Tom Coyne - Author-Course Owner - Afterhours Encore
Tom Coyne joins JT for a lively discussion in this After Hours segment of Grilling at the Green. They delve into the evolving landscape of professional golf and its increasing disconnect from the everyday golfer, with Coyne expressing his concerns about the state of the game. As a passionate golfer, he shares personal anecdotes about his father’s influence on his love for the sport and reflects on how golf can benefit young people, not just in skill but also in social interactions. The conversation also touches on Coyne's thoughts about equipment regulations and the need for a bifurcation to better support amateur players. Wrapping up with light-hearted banter, they explore favorite movies and even dream dinner guests, all while emphasizing the joy of playing golf and the importance of kindness in the game.
Companies mentioned in this episode:
- Painted Hills Natural Beef
This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:
OP3 - https://op3.dev/privacy
Transcript
Welcome to Grilling at the Green After Hours.
JT:The conversation that took place after the show ended.
JT:Hi, everybody, it's JT and this is a special version of Grilling at the Green.
JT:Grilling at the Green is brought to you in part by Painted Hills Natural Beef.
JT:Beef you can be proud to serve your family and friends.
JT:That's Painted Hills Natural Beef.
JT:Hey.
JT:Welcome to After Hours on Grilling at the Green.
JT:I'm JT along with Tom Coyne.
JT:Today, Tom's got his hands full these days, not just on battling the keyboard, but also his creative juices going in his mind to work on a golf course all the time.
JT:And if you missed the top part of the show, Tom's in the Schwab commercial.
JT:You see him there about.
JT:I don't remember the actual lines, but it was like, you never thought you'd be doing this, managing a golf course, and there's a picture of you walking off with a shoulder bag and stuff.
JT:It's pretty cool.
Tom Coyne:So.
JT:So these are some questions that I kind of ask everybody these days, and we'll see if.
JT:See if you're up to it.
JT:Okay.
Tom Coyne:All right, let's see.
JT:Okay.
JT:If you could play around a golf with one of your golfing heroes, who would it be?
Tom Coyne:Oh, a round of golf with a golfing hero.
JT:They can.
JT:They don't have to be alive, you know.
Tom Coyne:Okay.
Tom Coyne:If they don't have to be alive, then I'm going to go with you got to go with the old Tom.
Tom Coyne:Who would want to play with old Tom?
JT:That would be pretty cool.
Tom Coyne:Yeah, right.
Tom Coyne:If I can go all the way back that far, I would love to see how they played and how they played so well with those clubs they were using.
JT:Oh, yeah.
JT:They're like shillelagh and stuff.
JT:They're not.
JT:They're not like an AP one from Titleist.
JT:You know?
JT:Who.
JT:Who was the biggest influence on you personally in the golf.
JT:In your golf life?
JT:Was it like your dad or your brother or.
Tom Coyne:Yeah, definitely my dad.
Tom Coyne:That he, you know, took me g.
Tom Coyne:Basically gave me golf because he played golf, and that's why I started to play golf.
Tom Coyne:Something I wouldn't have done.
Tom Coyne:You know, I.
Tom Coyne:I growing up sort of pre Tiger woods, it was something you really only did if your mom or dad did it.
Tom Coyne:So I have my dad to thank for that.
Tom Coyne:So, yeah, he taught me to love golf, and he took me to Ireland, where I fell in love with links golf, and that.
Tom Coyne:That changed my life.
JT:Do you think, Tom, professional golf is getting, if you will, further and further Removed from everyday golfers?
Tom Coyne:I think it, yes, and I think it's been removed from everyday golfers for a very, very, very long, probably since the beginning.
Tom Coyne:Right.
Tom Coyne:They, they play a very different game.
Tom Coyne:The state of, of pro golf is a little bit tricky right now and a little bit messy, but it doesn't faze me.
Tom Coyne:I think, you know, it's, it's, it's, it's still entertaining.
Tom Coyne:I like watching good players hit good shots and as an entertainment product, I think it's great.
Tom Coyne:It's just very different than what I do on a Saturday.
Tom Coyne:And sure, that's fine.
JT:I think it's also, it's my soapbox here.
JT:I'm a capitalist at heart.
JT:But when you see somebody win $25 million and they've already won 30 million that year, and you go, man, I wish I'd played more golf and got better at it or something, you know, it's crazy.
JT:Name something that you were really enthused about when you first saw it or heard of it.
JT:And then with time, your excitement kind of fizzled out.
Tom Coyne:Oh, let's see, I was pretty well to stay with pro golf.
Tom Coyne:I was excited to hear that, that the tours were coming back together in some way.
Tom Coyne:And my excitement is definitely fizzled out around that as there seems to be very little, very little happening.
JT:Yeah, I, I, I honestly don't really see that happening very well myself.
Tom Coyne:Yeah, who knows how it's going to happen?
JT:But yeah, yeah, absolutely.
JT:So if, if Tom Coyne was declared supreme Leader of golf for one day, what would you as supreme leader of golf decree?
Tom Coyne:Hmm.
Tom Coyne:I would decree that we bifurcate equipment because the idea of rolling the ball back for, even if it only costs the people who play at my golf course at their swing speeds, if it cost them half a yard, yeah, that's half a yard too many.
Tom Coyne:Golf is hard enough.
Tom Coyne:Golf has always been a game of technological innovation to help golfers hit it further and enjoy their golf.
Tom Coyne:Golf is too long for 90% of golfers.
Tom Coyne:So the I am just couldn't be more opposed to, to that initiative insofar as it affects everyday golfers who to me are golf.
Tom Coyne:And I think we often make the mistake of when we talk about golf, we think of the 1%.
Tom Coyne:And you know, that's, that's not how a very top down view, but that's just not how I think about golf.
JT:Yeah, I look at it like I, I live three blocks from a golf course and within five miles of probably four more.
JT:And that's what I Think of golf.
JT:You know, I think of what I see on television as entertainment like you just mentioned a minute ago.
JT:And I, when I think of golf, I think of the men's clubs, the, the duffers like myself out there, whatever.
JT:That's what I think of golf is anyway.
JT:Do you have a favorite golf book besides any of the ones you've written?
Tom Coyne:You know, it's funny, I don't read a lot of golf books just because I spend so much time around the game reading articles, pitches, you know, in my day to day that when I, when I get to read for, for the, for pleasure, I, I definitely steer away from golf.
Tom Coyne:But I, I remember, you know, to the Lynx Land by Michael Bamberger being a book that, where I felt like, ah, there is a, there's a way to write about golf in a.
Tom Coyne:And it still be literary and smart and insightful and emotional and all those things and sort of helped show me that good golf stories are, are about much more than golf.
JT:So I, I'll tell you something, Tom.
JT:I had not read that and I just ordered it and it will be here tomorrow.
Tom Coyne:I think you'll enjoy it very much.
Tom Coyne:Yeah, they just re released it, so.
JT:Yeah, yeah.
JT:I had never read Michael on.
Tom Coyne:I saw Michael on Sunday and he looks like he's doing well and it's nice to have a book being re.
Tom Coyne:Released.
JT:Absolutely.
JT:If we put your skills to music, Tom, what would the music be?
Tom Coyne:Well, I think it would be some sort of easy listening.
Tom Coyne:Yeah, I try and take it easy and keep it all in front of me.
JT:Yeah.
Tom Coyne:People say I, I swing easy.
Tom Coyne:I feel like I swing hard, but people like, oh, look at that smooth tempo.
Tom Coyne:I'm like, man, I think I, I ripped at that as hard as I could.
Tom Coyne:So, so maybe I'm just like a sort of tortoise kind of approach.
Tom Coyne:So, yeah, something smooth and easy listening.
Tom Coyne:We'll take that.
JT:You were talking about.
JT:I'm going to interject something here.
JT:You're talking about in the regular show getting fitted for clubs and all that.
JT:A few weeks ago I went and got fitted and I hadn't been fitted actually legitimately probably ever, but I spent two hours with this gentleman.
JT:He did a really nice job.
JT:But in the past couple of years I've tried to slow my swing down, which is maybe the antithesis of thought for most people.
JT:But I found if I slowed it down, it was smoother, my ball striking was better, what have you.
JT:So we, we get there and he's doing this and he goes, I can't Figure out how with that slow swing speed, you can get the ball to come off the face of that club.
JT:So hot.
JT:And I.
JT:I said I.
JT:Nobody's ever told me that.
JT:I have no idea.
JT:So, anyway, it's just kind of interesting that you said that.
JT:Okay.
Tom Coyne:Yeah.
JT:A couple of personal things here.
JT:What's your favorite movie?
Tom Coyne:Oh, favorite movie.
Tom Coyne:I'm gonna go with A Gentleman's Game, based on my first novel.
JT:There you go.
JT:There you go.
Tom Coyne:I'm contractually obligated to say that.
JT:No, I got it.
JT:I got it.
JT:What's the worst movie you ever watched?
Tom Coyne:A Gentleman's Game, based on my first novel.
Tom Coyne:No, I'm just.
Tom Coyne:I'm just.
Tom Coyne:Just kidding.
Tom Coyne:No, no, no, no, no.
Tom Coyne:That.
Tom Coyne:That was a really fun experience.
JT:I bet it was.
Tom Coyne:Daddyshack2.
JT:Yeah.
JT:That.
Tom Coyne:The best golf movie to.
Tom Coyne:Maybe not the best.
JT:Maybe not the best.
JT:Tom, if you could dine with, who would it be and what would be on the menu?
Tom Coyne:Oh, okay.
Tom Coyne:I'll go with.
Tom Coyne:I'm kind of interested in Napoleon recently, but I'm getting really into World War II, so maybe Churchill and so.
Tom Coyne:No, okay, I'll go with Churchill.
Tom Coyne:And he probably won't be eating much, drinking more, but I'll go with a beef Wellington just because that would be appropriate.
JT:Sure.
JT:Have you read Our Finest Hour by Trisha?
JT:Good.
JT:Yeah, it's a great book.
JT:I thought, if you could erase one mistake from your past, what would it be?
Tom Coyne:Oh, one mistake.
JT:In high school, anytime you pick it.
Tom Coyne:I dropped at homecoming, I dropped a pass that would have been a touchdown, and we would have won the homecoming game.
Tom Coyne:And I'll never, ever, ever forget it.
JT:Never live it down.
JT:Never go back to your hometown.
JT:It's.
JT:They know who you are.
JT:If you were an animal, what animal would you be?
Tom Coyne:I would be.
Tom Coyne:I would probably be.
Tom Coyne:Wow.
Tom Coyne:What animal would I be?
Tom Coyne:I'd be a hippo.
Tom Coyne:Because, like, you know, they're just kind of chilling there.
Tom Coyne:But, you know, there's.
Tom Coyne:There's a lot more going on under the surface than you think.
Tom Coyne:And you don't.
Tom Coyne:You know, they seem pretty gentle, but now they got a lot going on.
JT:Oh, yeah, yeah.
JT:Yeah.
JT:Here's kind of a head scratcher for you.
JT:Do you think golf can help kids that have trouble with math or have difficulty with social skills?
Tom Coyne:Yeah, absolutely.
Tom Coyne:I think anything that is not involving a screen can help kids with their social skills.
Tom Coyne:And so golf is.
Tom Coyne:Is good in that regard.
Tom Coyne:And the math that.
Tom Coyne:That one has to do as a junior golfer, figuring out pluses and minuses.
Tom Coyne:So you get your integers there and doing some addition.
Tom Coyne:I mean, it's not going to make you a mathematician, but I mean, golf generally, there's a lot of healthy practices associated with it.
JT:Sure.
Tom Coyne:You're doing it the right way, so.
Tom Coyne:Yeah, it's definitely good.
JT:Couple more here.
JT:Tom, what's one thing you miss about your twenties.
Tom Coyne:I miss about my twenties is not, is the lack of pain.
JT:You're not the only one that's ever said that.
Tom Coyne:Yeah, just waking up and always being ready to jump out of the car and go play golf and.
JT:Yeah, not happening these days.
JT:A little slower.
Tom Coyne:Takes a little longer.
Tom Coyne:Takes a few Advil.
JT:Yeah, no, I get that.
JT:We already covered, but I'll.
JT:Is there a change you think that should be made to amateur golf at, you know, USGA competitive levels?
Tom Coyne:I would probably, if I was.
Tom Coyne:Yeah.
Tom Coyne:You know what?
Tom Coyne:I would bump the mid am back to like maybe 30 years old or 35, because I feel like at 25, you're still getting a lot of players who.
Tom Coyne:The pro, you know, not the problem.
Tom Coyne:But the USAM is a college tournament and the Mid Am is supposed to be.
Tom Coyne:Not, it's supposed to be the other thing.
Tom Coyne:But I think you're still getting a lot of people in the mid AM who play golf full time and good for them.
Tom Coyne:It's great.
JT:Yeah.
Tom Coyne:But I just think what it's supposed to be, you know, a mid AM is someone who has a job and golfs for, on, you know, for fun after work or on the weekend.
Tom Coyne:It doesn't, it doesn't really feel that way when you, when you look at the field sometimes.
Tom Coyne:So, yeah, I would, I would, I would try to reshape that a little.
JT:Okay.
JT:Two, two more.
JT:What do you want to do when and if you ever retire?
Tom Coyne:I just want to play a lot of golf.
Tom Coyne:I have no other hobbies.
Tom Coyne:I have no other interests.
Tom Coyne:I, I, I, I sleep, read and golf.
Tom Coyne:So I will catch up on a lot of books and, and play even more golf.
JT:Okay, last one here.
JT:What would your last meal be if you were on death row?
Tom Coyne:Well, last time I was on death row, I'm gonna go with.
Tom Coyne:I gotta go with a nice.
Tom Coyne:I'm a big pizza guy.
Tom Coyne:Rocco's Pizza from South Bend, Indiana.
Tom Coyne:I'll have him ship it in.
Tom Coyne:Best pizza out there.
JT:All right.
JT:Because, you know, you don't have to worry about caloric intake at that point.
JT:Oh, just cholesterol or just bring it, you know.
Tom Coyne:Exactly.
JT:Tom Coyne.
JT:Good luck, buddy.
JT:With your golf course up there at Sullivan county.
JT:And kind of keep us surprised.
JT:And I'll keep an eye on you.
JT:And then, like I said, after the first year in the spring, we'll have you back and give us some progress report.
JT:How's that?
Tom Coyne:I love it.
Tom Coyne:J.T.
Tom Coyne:i appreciate you having me on.
Tom Coyne:And come see us in Sullivan County.
JT:I will.
JT:That's going to wrap it up for after hours for Tom and myself.
JT:Like we say before, go out, play some golf, have some fun.
JT:But most of all, be kind.
JT:Take care, everybody.
