Brady Kannon | "Long Shot" Golf Podcast Host

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Peloton app available through free tier or paid subscription starting at $12.99 per month. We are excited to welcome our friend Brady Cannon back to the show. Now he is the host of a golf podcast that he does himself on his own.

And then you've got his contributions to Sports Grid as well as a writer for the PGA Tour and a couple of other sites. So given the fact that it's been a couple weeks since we heard this bombshell announcement and all the emotional reaction that followed. How would you describe the state of golf now, a couple weeks later?

Well, you know, I think it's healthy, Amy, and I think all of us have as many questions as we had, you know, a month ago or whatever it was. I think it was the Canadian Open when they dropped that bomb. So just, you know, three or four weeks ago, I guess now. And I thought that that was a good thing for golf.

You know, hey, let's put aside our differences and let's get back to playing this game and get everybody involved. But now we don't necessarily know how it's going to shake out. There were some documents, I guess, that were revealed on Monday.

But I don't think those told us any more than we already kind of had an idea about. I think we're probably just going to have to wait and see when the 2024 schedule comes out. And are there going to be live events? Are there going to be live players, you know, involved in the PGA Tour? I really think we probably have as many questions, if not more, than when the news did come out that week of the Canadian Open. But I think in the end, it's good for golf fans. I think it's good for golf fans.

It's good for golf betters. And I think really the only loser is probably some of the PGA Tour players that, you know, showed their loyalty and turned down big paydays to stay loyal to the PGA Tour. But, you know, it's kind of been understood that those players are probably going to receive some sort of compensation or some sort of deal with the new entity that's being created. So I believe in the end everybody's going to be taken care of and hopefully will move forward in a positive sense. You know, Commissioner Jay Monahan, is he still going to be around?

I don't know. I think he's done a wonderful job for the tour and growing the tour. I love the move that he made when he switched the schedule around so it really didn't get in the way of football. I thought that was a very intelligent move to really put golf in the spotlight over the summertime.

You know, starting up right as football's ending and ending right as football's beginning. But, you know, a lot of people have been very critical of Jay Monahan in the last month or so in light of this move. So, you know, the future for him is uncertain.

I think everything's a little uncertain right now and we're just kind of in wait and see mode. Why do you think it is a good thing for fans? Well, because we're going to get the best players involved again. And I was never and never have been a fan of the live golf series. There's, you know, the majority of the players on that tour I didn't really care too much about. A lot of them were kind of, you know, on the back nine of their career.

A lot of them were young up-and-comers that couldn't really make it on the PGA Tour so they went that direction. But there's a handful of guys that I do miss and obviously Brooks Koepka made a big splash at the Masters and then won the PGA Championship. Dustin Johnson is a guy that I've always been a fan of. I just like watching him play.

I like his demeanor. Cameron Smith, obviously one of the best players in the world. Joaquin Niemann, a young player that has shown tremendous promise. And his countryman, Mito Pereira. So, you know, we're going to get some of those guys hopefully back in the mix.

And even some of the villains that, you know, most of us don't have a real affinity for. Patrick Reed and Sergio Garcia. But it's good to have those guys in the mix. And, you know, from a betting standpoint, I talked about this on my podcast.

It was a point that was brought up to me that I hadn't thought about. But, you know, when we're betting golf week to week and you've got guys that are maybe a top 50 player in the world. They're ranked somewhere, you know, in that 40th to 50th range.

Like a Keith Mitchell or a Seewoo Kim or Aaron Wise or something like that. And you go week to week in a tournament and their odds are like 35 to 1. Well, when you bring the live players back into the field on those week to week events. All of a sudden those guys odds probably go closer to 60 to 1 or something like that.

So I think from a betting standpoint, there will be more value created when these fields get more rich with the live players. Hopefully coming back into the mix. He's got the Heat Strokes podcast.

Brady Cannon is with us from Las Vegas. Also writes for the PGA Tour. We're glad to have his insight in the wake of what's been another tumultuous few weeks for golf.

It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. It's interesting that you mentioned the betting and the odds on different golfers. When was the last time you could remember the sport being so wide open? And I don't just mean the weekly tournaments. I mean the majors too. The fact that we've had so many first-time winners at the U.S. Open. It seems like routinely now we're getting guys that come out of nowhere play their best golf, the best tournament of their life. Like Wyndham Clark and end up winning a major. It seems so wide open Brady.

Yeah, no, you're absolutely right Amy. And Wyndham Clark, when he opened the week of the U.S. Open, he was as high as 100 to 1 to win that. And I think as low as about 85 or 80 to 1. So I mean still big odds. He was indeed a long shot. And I think we've known for a long time that he was a great player. And of course he won the Wells Fargo Championship and had that breakthrough win for his first PGA Tour career victory. But we didn't expect him to win a major so quickly.

And that was fantastic. And the trend you're talking about of first-time winners, it's been more often than not in major championships as of late. I mean you go back to the Masters. Scotty Shepler, a first-time winner. Colin Morikawa when he won the PGA Championship. So it's actually more often than not that we're seeing these first-time guys bag major championships and not so much of the old guard.

I mean Brooks Koepka came back and did it obviously. But some of the regulars, Rory McIlroy hasn't won a major in nine years. And it's interesting, we're headed to Hoy Lake, Royal Liverpool, in just a couple weeks here. Where that was the site of Rory's last major in 2014 when he won the British Open there. And interestingly enough about the hottest guy in the world of golf right now, Ricky Fowler finished second there at Hoy Lake that year in 2014. So it's just kind of all cyclical and it ought to be fun in a couple weeks in England.

But you're exactly right. If you look at the trends for the last 10, 15 years even, especially in the last 10 years, we're getting, the majority of major winners are getting that trophy for the first time. Not only is it wide open, but it's so full of incredible athletes.

And in that way, to me, it feels very healthy. Does the sport still miss Tiger, Brady? Or do you feel like the sport has moved on to the point where he's not casting as large a shadow? Well, you know, the sport will probably miss Tiger for a long time.

But I don't think necessarily miss him in the sense that it's hurting their sport. Tiger obviously moves the needle. When he won the Masters in 2019, that was just absolutely incredible. You know, he's teed it up a few times since then. But really, obviously, we've seen the problems. You know, the back injuries continue to mount. His legs are all beaten up now. You know, it's kind of a little bit sad to see him try and walk around the golf course these days.

And who knows if and when he'll ever do it again? I think Tiger Woods winning and, you know, I even said this before 2019, but I think I can say it with a little bit more conviction now. I think Tiger Woods winning again.

The chances are slim and none. Just what his body's been through. On the other hand, I mean, if you look at what Scottie Scheffler is doing, he's really struggling with the putter for about the last six weeks or so. But what he is doing, T to green, is absolutely Tiger-esque. He is dominating the field from T to green.

And it's absolutely incredible where he's ranked in the field. Like every tournament this year, I think it's the last 12 events, he hasn't ranked worse than like fifth in strokes gained T to green. And, you know, you look at I think it was the PGA Championship. He lost four strokes to the field putting and finished. What was it? Second or third?

I think it was the Memorial. He lost like eight strokes putting and finished third there. I mean, the guy can't make a putt and he's still finishing top five. I think it's now five or six weeks in a row that he's finished top five every week. And still not doing it with very good putting. So he's absolutely amazing. Rory McIlroy is playing really well right now. And then you've got John Rock, who, you know, when he's on might be the best of them all.

So I think the game is certainly healthy. And then, you know, if we do get some live players back in the mix, like Kecka and DJ and Cam Smith, that's just going to fuel the fire. So Tiger is starting to become kind of the grandfather of the sport. And we'll always have an incredible space or position in the world of golf. His ability to compete with these guys on tour right now is waning as every day goes by. Who is golf's biggest superstar at this point?

I would say it's Scheffler. You know, he's number one in the world. I don't know if he's as charismatic as some of the other guys. I think Brooks Koepka is a guy that people kind of love or hate. Jon Rahm, I think for the most people, people like, or for the most part, rather, people like Jon Rahm. I think for the most part, people like Rory.

But he probably did gain some detractors with his, you know, anti-live stance. But you've got Colin Morikawa, Jordan Spieth. I think all those guys are pretty well liked by the majority. If you just look at the top 10 players in the world, you know, even from overseas, Tommy Fleetwood is very popular. Victor Hovland, another European, just seems to be a great kid.

Always got a great smile on his face. So if you look at the top 10 or 15 players in the world, I think there's a lot of great superstars, you know, in that mix that are certainly carrying the torch for the world of golf right now. You know, these guys that Tiger has been trying to compete with for the last 10 years or so are all guys that grew up idolizing Tigers. So he's kind of created his own problem. All these kids grew up wanting to be like Tiger, and now they are like Tiger in a sense, and they're beating the old man. So he's kind of caused a problem here for himself, but at the same time, he's really strengthened his sport. If it was up to you, Brady, would the Liv players be eligible or be part of the Ryder Cup teams?

Boy, that's a good question, Amy. You know, in the light of this new agreement where it looks like they want to join forces again, maybe that gives them a better chance. I think it's a really tough position for Zach Johnson to not take Brooks Koepka, the PGA Championship winner. You know, that's a hard one.

If I was captain, I think I'd probably select him. The tough part is, you know, and all has really changed since that week of the Canadian Open and this merger talk and what have you. I think things have changed since then. Prior to that, I probably would have not voted him on to the team or elected him on to the team because these guys have been moaning and groaning about not being in the official World Golf ranking points and whatnot. Well, you knew what you were getting into when you decided to go to that other league and accept that big paycheck. You knew some of the risks you were taking. So I think it's difficult for these people to look back now and say, hey, you know, what about this? What about that?

So I would have been against it, you know, prior to this merger stuff, but now I think everything's changed again and things have loosened up a little bit. And I think there's probably a good chance that you will see some of these guys in the Ryder Cup. We're excited to have Brady Cannon back on the show from Las Vegas. He's got the Heat Strokes pod and also appears regularly as a golf insider for Sports Grid Radio.

Right now with us after hours on CBS Sports Radio. You're familiar with Vegas Golf Courses because that's where you are. When Las Vegas is hosting the latest iteration of the match, Travis Kelty, Patrick Mahomes against the Splash Brothers, Steph and Clay. What's the entertainment value of this match, Brady, do you think? I think it should be pretty good.

Obviously coming up in just a couple of days, June 29th at the Wynn Golf Club, as you say. And, you know, for me personally, the match, this series, which I believe is now the eighth one they've had, it's lost a little bit of luster for me as it's gone on. But in fairness to the matches that are being set up, I think it was really popular during COVID when we had a couple, three of them, it seemed like. And we saw Aaron Rodgers and Phil Mickelson and, you know, Tiger Woods and Peyton Manning and these guys, and it was great entertainment. But now that we have everything else going on, maybe it gets a little bit overlooked. But obviously this one in our backyard here, I am looking forward to it.

It's pretty interesting. Steph Curry has played in a professional golf tournament on the Corn Fairy Tour. He's a scratch golfer. Some people say he's a one handicap. Some people say he's a plus one handicap, but not a whole lot of difference there.

He's basically a scratch golfer. Klay Thompson has the highest handicap of the four. I guess he was about a 15, but they say he's improved quite a bit as of late, down to about a 12 or an 11. Travis Kelce about an 11 handicap and Patrick Mahomes just a shade under eight, I believe. The Warriors over the Chiefs, they opened up as the favorite out here and just kind of a shorter favorite, not too aggressive. They were minus one fifty and the take back on the Chiefs was plus one thirty.

But it's been all Warriors money. They are now about a minus three dollar to minus three twenty five favorite. And if you want some of the Chiefs, you can get about plus two fifty, almost three to one odds. Travis Kelce and Patrick Mahomes said, what are you talking about? We shouldn't be an underdog. We've never lost in Las Vegas. And, you know, that's kind of true. Of course, the Chiefs have owned the Raiders the last couple of seasons, but makes for good fun.

And, you know, again, from what I hear from the sportsbook, not real big bets, but nobody wants any part of the Chiefs team, apparently. What's the course like? When is a fantastic course? It's a uber classy joint and it's not cheap to play there. Right now, it'll cost you about seven hundred and fifty dollars to play the win golf club.

Yeah. Then when we get to July, they knock it all the way down to six hundred. You know, so if you want to play in one hundred and ten degrees, you can go out there. But it's just a remarkable property. It's one of the very few golf courses that is right on the Las Vegas strip. You've got all kinds of pine trees.

And so, you know, you're walking around the joint. It's not a desert course. There's really no desert to speak of. Wow.

Not at all on the golf course. You know, right in the middle of the Las Vegas strip. And it looks like you're just in the middle of a park. Before I let you go, Brady, since you are in Las Vegas and the A's will get their own stadium on the strip, what's your reaction to another pro sports team landing in Vegas and getting a brand new home? Well, I'm really excited about it, Amy. I'm a big baseball fan, always have been.

And so I'm thrilled to, you know, get Major League Baseball here. They're talking about putting the stadium on the site of the Tropicana, the Tropicana Hotel right there across the street from the MGM Grand. I guess they're going to tear down the hotel or do something like that. And that would be remarkable. And I think that would be good for the A's as well, because you would get a lot of walk up traffic, people walking up and down the strip, you know, make a left turn and go see a baseball game or what have you.

I think that would be good. And then just the overall perspective of the deal, the way Las Vegas is growing as a sports town. I mean, the Golden Knights, Stanley Cup winners.

They were the first ones. And, you know, and then the Raiders and now the A's. And I'm telling you, probably in a couple of three years, we'll have an NBA team as well. You know, you and I being sports fans, it's pretty incredible to be in this town. I've been here almost 30 years and it's always been a great town for sports because of the betting aspect. And then you also have boxing in the UFC. And, you know, now we have the Pac-12 tournaments, all these college basketball conference tournaments. And now, of course, we have the pros. It's really incredible the way the town has morphed into really a sports mecca. And of course, not that long from now. Next February, we'll be hosting a Super Bowl.

That's right. So, I mean, it's just it's just something and it's great to be a part of. And I hope the A's do make it here and I hope they have success. They're talking about, you know, a relatively small ballpark, 30 to 35,000 seats with a retractable roof, which is great because a lot of people don't realize, you know, during the baseball season. Yeah, there's a couple of months where it's too hot, especially July and August. But you're probably going to get four or five months out of the baseball season where it ought to be absolutely spectacular and beautiful weather.

So I think the retractable roof is the way to go. And again, you know, it's hard to find many things successful about the Oakland A's now, but I hope they turned around when they get to Las Vegas. A lot to look forward to in Vegas.

And that includes the match coming up this week. And it's part of Brady's Twitter as well at Las Vegas Golfer. And you can hear his Heat Strokes podcast. You can catch us riding for the PGA Tour.

And also, he's a featured guest on Sports Grid for golf and golf betting. It's always great to catch up with you, Brady. Thank you so much for a couple of minutes. Yeah, always a pleasure, Amy. Good to talk to you. I think it was the last match when I spoke with you.

I can't remember exactly what match that was, but holler at me anytime. Always a pleasure. Life comes with a lot of decisions, and it can be hard to know the right path sometimes. A therapist can help you map out what you really want, so you trust yourself to make great choices and feel excited about the future. BetterHelp offers convenient, professional, online therapy on your schedule, however you want it, by phone, chat, or video call. Let therapy be your map with BetterHelp. Visit BetterHelp.com slash positive today to get 10% off your first month.

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