the science of winding down

    11:05  Partner: Titleist GTS — what the Professor got fit into

    12:24  Erik joins; Otter Creek, Columbus, and the J. Irwin Miller / Cummins story

    16:08  Cradle-to-grave golf: the Romp, the Pup, and the championship Otter

    19:26  The unromantic side of design: AutoCAD, budgets, order of operations

    21:37  Origin story: his dad, Iowa City, and a cobwebbed pull cart

    24:24  A $300 junior pass and learning the game at Bobby Jones

    25:50  Cart kid, the starter's nightmare tee, and "five questions a day"

    26:50  The church mentors: Bob Cupp and Billy Fuller

    30:34  Choosing landscape architecture; UGA, fall of 2007

    33:00  His own game today: letting go of score, old equipment

    35:14  What is a Cayman ball?

    43:00  Inheriting 13 dozen Cayman balls from Bob Cupp

    40:30  Billy Fuller's agronomy pedigree and his years at Augusta National

    46:45  How the Billy Bunker was actually invented

    51:38  Lessons learned: the green he approved too soon

    56:42  Where does the water go — infrastructure as strategy

    59:31  Setting Down Creek and how constraint breeds creativity

    01:02:24  Favorite courses: Cuscawilla, Old Barnwell, North Berwick, Sunningdale

    01:07:57  What success at Otter Creek looks like in a year


    What is The Bag Drop?

    The Bag Drop features weekly stories from the culture, community and characters shaping golf today. Produced by NewClub Golf Society, each episode blends authenticity and expert insights for passionate golfers at all levels. Special guests from clubs, courses and every corner of the changing landscape join us for thoughtful, in‑depth discussions on all things golf.


    What is NewClub?

    Founded in 2017, NewClub is the premier private golf society in the United States. It blends the community and access of a private club with the variety and affordability of public golf. Members enjoy thousands of reserved tee times, competitions and events at exceptional partner courses across our local chapters, as well as signature trips and exclusive perks. NewClub is revolutionizing golf membership, making the game more meaningful for those who love it.

    22 June 2026, 10:28 am
  • 51 minutes 25 seconds
    Golf Rules We'd Keep, Kill, and Rewrite

    What should never change about golf? And what should have been changed years ago?


    With the U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills around the corner, Matt and the Professor crack open the Rules of Golf and start drafting their own version of the game. From lost-ball penalties and green-reading books to arm-lock putters, divots, and pace of play, they each pick the rule changes they love, the ones they question, the ones they'd like to see, and the ones they hope survive forever.

    What starts as a conversation about golf's rulebook quickly becomes something bigger: a debate about fairness, skill, technology, tradition, and what the game is actually trying to reward.


    What the conversation dives into:

    • Why the 2019 Rules modernization may have been one of the most important pace-of-play initiatives in modern golf
    • The forgotten experiments with out-of-bounds penalties, including eras when stroke-and-distance didn't exist
    • Whether arm-lock putters, oversized grips, and modern equipment have drifted too far from the spirit of the game
    • The case for enforcing pace of play as a competitive skill, not just a courtesy
    • Why "play it as it lies" remains one of golf's most important ideas, even when your ball is sitting in a divot
    • The original 1744 Rules of Golf, "watery filth," and the strange rulebook debates that shaped the game we play today


    Follow The Bag Drop

    📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thebagdrop
     🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/thebagdropgolf
     📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBagDropGolf


    Listen to The Bag Drop

    🎧 Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-bag-drop-untold-stories-in-golf/id1430328006

    🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2xRWtUBJH8RazdLw14oaGH

    🎧 Transistor: https://thebagdrop.transistor.fm/


    Join the NewClub community

    🌍 Website: https://www.newclub.golf

    📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/newclubgolf/

    🐦 X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/newclubgolf

    📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@newclubgolf

    💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/newclub


    Support our Partners

    🐝 NewClub: https://www.newclub.golf

    🏌️ Titleist: https://www.titleist.com

    🌐 Golf Blueprint: https://www.golfblueprint.com

    Connect with Matt & The Professor

    🎙️ Matt Considine — 🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/consequential85 | 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/consequence18/ | 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matt-considine-103bb21/

    📚 Dr. Kevin Moore ("The Professor") — 🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/kevcmoore | 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kevcmoore | 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-moore-177b30b3/


    Chapters

    0:00 - Intro
     09:54 - Rule Changes We Love
     12:34 - The 14-club limit and respecting the caddie
     14:34 - Pace of play, red penalty areas, and 2019's biggest wins
     17:21 - Flagsticks, green-reading books, and modern putting
     20:28 - Rule Changes We Hate
     21:32 - Touching the line of play on the green
     22:48 - The case against stroke-and-distance penalties
     27:59 - Would "distance only" make golf more fun?
     28:20 - Rule Changes We'd Like to See
     29:24 - Arm-lock putters, equipment limits, and putting skill
     33:29 - Driver heads, shaft length, and equipment regulation
     34:33 - Bringing back old rules and enforcing pace of play
     40:33 - Rules We'd Never Change
     41:15 - Why players should keep each other's score
     42:08 - Play it as it lies and the divot debate
     45:34 - The original Rules of Golf and playing your own ball
     49:08 - Double hits, dropping from the knee, and modern quirks


    What is The Bag Drop?

    The Bag Drop features weekly stories from the culture, community and characters shaping golf today. Produced by NewClub Golf Society, each episode blends authenticity and expert insights for passionate golfers at all levels. Special guests from clubs, courses and every corner of the changing landscape join us for thoughtful, in‑depth discussions on all things golf.


    What is NewClub?

    Founded in 2017, NewClub is the premier private golf society in the United States. It blends the community and access of a private club with the variety and affordability of public golf. Members enjoy thousands of reserved tee times, competitions and events at exceptional partner courses across our local chapters, as well as signature trips and exclusive perks. NewClub is revolutionizing golf membership, making the game more meaningful for those who love it.

    8 June 2026, 11:00 am
  • 1 hour 10 minutes
    Golf, Identity, and Starting Over

    What happens when the thing you’ve built your entire identity around suddenly stops being your job?

    This week, Matt and The Professor sit down with a friend and former PGA Tour player and Korn Ferry Tour winner, Chris Wilson, for one of the most honest conversations we’ve had about professional golf, pressure, performance, and life after competition. What starts as a conversation about Q-School, Northwestern, and surviving on Tour slowly becomes something much deeper: how the elite performers learn to let go, reinvent themselves, and figure out who they are when the score no longer defines them.


    Along the way, Chris explains why bad weather can free your golf swing, why “be aggressive” is terrible putting advice, how Tour players spiral after missed cuts, and why the best skill he carried from golf into finance had nothing to do with golf at all.


    What the conversation dives into:

    •  Why miserable weather sometimes produces the best golf 
    •  The hidden psychological pressure of Tour reshuffles and missed cuts 
    •  What winning on the Korn Ferry Tour actually changes - and what it doesn’t 
    •  The difference between linear and nonlinear putters 
    •  Why Chris says he “never thought about pace” while putting 
    •  The challenge of separating your identity from your golf game 
    •  What elite golf teaches you about business, communication, and relationships 
    •  How learning to “care less” can actually improve performance 

    Connect with our guest

    💼 https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-wilson-98b112127/


    Follow The Bag Drop

    📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thebagdrop
     🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/thebagdropgolf
     📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBagDropGolf


    Listen to The Bag Drop

    🎧 Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-bag-drop-untold-stories-in-golf/id1430328006

    🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2xRWtUBJH8RazdLw14oaGH

    🎧 Transistor: https://thebagdrop.transistor.fm/


    Join the NewClub community

    🌍 Website: https://www.newclub.golf

    📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/newclubgolf/

    🐦 X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/newclubgolf

    📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@newclubgolf

    💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/newclub


    Support our Partners

    🐝 NewClub: https://www.newclub.golf

    🏌️ Titleist: https://www.titleist.com

    🌐 Golf Blueprint: https://www.golfblueprint.com
     

    Connect with Matt & The Professor

    🎙️ Matt Considine — 🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/consequential85 | 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/consequence18/ | 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matt-considine-103bb21/

    📚 Dr. Kevin Moore ("The Professor") — 🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/kevcmoore | 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kevcmoore | 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-moore-177b30b3/


    Chapters

    00:00 - Intro
    07:57 - Chris Wilson joins the show
    13:08 - Northwestern vs Ohio State
    17:06 - The jump from college golf to professional golf
    21:51 - PGA Tour reshuffles and surviving missed cuts
    31:21 - Winning on the Korn Ferry Tour
    35:29 - Leaving professional golf behind
    42:53 - The philosophy of putting
    49:18 - Why Chris “never thought about pace”

    What is The Bag Drop?

    The Bag Drop features weekly stories from the culture, community, and characters shaping golf today. Produced by NewClub Golf Society, each episode blends authenticity and expert insights for passionate golfers at all levels. Special guests from clubs, courses and every corner of the changing landscape join us for thoughtful, in-depth discussions on all things golf.


    What is NewClub?

    Founded in 2017, NewClub is the premier private golf society in the United States. It blends the community and access of a private club with the variety and affordability of public golf. Members enjoy thousands of reserved tee times, competitions and events at exceptional partner courses across our local chapters, as well as signature trips and exclusive perks. NewClub is revolutionizing golf membership, making the game more meaningful for those who love it.

    11 May 2026, 11:00 am
  • 1 hour 3 minutes
    A Club Without a Course, A Community With Purpose

    How do you become one of the oldest and now largest predominantly black golf clubs in the world without owning a golf course? By building around people and purpose. 


    In this episode of The Bag Drop: Untold Stories in Golf, host Matt Considine and cohost Dr. Kevin Moore sit down with Ralph N. Paulk, president of Tire Town Golf Club in Akron, Ohio, to talk about one of the most meaningful golf stories hiding in plain sight.

    Founded in 1950, Tire Town began at a time when few local clubs allowed Black golfers to play. Today, it is known as the largest predominantly Black golf club in America — but Ralph is quick to make clear that size is not the point. The real story is what the club has become: a community built through golf, service, youth development, scholarships, volunteerism, and a stubborn belief that the game can open doors when people are willing to do the work.

    The conversation dives into:

    • Tire Town’s origins at Good Park and Ridge Top, and why those courses matter in Akron golf history
    • What it means to be a club without a course — and why that idea resonates so deeply with NewClub
    • Ralph’s life in the Marine Corps, sports journalism, boxing, and covering legends like Arnold Palmer
    • How Tire Town grew from a golf group into a broader civic force with junior programs, scholarships, and community partnerships
    • Why representation at places like Firestone Country Club matters, and how Tire Town members are changing who feels present in golf
    • The intentional growth of women’s leadership, junior involvement, volunteerism, and racial diversity inside the club
    • Golf as a foundation — not the whole house — for helping young people build confidence, discipline, opportunity, and a larger sense of what is possible

    Connect with our guest

    🏌️ Ralph N. Paulk — Tire Town Golf Club: https://tiretowngolfclub.net/ — 🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/ralphpaulk_trib | 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ralph-n-paulk-0834817/


    Follow The Bag Drop

    📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thebagdrop
    🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/thebagdropgolf
    📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBagDropGolf


    Listen to The Bag Drop

    🎧 Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-bag-drop-untold-stories-in-golf/id1430328006

    🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2xRWtUBJH8RazdLw14oaGH

    🎧 Transistor: https://thebagdrop.transistor.fm/


    Join the NewClub community

    🌍 Website: https://www.newclub.golf

    📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/newclubgolf/

    🐦 X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/newclubgolf

    📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@newclubgolf

    💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/newclub


    Support our Partners

    🐝 NewClub: https://www.newclub.golf

    🏌️ Titleist: https://www.titleist.com

    🌐 Golf Blueprint: https://www.golfblueprint.com


    Chapters

    00:00 Introduction, spring golf energy, and Sweetens Cove

    03:11 Introducing Ralph N. Paulk and Tire Town Golf Club

    10:41 Ralph joins the show

    12:12 Ralph’s first introduction to Tire Town

    14:40 Growing Tire Town beyond golf

    17:31 Women’s leadership, diversity, and intentional growth

    20:23 Ralph’s path from the Marine Corps to sports journalism

    24:54 Arnold Palmer, Akron golf, and stories beyond the scoreboard

    29:23 Tire Town’s 1950 origins and golf access in Akron

    36:58 Tire Town colors, Goodyear roots, and the Akron identity

    40:20 From golf club to community service engine

    42:19 Firestone, volunteering, and changing who feels present

    46:14 Why golf works as a foundation for young people

    50:06 Opening the doors without losing the legacy

    57:19 Service, family, and the Marine Corps

    01:00:04 Ralph’s writing, Charles Follis, and untold sports history

    01:03:31 What Tire Town hopes to be in 2036

    01:09:01 Closing thoughts


    What is The Bag Drop?

    The Bag Drop features weekly stories from the culture, community, and characters shaping golf today. Produced by NewClub Golf Society, each episode blends authenticity and expert insights for passionate golfers at all levels. Special guests from clubs, courses and every corner of the changing landscape join us for thoughtful, in-depth discussions on all things golf.


    What is NewClub?

    Founded in 2017, NewClub is the premier private golf society in the United States. It blends the community and access of a private club with the variety and affordability of public golf. Members enjoy thousands of reserved tee times, competitions and events at exceptional partner courses across our local chapters, as well as signature trips and exclusive perks. NewClub is revolutionizing golf membership, making the game more meaningful for those who love it.

    4 May 2026, 10:00 am
  • 1 hour 27 minutes
    The Ghost Name in Golf Course Architecture

    Joe Hancock may be the most-mentioned, least-seen name in modern golf course architecture.

    In this episode of The Bag Drop: Untold Stories in Golf, host Matt Considine and cohost Dr. Kevin Moore sit down with Joe (@joeytheknows on Twitter), golf course shaper, designer, superintendent, operator, and longtime DeVries Design collaborator.

    Joe has one of those golf lives that seem to run beneath the surface of the game and the grounds we play on. He grew up around golf in Michigan, worked as a superintendent, owned and operated a family golf course, helped build The Mines with Mike DeVries, and has since shaped and collaborated on projects with some of the most respected architects in the modern game.

    The conversation dives into:

    • Joe’s friendship and working relationship with Mike DeVries, from childhood summers on Crystal Lake to shaping The Mines in Grand Rapids
    • Why being a former superintendent and golf course operator changed the way Joe thinks about clients, budgets, maintenance, and the people who actually play the course
    • The quiet art of shaping, including how a shaper learns when to execute, when to suggest, and when to let the land do most of the work
    • Broomsedge, Candy Root, and the design decisions that create charm, confusion, restraint, half-par holes, and shots that stay with you after the round
    • The case for more accessible, affordable, interesting public golf — and why the future of the game needs more than expensive destination architecture

    Connect with our guest

    🚜 Joe Hancock — https://devriesdesigns.com/joe-hancock — 🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/JoeytheKnows


    Follow The Bag Drop

    📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thebagdrop
    🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/thebagdropgolf
    📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBagDropGolf


    Listen to The Bag Drop

    🎧 Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-bag-drop-untold-stories-in-golf/id1430328006

    🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2xRWtUBJH8RazdLw14oaGH

    🎧 Transistor: https://thebagdrop.transistor.fm/


    Join the NewClub community

    🌍 Website: https://www.newclub.golf

    📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/newclubgolf/

    🐦 X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/newclubgolf

    📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@newclubgolf

    💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/newclub


    Support our Partners

    🐝 NewClub: https://www.newclub.golf

    🏌️ Titleist: https://www.titleist.com

    🌐 Golf Blueprint: https://www.golfblueprint.com


    Connect with Matt & The Professor

    🎙️ Matt Considine — 🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/consequential85 | 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/consequence18/ | 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matt-considine-103bb21/

    📚 Dr. Kevin Moore ("The Professor") — 🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/kevcmoore | 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kevcmoore | 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-moore-177b30b3/


    Chapters

    00:00 Allergies, handkerchiefs, putting woes, and intentional practice

    10:02 Titleist fitting, descent angle, and getting on to the show

    12:08 Joe Hancock joins The Bag Drop

    14:16 Growing up with Mike DeVries and finding golf course work

    22:17 Building The Mines and discovering a life in shaping

    26:45 What owning and operating a golf course taught Joe about service

    32:13 Collaboration, humility, and getting inside an architect’s head

    42:15 What the best architects have in common

    44:25 Broom Sedge, challenge, charm, and half-par golf

    47:39 How Joe ended up at Broom Sedge

    56:04 The mystery and strategy of Broom Sedge’s 18th hole

    01:06:38 Firm golf, color, turf, restraint, and maintenance expectations

    01:13:06 Candy Root and doing less to the land

    01:20:29 Public versus private golf and the future of access

    01:31:26 What’s next for Joe Hancock


    What is The Bag Drop?

    The Bag Drop features weekly stories from the culture, community, and characters shaping golf today. Produced by NewClub Golf Society, each episode blends authenticity and expert insights for passionate golfers at all levels. Special guests from clubs, courses and every corner of the changing landscape join us for thoughtful, in-depth discussions on all things golf.


    What is NewClub?

    Founded in 2017, NewClub is the premier private golf society in the United States. It blends the community and access of a private club with the variety and affordability of public golf. Members enjoy thousands of reserved tee times, competitions and events at exceptional partner courses across our local chapters, as well as signature trips and exclusive perks. NewClub is revolutionizing golf membership, making the game more meaningful for those who love it.

    28 April 2026, 10:00 am
  • 1 hour 31 minutes
    Where Golf Still Feels Like Golf: North Berwick to Royal Melbourne

    What if the places we romanticize most in golf aren’t perfect at all, just alive in a way we rarely get at home?

    In this episode of The Bag Drop, host Matt Considine and cohost Dr. Kevin Moore (a.k.a. “The Professor”) sit down with Joshua Ralston, professor at the University of Edinburgh, North Berwick member, and the voice behind Golfing Scotland on Instagram, to explore what makes a place feel real even when the postcard version wears off.

    From East Lothian to Melbourne’s sandbelt, this is a conversation about club culture, architecture, competition, travel, and the difference between famous golf and golf that still feels lived in. If you’ve ever wondered why some places stay in your head long after the trip is over, this one gets at the answer.

    The conversation dives into:

    • How Josh fell in love with North Berwick, and why Scottish golf changed the way he thinks about score, competition, and what a round is supposed to feel like
    • Why Melbourne sandbelt golf hit him so hard, from Royal Melbourne and Kingston Heath to the broader feeling of finding “his Scotland” somewhere new
    • What actually separates Scottish links from Australian sandbelt golf: firmer greens, strategic bunkering, subtler landforms, and approach shots that matter after the ball lands
    • Why club culture feels different in Scotland and Australia than it often does in the U.S., from bounce games and Stableford to honour boards and rounds that actually mean something
    • The hidden-gem conversation every golf obsessive eventually has: Dunbar, Panmure, Woodlands, Barwon Heads, St Andrews Beach, and where the magic still lives once the famous names get crowded

    Support our Partners

    🏌️ Titleist: https://www.titleist.com

    🌐 Golf Blueprint: https://www.golfblueprint.com
    🐝 NewClub: https://www.newclub.golf

    Connect with our guests

    Joshua Ralston —  📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/golfing_scotland/ | https://edwebprofiles.ed.ac.uk/profile/dr-joshua-ralston


    Subscribe to the show:

    🎧 Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-bag-drop-untold-stories-in-golf/id1430328006

    🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2xRWtUBJH8RazdLw14oaGH

    🎧 Transistor: https://thebagdrop.transistor.fm/


    Follow The Bag Drop

    📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thebagdrop
    🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/thebagdropgolf
    📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBagDropGolf


    Join the NewClub community

    🌍 Website: https://www.newclub.golf

    📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/newclubgolf/

    🐦 X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/newclubgolf

    📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@newclubgolf

    💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/newclub


    Connect with Matt & The Professor

    🎙️ Matt Considine — 🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/consequential85 | 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/consequence18/ | 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matt-considine-103bb21/

    📚 Dr. Kevin Moore ("The Professor") — 🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/kevcmoore | 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kevcmoore | 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-moore-177b30b3/


    Chapters

    00:00 Introduction
     06:59 Joshua Ralston returns
     11:25 The Profontication on ego, comparison, and what actually gives golf meaning
     17:16 How Josh ended up at North Berwick
     27:53 How Melbourne happened
     32:50 Why Melbourne felt different
     36:01 Competition culture, Stableford, and rounds that count
     43:00 Sandbelt golf vs. Scottish links
     58:56 St Andrews Beach and Australia’s next tier
     01:08:51 What Melbourne costs and where the value is
     01:14:43 Five courses in Scotland
     01:19:07 Five courses in Melbourne
     01:24:08 Can American golf recreate real club culture?


    What is The Bag Drop?

    The Bag Drop features weekly stories from the culture, community, and characters shaping golf today. Produced by NewClub Golf Society, each episode blends authenticity and expert insights for passionate golfers at all levels. Special guests from clubs, courses, and every corner of the changing landscape join us for thoughtful, in-depth discussions on all things golf.


    What is NewClub?

    Founded in 2017, NewClub is the premier private golf society in the United States. It blends the community and access of a private club with the variety and affordability of public golf. Members enjoy thousands of reserved tee times, competitions and events at exceptional partner courses across our local chapters, as well as signature trips and exclusive perks. NewClub is revolutionizing golf membership, making the game more meaningful for those who love it.

    20 April 2026, 10:00 am
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