Flag Hunters Golf Podcast
Hello and welcome to Flaghunters ! It is a privilege to bring to you this powerful insight into playing better Golf. In all my years of being in the game of Golf from competing at a high amateur level, to caddying, teaching, and being a overall Golf geek, I have an insatiable, curiosity driven desire to get down to the bottom of what it takes to truly get better playing the game of Golf that we all unconditionally love. This has been one of the greatest journeys of my life and I am deeply grateful for all that Golf has given me. Thank you for joining me in this incredible journey. This is my ever evolving love letter to Golf. Jesse Perryman P.S. Please Rate, Review and Subscribe !
Flag Hunters Golf Podcast
Inside OSU Golf: Preston Stout and Ethan Fang on elite habits, smart course plans, and building a winning culture
Two Oklahoma State golfers reflect on a Walker Cup win, wedge-first strategy, and the mental habits that turn off days into solid scores. We share our recruiting paths, daily routine at Carsten Creek, and why multi-sport childhoods beat early specialization.
• why wedges and distance control decide college events
• one-way misses and fat-side targets to lower risk
• how to practice 130–80 yards for real scoring gains
• alternate shot strategy built on patience and par pressure
• using humor to reset after mistakes under pressure
• mental game habits for staying present and composed
• recruiting choices and why OSU’s setup accelerates growth
• multi-sport roots to avoid burnout and build coordination
Please rem remember to rate, review, and subscribe and enjoy this podcast
Hello and welcome to this very special edition of the Flag Hunters Golf Podcast. I'm your host, Jesse Perryman. Thank you for tuning in. And uh this week we've got uh a couple of young men who I have a lot of respect for, high regard for, and when I am around these two and have been around these two, uh they are are the future of American golf, as far as at an elite level, is in good hands. And my guests for this episode is a young man by the name of Preston Stout and his teammate, another great young man, Ethan Fang. These two gentlemen were in the Walker Cup at Cypress Point. I was uh blessed and honored to be on Preston's bag for the entire week. And uh we we've emerged with a W uh on our home turf, and it was great. Uh Ethan and Preston were alternate shot partners, and they're also teammates on the Oklahoma State golf team. They're both juniors uh playing for Coach Bratton and playing well. Uh what a what a great couple of young men. Uh and it was uh really an eye-opening week. And this conversation's great because their chronological age doesn't matter here. Their golf IQ, both of their golf IQs are off the charts, and they have some great golden nuggets to say uh in this hour of conversation and uh a great vibe and some great things that we can all take and apply to our own games. And uh and Preston is one of the elite ball strikers. I'm gonna put him up there with Scotty. Uh, I know that's that's high cotton there, and that's uh that's an incredible comparison, but uh for longtime listeners, you know that we we hold uh, especially within the advanced ball striking community, how we hold ball striking to uh to uh high honor, and and Preston fits that. And and Ethan has some of the best, most gifted hands I've ever seen. He's he's an incredible putter, a great, great wedge player. Uh, I was calling him the Jedi Master Wedge Master of the entire week. Um, and we got along great, and we really had good vibes out there. And my goodness, these two young men are very impressive. And I hope that uh parents that are listening are inspired by these young men. They weren't pushed by their parents, they were on their own accord, and they say it accordingly, too. They they grew up playing uh different sports, and and I don't think that I'm gonna agree with what Preston and Ethan both said. I don't think that uh young young men or young women should be complete and utter golf specialists at a young age because it's it's gonna lead to some uncomfortable things growing up and and most importantly to burnout. Without further ado, uh enjoy this episode. Follow them on Instagram, Preston Stout and Ethan Fang. You get the updates from what they're doing, uh, world traveling, playing great collegiate golf, and also uh students too. They were disciplined enough to do their homework during the week of the Walker Cup. And I know for myself and uh other people that played collegiate golf when we did in our era, uh, we would have shined homework for the most part. But uh that's neither here nor there. Please rem remember to rate, review, and subscribe and enjoy this podcast. And and Preston and Ethan, thank you. And uh look forward to following your careers with great enthusiasm and hope to uh keep our conversations going. Cheers, everyone, and have a great week. And along with uh two very special young men that I got a chance to get to know over the week of the Walker Cup, they were a part of the U.S. team, a part of the victorious U.S. team uh that was quite dominant in singles. We we need to work on our alternate shot a little bit, boys. But uh we've got my boys Ethan Fang and Preston Stout. They are both juniors at the Oklahoma State University. Very, very prolific school, has been known for putting out a lot, a lot of guys on the PGA tour. It's a very vaulted program, a program that I knew of when I was in school. Uh, I mean, y'all were good when I was in school in the early 90s, bro. So it's been a long time. So, boys, welcome. Ethan, Ethan and Preston. Thanks, sir. I appreciate y'all. So uh let's go on the day in the life. Let's start right off. Um, you guys both got recruited to Oakie State. Let's let's talk about that process quickly. What was that like for you all? Was it a tough decision? Uh let's let's walk down a little bit of memory lane.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, uh, at least for me, uh it was once I visited for the first time, it was uh pretty easy decision for me. I had uh I visited uh University of Oklahoma first. Um and honestly, after going there, I thought that's where I was gonna go. A lot of my high school buddies uh decided to go there and uh somewhat close to home, and I thought that was a good fit. And then I visited here next. And yeah, after I visited, I knew I was gonna be where I wanted to be. Um I had a couple other visits lined up uh after, and I I canceled those because I just knew I wanted to be in Stillwater and I wanted to be a cowboy. And um yeah, Carsten Creek is is amazing, and that was a a big draw for me, and also just the coaching staff and our whole program and all the donors that uh and alumni they just care so much about the golf team here, and it's uh it's a yeah, golf's a big deal here. Um, a lot of people call it golf school, and um yeah, so that was kind of just attractive to me. Um yeah, it's just kind of where I wanted to be. I can do everything I love. I can hunt and fish and uh be in the outdoors, and and that was a huge draw for me too. So yeah.
SPEAKER_03:Um yeah, the uh recruiting process was a little different for me. Um I obviously I went to Cal my freshman year. Um I was talking to OU, OSU, and Cal coming out of high school, and um chose Cal and you know wanted to try something new. And you know, after the first semester, I knew I wanted to transfer and you know go somewhere that you know I can compete for a national championship and you know have the resources tell me become what I want to do when I grow up. And you know, kind of entering the portal, it kind of wasn't a question. Just you know, I always knew I was gonna choose Oklahoma State, you know, having you know, Preston and Gavin and Eric, you know, a bunch of guys on you known growing up, and it was just the easy decision.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, excellent. Um, and then you all have like a full-on, you've got your own uh system there. You've got your own gym, your own practice facility, uh your own building, correct? Yeah, yeah, that's all. Yeah. So, real quick, tell us what's in that building.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah. Uh we have like a small gym. We this isn't where we lift in the mornings with the whole team where we do our actual lists. We do that uh on campus, but okay. Yeah, we have a little gym where you know we can kind of stretch and do a lot of mobility stuff. And then uh yeah, we got our own locker room, we got sauna uh showers, all that. Um and then yeah, we have a uh it's pretty much it's in the clubhouse, so we just a big restaurant and we get to eat lunch here every day of the week uh and on the weekends, then we get breakfast on the weekends too here, and the food's really good. So uh that's nice. Um then yeah, we just have our golf course, then we have our our whole practice facility that's uh just for the team, us and the girls' team uh range. We got what four chipping greens, four chipping grains, come butting greens, and yeah, and a big range, which is which is awesome. That's new. We just uh redid the golf course and all that uh within the past two years. So it's been an awesome addition. And yeah, it was pretty crazy that we were able to win a national championship last year without having a practice facility or a golf course. Uh so yeah, we're just excited to see what what we can do this year having access to all that.
SPEAKER_01:So absolutely. Now I know where Ethan gets his hands from. Yeah, I'll tell you, uh, y'all, for those who are listening, Ethan Fang has has uh we he's got some magic hands, he's got uh very unusual, gifted uh feel with his wedges. Have you always has that come naturally to you, Ethan, with your wedges?
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, I mean, I think it kind of started where um, you know, when I started playing golf, I did a lot of chipping. Um it's honestly kind of all I did. So I just think and you know, just as the years gone on, you know, just kind of becomes a muscle memory thing, and you know, you've hit all you know, all the shots, and you know, kind of just kind of go, I just kind of go with the flow. Um, it's a lot of feel, you know. When people ask me like, you know, what's your technique or whatnot, um, it's just the same answer. It's always just got to feel it out, and you know, yeah.
SPEAKER_01:And in your opinion, it just it took it took all of the years, all of the repetitions to develop that kind of into your psyche where you just have an an automatic way that you can pull shots and certain slot shot selections with different wedges and stuff, correct? Yep. Boys and girls, there you have it from one of the best in the world. Um I mean, how how I mean I mean, Preston, it's not like your wedge play is like sucks. I mean, your wedge play is exceptional, my friend. And you know, even even to those who listen to this podcast, there's still not enough emphasis on wedge play. And all the tour players that I know, they're working on their wedge play most of the time. Uh, does that hold true for y'all? Yeah, for sure.
SPEAKER_02:Um, yeah, I spent I think 130 yards to 80 yards is uh honestly the most important distance. When you're I mean, that's since everyone hits it so long now, it feels like, and the courses kind of feel like they're shrinking, like at least a lot of our college events, it's drivers and wedges. Like you're wedges. And so yeah, at least for me, that's where I spend probably 60% of my practice is just kind of from that distance. Uh, just because it's important when you have a scoring club in your bag to be able to capitalize and and have a look. Um, yeah, that's something I definitely struggled with uh coming into college was my wedge playing. And yeah, like my short game around the greens. Uh kind of different than Fang. Like when I first started playing golf, I would just beat balls forever. Uh, I even did that in high school. I never really worked on my short game, my wedging. And so that's something that Coach Brad has helped me a lot since I've gotten to school. And definitely probably the biggest improvement in my game is uh yeah, when I have a wedge in my hand, I feel like I can call that a strength now. And it was definitely one of my weaknesses. So yeah, it's everyone out there that's trying to get better, I think. Especially a little higher handicappers or uh amateur players, just getting better with their chipping and not making bobs with wedges, I think's huge.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, that's a big one. It it you know, we talk about it, we talk about it. A lot of elite players talk about it and they think about it and they work on it and they execute it quite well, but that still doesn't, for whatever reason, the rest of the general golfing popula still wants to take out a you know a driver and just and whack away at it, you know. But uh good golf requires to score well, and there's a reason why they're called scoring clubs. For sure.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah. Like at this level, it seems like everyone can hit the driver, right? Like everyone can hit in a fair way, but it's when you have like inside 140, 150 yards, that's where you can really separate yourself.
SPEAKER_01:So yeah, yeah, the the best player in the world, Scotty Scheffler. How good is he with his wedges? Pretty crazy. I mean, it's it's nuts. So um uh real quick, boys, what's what's a day in a life for you at school? Like give us kind of uh a peek into what's an uh everyday student at OSU that plays on the golf team. What does that look like?
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, uh, I mean for me, I feel like me and Fangs probably looks it's pretty similar, pretty similar, maybe a little bit. Uh but yeah, I'll I'll just go through like a Monday. So we lift at 6 a.m. Uh lift from six to seven, and then we'll go get breakfast after we we lift and eat uh breakfast and and dinner at the same spot. Um so we do that and then depends how tired I am. Sometimes I'll go back and take like an hour nap. 6 a.m. is pretty early, but yeah, it is early. Uh usually try to get in like a practice for a couple hours uh in the morning before lunch. Um then yeah, we all eat lunch. Usually as a team, we eat here at Karsten. Um yeah, we do that. We'll eat, I don't know, maybe around noon and then uh we usually just go out and play, you know, play nine holes, eighteen holes in the afternoon. Um maybe practice some more and then uh yeah, go home, do homework, chill, eat dinner, maybe go hang out with our boys if there's football on, maybe go watch uh just hang out. You gotta have a social life. So uh being able to build that in, uh I think huge shoes. So yeah.
SPEAKER_01:Ethan, anything to add to that?
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, I mean, you know, I mean the morning and you know, eating lunch here, you know, practicing. Um obviously Ian Preston's practice routine might be a little different. Um, but yeah, I mean, I think after just you know getting all your stuff done, um, you know, and then after I leave Karsten, I just kind of I really just go with the flow, you know, whatever, whatever's on my mind, um, you know, either go fish or go hang out with the boys, um, just anything I can, you know, that seemed fun at the time. And yeah, just kind of get some homework done during that night. Um, and yeah, it's just it's a pretty simple life, I'd say.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah. And if there's any of Ethan's or Preston's uh profs that will be listening to this podcast, I can attest that they did do homework Walker Cup weekend, which was impressive, guys. By the way, I was really impressed by that. Because if I was in school and I was on the Walker Cup team, yeah, no, I wouldn't have had the discipline to do that. So speaking of the Walker Cup, have you guys had a chance to reflect, download, uh reminisce about that week? I mean, it was it was pretty special.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, um, yeah, it was obviously a really cool week. Um, you know, kind of took a while to get, you know, took a couple days to finally let it everything sink in. Um yeah, it's just you know, you know, having tech a group of guys out there, you know, you all know pretty well, and just getting a chance to win at Cypress Point, um, you know, for your country, it's something pretty special. Um and having all y'all out there, you know, shout out Josh and Jesse. It was uh it was really fun.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, I mean, it was awesome. I mean, it was I told a lot of people that's probably behind winning the Natties. That was the most fun week of competing and just golf I've had in my life. I mean, first of all, Cypress was just awesome. Uh and then yeah, all the caddies were were sweet. I mean, you're my you're my boy now. So we had a we had a good time. Uh and then yeah, I thought it was also just really cool whenever we kind of do those theme events is like to be able to play alongside all the guys that you compete against all your uh all the guys you're trying to beat uh week in and week out to be able to actually play with them and and get to root for them for once was uh fun. Um and then yeah, it just growing relationships, right? I mean, we'll we'll be friends with a lot of these guys for the rest of our lives, you know, playing on tour together and stuff or wherever we're um and yeah, those are you know some of our best buddies now. And uh if they weren't already, and uh yeah, it was just a really special week and uh yeah, it was awesome. So hopefully we can run it back next year. And I don't know if it'll be as cool as I've, but uh I'm sure it'll be fun if we get the chance to do it again.
SPEAKER_01:So yeah, it it will be at Lahinch in Ireland, uh which, if I'm not mistaken, McKenzie had some influence on that course as well. Um, yeah, I've heard really good things about it. And then Nathan will be the captain again, Nathan Smith. So that'll be fun. You know, let's go over there and keep that thing and you know, throw those boys for a little bit of a uh, you know, whatever. Because they listen over there too. So um, you know, it's all in good fun and good spirit. But the thing that really impressed me about you all that week, and and also with the GB and I side as well, was uh the spirit of the competition, at least the the the matches that I were was a part of with you two, obviously, and the other two. It was um it was intense, it was fun, it was focused, but there was also good sportsmanship as well. And I want to make sure I emphasize that. Uh uh, especially with these two uh gentlemen that I have on right now. They were the ultimate gentlemen, and they really exemplified some great sportsmanship. So uh, you know, I I still think that that's really important. Um you you never know who you're gonna play against down the road, you know, and uh you two are uh are on your way to bigger bigger and better things. So uh, you know, I I don't know if anybody knew, but I was on the bag of Preston here for the week of the Walker Cup, and um and that was a real education for me because I saw a young man and Ethan as well. I saw two young men out there really play golf at a high level with a high golf IQ. And I think it's important to note for the listener that these guys did not force bad positions, they did not make impulsive decisions. They had a plan, they stuck to it. And if anything, y'all went a little bit even more on the conservative side uh when there was any sort of indecisiveness. So you made sure that you kept your ball in the right quadrants of the greens and in play at all times, no matter what the circumstance was. So I want to really exemplify that and shout you guys out that in in my downloads, uh primarily with Nathan and Nathan Smith, I wanted to make sure that that was set. So uh when you all are in competition, and we talked about this before we hit the the record button. Um not everybody is hitting it well all the time, and you two strike the ball exceptionally well. Um there's still a misconception with elite play that you all just strike it every day. And Preston, it wouldn't doubt doubt it if you did. I mean, you you're in my opinion, the next elite ball striker. Um and but what do you do on days that you're not hitting it well? That you're not your body's not your body may be you know tight for whatever reason, and but you gotta play uh a tournament round. So how do you deal with that? Ethan, you start, bud.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, um, yeah, I mean, you know, obviously there's gonna be a lot of days when you're not gonna have your A game going into tournaments or during tournament rounds. And one thing I do is, you know, making sure whichever direction I'm missing it, you know, it's always gonna be one side. Um, so if you're not hitting it good, you know, at least it's gonna go to one direction and you can play it from there. And I think just controlling your bad days and not blowing up is probably one of the bigger things in golf. Um just, you know, not shooting yourself out the tournament, um, and just kind of you know staying calm and staying you're relaxed and not trying to overthink it. Um, I think it's all it is, it's just not getting too technical with it. Um, like changing your swing out there on the course. I feel like that could, you know, go either way, but a lot of the times doesn't work and just kind of sticking with what you have and play the shot you have for the day and just kind of go on from there.
SPEAKER_01:That's all right. There we go. All right, Prescott, your thoughts on that?
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, for me, uh I mean Ethan kind of said it well, like you're not gonna go out there and just like hit it your best day in and day out. Uh, you're gonna have off days with your ball striking. Um and I think a big thing for me that I've kind of learned as I've gotten older is you don't have to hit it close every hole to make a bird. If you aim two flag sticks left, you can hit a pin high, that's 12 feet. And when you're sitting in the fairway, you're thinking two flag sticks looks like you're aiming way away from the pin, but then you get up there and it's 12 feet. So and just fat siding yourself is big too. And um yeah, I mean that's just I mean you see Scotty do it. Yeah, he's one of the best ball.
SPEAKER_01:All right. A little little technical difficulty there are no problems. So let's go back to uh talking about how to deal with a indifferent ball striking day, especially under the gun. Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, I think uh I think knowing your miss is big. Uh I think for like elite players, I think you're when you're not hitting it your best, you kind of have a tendency. Um I think for me and Fang, we kind of have the same miss. It's kind of that spiky right. Yeah. So I I don't see either of us miss it left very much. So that helps a lot because you kind of eliminate half of the golf course, you know. If you know you're just gonna miss it right with driver, then you've kind of eliminated the whole left side of the golf course, which is huge. Um and then yeah, just fat siding yourself on greens is obvious. Um and just knowing that if to aim in away from pins doesn't mean you're not gonna have a good look. Um, I mean, if you when you're back in the fairway and you're like, I'm gonna aim two flag sticks left, yeah, that looks like oh you're aiming way away from the flag from the fair, but you get up there and two flagsticks is only 12 feet. So uh I think having good distance control can also help with that. You know, if you're not hitting it online, uh if you're pin high, you're gonna have you're gonna have be a lot closer than you think. Um and yeah, I think that's just what really good players do is they manage their misses. Uh I think that's huge uh for golf is like it's not how good your good shots are, but it's how good your bad shots are. Um and just yeah, just having your dispersion be tighter, and that just comes with practice and reps. So yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_03:Anything to add on to a couple things Preston said, um, you know, I think you covered it pretty well, but yeah, I think um I think a lot of players try to fix their swing out there when they're not hitting the best. Um and I think that's you know, that can you know dig you into a pretty deep hole. Um just not knowing where the ball's going. So I think an important thing is just kind of sticking to what you have for the day and um just like Preston said, playing to the fat side and figuring things out, get some confidence going and you know, try to turn things around instead of trying to force things. Um I mean, obviously you got you play 18 holes, so you got 18 chances to you know get back in it. And just yeah, I just think just staying patient and relaxed, and you know, working with what you have that day is pretty important.
SPEAKER_00:Right. Yeah, yeah, exactly.
SPEAKER_01:You know, that I mean it's so simple, it's stated, but yet a lot of people still struggle with this very phenomenon. Uh this this ideology of accepting where you're at for that day and then playing accordingly, while knowing what uh to basically reiterate what you guys said, I mean, the knowing where your misses are, I can't understate that. Yeah, that that's just huge. I mean, I think that's pretty commonplace with elite play. Uh, if you start missing it both ways, then there's something that's technically uh not right. Um, but if you got a one-way miss, that's big. Uh, you know, knowing where that miss is gonna be, where it shows up, play it accordingly, and then um it it's you know, one thing I noticed about both of you is that you never really tried to do anything super heroic. Just kind of let's keep it in play, let's not let's hit greens and rag and make some putts.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, yeah, I think that's uh I think I mean, especially playing alternate shot, man, just staying staying in the hole is a big thing. You know, you don't need to do something outrageous to win the hole. Um, it's always you know, alternate shots are very hard format. It's hard to get a lot of momentum going when you're only playing half the hole. Yeah. So yeah, just you know, putting your partner in a spot where he can, you know, have a good chance to make birdie or you know, have a good chance to at least make pars so you're not you're forcing the other team to you know make a putt or whatnot, and just you know, not giving them easy holes like what we did the second day at four subs.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, yeah, it happens. You know, it happens, but uh going back to the Walker Cup, you all sure made up for it in the individuals. Um I saw some exceptional play from you two, uh, and and and also from the GB and I team. They got a bunch of good players over there, and undoubtedly they'll have some guys that make it on tour, um without a doubt. But you know, with Cyprus and in regards to what we're talking about right now, ultimately it it it uh golf courses like that, you could say Gusta is the same way, where you've got to have really good distance control. You have to know where the outs are, where your best opportunity to get the ball up and down is from, when applicable, and then where to be aggressive and where to attack certain hole locations. And you know, seeing that from you two that week really exponentiated what I had been thinking about uh in applying to my own game and then talking about it with other uh decent players here in Northern California is that if you've got a good plan and you know yourself, uh you're not really gonna shoot yourself out of it. I mean, does somebody have a 75, a 76, a 77 in the bag? Yeah, sure. You know, but so does Scotty. You know, I mean, that's just golf, you know. Um, but the acceptance of that and then moving forward, and then the days when you're hitting it well, then you could put your foot on the gas and really, really have a go. Um, a lot of people don't know this, but Ethan won the Carmel Cup right before the Walker Cup, and that was three days at Spy, right? At Spy Glass? It was, yep. That's a tough golf course. It's not easy.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, it was um yeah, I mean you know, I was hitting it really good the first day, and I didn't really get any putts to drop. I shot, I think I shot one under. I hit I think I hit every fairway and 17 greens, so I knew it was hitting that week, and just staying patient, and you know, the putts ended up dropping, and you know, I was hitting it good all week, so it was just kind of you know, good things on good things, and it ended up winning.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, that's a big win. Huge that obviously carried that momentum and a little bit rubbed off on it on your boy Preston that week. So that's good stuff, man. That's good stuff, boys. I I love the conversation. Um, and and as you know, I hate to say this, but uh as an American, man, we need you guys out there in that Ryder Cup, too. You know, yeah, we need you guys out there. We got some tough, tough competition there in Europe. Those boys can play. Yeah, uh, you know, my goodness. Um, anyway, on a selfish note, but uh, you know, I I guess my next question to you two is this. Um, when you were growing up, and you guys are both from the DFW area, which is the Dallas Fort Worth area, um, were you thinking about playing college golf? Where you were was the PGA tour has is it always been the goal, the benchmark?
SPEAKER_02:Yeah. Uh now I grew up playing a lot of sports. I didn't really start playing golf till I was 12. So um No, when I was younger, I wanted to I wanted to play in the MLB. That was nice. Baseball was my thing uh growing up. And yeah, I mean we played 90 games a year when I was 10, 11, 9 years old. Uh and just kind of got burnt out. And yeah, started playing golf when I was 12 and still played football uh too uh through my sophomore year high school to my sophomore year high school. Um but yeah, I think I kind of noticed probably when I was in uh probably a freshman in high school that golf was uh probably gonna be my thing. Um you know I knew I was only gonna be six foot. Um I knew that probably didn't take me very far in football. And uh we started playing some pretty legit guys and uh got banged around and I was like, yeah, golf might be I think. Um yeah, uh yeah, probably since my eighth grade freshman year, I wanted to play on I want to play on the PJ tour was kind of my goal. And uh definitely wanted to play college golf and uh yeah, I just fell in love with the game. Um yeah, I was able to exceed and go and go and play college golf and get to play here. It's a huge blessing. Uh thank the good lord for that. And um yeah, and then yeah, hopefully it'll get to play on the PJ tour one day. I think we're on the right track. But that's been my my dream for for a while now.
SPEAKER_03:So yeah. Um yeah, I uh I yeah, I started golf at a pretty young age when I was seven, seven or eight years old. And I played basketball up until my freshman year of high school. Um and you know, at first I wanted to become an NBA player. Um, you know, I stopped growing, so that didn't, you know, that dream uh stopped pretty quickly. And you know, I just I started to take golf pretty seriously, um, you know, starting like seven, eighth grade, and you know, realized that you know I I was pretty solid at it. Um and yeah, I mean obviously, you know, I think every junior golfer, you know, they're they're one of their goals is to play or D1 golf or any type of college golf. And you know, I think it's just really cool. And obviously from college golf, you want to turn pro. Um, but yeah, just yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, absolutely. I mean, you guys are both on your way. You know, I'm impressed with uh with you as people, as young men, uh, and as great players. Um do you have any advice for any kids out there that uh that are showing some aptitude that want to keep on uh ascending?
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, I think a big thing is playing, like don't like I see some kids like uh my country club, like their dad will tell me, like, yeah, like I pulled them out of all sports, like they're just playing golf now, and they're like six years old online. Like, dude, let them like play all the sports. Like, I think it helps, like, even if you know, like, yeah, he he wants to play golf when he's older, like I think it's huge just for the coordination aspect of it. Yeah, it helps so much. Yeah, playing baseball, basketball, football. Yeah, just with the hand-eye coordination, just building that uh when you're younger, I think's huge. And it's just fun. I mean, quitting football in high school is really hard for me, you know, having to go to games on Friday nights and sit in the stands and watch my buddies. And you know, almost if I went back, I would I kind of wish I would have played all through high school. Um so yeah, I think it's it's important. Just play all the sports. Um obviously if you want to just focus on golf, that's fine too. Um but yeah, I think there gets to a point where where you'll know, like, okay, I think it's time to put everything else down and just focus on golf. But uh yeah, I think just play all the sports. Be a kid, it's fun. Uh you you create so many good friends. You know, some of my best friends now are are kids that I grew up playing on sports teams with, you know. So I think you just build awesome relationships and then yeah, I think it helps on the athletic side too, with team dialog coordination.
SPEAKER_03:So I mean, what Preston said I think is you know, up there to be one of the most important things um to not burn yourself out. Um but yeah, I think you know, to you know, the kids that are seven, eight, nine years old, I think you know, not wearing yourself out and not beating balls for two, three hours with your dad and just kind of I think having fun is the most important part as a junior. Um, you're gonna play this sport for 20, 30 years, so you know, you don't want to wear yourself out. And I think just finding a group of people to play with down the course is you know really important, not just you know, going out there and just hitting balls on the range and doing all this by yourself. I think you know it can get pretty boring sometimes. And I think just having fun is the biggest thing and just keeping it fun until you know if you don't like it and it's not meant for you, then whatever. But I think just not wearing yourself out before college is a pretty big thing.
SPEAKER_01:And and I also want to want to bring up a couple of moments that we had in the Walker Cup where uh Ethan kind of was the center of the of the of the tension as far as we were laughing at him a couple of times because he failed to carry certain bunkers that were a certain distance. But uh but the beauty the beautiful thing about it was is that we were all laughing at it. And here we are in the middle of the most important golf tournament in the world that weekend. And you know, we're taking a moment to laugh kind of at Ethan's expense, but uh that's okay. We don't have to mention how far it was because Ethan obviously can hit it far enough. And I'm sure his teammates give him a lot of grief about that period. But uh uh, you know, for him to win a major golf event at Spyglass, and spyglass isn't necessarily a short golf course, um, says a lot about the way that you control the golf ball and and all that. But to add to what what we were saying about adding some levity, even in the middle of a very important golf tournament, we still found the time to to actually laugh at it. And I thought that was cool. It took any sort of negative charge out of the environment. You know, and and so for those that are listening, think about that. You know, I mean, this is a very it was a very serious event, a very important golf tournament, and here we are in the middle of it laughing about it. You know, that that it was just you know, it could happen anybody. So, um, and I don't know what I can't remember what we ended up doing on that hole, but I think we did okay. We ended up tying. Yeah, we ended up tying. That's pretty good. You know, but I I gotta think, but I gotta think that if we were to go the other way in that situation and got all pissed off and you know, like, damn, you know, how do we do that? You know, how do we make that error? You know, that energy is gonna carry over. Um, you two did an excellent job of staying in the moment. Uh, let's talk about that kind of as we wind down the conversation. How important that is for both of you to stay in the moment.
SPEAKER_00:I don't think there's anyone better at it than this guy. So really good at it. Yeah. Ethan, expand on it, my friend.
SPEAKER_03:I mean, I mean, I'll tell I'll tell the public how far it was. Um, it was a bunker that was 215 to carry, and I pulled out hybrid and skanked it pretty bad, and it plopped right in the middle of the bunker. Um, I I mean, I just think I just think, you know, I mean, it already happened. So yeah, I mean, beating yourself up for it, it's just, you know, it's pretty stupid in my opinion. Um I mean you can't change the past. You just kind of have to move on with the with the present. And you know, it's it's alternate shot. You know, we were we were pretty early in our match still, and we were we knew we were hitting it good. And it's just I think you just gotta adapt from where you are, and you know, just staying calm, and you know, it kind of strikes some fear into your opponent too, and you know, the guys on the other team after they hit a bad shot, they're just pretty calm about it, not showing any emotion, um, not giving them any momentum too. Um, but yeah, I just think staying calm and you know, you're not gonna hit a bunch of bad shots in a row. So, I mean, just staying focused and you know, making up for it on the next shot.
SPEAKER_02:Russian, yeah. Uh that's something I struggle with for sure. I think uh, you know, playing with Fang, I think it was easier to kind of uh just keep it light on the course and and and not get too frustrated. Um but yeah, I think that's something I I struggle with. Uh watching him, like I think I mean he's one of the best chippers I ever seen, and one of the best putters I ever seen, but I think the best part about his game is what's between his ears. Yeah. My coach says it all the time. Like everyone has their superpower, and that's kind of his superpowers. Yeah, without a doubt. Just staying calm, not letting anything bother him. I mean, when we play golf tournaments and we play uh like all he's either in front of me or behind me um in our college events, and like I've never I'll never be able to tell if he's playing good or bad, just based on his body language. Uh and I think that's something that I struggle with a lot. Um, it's just kind of getting carried away and thinking about the past. Uh this week in this past weekend in Chicago at our tournament. Uh I definitely kind of noticed that after the after the tournament is the second day I kind of struggled on the front nine. Um and yeah, I just got really frustrated. Three putted hole 11 and just kind of lost my mind. Uh yeah, I I can get kind of worked up. Um, and that's always something I've kind of struggled with and I've gotten better at. Um yeah, I think taking something out of Ethan's book would would be nice. And you know, just kind of stay calm on the course and um yeah, just be able to not let things get you, I think's huge. I mean, you see Scottie Scheffler, I mean he's so calm and collected on the course. I think uh I think one of like his most impressive stats is like his his bounce back rate, like how many times he makes a birdie after he makes a bogey. Yeah, just to be able to flush whatever happened uh on that hold down the toilet and be able to move on. Uh I think that's one of his biggest strengths too, is just up here. So but yeah, it's so big in golf and it's so mental. Uh doesn't matter how good you are if you're not uh if you're not in the right headspace, then then you're cooked.
SPEAKER_01:So yeah. Yeah, you're not gonna be able to access all of the work that you've done. You know, you think about all the the training that you do with your swing motion, putting, chipping, all of that stuff, all the tangible stuff. But it's really the stuff that's unseen that kind of binds it all together, you know, your belief in yourself, your ability to be in the present moment. You guys mentioned Scotty is I mean, he says it all the time in his interviews, and it just goes over people's heads. It's like I I just was born with this ability to be in the present moment. Uh, and then you combine that with excellent technique and uh the ability to play golf at an extreme high level, and and and here you go. I mean, he's by far the best player in the world. But this is low-hanging fruit that we can all get and we can all adapt to our own games. Is there anything that you do, Ethan, to help you to stay in the present moment? Do you focus on your breath? Are you a meditator? Like what do you do?
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, um yeah, I mean I think just I mean, after I hit a bad shot or whatnot, um, you know, I just try to tell myself to stay calm. You know, it's not the end of the world. I just hit a shot out of bounds, or it's I mean, world's not gonna end. Yeah. I just kind of put into perspective that there's bigger things in life than just hitting the hitting around a golf ball. And just being yourself up is just, I mean, you're just digging yourself into a hole. You're not, you know, it's not like football or anything. You can take all your rage out and you know hit someone as hard as you can. You know, if you do that in golf, you know, you're not gonna end up with the best score. Um so just like just you know, staying, I think staying present, shot by shot, hole by hole. I tell myself that all the time in my head, just you know, treat, I mean, just take every shot and just I mean, after you hit it, you just gotta move on. You can't, you know, rain about it for the next couple holes, and it just and it just puts your head into a bad place. And next thing you know, you're stringing two, three bogies in a row and you know it's over.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, it's easy to do. It's easy to do. It's easy to get caught up in it. Uh, I mean, Preston, I know that you're hard on yourself, brother. Uh, you know, and I was too. I I think that there's uh there's a time to hold yourself accountable, there's a time to kick your own ass, too. Uh but to do it in a way that doesn't affect the energy level moving forward. Uh, I don't know if you all remember Tiger. Man, Tiger would get pissed. He would get hot. If he had a bad shot, he would get hot. But he would walk away from that shot, and when he got got away from the shot, it was almost as if it had never happened. And uh that was his methodology to deal with it. So he's honoring the intensity of himself at the same time, but also finding a way to be present. Um I think that's that's really key. And that's something that is uh, I mean, it's it's always kind of a work in progress, you know. Uh I don't think it's something that, you know, one ultimately masters, but because we're human and we're going to be subjugated to our own emotions, our own expectations, you know, we want to play well. We want our coach to be proud of us, we want our parents to be proud of us, our friends, all that stuff. But at the end of the day, it's really uh you put in the work and uh and you just try to stack the deck in your favor, and just the ability to be in the present moment just kind of binds it all together, you know, no matter what. And you can get away with murder out there, you can really hit it poorly, you can make some bad decisions too. And if you don't let that energy carry over into the next shot, even you said it best, you know it's not the end of the world. Um, to do that under the gun in real time is a superpower. And I think that uh that's something that I strive to do. Uh, I know that you guys work on it as well. Uh, and I think it's just as important just uh as anything that we do trying to ascend playing this game. Whether it's hitting balls, you know, uh meeting with our swing coach or a psychologist or whatever it is, our TPI instructors, uh, everything that we do to get our body, minds, and spirits ready to play at a high level, um, this right, in my opinion, is probably at the top of the food chain. Your ability to stay in the present moment. All the greats had it. They still do. Yeah, my goodness. Um, boys, I I can't tell you how much of a pleasure it's been to know you, uh, to call both of you friends. We spent a special week together. Okay, and uh, and thank you for coming on the podcast. And I hope this, your your words uh find the listeners well.
SPEAKER_00:I hope so too. Thanks for having us, Jesse. Yeah, thank you for having me, Jesse. Yeah, absolutely. And let's do it again. Yes, sir. Let's do it.