Matt Ginella
@MattGinella
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Storyteller. Fire Pit Productions. Journeys with Matt Ginella. The Fire Pit Podcast.🔥 IG: @Matt_Ginella
Joined June 2009
Yes, Scheffler gets the green jacket and green backs, but the real winner is the Masters app.✌🏼
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I don’t see @collin_morikawa ever becoming a petulant prick blaming his equipment, caddie or the course. He’s poised, polite and clearly has perspective. Which is refreshing. 🏆
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What did we do to deserve the ‘19 Masters and the ‘21 PGA?!.
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Ireland is infectious. The boys went from Tralee to Aunty Lena’s and brought home the Limerick win. They posed for countless pics, the wives poured pints, this is the good life.🇮🇪
Halftime of semi-final hurling championship. Limerick 0-16 four better than Galway 0-12. Aunty Lena’s for the scene.
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Seriously, I was blown away by what’s happening here. Locals pay €700/$820 per year to play unlimited golf. I told one group of locals that’s basically one round at Pebble Beach. To which one of them said (Irish accent): “Then we won’t be going to Pebble Beach.” ✌🏼
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I can only speak for myself: Apology accepted. Not that he owed me an apology, but if you don’t accept that apology, what do you accept?. And I think @RalphLauren missed an opportunity to grow with @JustinThomas34 as opposed to grow apart. And we could’ve all benefitted from it.
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Not sure who’s going to win Memorial, but I know the PGA Tour lost it. 🤬.
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Rocket, caddie No. 1 at Pebble. He’s been looping for 49 years. Three U.S. Opens, made the cut in two. He has a 4th, 5th and 6th at AT&Ts. “Who’s your favorite to caddie for?”. “I have a lot of ‘em.”
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Flight from San Jose to LAX. Before the flight, the pilot warned of high winds and turbulence. He suspended all food and drink service before we took off. As we approached LAX, we could see the smoke from the #palisadesfire moving across the sky. This is what we saw as we flew
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I’m out on men’s professional golf. Down on the governing bodies. LPGA is cool. So is college golf. And I’ll watch the majors/Ryder Cup. All in on what really matters:.Golf with my kids. Goat Hill Park. Getting better. Friday skins. Uncle Tony Invitational. Father/Son &
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We all lost a good friend today. Way too soon. He was my brother. My bodyguard. A blocking back. The Godfather of golf journalism. I never wanted to let him down. Like so many of you, I feel lucky to have had him in my life. May T-Rose have a well-deserved Rest In Peace.🌹😢
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Let’s start with: We’re all forever chasing 10 more yards. Remember the decades of building the longest, hardest, next best test for a US Open?. USGA was in on the Chambers Bay and Erin Hills developments, dangling the carrot of a major all along. There was an actual ranking.
It's not only about TOUR players. Based on early projections, a Universal Rollback will cause golfers like you and me to lose 8-11 yards on every shot. Not just off the tee.
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Just heard there are courses in Orlando area charging golfers an extra $10 to carry their own bag. Hate it! And the people who make and enforce those practices. Right up there with an architect who builds a course that’s not walkable. Or a hole with a 200-yard forced carry.
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Not surprised Adare is No. 1 Resort in Europe. 🏰 . Ryder Cup in 2027 will be flammable.
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Two years ago I was bought out of my Golf Channel contract. We parted ways amicably, but I needed to sort my future. A little over a year ago, Laird Shepherd almost quit the game because of back & knee issues. Today, Shepherd tees off at the Masters wearing the Fire Pit logo.🔥
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@RiggsBarstool John epitomizes the bitterness and negative attitude that gives the game a bad name. He has used and abused his platform to air his own regrets and failures as a player and professional. Thankfully guys like you have come along to provide fresh air and alternative perspectives.
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In 1995, I drove from Santa Rosa to NYC. Landed an internship at Sports Illustrated. In 2013, I drove from NYC to Orlando. Landed a gig at Golf Channel. Tomorrow I complete the drive from Orlando to San Diego. Raising a family, working for myself. ✌🏼
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The part where you play golf.
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Jay Danzi’s selfie of the boys and the welcoming committee of Tralee is only a hint of the Irish warmth and hospitality. And it goes both ways. Ireland hits you in the heart and soul.
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A lot of betting talk in golf these days. I always bet on Tiger Woods. Won’t stop now. Wishing him a speedy recovery and a back-nine of life playing with his kids/grandkids. Anything beyond that is a bonus. 🐐.
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And lastly, can we talk about Faldo’s ridiculous unabashed spoiler of Rory and Morikawa’s bunker shots on 18? He couldn’t stop himself. He put his Squarz all over the drama. A round-wrecker for broadcasting.🤐🤐🤐.
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I say it all the time: The problem with golf is not a $500 green fee, the problem with golf is a place that charges $500 and delivers a $50 experience. Even worse and more common is a place that charges $150 and delivers a $5 experience.
@MattGinella Just seems stupidly priced for an average guy like me. Played Torrey Pines for $150 last June.
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No matter what he does, how many times he wins or how many jackets are hanging in that closet, Patrick Reed will forever be a cheater. Can you imagine what he does when he isn’t in contention?!.
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U.S. Opens at courses accessible to the public are so much better/more interesting than stuffy pretentious private clubs. Which is to say: . Pinehurst >>> LACC.
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Let’s take some time to celebrate this amazing person being a bright start in the future of golf and life.
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Golf is dying? Wrong. Bad business models and flawed management is dead. It’s March 29th, temps in the 50s, and 183 people played the Bandon Dunes course today. There’s not an empty bed on property. “I couldn’t get a room or a tee time.”~David McLay Kidd.
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This is so on brand for golf. After trying for years/decades to “grow the game,” at the peak of that growth, in the midst of the dumpster fire that is professional golf, the governing bodies decide now…NOW?!…would be a good time to throw the amateur game into a cold plunge.
The USGA and R&A are expected to announce early next week that they will be changing the rules to roll back distance in golf. See further details:
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Hurling is pure sport. Real athletes playing for their home town/counties, for the love of the game and each other. No frills or flopping, full contact, full on for at least 70 minutes, all for amateur compensation. A rather respectful 84,000 packed Croke Park on a drizzly Sunday
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Can you imagine being the guy who loses but wins a million dollars, snaps at a guy who calls you the wrong name and then gets coddled and enabled on the back end? We’re raising kids and if my wife and I practiced this parenting strategy, we’d be raising ass holes. No ass holes!.
Yelling or saying, "Brooksie" to Bryson DeChambeau will now be considered disrespectful from now on can result in expulsion from a tournament. This directly from Commissioner Jay Monahan. It's become an issue of being disrespectful to the players and the game.
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A few months ago, wife tells me that we’re going out to a couples dinner with a new friend. “She’s so great. I love her. And her husband played hockey.”. “Cool.”. I like and appreciate live hockey. Always watch Olympic hockey. Love that the players seem to be out there for each
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Worth noting, the reasons why this worked, in addition to @RiggsBarstool’s 99 days of creative energy for the golf, is @PinehurstResort made smart moves to accommodate the next generation. Upgrades to 2, 3, 4, Cradle, putting course, Pine Cone, brewery, Dornoch Cottage, etc. 👊🏼.
Just left @PinehurstResort after 99 days. My friend @TomPashleyNC surprised me with this. I had no chance out there 😢
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12.4.12. On a warm winter day at Bay Hill, Arnold Palmer at his spot on his range. 👑
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In 2013, while covering the Turkish Open, I got quality time with @WestwoodLee. He wasn’t in a good place in life or on the course. He was tired, contemplating retirement. So good to see the putts drop and all of the smiles. Would even be better to see him win @THEPLAYERSChamp.
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So heavy and heartbreaking. Incredible that Peter had the courage to do the interview, and credit to Amanda for not interrupting him and his emotions.
Peter Malnati played with Grayson Murray during the first two rounds this week. Visibly shaken, this is heartbreaking to watch as Amanda Balionis is emotional, too. @flushingitgolf
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There are issues in golf. An attractive woman, who not only owns her beauty, but also her flaws & imperfections, her path & progress as a person, isn’t one of ‘em. Like, don’t like. Listen, don’t listen. But targeting & demeaning @PaigeSpiranac’s efforts to influence are sad.✌🏼.
Bitter #PaigeSpirinac needs to decide whether she's a golfer or just another titty insta babe, craving attention. Here's a suggestion, Paige. Stick with instagram; golf can evolve & progress without you. #DriveOn
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In one of the 20 times you watch this, focus on the hat.
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It’s 5:10am. They’re prepping the dance floor at @TheHomeofGolf. Cheers to a tireless team, led by Gordon McKie, only the ninth Course Manager since Old Tom Morris.
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I’m neutral on LIV v. Tour. Pros and cons on both sides. But is it really on LIV to conform to World Golf Rankings? Shouldn’t it be on World Golf Rankings to devise a system that applies points/rankings that pertains to all professional competition? If not, then what is it?!.
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Captain Obvious: If your “Official World” ranking system concludes there are 40 people roaming the planet who are better at golf than DJ, you need a new ranking system. It’s not a ranking of the best PGA Tour players. Fix the system and you start to fix golf.
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John Francis Ginella (11.22.33 —7.23.24) . From the streets of San Francisco to the beaches of Honolulu, back to St. Ignatius, Santa Clara (boxer), Olympic Club swimmer and on to the Army, John Ginella came home from Germany in 1957, married Pern Kielhofer and embarked on a
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Of course we’re ending the episodic adventure to Ireland by bumping into @ShaneLowryGolf in the airport.✌🏼
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Don’t invite a girl to Pebble unless you’re prepared to marry her and have a baby. Happy Valentine’s Day to @KatieGinella. 😍
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In 2017, at the US Open at Erin Hills, @RickyElliott (@BKoepka’s caddie), who’s from Northern Ireland, pulled me aside and told me that the next time I’m at @PortstewartGC I should track down Des Griffin. “He’s the local schoolteacher who designed that front-nine in exchange for
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I’ve often said, I could never truly appreciate my parents until I became one. This is an update on my dad, who’s nearing the end. 🙏 . As some of you know, I’ve been spending a lot of time with him lately. He’s 90, immobile, has dementia, he’s in a care facility and recently
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Five days in, Guinness count: 28. Bottles of water: 2. Carlsberg: 1. Welcome to the Father/Son. 🍻
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This is like saying: . “A car. A rich person’s mode of transportation.” . “Restaurant. A rich person’s way of eating.”. Golf, like cars and restaurants, has a variety of entry points. Now more than ever. Do your research. @yocgolf @goathillpark . Dr Liz Allen. Ignorant hot takes.
Golf. A rich person’s sport.
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The assignment for our 17-y-o daughter, who’s a budding graphic designer, was to create and animate a new logo for the Fire Pit Foundation. Kids these days…😳🔥🔥🔥
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Yesterday, as we sat in the New Course club house and learned about Old Tom Morris, we looked out the window to see this was happening. I might send for my family and set up shop here forever.
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You know what there’s no defense for? Supreme athletes who are dedicated to their craft, work their asses off for a competitive advantage and then execute under pressure. Go play Winged Foot tomorrow and tell me the ball goes too far. 🤣🤣🤣.
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This > Butler Cabin.
Hideki Matsuyama becomes the first male player from Japan to win a major.
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Making a quick list of things in golf that make no sense to me:. -Speed golf. -Playing it out of a divot in your own fairway. -Tee markers that aim you into the woods. -Public golf courses that tuck pins and speed up greens on a Friday and then send out marshalls to patrol slow.
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Rewatching @WMPhoenixOpen . Feherty proposes Ryder Cup at @tpcscottsdale. Would be tremendous. Full tilt. And so good for golf. Four finishing holes, all stadiums. Beyond Beman’s wildest imagination. The game is ready.
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Considering all that he has been through (see pic of totaled car on side of the road) and there must’ve been a lot of dark days and nights, this picture is very cool. Incredible to see him smiling, walking and playing golf with his kids. Maybe the greatest win of them all, that.
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Had to share…snuck into our daughter’s homework folder for art class. She never ceases to amaze me/us. The creativity flows out of her like lava. 🌋
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Halftime in Ireland. Just had a decent evening roaming one of the country’s finest. 🇮🇪
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BREAKING🚨: Streamsong has been sold for $160 million. For more:
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A friend just got invited to a trip to NYC/Ireland. 20 rounds in 16 days. PJs and Helis. Rough estimate: $25,000. Wife gave green light. They’re covering some territory.😳.My only suggestions: More Waterville, less Hogs, I’d double up on St. Patrick’s & butt-paste. Thoughts?
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Chills.
My dad was diagnosed with MS in 2012. It was tough for him - no biking, skiing, running, hiking would be in his future. We still get to play golf, it’s different than it used to be, but damn it’s still good. Get outside this weekend, have fun, no excuses!
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If the “problem” with the 10th at Riviera is that it’s so short it tempts and teases the player to try and overpower it, then the problem is actually with the strategy and execution and not the architecture/design.
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12.4.12: Arnold Palmer, alone on his driving range, ripping grips and working on his game. Long live The King. 👑
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It’s not the 16th tee at Bandon, but it IS the walk from 14 to 15 at Lost Farm.
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This isn’t political, it’s common sense. It’s June 2021 in America. Everyone who wants to get vaccinated can get vaccinated. We’re flying, eating, playing, singing, dancing and competing. If you chose not to get vaccinated, your choice. So what is happening at Muirfield?.
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I don’t know him, but I love Max and his place in the game.
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As a father, I’m not sure I could move on if my child was gunned down at school. I can’t fathom what these parents, teachers and survivors are going through. I’m not liberal, I’m not conservative, I’m sensible. What’s happening in our country doesn’t make sense. 😥💔✌🏼
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I don’t shoot 69 very often. Yesterday, I shot 69. Mind you, it was at @goathillpark, which is a par 65, but it’s still a 69. And I doubled the first hole. No skin, but I did win some cash. Thanks for listening.
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Pebble update: I shot 84. 🤦🏻♂️ .(Wind was a factor.). Details you didn’t ask for: I played with the same ball all day. This drive on 18 left me with 225 to the green. (Made par.). Missed legit birdie putts on 6, 7, 11, 12 & 16. Dumb doubles on 2, 8, 14, 17. Pebble is Heaven.✌🏼
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My Cypress Christmas! . More on my recent Insta story. 😍
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Mount Rushmore of crowd favorites: Jones (1930), Palmer (1960), Woods (2018), Mickelson (2021).
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While having a beer at Jigger Inn, we watched a team of agronomists drop seed and sand in divots on the Road Hole. Scottie and Meredith Scheffler pass through the crew and thank them as they make their way back to the Old Course Hotel. Sweet scene. And damn good Karma.
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As we start @GameOfThrones for the third time. Wife: “Do you KNOW when Season 8 starts?”. Me: “April.”. Wife: “Sunday night of the 85th Masters! It’s going to be the best Sunday ever.” . Best wife ever?.
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USGA sits on hands for decades. Courses spend millions adjusting to all factors that got us to where we are now. USGA wakes up one day, decides there’s a problem. Courses and amateurs are supposed to sit by and continue to adjust to their dysfunction? . I vote NO!.
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Bandon travel snafu update: Five guys, $25,000 in United vouchers, one free Expedition and 471 miles to go.
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Happy 90th to my Dad! . I’ve always loved the fact that he was born 11.22.33.
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Prepping for Bandon Dunes with a quick trip to Prairie Dunes.😳
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It seems to me, @JustinThomas34 should edit his tweet. Something along the lines of “Thank you @AlanShipnuck for dedicating your life to relentlessly covering the game at all levels. As the most decorated golf journalist and author of nine books, you’re one of the few remaining.
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He won 16 times on the PGA Tour, the Open at Troon, he won four more times on the Champions Tour, which included the Senior US Open. He played on two winning Ryder Cup teams. He was a lead analyst at the Masters and Open and designed over 40 courses. He’s not in the WGHOF.
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Meet Bandon Moke Ginella. He's 8.4lbs, 21", and THIS is his first kiss. 😘
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My one swing thought: Light grip, balance, tempo, shoulder-to-shoulder, don’t pull it down, let it drop, belt-buckle to the target. What’s yours?! 😵💫
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When the game needs a reminder of what and why it all matters, the Home of Golf will deliver. ⛪️
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Incredible venue and event. JP McManus has been building the relationships and the resort for years. No one else could’ve pulled this off. He gives credit to his family, tireless staff and the pros. Golf and Ireland are big winners today. “On a scale of 1 to Adare…” 🇮🇪
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