Short one this week on the backend of some travel (more on that later) and deep into 2025 planning. 

We’re getting into the meat of golf season here in Florida and my handicap index is settling into the 2.3-2.6 range, which feels both comfortable and accurate. We discussed it a bit on this past Sunday’s pod - there’s some very good golf in there that’s trying to come out. Patience! Strangely, that hankering to play some left-handed golf is coming back for the first time in a couple of years and I may have to indulge it over the next couple of months and re-heat my alternative “Tron Carter” lefty GHIN account. Stay tuned!

Recent travels took me out to San Francisco and I had the chance to play Brambles, the latest Coore & Crenshaw layout up north of wine country. Patience, rusticity, and minimalism are all on full display. The 3rd hole felt straight out of Scotland. And then it really ramps up from 4 through 9, and there's some cool stuff on the back nine that I probably glazed over because I was jetlagged. Great burger. James Duncan poured his heart and soul into the place, lined up the right partners to fund it and bring it to life, and that all shines through. I had a great conversation with the superintendent, Tyler Marcotte, and then the head pro, Tom Holmes, felt like a kindred spirit - Australian who came over to the US for college and then caught on up at Wykagil and moved out to California to help bring this place to life.  Everyone up there about the right stuff. And sheep roaming all over the place. As the native grows in and frames the holes, it’ll be one of the better walks in U.S. golf. I also met 

 while there...not sure there's a more fascinating job in golf than what he does with tying in nature to golf course design and experiences. This guy had been a mythical creature in my head for years: "Wait, there's a guy who just wanders around out here reflecting and learning the rhythms of the property and observes the trees and the light and then crafts little tie-ins?" That realization and thoughtfulness made me think of a walk around a golf course in a far different light nearly five years ago and my experiences have been far richer because of it. A wonderful surprise to meet the man himself and realize he isn't just an urban legend!

It was fun to dig into the Golf Magazine Top 100 rankings on Sunday’s pod, and really I think we’re just scratching the surface. Golf Digest’s list should be coming out in the weeks ahead and will provide great fodder and context. Will have plenty more to come on this front.

Cody flew into Jax on Sunday and we went up to Sea Island for the RSM Pro-Am and enjoyed a day out on Seaside with no wind. I’ve played there a couple dozen times over the last two decades and have never had a windless day out there. That, combined with middle pins and smooth tour greens added up to a lot of birdies. We played with Greyson Sigg and you can count me among his new fans. He’s 29 years old and his game and statistical profile remind me of a souped-up version of Zac Blair. He gives away distance off the tee and knows how to scramble and get the ball in the hole. His attitude and demeanor couldn’t be more unaffected and he works with the same coach at Augusta Country Club who taught him while he was growing up. Delightful afternoon!

I spent the last couple of nights up north of Aiken at The Tree Farm. It’s been really fun to see it come together and be able to stay on-site. Couldn’t be more proud of Zac and Alex Warr and the others who have brought it to life. Speaking of Zac, big week on tap at RSM for him - he heads into the final event of the season at 123rd in FedEx Cup standings and is paired up in the first two rounds with Joel Dahmen (124th) and Wesley Bryan (125th). Good bubble this year!

Page Break

out to Northern California, I carved out a night to eat at 

- this was the highlight of the entire trip. I believe the chef is an Eagle Scout, so the tasting menu was guided by a cool little booklet. The service generally speaking was both colorful and anticipatory.  Flighted wines were a delight, particularly a unique Chenin Blanc that was so much more green and fresh than I’ve ever had. Being taken upstairs to a lounge/den area for the dessert portion of the night was a cool flourish. In all, it lived up to the hype (and I didn't take many pics because I just wanted to experience it and not be distracted!)

On the homefront, Halloween was great, Freddie lost his flag football championship by a single point and was devastated, and we went to the Florida-Georgia game for the first time!

I feel like I need to address the Pacman Jones arrest. We were doing so well since the airport incident a couple of years ago and this was such an unfortunate regression. I’ll continue to assess the situation, until then we’ll have no further comment.

, which is always the highlight of the quarter from a wine perspective. The more I drink and add to my palate, the more I enjoy drinking Tom’s wines. All of the qualities I laid out above in regard to Brambles also apply to Darling - intention and restraint in spades. The Syrahs are perfect food wines, the Pinots are coastal and moody, and the fall Gamay release was a fun surprise.

I’m wholly confused by Los Falcons - the Saints loss and the blowout loss at Denver have me spinning.

Will have more to say regarding Kyle and Los Niners in the near future. In the meantime, by all means, please keep flooding my inbox and DMs with hateful stuff.

Speaking of haters, Eagles fans are getting chippier and chippier! This is the same team that almost lost to the Jags at home a few weeks ago. I remain bullish on their defense, but Hurts is *exactly* who we thought he was.

 with tales of my magical afternoon/evening at Root Down in the Denver Airport on this week’s TrapDraw. Between the snow, the food, the people-watching, the great service and traveling between two places with temps in the 70s, it truly felt like a suspended reality. I find myself yearning for a dose of winter every few weeks to make me thankful for the seasons and for the good weather at home. And to see the oft-maligned DEN folks handle 19 inches of heavy, wet snow in a capable, orderly way was cool to watch. To be able to marvel at the de-icing stations, plowing schemes, and general operational excellence was a highlight of my year in travel.

 DEN: It's the best, and it's not particularly close right now. The green onion risotto, the duck wings, the cocktails, the service, the way they never waste seats - invigorating every time!

PDX: Doesn't look like much but it BANGS. Everything is scratch-made, it's street-pricing, and the service is on-point. 

MRY (Really shouldn’t count. It’s an actual restaurant AT the airport.)

ATL (Has plummeted in my rankings in the last few years but still good in relative terms)

, DEN: I can't alwys make it out to terminal C, and this place remains a shining light in B (along with the pho place that's tucked away upstairs.) There's also a good dog place in Milwaukee. Dressed up hot dogs need to be more prevalent in airports - they're portable, quick, customizable and easy to pull off. 

 SAN: The more I go here the more I crave the fresh rolls, particularly because I'm usually either taking a redeye home or embarking on a wasted day of travel, so fueling up with something light and fresh is awesome and well-executed Thai is always a win. 

Also a big Pappadeux guy at IAH.  On the chain front, I also have a major soft spot for the lobster roll at  Legal Seafood and/or Legal Test Kitchen at BOS. Stephanie'ss is also good at BOS. I don’t want to eat burgers while traveling! Chef Geoff’s, Grindhouse, etc. Bun Tee is good at SFO - have tried virtually the entire menu this year. I haven't flown into Austin in a bit so need to reassess but there's always good options there. Obryckis is good in Baltimore, but I hesitate to eat too much crab when I'm flying for fear of smelling. ORD needs a better hot dog stand and more of them - the Chicago Cubs bar just isn't cutting it. I try to spend as little time at DFW, MIA, CLT, PHL as possible, so these are mostly blind spots for me (though the food has always been great in the Centurion in PHL, and people rave about Bigalora at DFW and then I need to reacquaint myself with the offerings at DTW, namely Anita's Kitchen in the North Terminal. Also, I flew through ATL last night and the new AMEX lounge there was staggeringly nice, especially the roof deck. 

Thank you for indulging me during rankings season - I felt it important to rank something after being so fired up about the Golf Mag Top 100. This list is not meant to be exhaustive and I welcome your suggestions and/or disagreements via email at 

 These rankings will be a living document and are something that you really can't cover every base with.  

GHIN & Tonic, Vol. 26 (TC)

926: How to plan a St. Andrews golf trip (Fife region)

Soly and Tron welcome friend of the program and native Scot Ru Macdonald to kick off a new series as we take a comprehensive look at all things Scotland golf travel. For this first episode, we focus on the area in and around St. Andrews and the larger Fife region on the east coast of Scotland.

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining 

: No Laying Up’s community of avid golfers. Nest members help us maintain our light commercial interruptions (3 minutes of ads per 90 minutes of content) and receive access to exclusive content, discounts in the pro shop, and an annual member gift. It’s a $90 annual membership, and you can sign up or learn more at 

A fresh, funny discussion of all things golf from the guys at No Laying Up. Episodes air twice a week and topics include tournament recaps, interviews, deep dive player profiles, golf travel, and more.

No Laying Up Podcast

926: How to plan a St Andrews golf trip (Fife region)

Soly and KVV are back as we take a deep dive into the majors from 1998 - highlighted by Mark O'Meara's Masters-Open Championship double, plus Lee Janzen's US Open win at Olympic Club and Vijay Singh claiming the PGA Championship at Sahalee.

923: 1998 Majors Deep Dive

This Veterans Day, we join forces at Southampton Golf Club on Long Island for a special occasion—an exhilarating Four-Ball match featuring two remarkable adaptive golfers, Mike Browne and Chad Pfeifer. Fresh off their stellar performances at this year's Simpson Cup at the legendary Shinnecock Hills Golf Club, Mike teams up with Neil, while Chad partners with Cody in a spirited "Artillery vs. Airborne" showdown.


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NLU Film Room

Veterans Day at Southampton Golf Club | NLU Film Room

In a little Strapped boys reunion, Neil gives Randy a tour of a place that's had his heart for years. They indulge in his favorite golf and food, then encounter the true magic of the city. 

City Tour

Golf, Food, Magic | Neil and Randy Explore Brooklyn

Greetings. I’m a father now. More on that later.

I’m very happy to be back. Let’s dive in.

As I write this, I’m in the midst of a seven-match losing streak against my friend A.J. It’s brutal. His course, my course, neutral sites. It doesn’t matter.

I’m including this for a few reasons: First, because he’s worked hard, improved his game and played some very nice golf and he deserves his due. But also because it’s helped me realize something important that I’ve become very thankful for.

A.J. and I became friends a few years ago when I moved to Milwaukee and we were thrilled to learn that both of us were 6-handicaps. This, of course, meant that we could play matches straight up, without strokes. “Real golf,” as Randy, Neil and PacMan Jones would say.

Our first two matches were both dead ties, with each of us sinking big putts at the final hole to even up the day. Even our third match was tied when we got to the 18th hole. I finally got him, 1 up, which I only include because it was the first and last time I beat him since we started keeping a spreadsheet of match results.

Part of what makes golf great is that the handicap system allows people of all skill levels to (theoretically) play an evenly matched, competitive game against each other. That system works great. But as someone who is typically on the receiving end of strokes from the people I play with, I’d be lying if I said there wasn’t something just a bit hollow about “winning” a match when the other guy clearly and objectively played better golf. (Hopefully, Soly isn’t reading this, because our matches are exempt from this feeling.)

What’s most fun about finding an equal sparring partner like this is that even as your handicaps drift apart, as they often naturally do, both of you know that you’ll always see each other as the players from those first matches. And the thought of giving or receiving pops will repulse both sides forever.

When Tron first moved to Florida, we played dozens of matches straight up and had back-and-forth slugfests. His game has since taken a leap that I can’t keep up with. He’s clearly a better player than me, but every time he’s forced to give me two a side, we both feel a little grimy because we know how much more fun it is to be on a level playing field. If you have a golf friend like this, I hope you appreciate how great of an asset those even matches are.

My practice has plummeted this fall and A.J. has gotten consistently better. Realistically, our handicaps are no longer the same and the fine people at the USGA would be pulling their hair out watching us continue to play straight up. But each time I get beat, the itch to get back out and play again gets even stronger. And when the streak finally ends, it’s going to feel so much better than any 5-for-4 ever has.

My wife Justine and I welcomed our first kid back in September, a little boy named Charlie. He rules (or at least he seems to – he doesn’t say very much). We are over the moon and enjoying every minute of it.

Since Charlie was born, I’ve gotten countless messages from people who are about to become parents themselves. Here are a few stray notes and thoughts from the past two months for them to take or leave (and for experienced parents to hopefully get a laugh at):

• The most important takeaway of the earliest days was simply to stay ahead. You can’t get behind in the count because you have no chance to hit a 2-strike cutter. You have to anticipate, plan your next move and maximize your time, which is something I’ve never been very good at. If you have five minutes to do the dishes, those are the five minutes to do them. If you’re getting ready to give him a bottle, think of everything you might need within arm's length over the next 30 minutes. The last thing you want to do is realize you left his pacifier downstairs when the shit hits the fan (or your arm).

• The weather over the first month was a joke in Milwaukee. Mid-60s, leaves changing, cool breezes off the lake. As a result, Justine and I both quickly realized that long walks served the multiple purposes of:

a) Getting out of the house and feeling like a human being

c) Giving the other person a quiet house for an hour or so

I would almost always opt for the baby carrier over the stroller on these, which I love. Sometimes we would just walk to the coffee shop, sit outside on benches and watch people go by. The best.

• Of course all the cliches are true and spectacular: The awe you will have every day for your partner, the fact that there are varieties of patience you didn’t even know existed, etc.

But if I’m being honest, a lot of the first few weeks can feel more like feeding a sourdough starter than what you’ve always pictured as “parenting.” It’s pretty procedural and impersonal, particularly without all the built-in physiological connections that a mother has with the newborn.

But, man. When you get a few weeks in and he starts squeaking and smirking and making funny faces…

• It’s maddening how often you have no idea what to do and end up hearing “it depends” or “do what’s right for you!” All you want when your brain turns to sleep-deprived mush is for someone to tell you exactly what to do. That’s not going to happen. I suppose it’s probably for good reason.

• I only read a few books before Charlie arrived: “Bringing up Bebe,” which came highly recommended by Tron and a few others. And “Moms on Call,” which is much more of a how-to reference manual than a parenting philosophy. Both were great in their own way, but reading them before the baby came probably did very little for me. I’m re-reading parts of them now that I’m 2 months in and, unsurprisingly, it feels like I can finally translate the language they’re written in.

 consideration to the consequences of Googling things because it’s impossible to unread what you’ll see. I’ve never been a huge Reddit guy, but honestly, a lot of the parenting and newborn threads are incredibly helpful, calm and rational, and do a great job of putting any worries into comforting perspective and plain English. That’s become my go-to instead of wading through the “technically it could be the worst disease you’ve ever heard of” answers on most medical websites.

• Charlie was in the NICU for five days after he was born. Thankfully, it was for some very mild breathing concerns that kept our nerves to a minimum. Every day, we would get up, go to the hospital, and spend all day hanging out in his room and peppering his nurses with every question we could think of about how to take care of a newborn. I never would have chosen for him to have to spend time in there, but in reality, having those training wheel days where the pros could show us how and why they did the things they did made me so much more confident when it was time to actually go home.

Without fail, every single person we met in the NICU – from the doctors and nurses to the assistants and cleaning staff – was a compassionate, thoughtful pro that put us at ease with well-timed insights, empathy and humor. I can’t fathom what it would take to do that job every single day, let alone for the decades that many had been there doing it. I’m sincerely grateful and thankful those types of people exist and will remember that group forever.

When he was dealing with some jaundice a few days in and needed to sit under those blue bilirubin lights, I made a quip to the nurse about how she should draw eyes on the masks to add some personality. I laughed so hard when we came in the next day.

• I’m naturally a night person, so I gravitated toward the graveyard shift, handling overnight feedings. Luckily the playoff baseball was electric (apart from one inning of a certain Game 3). Outside of that, I watched a few Apple+ shows: All of “Slow Horses,” which I can’t recommend enough. I also got all the way through “Shrinking,” which is kind of like “if they let the people on Scrubs say the F-word.” I like it. It’s a fun late-night delirious watch and Harrison Ford is a treat.

Now that baseball is over, we’re rounding into full-on Oscars prep and it’s movie season. Watch this space for more updates.

 I pretty vividly remember the low point of those first few weeks.

 It was between 3 and 4 a.m. and Charlie and I were downstairs. He hadn’t been a huge crier so far, but he was in a full meltdown. I was trying every trick I had ever read – shushing, burping, changing, football cradling, swaying, rocking, bouncing, walking, swaddling and unswaddling. He had zero interest in any of it.

I knew he didn’t need a new diaper, but I gave him a full outfit change anyway, just to see if anything would click and make him stop. Pacifier? F*** off. Bouncy chair? Go to hell.Now things were moving quickly and the first uneasy waves of panic started to waft in. Surely the cries would wake up Justine during the few hours of precious sleep I was supposed to be giving her. And worse than that, I thought, maybe every night would just be like this. Forever. Me reduced to a pleading puddle, begging for answers from a little 8-pound time bomb who was so frustrated that he couldn’t give them to me. I used to do fun stuff, and now it’s just going to be this.

Suddenly the crying stopped and the room finally fell silent again. I rewound the previous seconds, trying to figure out what secret combination of moves had cracked the code. We were near the window in our dark living room, but the streetlights were throwing enough light for me to see that he had locked eyes with me, something he had only done a few times since we brought him home. The panic was gone and in its place was one of our first moments of what felt like actual bonding or connection. I slowly brought him a little closer to my face to allow us both to get a better look.

Then he vomited all over me and his brand-new set of pajamas. I paused, looked upward to the ceiling and took a deep breath. I looked back down at him and we both tried to figure out what to do next. I took another beat. Then he let out what has to be pound-for-pound the loudest fart in the history of Wisconsin. I was awestruck. After that, he took a deep breath and let out a big, satisfied exhale, turned his head slightly and fell asleep. I laughed for a half hour.

Thanks for reading. You can reach D.J. at 

GHIN & Tonic, Vol. 25 (D.J.)

KVV and Soly are back with another deep dive pod. This time we look at two golf feuds featuring a couple of hall-of-fame players who went toe to toe over a rules infraction at a Skins Game and one landmark event in Ryder Cup history that a certain group of golf media just can't seem to get over.

921: Golf Feuds Deep Dive

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