GolfWell Podcast

What if the 3-wood is the most overrated club in your bag? In this episode of the Golf Well podcast, I sit down with Marty Jertson, VP of Fitting & Performance at Ping, to talk about the rise of the Thriver—a shorter, higher-lofted second driver that's replacing fairway woods for tour players like Neil Shipley and Preston Summerhays. We break down: – Why the 3-wood is becoming obsolete for high-speed players – How a Thriver setup can drastically improve accuracy off the tee – Fitting insights using Ping’s in-house strokes gained calculator – Why your course strategy might need a total re-think – How to build one yourself (or get it built the right way) This might be the most under-the-radar gear trend in golf right now—and after hearing this, you might want to build one yourself.

Get ready for a deep dive into the science of golf with Dr. Sasho MacKenzie. In this episode, we cover it all, from the surprising impact of iron size on shot shaping to advanced concepts in swing mechanics. Here’s what you’ll learn as we recap the World Scientific Congress of Golf: - Why smaller irons might not always be better for shaping shots - The surprising truths about club kinetics and how they influence your swing - The science behind face-to-path variability and what it means for your game - How ground interaction affects your wedge play more than you think - A fascinating analogy involving car doors and swing speed (yes, really!) - Tips for testing different swing thoughts and stance setups for maximum speed - The unexpected ways putter weighting can affect your stroke consistency - What Dr. MacKenzie is researching next, including groundbreaking studies on ground reaction forces

In this episode, Dr. Paul Wood, Vice President of Engineering at Ping and President of the Golf Science Organization, discuss insights from the recent World Scientific Congress of Golf. They delve into various research topics, including the physics of putting on sloping surfaces, technological advancements in measuring putting dynamics and the latest buzz in the research community.

Ben Carr joins Tony Ruggiero to talk about his past year; the mistakes and lessons that led to finishing as runner-up at the U.S. Amateur Championship. They share what they did to get him back on track, such as blocking out external pressures, getting back to fundamentals, understanding his swing, and what are the next steps in leveling up his game.

Tony Ruggiero and Jackson Koert talk with Peter Knade and Emilio Gonzalez about getting through Q School, and their korn ferry card this year after missing it last year. They discuss the differences and process that lead to their growth and success from the year before.

Tony is hanging out with Donald Cooper and Vaughn Taylor at RSM, for the last tour event of the year. They talk about what the best players do with practicing and practice rounds. Coop shares how practice rounds are to adapt to the conditions, not to work on your swing or your game. Cooper and Taylor share what they focus on the days before the tournament, what he needs to get out of practice at home vs. a tournament. Cooper shares the best practices he's ever seen, and why he studies divets.

Tony Ruggiero is joined by six coaches to discuss the many ways to cut your handicap by 20%. Everyone weighs in on what to focus on to make that happen. From understanding how far you carry the ball, your numbers, using technology, important fundamentals, short game, and course management. They discuss how to navigate the challenges and help players from recreational to advanced improve their game.

Josh Gregory shares his journey from playing in college and on Tour to coaching some of the best players today. The most important factor for him is having a personal connection and relationship. He shares past mistakes and how he’s developed his simple and effective approach. You’ll hear how he helps his players get out of learned tendencies, bringing technical feels onto the course, and how he focuses 99% of short game training on and why. This episode is full of advice on how to get your players to find their own identity and with a plan to playing better.

Tony Ruggiero, Jackson Koert & Morgan Hale hold a Q&A with players before heading into a training program. You’ll hear their team philosophy and plan for the training program. Each of them weigh in on how to coach recreational players, advanced players returning to the game, their advice for players transitioning from high school to college. They explain the foundations of golf, how not to overcomplicate practice and why they often find themselves coaching players on how to unlearn behaviors.

Tony Ruggiero is joined by Paul Schempp, Steve Moore, Robert Campbell and Jackson Koert to discuss the differences between good and great coaches and define what novice coaches do compared to confident coaches. Discussion is full of great advice to get your players to owning the information you teach them. Each of them share significant coaching moments that will help every player and coach.

After Tony Ruggiero and Smylie Kaufman reflect on their years working together – Smylie was one of the best students Tony ever had. Smylie shares the secret to his success it was his understanding of his swing and keeping his focus simple, by having three to four things he’d monitor. They dive into specific techniques and approaches, as well as the best advice he’s ever received, what the best players can do and how his greatest strengths as a player have helped him in broadcasting.

Zack Sucher, Eric Brunner and Tony Ruggiero talk about getting Zack ready for Q School - mentally, physically and technically. They dive into the biggest factors that have improved his short game, full swing and how to get back to the habits that work best. For Zack, refocusing his priorities was crucial. For some time he was chasing speed, but he had to go back to focusing on hitting the ball solid all the time first, before working on distance and speed. They also discuss the lessons learned during the season and much more.

Ralph Bauer and Tony Ruggiero talk all things putting. He explains where he starts when work with tour players, it’s changing their perspective to understanding how they missed is due to misreading instead of pushing or pulling. He talks about his new app, and how it solves the missing part to putting better is reading the greens better. The technology accelerates what would take years into weeks. They also discuss which grip is best for your putting, and the data he found from testing twelve tour players on left to righters and right to lefters. This episode is full of ways to improve your putting, and stories from Ralph and Tony on how they’ve helped players improve over the years.

Hal Sutton joins Tony to talk about what he learned from his success of playing on Tour and how he transitioned into instruction. Hal shares how instruction has taking away his feel for the game, and what he would tell his younger self about goals, who to work with and how to navigate success. He gives his best advice to college players wanting to pro, how to gain experience, the necessity of being honest, disciplined and playing with freedom. This is episode is full of great insight, stories and what it takes to become a great player.

Tony Ruggiero, Dr. Scott Lynn, Mark Hackett, Dan Terlescki hold a Q&A for members of Palm Golf Club to share what exercises and areas to focus on for injuries, and how to adjust training to accommodate changes in physical ability. They share a variety of ways to improve balance, strength training and adjustments to alleviate pressure. They also discuss how technology, focusing on movement, setup, screening can help.

Ralph Bauer and Tony talk all things putting. He explains where he starts when work with tour players, it’s changing their perspective to understanding how they missed is due to misreading instead of pushing or pulling. He talks about his new app, and how it solves the missing part to putting better is reading the greens better. The technology accelerates what would take years into weeks. They also discuss which grip is best for your putting, and the data he found from testing twelve tour players on left to righters and right to lefters. This episode is full of ways to improve your putting, and stories from Ralph and Tony on how they’ve helped players improve over the years.

Tony Ruggiero is joined by Luke Kerr Dineen, Jackson Koert, Justin Parsons and Wayne Flint to discuss how coaches can develop their influence with social media and improving player’s performance. Luke shares his experience as a player and Golf Magazine/GOLF.com Editor, to give tips on what’s impactful to their audience and the average golfer, that can build traction for teachers. You’ll also hear from each of the coaches on keeping your coaching SIMPLE because being complicated is NOT a compliment. Every part of this episode is rich with tips to further develop your coaching and media presence.

Tony Ruggiero is joined by Luke Kerr Dineen, Jackson Koert, Justin Parsons and Wayne Flint to discuss how coaches can develop their influence with social media and improving player’s performance. Luke shares his experience as a player and Golf Magazine/GOLF.com Editor, to give tips on what’s impactful to their audience and the average golfer, that can build traction for teachers. You’ll also hear from each of the coaches on keeping your coaching SIMPLE because being complicated is NOT a compliment. Every part of this episode is rich with tips to further develop your coaching and media presence.

Tony sits down with Armando, from Lee Trevino's #1 fan page, to talk about how he decided to research Trevino and how it's improved his game. He shares his journey becoming a better recreational golfer, the less traditional information he's discovered. They get into the nitty gritty of training. This episode is full of interesting tips on weekend warrior transforming his game.

Peter Sanders and Tony Ruggiero on the podcast to share how he created Shot by Shot, now called Strokes Gained analysis. With his expertise with analyzing data and stats through the years, he shares the commonalities he’s found amongst players at each level, the stats of average players on Tour, the similarities of winner’s data and the direct correlations of data and the outcome. Jam-packed with stats, you’ll learn great information for improving you or your players’ game.