Iss. #225 | Blades aka Lazer aka Blazer Makes His Debut

Iss. #225 | Blades aka Lazer aka Blazer Makes His Debut

"I'm certified nuts. There's going to be some tinkering going on." - Viktor Hovland on the continued evolution of his swing heading into 2025... or me fighting off my son Jack from destroying a perfected Magnatiles race track complete with professional grade multi-level reinforcements.

 

Meet my consigliere... 

 BLADES AKA LAZER AKA BLAZER
17 year old phenom Blades Brown makes his professional debut on the Tour this week at the Amex in Palm Springs.
 
Blades is a Nashville native who made his PGA debut last season at the Myrtle Beach Classic where he impressively finished with a 66-69 to earn a T26 finish. That week he  ranked sixth in Driving Accuracy and fourth in Greens in Regulation... against real live PGA pros. Sooo not too shabby. The kid's got some serious nerves of steel.
 
(And because I love to embarrass myself for your reading enjoyment, my nerves at 17 led me into situations like being scared to get in a hot tub at my friend's house because I was too concerned that my ingrown toe nail would get infected. So a bit of same-same.)
 
Back to actually impressive teenagers, the PGA Tour site did a profile of Blades, who officially turned pro and turned down the chance at playing in college. The profile dug into his namesake and how you end up with such a bada$$ moniker. 
 
Blades is his mom's maiden name. His mom, Rhonda Blades Brown, was the first player to ever make a 3-pointer in the WNBA. A pretty wild stat for the history books. She played for the NY Liberty in the 1997 inaugural season. Ok, Rhonda! 
 
Plus, any questions around where he gets his competitive drive are best summed up in this quote:
 
"If I go up three or four points (in pickleball), all of a sudden she (Rhonda) gets that look on her face and you're like, ‘Uh-oh, do I want to be sacrificing my relationship with my mom right now, or what are we doing here?’"

 

Pays to be the co-founder...

TIGER GETS DOMINATED...AND STILL WINS
TGL aired his second match on Tuesday between the Los Angeles team (Sahith, Morikawa and Justin Rose) and Jupiter Links (Tiger, Kisner and Homa). Unfortunately, like week one, it was a complete blowout with LAGC burying team Tiger in the first few holes. Bummer.
 
However, what I want to focus on is how Tiger still somehow won the evening as he cued up a WWE-style entrance for himself complete with Eye of the Tiger blaring as he emerged from a dense red fog in the tunnel. It certainly pays to own your own golf league... you can really gas yourself up.
 
Perhaps the biggest win of the evening however were the ratings. Despite the blowout, it recorded 1.13M viewers at its peak which is around 10% higher than the premiere. AND it even beat the TNT NBA game at the same time—proving just how powerful the Tiger effect still is.
 
Plenty to criticize still on how competitive these matches are, how its broadcast, and just how punishing this Hammer is to the gameplay—but for now, the success is gaining major steam. Reports are saying that multiple new cities are considering fielding their own teams, LIV players may be in the mix for future seasons, and new stadiums are being discussed around the country.
 
We are two weeks in.

 

My favorite thing on social this week...

RISE AND GRIND
I don't know if I even need to add commentary here. Caught this on Foreplay Pod's Tiktok and had to share.
 
Korean golf is simply on another level.

 

The shifting face of golf

GENERATION ZEN?
A new survey from a company called Lightspeed caught my attention this week as it looked at the shifting motivations behind Millennial and Gen Z golfers. 
 
51% of Gen Z golfers rank mental health and self-care as their top reason to play, alongside social activity and time spent outdoors in nature.

53% of Millennials cite time outdoors in nature as their leading motivator, alongside social activity and mental health and self-care.
 
29% of Gen Z players and 21% of Millennials always or primarily seek out solo tee times or as a single.
 
The results are somehow both shocking and not shocking as I find myself sharing many of the same reasons. Not to say I don't still love a round with buddies, sharing some Four Peaks Juicy Golden Ales and lighting that fire of competition.
 
But I as I reflect on rounds like my Bandon Dunes trip last year, I talk about it as if it were a spiritual experience. I find myself reliving intensely individual moments like walking down fairways or staring out at the ocean to put my mind at peace. 
 
And in a world where I still get uncomfortable at times eating out at restaurants by myself during lunch breaks, I don't have the same feeling about finding a solo tee time and spending hours with complete strangers playing golf.
 
Agree? Disagree? Curious where you all land.
Older articles Back to Breakfast Balls