Our resident Classic 5 Golf pro Ed Miller joins Nestor from Pine Ridge to discuss the fallout of the biggest news in the world of golf and the local summer scene for improving your game.
SUMMARY KEYWORDS
golf, play, money, sport, golf course, lessons, pga, classic, pine ridge, talk, good, players, week, tour, tournament, part, baltimore, starting, live, swing
SPEAKERS
Nestor Aparicio, Ed Miller
Nestor Aparicio 00:01
We’re gonna look at wn st Towson, Baltimore. And Baltimore positive, we’re positively into the spring. And you know, I mean, it’s crab season, it’s crabcakes season, we’re gonna be at spirits West next week, kick it off this summer version of the barrel of crab cake tour with our friends at the Maryland lottery, we’ll have these 50th Anniversary Giveaway. This has been a lucky batch. We had a $50 winner a couple of weeks ago, as well as our friends at WIN donation. 866 90 Nation, I’m gonna get the wacky hat out at some point that they’ll let me son myself, if I were out on the golf course the classic five I would need one of these right now to make sure a little SPF 50 and newer joins us now. You know, we do sports around here right and it’s it’s the Orioles are really good. And I know you’re into that we’re all into that. The Ravens have their camp go in this week and Lamar is in and obj and Ro Quan Smith stone out the first all that’s going on. But your golf guy, Ed Miller and this, you know, at a classic five everybody’s out hitting the ball, who is not talking about what has gone on in golf the last two weeks. I had John Feinstein on this week talking about it. I mean, golf is moved above the fold here, with politics with power. And certainly for anybody that plays the game and what the future the game is going to be. It has been wild to watch this unfold over the last like 24 months.
Ed Miller 01:17
Oh, absolutely. It’s been wild. And you know, like you said over the last two weeks, it’s really ramped up and gosh, I can’t wait to more information comes out so you can hopefully understand it a little bit better. And what’s going to happen?
Nestor Aparicio 01:29
Well, let’s we’ll talk majors, and we’re going to talk about given lessons and all the stuff that you guys do from Carroll Park, the Mount Pleasant to Pine rail all around the beltway. But the the part where you love golf, and you play golf and your golf pro, you’ve looked at this one way forever. There’s four majors, there’s the PGA, they have nice little tournaments over here and I know as a player you played tournaments for money or regional this and regional that, that the structure of golf, aside from the country clubs and whatever racism and sexism that still exist. Peter Paul were from a raven told me he grew up on a golf course he couldn’t walk on, because he was black, in South Carolina, like like just create crazy things that have gone on that golf has allowed. And the world is looked the other way on Augusta on women on all of that. But this is a whole different level of palace intrigue for the sport because I don’t expect an ex NFL or USFL to ever come along and play with the NFL. Major League Baseball is an anti trust exemption. They are a legal cartel, a legal monopoly. Now the NBA is all over the world now. Right? premiership soccer has its own factions and different countries, whether it’s Syria or the league, or wherever, whatever you’re into. But Golf has always had one set of royalty and the PGA where all the money comes from and that from jackin, and Arnold through, you know, tiger, right through all of this, did you ever think anybody would throw I mean, this is clearly an illicit government that kills people like me journalists, that they would have this sort of money and say, we’re going to target golf, and we’re just going to own golf. We want to own golf.
Ed Miller 03:13
No, no, not at all. And, you know, in over the last 25 years, I thought that golf had become a little bit more international when you have, you know, so many European guys coming to America because like you said, the PGA Tour is the top echelon of where you want to test yourself and golf. But it is very interesting to see. You know, I think I read something yesterday that the Live Tour has over 600 billion access money so scary what they could probably do to the world of golf if they really wanted to want a
Nestor Aparicio 03:40
journalist if they want to as well. I had Miller is here. You know, tell everybody what you’re doing right now because so many things about MMA classic five, and we I’m having you on to talk about majors and and we’ll get back into that because there’s no way to get around what’s about to happen to the PGA and I think none of us can be predictive of it. But for the sport itself, for people that love to play golf, and you’re gonna be shocked. I spent the day on the golf course up in hayfields. Last Monday, for Mt. Washington pediatric. There’s still nothing like a charity golf tournament, seeing everybody go out there play basketball being out on the course all day. People love the game, right? So aside from whatever politics that you may want to participate in or not, or what you’re watching on Sunday, you’re part of the sport is still come out and enjoy the sport, come out and play the sport come out and get better at the sport. That’s really the world you live in on a daily basis, right?
Ed Miller 04:35
Yes, sir. Not to steal a line from an old PGA president but I’m in the business of fun and that’s my job is to make sure everybody comes out to my golf course as well as our other courses, but it’s to come out and have a good time. Forget about life. We got you for four and a half hours. Let’s go have some fun.
Nestor Aparicio 04:53
Well, the best part is we get on of course where your cell phone doesn’t work, then you really good for
Ed Miller 04:59
me You know, yeah, absolutely. So and we’re into the season now so everything’s rolling here at the classic five, you know, everybody’s playing leagues are playing golf schools are starting so break time to start your summer.
Nestor Aparicio 05:13
Hey, the weather’s participating, right? Like, I mean, so let’s talk about because that can be a little bit of a scientist, okay? Because, you know, I’m a fake golf player, right? I mean, I play I can play I can hit whatever. But I literally went out for three hours last Monday, middle of the day, first week of June for a great great cause our friends over Mount Washington. I’m wearing my Rascon global shirt Linda Raskin and i By the way, he’s got a hell of a putting game. He doesn’t drive he doesn’t pick he just puts he goes a pots and pots and pots. And the first thing you see when you get out first thing I think is how in the hell did they get the grass this tight? You know what I mean? Like I I think that on the greens, and then just how fast the greens were. And again, I was up in hay fields the other day just for but you got your five courses. It just hadn’t rained a lot, man and the weather has been it’s been great for baseball. It’s been even better for golf. Yes, sir.
Ed Miller 05:59
Absolutely. And honestly, the dryness you’re starting to see some of the roughs burn out but as a golfer, we usually don’t mind when the rough burns out as long as we can keep the Greens healthy and maintain it through the season. That’s all we’re looking for really
Nestor Aparicio 06:15
well for us open this week and for and I’m gonna tell buddy, how they can join you if you want to get some lessons with you or any of the classified pros give given the lowdown on the entryway because I’ll tell you what, my back’s a little wonky. I’m I’m working on getting it better. But it bothered me after watching people hit clean shots and thinking to myself, I can do that. I know how to do that, you know, like, but if I wanted to do that I would need you. I mean, if I’m gonna go out and play I, I if I’m coming back to the game, I need you, right? I mean, you gotta have you gotta have you got to have a pro tip.
Ed Miller 06:49
Absolutely. Well, if you want to enjoy the game, and hopefully stick with the game, absolutely a little bit of a PGA advice to help you as is definitely a positive thing you can do. And you can definitely set all that up in classic five golf.com Come out and book a tee time in any one of the five courses. And just like you said, you needed to know you need to be taught, come out the Pine Ridge. We’re home of the Baltimore Golf Academy, we can get you started. And well,
Nestor Aparicio 07:13
you got the simulators out there. Right. So the first thing that would be different for me and taking a lesson with you in 2023 the last lesson I had it was it was the it was the the Masters where Greg Norman blew it. I mean, 9596 Yeah. Yes, sir. All right. So um, I’ve had Nick fouled on the show since then. So. So I took lessons down in Glen Burnie and there was no technology then there was a there was a pro looking at me see him. You know why I’m why I’m pulling why on hook and what you know, whatever’s happening. I would think at this point, where would you start me? At? First off, where are you these days? You’ve moved a couple of courses on me.
Ed Miller 07:56
Yes, sir. I’m now at the Pine Ridge Golf Course. Thanks for asking that, sir. Yeah, and, you know, a lot busier. But
Nestor Aparicio 08:02
what I call that I call that driving range close to home, is what I call that.
Ed Miller 08:05
There you go. Good. Good. Hope to see you a little bit more. Now. When people come
Nestor Aparicio 08:08
out. Do they go to the simulator at Pine Ridge? Because it’s available?
Ed Miller 08:12
Yes, sir. Absolutely. I mean, it’s one of the more active driving ranges on the East Coast anyway. But the fact that we have that and you can come play games and get some serious practice. You know, Golf has always been kind of a scientific sport. And like you said, your first lesson, no science, you come out for lessons. Now, you know, obviously, we have video analysis so you can see your swing. But now we have the top tracer that can kind of scientifically break things down a little bit more or less, you know, what kind of path you have or, or how your contact is and stuff like that. So hopefully, we can kind of hit you from all kinds of angles when it comes to a lesson and help you improve faster while having fun with it. For sure. Well,
Nestor Aparicio 08:50
some people call this Father’s Day week or Father’s Day weekend. Certainly for me being a dad, I hope to enjoy Sunday as well. But you call it US Open week, right? I mean, and certainly for what happened last week. What do you expect in this week, just in regard to fireworks from within the sport. And, boy, it’s messy. It’s messier than probably anything I can imagine. Because it does. It doesn’t bring out the politics, it brings out the right and wrong and I think it even brings out for people like you that love the sport. When I think of baseball and the Orioles and what Angelo’s and Seelig and Manford at the top of the game and where the money comes from. And for the better or worse. I mean, this year, they fixed baseball, they made the game shorter, they’ve made it better. I think they’re still working on that and other sports in different ways. But for golf, the games really never changed. Right? The equipment’s changed a little bit, but this is a completely different thought about the way leadership and where the money is going to come from and who’s really running the sport.
Ed Miller 09:47
Absolutely. And you know, and honestly the last two majors when other live players were in there and actually competing and you know, obviously won won the last major but uh, you started to already see some of that talk and, and you can go gotta see it in the players like Rory port Rory, when he’s getting interviewed, it’s always about live. It’s never about his golf. So I’m sure this week is gonna ramp it up even more at the major. Because they’re all playing in it. And I’m sure the questions will be relentless.
Nestor Aparicio 10:14
Well, what did you think when this happened? Did you think it was gonna happen this quickly? That? No, not at all more years years, you know, no way under the American flag and the PGA, would they ever agree? I mean, it certainly felt that way. To me, it felt like, well, they’re dug in, but they’re dug in against terrorists who have an unlimited budget.
Ed Miller 10:37
Yeah, yeah, I was definitely worried about that. Some of the stuff you’d read last month, you know how much money the tour really had set aside for that. But you’re right, I thought this was going to drag out for at least the rest of this year. And in the next year. The fact that it happened so fast over the last two weeks is very, very wild. And, you know, it’s gonna be interesting to see when more details come out. Like I know, the poor Commissioner Monahan, he seems like he did a total 180. And I know, half the players see mad at him. And
Nestor Aparicio 11:03
the story keeps asking me about the lawyers, right, the lawyer saying we can’t win.
Ed Miller 11:07
Yeah. And I think they were gonna run out of money based on some of the things that I had read, like you said, the unlimited budget of the Saudis. And the Live Tour was pretty scary. So hopefully, we’ll see what happens and see what kind of compromises they make. Because I will say that I think the tour, even though it’s great, and it has great players, it’d be nice to see a couple of those players back and kind of competing internationally, you know, like the Brooks and Dustin Johnson’s Cameron Smith. I think, if we can get them all together, that’d be better for the game of golf in the long run,
Nestor Aparicio 11:36
no cost to them, right. I mean, it’s got made whole they got made, they got paid for life, to just sign up with the blood brothers and the Saudis. And now the whole sport is just decided, well bring the money in here better to give it to us and give it to Messi or give it to a soccer player. Right?
Ed Miller 11:50
Yeah. But you know, it’s gonna be see, I’m sure there’s gonna be some kind of restrictions on those guys for taking the money. But, you know, it’s more like the guys like Rickie Fowler, who turned down the money. And here is a year later is going wow, I could probably use that couple 100 million dollars. Who knows? So
Nestor Aparicio 12:06
well, meantime, we’d be talking about the snowcapped mountains out in Beverly Hills in the Los Angeles Country Club. And, you know, the beauty of and the pageantry, and they don’t play there a lot like all that will be going on the West Coast, thought about the California Bing Crosby and like all boy, I mean, I don’t know that we’re gonna be talking about who’s gonna win the tournament so much this weekend, as much as what’s gonna become of the tournament.
Ed Miller 12:31
Correct. You know, and like you said, it’s a neat course, it’s not like, there’s a lot of history as far as a ton of tournaments like Pebble Beach at this course, this la Country Club, so it’s gonna be, it’d be nice, nice trip to the West Coast checkout a nice classic course that’s over 120 years old. And, you know, like you said, though, it’s gonna be a lot more about the live than it is about predicting who the winner is going to be, and so forth. So
Nestor Aparicio 12:53
you’re bringing a major to Los Angeles, right? I mean, they brought a Super Bowl to Los Angeles and Los Angeles one or two years ago, but there is this thing about SoCal in California. I mean, Mr. Cradle golf in Palm Springs, and and, you know, I mean, but that being said, you don’t think of LA and golf much. Nobody says, I’m going to LA for the weekend to golf. Right. I mean, that’s not go to California to go fine. But But Los Angeles, that this was supposed to be something that was to be another part of the renaissance of Los Angeles sports in Southern California and all that. And instead, it’s just going to be this the biggest political nightmare they’ve had since OJ was down the street.
Ed Miller 13:31
Yeah, yeah, he’s right. It’s gonna be really really and like I said, to watch these players press conferences starting today. And how many guys is going to be asked about live is going to be really interesting.
Nestor Aparicio 13:42
He’s here he’s being asked about live right now. Is it? Has it been the over the weekend, when people come out and play is it the only thing golf players are talking about?
Ed Miller 13:51
It has definitely dominated I’d say over 80% is really neat. And the interesting part is sitting on the ground level at the golf course it’s a it’s a lot more mixed than you would believe. You know, 50% support the live guys and taking the money and 50% don’t it’s been a pretty wild debate over the last week watching everybody get into it for sure.
Nestor Aparicio 14:11
You’re bringing blood money into a capitalistic society, right? Like we’re all trying to make the most money we can without compromising whatever it is that we find sacred. Right? And I guess in the case of the golf guys and taking the money or not, I mean, Messi turned down a bunch of money to go play in Miami because he felt like that was better for him. Right and I think it is different when you’re Phil Mickelson and whatever money you’re making is money you can’t possibly spend other than on private jets. I mean, these guys have had a pretty good life from the beginning it’s not like the live people and the Saudis just took crappy golfers and said we’re gonna pay you $100 million dollars I mean, they they really select the guys that were already made guys anyway guys with jackets guys with lots of money, guys that were better for better or worse set for life, right? I mean, all those guys were set for life. That’s Whatever the name players,
Ed Miller 15:01
yep, yep. Yeah. And that is true. And that’s probably the, you know, the hardest thing is a tour fan is the fact that they came in and took big name players that were already established had a fan base in America and it’s wild, you know, in terms of golf to, you know, the tour, Tiger 20 years ago would always get appearance fees to go play overseas and stuff like that. But I think what makes this so unique is the fact that it’s, you know, the questionable past of the live guys and what they do to people and all that kind of stuff. But it’s also the amount of money that they’re thrown is so much different than what it was 20 years ago, you know, Tiger get a million to go play in a tournament now that’s fine. But when you start doing one, two 300 million in the rumors of offering tires, 700 men, whatever it was, they offered them. This kind of money is almost like fake money.
Nestor Aparicio 15:47
A billion and a half for Messi. I mean, Messi could have taken the money and come over here and you know, and and bought, bought the lien literally bought bought the MLS. I mean, like, it’s, well, I mean, we’re gonna continue to talk about it, but there is the golf part of this where they’re gonna play a tournament this weekend. Crown a major amidst all of this does. Ed Miller, meanwhile, is up at Pine Ridge ready to teach you how to play golf teach me how to play golf. So I did wonder this because I did being out on the course I’m hearing the birds I’m seeing the birds. I’m hearing the click of the ball. It’s really quiet on the golf course. Right. So more quiet than almost anywhere other than being in the woods itself. Other than the sounds of golf balls and carts coming by and having some some beverages. If I were to start again, and I come and visit you give me an entryway like if I were to come there and see you and come see you 10 minutes or 10 minutes away from where and I stopped buying say all right. backswing screwed up trying to pick my game up played a little putt, putt down Ocean City. Where do you put somebody in? Do you start them on? simulator? Do you start them saying let me take a look at what you’re doing and what you got? Let me see your clubs. What are the questions you ask for a 55 year old guy that says I want to come back and start to play golf again?
Ed Miller 17:08
Well, first thing is definitely to double check your physical capabilities, see what kind of injuries you have. Make sure that we you know swing within limits of that number to definitely check the equipment out. See what you have see what we need to modify or change. That’s the other neat thing about golf now too. We can customize clubs or even existing clubs to match your height, your swing speed, that kind of stuff to just make sure we give you the best tools to succeed. And then we will slowly work our way over to that top tracer driving range. Take a few swings start to assess your athletic kids want to get there first, right? Yeah, kids always and hectic starting next week, we got Jr camp. So there’ll be kids everywhere out at Pine Ridge. But yeah, we take you there we assess you for about 1520 minutes, and then we’ll come up with a game plan. You know, how many days week do you want to play Nestor all that kind of good stuff and present a nice game plan to get you going. Because ultimately, not that we want to, you know, we don’t want you to take 100 lessons. But we want to give you enough lessons that we know that we’ve given you the best chance to succeed on the golf course and have a good time because ultimately, that’s what it’s about. If you’re having fun, you’re gonna keep doing it. If you’re not having fun, you’re not going to do it.
Nestor Aparicio 18:14
I saw the guys in the cart over on the night Hall. You know, trying to find the ball. Yeah, that’s not fun. That’s not fun.
Ed Miller 18:22
Well, you know, that’s you just you take extra balls, and you drop one out of your pocket, take a penalty move on that kind of deal. But you know, there’s always obstacles on the golf course. And you know, Pine Ridge, we got a lot of water a fields, they got a lot of that love grass, you know, so every course has their own challenges. But the more fun you have, the more you’ll keep playing it. But I would also tell a guy like you with a bad back. As long as we swing within ourselves and we do the right things before and after golf. You can play golf, you know, you might not be able to swing like say Tiger Woods in his prime. But you can go out and play golf. I’d invite you out at Pine Ridge on a Monday and watch our senior group play off. And I can promise you that physically you’re you’re in good enough shape to where you’d match at least half the guys in that group.
Nestor Aparicio 19:06
I went out took three putts last week and it was moving too fast for me and I had picked up a putter since I don’t know Ocean City, you know, 2017 or something like that. So I haven’t picked anything because I put them up back at 19 It’s been a mess ever since so. But I’m trying to hold it together. And I am holding out hope that Billick has picked up his game at 65 and started to play golf every day of his life that there that it was nice out on the course last week. I want to tell you that you know, it’s like The Godfather, they kind of want to pull you back in to get competitive every once in a while, right?
Ed Miller 19:40
I mean, I’ve always said that. That’s why I’ve loved golf. You know, you get four hours out in nature. It’s beautiful. It’s quiet, it’s peaceful and then you get four hours with hopefully some good good company, your friends, family, whoever you’re playing golf with. And there’s nothing like it. Honestly, it’s a great break in the week today. Whatever it is you’re doing. Golf can be a lot of fun and in As we get older, not playing basketball, not gonna play tennis anymore. So Golf I can physically do you know, kind of keep it within a certain limit. But golf is one of the things that you will be able to do until we’re 90. That’s
Nestor Aparicio 20:13
next week’s lesson you’re gonna have to teach me not how not to be a jerk on a course with a with a cart. So where I’m allowed to go next to greens and like, I’m always afraid when I’m gonna go I feel like a visitor that doesn’t like like, I’m the guy from Dundalk. You know, I’m afraid of breaking the glass, I’m afraid of like doing something wrong, you know what I mean? So I’m, I just I am on my best behavior. I always feel like I’m wearing the wrong shoes. I’m wearing the wrong shirt. I feel like I’m not you know, so you’re gonna have to dress me up when it comes out. So I don’t make a fool of myself. I had met where can be found over at up at Pine Ridge part of the classic five whether it’s a Mount Pleasant or Carol park or forest park wherever you happen to be, check them out a classic five golf and make sure you’re out taking lesson make sure you’re out swinging it and this week and if you’re watching the US Open from the Los Angeles Country Club, and it’s and it reminds you like hey, I want to go play and drive go see Ed go see your friends at Classic five and leagues right so any opportunities to get involved in that or is that
Ed Miller 21:11
a couple of weeks might have reached their their limit but man we have leagues for men leagues for women. We have mixed leagues and then like I said you have kids for the summer house nothing to do Junior camp start next week it’s time to get everybody involved let’s let’s enjoy the next three months and let’s go off
Nestor Aparicio 21:27
alright man, just stay off the beach and let’s it’s the kind of beach I plan to be on. You know, they added to say a traps. So a lot of that going on last week as well. And Miller can be found at a classic five golf. They are our partners. We talk about them all the time and in the golf space as the weather gets better. It’s been perfect golf weather and certainly a perfect storm of politics and money. And just a mess with the PGA PGA and the live folks will be assessing that John Feinstein joined us for a long long, a good walk I should say out on all things PGA so make sure you’re checking that out of Baltimore positive as well. I am Nestor we are wn st am 1570, Towson Baltimore. And we never stopped talking. Oriole baseball, ravens football, a little bit of golf and Baltimore positive stay with us.