No Laying Up - Golf Podcast - NLU Podcast, Episode 64: Smylie Kaufman

Episode Date: February 6, 2017

Smylie Kaufman joins the No Laying Up podcast for the first time to talk about Smylie’s Army, tour life, and more. This is a bit of a shorter episode, but I’m pumped to finally get... The post NLU Podcast, Episode 64: Smylie Kaufman appeared first on No Laying Up. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I'm going to be the right club today. Yes! That is better than most. I'm not in. That is better than most. Better than most! Ladies and gentlemen welcome back to the No-Lang, a podcast. I'm Chris Solomon welcoming for the first time today Smiley Kaufman Been trying to do this for a while. We heard you on pardon my take. Are you a regular pardon my take listener? Like how did that how did that connection already happen? take? Are you a regular part in my take listener? Like how did that connection already happen? Yeah, all my boys, they kind of got me to part in my take and I started listening to

it and kind of became a fan of the show. And what's, I don't know how, I think Hank asked me if I wanted to be on the show, I was like, yeah, I mean, it's, I'd love to do it. And now I'm a recurring guest. And I hope to play in, which is obviously fun to get on the show with those guys. They're pretty quick to put in. And it's fun to kind of see what they come up with. So, at a good time. But, what before to be on a new wing up,

this is, you know, I'm moving on up in the world. You got a shout, you get a, you snuck a shout out in there, too. They try to sneak a question in there about, you know you lay up on a par five and you shut them down quickly saying we don't yeah Yeah, you know like it was I'm gonna ask but I think yeah, I mean not gonna lay up Well, he set you up perfectly the only thing I think only research they did was asking what you shot in the third round of the Masters, which was of course 69. And you had no idea, you didn't even pick up on it when they mentioned it, did you?

No, I just thought they were just like actually being pretty good reporters. Actually, like, you know, doing their homework, saying what I actually, you know, what I've been successful lifting golf and what rough played well and they asked me that and I was like, oh yeah, I was really connected to them. They didn't care anything about the idea or any. Like, they just wanted me to hear me say, I shot a six-kype on Saturday. Yeah, I find that their're working hilarious. I do listen to it every day. It's pretty incredible.

The production value that goes into that. So it was cool. You and Ricky did that. But I can't believe they didn't ask you a question about Natti Light. Yeah, I wasn't getting a direct the way it was going to go. I was just going to, well, I say I want to do, is get on there and start drilling them

with questions. Maybe the next time I'm on there, that's what I should do. But yeah, the Nadi-Lite plug never came up. I figured there was a hotbed there. A lot of things to talk about, but they never asked. Maybe the next time they'll dig into the Nadi stuff. I hear you refer a lot to your boys. Who is this group?

Who are your boys when you say that? We have a group of me, and I would say we probably have about 20 guys that are group me. And I would say probably about 16 of them were there. So it was good chunk of the boys. And I think all of us really like to have a good time and just like any other front group, we all have our inside jokes and stuff and they're all pretty quick What did it stuff to react to have a pretty good time? What event do do the would you say you're the most of your friends show up for it? Is there like an event every year that you they all look forward to to join up and meet up and coming up and follow?

Well, I should just send a message to our group. It's just a quick reminder that it's They they declare themselves smileiley's Army when I turned pro. And actually got a pretty good following on Twitter. I actually want to give a quick shout out. Everybody follows Smiley's Army on Twitter. Boom talent. Yeah. And so I reminded, say, guys, just a quick reminder here

that the Army is coming to the most literally army, like the perfect golf tournament for the army of ten this week at the Phoenix Open and just a reminder y'all are coming. So yeah, so I was trying to get on maybe all the buckling flights to come or just get on to come next year. But I would say Zurich, New Orleans, I think that's a hotbed for them. They really enjoyed the combination of a casino and bourbon street. That's kind of a big spot for them. I think they're going to go to the playgrounds that you know, it's just a fun place to go.

That's kind of a two spot, so it's right up there, Allie, for the Army. I forget, have you committed to... I've heard rumors are who you're going to might be playing with at Zurich. Have you guys committed? Harold and I are playing together. Harold and you and Harold are playing together. Got you. Okay. So, yeah, that format change has got to be an even more welcoming to the Frat House environment that I think your buddies would bring to it. Yeah, it's... It's going gonna be fun.

It's gonna be fun. I should have started the podcast by congratulating you on being the first, you and Jordan being the first ever people to take a kayak out into water. I just want to know, were there any pictures or videos taken of that moment out in Hawaii? Uh, yeah, there's plenty. As you guys, you could see,

I mean, it's on the day and cold, day and on the day in college and seemed like I know we did that interview right before we went out But I just thought it would be at the end of it and we had no idea the cameras were so honest and I Guess Gary co. Great before commercial break said well if you have any other guys numbers give them a call make sure they're all right and So we get a call I got a call from a girlfriend and Jordan picks it up and says Frian we have like we had a problem We flipped a kayak and she says I know Real books busted out laughing we just had no clue that The like that they got it on camera

Hoping that we were hoping they would but you know, we just thought it would be awkward to get everybody else's. I think they had banned in coverage of the tournament. They just switched over and had a full kayak cam on for that entire afternoon. Yeah, pretty much. I've gotten a lot of people bringing that up, big off-framents in the spring events. Does it get tiresome at all to you to getting being asked about? I feel like with your guys' group, especially because of how big of a phenomenon the spring break thing was. Do you get tiresome at all? Always being asked about other people in the group and what they do and your

reaction to the things they do? Yeah, like, you know, I don't mind at all. I think the most, if you ever get to know I get the last, hey, where are your boys? I don't know. Like, you know, like, this way, they're like, boy, I'm like, we're probably practicing or doing their thing. Like, it's just because we hang out in vacation and stuff, to go, it doesn't mean we have to be together all the time, which is, it's what people, I I guess expect to see but Yeah, it's fun that we have a good time together and it's obviously

It it brought I guess my brand I was able to kind of show my personality a little bit What kind of show the golf run a little bit about who I am like to have a good time and have some fun and You know, I think that's it that it was great for my brand. And obviously all three there. I think John Wilkieville and Bruce Salish and JT obviously come and hot this season that everybody knows who JT is and not that they already did. But it was good for me to just kind of beat

Reno and go off. Or, um, so you, you live in Alabama now, you, you just built a house there. If I remember right from, uh, from what I learned from Jim Nance, are you set there to live for a while? Are you going to get recruited down to Florida with the JT and Ricky gang? Yeah. Um, you know, I'm, I'm very so to Birmingham. So I'm, I'm happy in Alabama.

I got all my friends there and my family. So it's like coming home to home. And if I ever need to go down to Jupiter, I'll go crash with those guys and hang out, practice a little bit, but you know, I like being home for the most part. Is it easy to get to and from tournaments from Alabama, or are there like plenty of direct flights?

Or what's the... I pretty much always connect through Atlanta. It's like a 20 minute flight over and then just pretty much just non-stop wherever from there. So, of the guys that we, we've been talking about after just asking if it's annoying to talk about them, of all the four of you, who can hold their booze the least? Who's the biggest lightweight? It depends on when in the week I guess. I'd say we're all very, I think we all do a pretty good job.

I don't think any of us is any worse than the other. I think if you get like a four or five day deal going on, I think JT will fade the earliest but then come on strong at the end. I would say, Jordan probably rides it out the longest and Ricky's probably, he goes through ups and downs. So like, you never really know where Ricky's standing. That was a deep answer.

I wasn't expecting the layers to that one. That was good. Yeah. Well, you know, and I'm, you know, obviously, you're the best. I pretty much just, I Well, you know, and I'm, you know, obviously, uh, you're the best. I pretty much just, I pretty much just get there and I just stay there. I got you.

You didn't, you didn't categorize yourself in that, in that one at all. So I, I guess you, you can hold, hold your booze the best. Well, I mean, obviously, I, I feel like I can drink beer with anybody, but, you know, if you start getting the liquor out, I think with anybody, you just never know. start getting the wicker out, I think with anybody You just never know. You just spend on the what you ate today. I just never know with that stuff. Yeah All right, so going back to Augusta. I know you probably get asked about it a lot I'm curious just to ask you had a you know the final pairing final tea time with speed

How did you pass the time leading up to your tea time that day? It's a late tea time. Yeah, I probably made the biggest mistake that morning, which is I was just watching TV and watched Tin Cup. That was one of the biggest mistakes I've ever made in my entire life. I needed to watch like any sports like hero or dramatic movie anything but tin cup. And I ended up just getting sucked in and then like I remember on like the 11th hole I was like I like switched all my change from my left side my left pocket to my right pocket like from the movie tin cup Like I was just like what are you doing? So that was uh it works you birdie 12 didn't you? Yeah, pretty 12. I mean I picked up five on Jordan there. I still beating me by like four or five probably So other than other than not watching 10 cup would you do anything different about that day? God I would you know

You just never know what a day like that's that day. I actually had it find that day. I just kind of got out of my routine with my putting that day. Jordan was always seemed to be putting before me and he seemed like he made everything. I always had a put that kind of need to make. I just kind of got my routine a little bit. I think if I had to do it over again, I would just kind of got my retain a little bit and I think if I did do it over again I would just kind of grind it out a little more, focus a little harder and probably carry a little less on my results and just kind of pedal more fun on the greens.

Well what I've been waiting like nine months to ask you about on the Saturday before that like you basically you're kind of introduction to the country you're in Butler cabin with Jim Nance and all he wants to do is ask you about living with your parents. At that time you were building your house I think, but he was latched onto his narrative and he wasn't going to let it go. Did that bother you at all when that happened? Well, he asked me those questions and just kind of goodin' to know me in the pre-interview and then he comes out hot with the same questions I'm like come on Jim like you're killing me here with the living at home in a period the time I was I mean I was just chilling I didn't you know I was looking for a house

but I wouldn't get a like rushing anything I just wanted to find the right spot because on the web.com tour, you know, like, you sound like you kill it on that tour, making money, so I was still fine at home, but I really didn't want to get an apartment because I wanted to get a house. So, you know, I was thinking the proper steps, but Jim did something so.

So, he made sure to let the world know that, you know, I was living at home with my parents and that I was driving in 2018 to San Marano. Did your buddies just give you like relentless flack for that? No, I mean my buddies in Carey was more about the world like giving me like sports center like Saturday night I remember I was watching sports center and the guy said final group of masters some guy living home with his parents is like thanks Jim, I really appreciate that.

Hey, yeah, he did, but in returning he did give me a new new Nissan Rado. So, overall plus, I thought that was, I thought it was kind of upsetting but also kind of fun. Of course I made jokes about it, but I was kind of like, man, that's your moment in the spotlight, final group of the masters and you just want to, you just wanna cram that down our throw, it's but, it was funny, I think I reached out to you shortly after that, and I asked if you wanted to do a podcast, do you remember what your response was? I actually just hit me.

I said, oh, I don't know, I'm not sure I gotta ask my parents first. I think you threw shade at me for it, and they was like, oh, I'm gonna get him here. So, I said, yeah, what we just checked in my parents, make sure it's okay. I wasn't sure if you were, it's like, you thought I here. I said, yeah, let me just check on my parents, make sure it's okay. I wasn't sure if you were like, you thought I was, don't you, or if you were in on the joke.

I just assumed you were joking, but... Yeah, I was joking. I was joking. JT talked about how hard it was to watch some of his peers have so much success. I think mostly referring to Jordan. Do you, and just how it was, you know, he's happy for them and, you know, enjoys their success, do you get the same kind of, like, motivation out of that, or do you get the same kind of reaction saying, you know, seeing your friends with, you know, these great successes, you've obviously won on the tour, but, do you, does that, does that have an effect on you?

Yeah, I would, you know, with Jordan and, uh, with what Jordan was doing, it really didn't. I was just like, I was a fan of, uh, watching Jordan play during that, that Gray run he had, uh, obviously still play amazing. Uh, but he, uh, I think I've got more motivation from watching JT the last, maybe that's just, or the last, you know, a couple of weeks. And I think that's giving me more of motivation just because I play with them a lot and real close with them. And

I think watching him have that success in knowing that, you know, if, when he plays at his best and I play at my best, I feel like, you know, it's going to be a pretty good match. So that just goes a show to me that if I keep on working hard and you know my good weeks, I know I can win That's it was I think I was more motivated from the stuff I saw from JT the last couple weeks So I've been preparing and practicing really hard and you know I just kind of have to point my way into shape than it makes four or five weeks and hopefully get on a little run So you know, I think the last like six months, pretty much since like a Gus, I really kind of been in and out of point, golf had kind of some injuries of kind of been nagging me the last six months or so. Kind of been through some,

some a lot of different things in my life just kind of, I feel like I've kind of got everything heading in the right direction finally. So hopefully, can I focus on golf now and can I get all the BS aside and ready to go? Most of the guys I talk to refer back to their experience that gain on the web.com tour and are very complimentary of that experience and say it's very integral into their maturation as a golfer.

Do you agree with that and do you like the current system the way it's set up and what was your overall? How would you assess your web com career? I, you know, obviously I think I have a great level of that com career being there just for one year or so. For me, it was, you know, I can't, I would not have been successful at all if I would have gone straight from key school to the PGA Tour. I would not have done very well because I wouldn't have known how to hate it with self as a pro, how to prepare money to Wednesday, how to travel, how to do all the little things. It's things like that that you think are so easy,

but there's a lot of things that stress you out and add extra stress to you during a week when if you've never done it before so you know what you do that for a full season and kind of get you kind of get to know what works best for you, what doesn't work best for you like do you like to play more, doing the week to like to practice more, how much how much you work out, things like that, that people really don't even think about besides just being a professional offer. So, for me it was a fantastic experience and obviously I was excited to get off there in just a year and I gained a bunch of confidence from that tour, heading into the PGA tour, which

I started out top 10 and I won my second week so without that tour giving me the confidence heading into the PGA tour there's no telling I mean I doubted being a position I am today without that tour. How much would you say your life changed from that win? I mean it's kind of I don't want to say it's forgotten but it was a fall series event you were you were not very well well known in the public eye at that point You came kind of out of nowhere shot a final round 61 to win that event Well did it did like did the did it hit you really hard and fast like that you were a PJ tour winner? Did it feel like it came really soon? Second star it kind of has to yeah

Well, I mean I really wasn I mean, I was so far, I was like T24 or so, like way back, like 12th group from the leaders. So like, that's, I mean, that's not a typical way you'd expect to win, but, you know, obviously you take it and you run with it, but, you know, I'm looking forward to kind of being in a contention throughout the week and dealing with the Sunday pressure,

and then those big shots that everybody gets to see on Sundays, but that's kind of, you know, I had a lot of experience the last year. Being the Sunday, I found around the mass series, found around it in Boston this past year. There's just been plenty of opportunities for me to kind of to seize the round, but you know, obviously it's a more inexperienced out-tour. And I wouldn't even say her nerves was just like,

things that I can control that I just didn't do a very good job controlling. So obviously I'm very excited to get back in position and hopefully close out this year on the win. Is there any guys, maybe older guys on tour, that you didn't have real strong relationships with when you got out there that you've kind of gravitated towards learning the ropes at all? Yeah, I would, I would say I started, you know, I asked Graham and Gail a bunch of questions

coming out. He played for my grand out at UAV. My grand out was a coach there and he recruited a coach, my coach Graham there. Graham's been a nice asset to me. David Thompson has been, I pretty much all the LSU guys out on tour. John Peterson, Andrew Wu, and David Thompson, all three of those guys as I can talk to,

but I would say Ricky has been a very good guy to talk to too. He's been out there for, seems like forever now, pretty much always trusted his ear, saying what you're in just as well. So I've had plenty of guys I could talk to and kind of ask questions about certain things and I would say Bill Hoss too would be one more name. Just such a nice guy. We have somewhere games and just a good ear from time to time. It just seems like your guys' generation,

when you walk down the range, I don't know why I feel this way. It's just the community seems to be a lot stronger. I know you don't have something to compare it. You don't know what the tour was like 10 years ago. But do you feel like the tour is a very social place? You can walk down the range and talk to most guys, and they're pretty open and social. Yeah, I would say so.

I pretty much, I'll pretty much talk to anybody. I mean, some guys are very open and talk and chatty, but I'd say from working out of the trailers in the morning to see them in practice, just things like that. You can always run into guys and always kind of catch a kind of figure there. So I'd say most of you guys are pretty genuine and honest and we'll give you the honest feedback out on tour. What's your go-to tour sauce move? You know I would probably say the one of them in the trees a good chip out club tour. Well I've actually had a big poster one last year. I was a little bit sure.

I think it was actually the fries especially at the same time. And Napa was like up next to the fence and she'd down the fairway and like did a little club tour. And they had something posted and like swinchip out better club tour. I think it's something that's supposed to switch about better club tour. It's amazing, I don't even know I did it. I don't know, I got to get into a groove and once I get into the position, who knows, there's no telling me all the time. I'm a very high strong player, so if I want to be my next PG tour win, I'm not very high, high strong player, so if I get, you know, if I want to be my next PGA Touraway, I'm not going to be very humble with the way I win.

It's going to be a serious excitement fist pump, so this is what I work for a moment. Planned out celebration, that is Taurusos right there. How crazy have the requests to be invited to SB2K17 gotten? Pretty much been hearing it for a full year. I think it was crazy. Went on the PGA tour and then, uh, and then doing the final round of the masters, but like nothing took off, like that spring break trip. Like, I, people probably still went like, remember who I was if it wasn't for that. They would say, I did, when that thing I was playing the masters, now we two guys, he was on that spring break trip. Obviously, you wouldn't be known for more than that, but like right now that's hot right now I guess take what you can get right now, so

You know it happens all the time people I ask a lot, so it's for me. It's you know We're just we're trying to kill the next time right of that and the one spring rolls around We'll see what's going on. Yeah, that's not there's worse things to be known to be known for than MVP of that trip So Yeah, that's not there's worse things to be known to be known for than MVP of that trip. So You know First ever unanimous MVP We'll get you out of here on this one Is this kind of my go-to question if you could steal any part of one player's game Like sub it out for a part of your game and sub in another person's part like some you could pick Rory's driver or Speeds putter

I can make a perfect no you can't make a perfect golfer. No, you got a sub out one of your skills and sub in somebody else's Okay Okay, that's There's so many ways you can go. I feel like if somebody puts me in the fairway a lot, then I feel like it will be good. So I need someone you can hit it long and it doesn't spray. It's in the fairway. Because I'm moving good.

There's not a whole lot of guys that hit it too far past me. So the length isn't an issue. Probably, Bill Haas, it's a really straight. Pretty much whatever straight driver you can think of, I want him. And that hits it far enough, then I'll take that guy. All right, Speed's answer was DJ's T-Shots. So you're not taking DJ's to Wild Off the T for you? I mean, I guess he hits it really straight. I haven't no like waiting, really not that sure. I haven't played with him enough.

I only played with him once. He hit it really straight that round. So yeah, I'll take Dustin. There you go, I'll take Dustin. There's your answer. All right, Smiley, I know you got to run. Thank you for your time. Best of luck this week in Phoenix. Oh, wait, last one. Do you have anything planned for the 16th hole this week?

Or do we have to wait to see that? No, well, I mean, everyone, like, the players locker, it's just like you can't throw anything in the crowd, which I think is really ridiculous. I think that should be like one of the one event all year that we should be able to do whatever we want but I guess there's some A lawsuit in there somewhere they don't want us to have a big lawsuit on our behalf so Really nothing plan I'm just gonna play the whole I was maybe thinking about doing a Pump up the crowd. We're just gonna have to see if I'm feeling all right less of luck this week, man. Thank you for your time, and we'll have to do this again sometime. Yeah, absolutely.

We'd love to. Thanks for having me on. Cheers. So, that's it for this week's episode. Sorry, it is a shorter one. Smiley only had about 25 minutes, but we do appreciate him coming on. Want to drop a quick reminder to you guys. We're keeping the Calloway Epic Epic Driver contest open for this week. All you have to do is go into iTunes, leave a funny

rating review and we are going to have an independent third party determine the funniest review and we are going to give that person a free Callaway Epic Driver no other restrictions apply. So if you guys can go in iTunes and take care of that you will be automatically entered into the contest. And thank you guys for tuning in again and hopefully you have another podcast later this week. Cheers. I think that's better than most. How about in? That is better than most. Better than most.