Bryan Jones — PGA Golf Professional and PGA Rules Official - a podcast by Gordon G. Andrew

from 2023-04-28T09:00

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"The average tour professional does not know the rules of golf very well."




 

Bryan Jones

PGA Golf Professional and PGA Rules Official

Black Oak Golf Club,  Flanders, New Jersey

 

Bryan Jones personifies the highest ideals of the PGA. In addition to his role as a head golf professional, he devotes a significant amount of time teaching the rules of the game to others, and volunteering his time and expertise as a rules official at professional and amateur tournaments around the world. He is recognized as one of the most knowledgeable and experienced rules officials in the game. Bryan's list of golf industry awards and recognitions is lengthy and impressive, and includes the PGA's National Horton Smith Award, and induction into the New Jersey PGA's Hall of Fame. He currently serves as the Honorary Chair of the PGA's Rules Committee. (A more complete overview of Bryan's career is posted below.)

Show Highlights

Our conversation covers a lot of territory involving all aspects of Bryan's long career as a PGA golf professional, including:

[caption id="attachment_3175" align="alignright" width="300"] Bryan with Shane Lowry on the 17th hole during the second round of the 148th Open Championship held on the Dunluce Links at Royal Portrush Golf Club in 2019.[/caption]

  • What happened to his career plan to become a veterinarian...which is unrelated to his owning two feral cats

  • Why he believes the abundance of online instruction actually increases "in person" golf instruction

  • How you become a golf rules official, and who gets the best tournament assignments

  • The most confusing rules in golf, and the new rules for 2023

  • How a twist of fate caused Dustin Johnson to lose the PGA Championship at Whistling Straights

  • The most exciting moments in officiating tour events

  • His near-death experience at the 2023 Masters Tournament



Notable Quotes

On watching professional golf from inside the ropes: “I love watching them play from up close. The shots they can hit and they things they can do are amazing. It's the highest level of the game."

On the life of a tour professional: "It's a nice life, particularly if you're in the top 50, have the best sponsorships, and get to fly private, rather than lugging your equipment around on commercial flights."

On his opinion of golf fans in America: “The Ryder Cup at Bethpage in 2025 should be an experience... I hope that it's a good one."



On the swing faults he sees most often in the average golfer: "The problem I see in many golfers is alignment. If they're right handed, they tend to aim too far right at setup, and unless the clubface is properly aligned, the ball is not going to land where they want it to go. Male golfers also tend to power through the ball with their upper body."

On the LIV Tour: “Golf is a business, and players should take the money if they believe it's a good thing for them. But once they've left the PGA Tour, they should not have an avenue to come back in if it doesn't work out."

On controversial rulings: "I'll call in another official for a second opinion, even if I know that I'm right."...

Further episodes of Golf Yeah

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Website of Gordon G. Andrew