2nd Swing Thoughts

What does it take to play golf at an elite level? University of Minnesota Golfers Bella and Reese McCauley are this week's guests on the 2nd Swing Thoughts Podcast to share their experiences of playing golf against some of the best players in the country. Bella and Reese go into detail on a variety of topics including the transition from high school golf to college golf, the mental approach they take when competing, and how they pr...

What were the top trending golf clubs from the U.S. Open? In this 2nd Swing Thoughts podcast, 2nd Swing Master Fitter Jake Montgomery joins the show to discuss some of the top performing clubs from the 2025 U.S. Open at Oakmont Country Club. Among the clubs covered include those inside U.S. Open Winner J.J. Spaun's bag including the L.A.B. Golf DF3 Putter, Srixon ZXi Irons, Titleist GT3 Driver, TaylorMade Qi10 Fairway Woods and his...

In this episode of the 2nd Swing Thoughts podcast, University of Minnesota Golfer Bella McCauley joins the show to discuss two once in a lifetime golf experiences she participated in this year. Bella was invited to play in the Augusta National Women's Amateur back in the spring, and reflects upon competing amongst the Best Women's Amateur Golfers in the World, and shares what it was like to play Augusta National Golf Club. Bella Mc...

Which golf clubs are trending in 2nd Swing Fittings? 2nd Swing Master Fitter Tyler Fitzel joins the 2nd Swing Thoughts podcast to discuss some of the trends he's been seeing in 2025. Tyler shares his fitting insights into the rise in popularity of torque putters, both high lofted irons and fairway woods and gapping your bag. 2nd Swing's Drew Mahowald and Sean Bower also dive into the latest golf news including Scottie Scheffler's w...

Wedges are one of the most important clubs in your golf bag, yet often get overlooked when it comes to getting fit for. So how do you ensure you're getting the best wedges for your golf swing? 2nd Swing Master Fitter Tyler Fitzel joins the 2nd Swing Thoughts podcast to breakdown some of the key components of getting fit for wedges and specifically covers wedge bounce, wedge grind, wedge lofts, and how our 2nd Swing Master Fitters o...

Which clubs are performing best in the fitting bay? 2nd Swing Master Fitter Larry Bobka joins the 2nd Swing Thoughts podcast to discuss which trends he's been seeing so far in 2025. Larry dives into the key differences between current 2025 drivers and those of years past, the rising popularity of mini drivers and zero torque putters. 

00:00 Introduction 1:10 PGA Championship Recap 06:30 Driver Fitting Trends 17:45 Mini Driver Craze...

Kevin Kraft's 2025 tournament season has started as he's looking to build off a successful 2024 season. The 2nd Swing Master Fitter joins the show to discuss what tournaments he's playing this year, reflects on his 2024 season and what he's trying to improve upon with his own game. Then Sean Bower and Drew Mahowald make their picks for the PGA Championship, which gets underway Thursday at Quail Hollow.

00:00 Introduction 05:06 Sepp...

How do you get the most out of your club fitting? In this 2nd Swing Thoughts podcast, 2nd Swing Master Fitter Larry Bobka joins the show to discuss some key aspects of the fitting process that will help you get the most out of your game. Larry explains the importance of distance control in irons, why being brand agnostic and open-minded can be beneficial, how the clubhead and shaft play a role in the club fitting and more.

00:00 In...

Legendary Club Designer Roger Cleveland is known across the world of golf, specifically for his impact on modern wedge design. In this 2nd Swing Thoughts episode, Roger Cleveland joins Drew to discuss the evolution of wedge design, his journey as a club designer, the all-new Cleveland RTZ wedges and more. Drew and Sean also reflect on this past weekend's Zurich Classic and Chevron Championship, plus take a look at Ben Griffin and A...

Justin Thomas' RBC Heritage Win, Kevin Streelman's Favorite Putters and discussing the team aspect of college golf with University of Minnesota Men's Golf Coach Justin Smith are the featured topics in this episode of the 2nd Swing Thoughts podcast. Sean and Drew reflect upon Justin Thomas' RBC Hertiage win and what ending a nearly three-year winless drought on the PGA Tour means for Justin Thomas. We also take a look at Justin Thom...

In this episode of the 2nd Swing Thoughts Podcast, Drew and Sean are talking about Rory McIlroy's history making win at The Masters that made him the 6th player ever to win the career Grand Slam. {lus 2nd Swing Master Fitter Kevin Kraft joins the show for a look at his What's in the Bag for 2025. 

00:00 Introduction 01:00 The Masters Reaction 03:00 Rory McIlroy's Play 08:10 Justin Rose  09:10 Rory McIlroy's Legacy 17:10 Kevin Kraft...

Kevin Streelman, a 2x Winner on the PGA Tour joins the 2nd Swing Thoughts podcast from the Putter Reserve at our 2nd Swing Scottsdale Store. Streelman reflects on his professional golf journey including what it meant to earn his PGA Tour Card in 2008, playing in the final group with Tiger Woods at Torrey Pines in his rookie season, winning twice on the PGA Tour, including his epic win at 2014 Travelers Championship, and his favorit...

This episode of the 2nd Swing Thoughts Podcast features interviews with LPGA Tour rookie Kate Smith Stroh and University of Minnesota Men's Golf Coach Justin Smith.  Kate Smith-Stroh earned her LPGA Tour Card through Q-School last fall. She reflects on her journey to the LPGA Tour, talks about her experiences during her first two tournaments and goes into some recent equipment decisions she's made following her 2nd Swing Fitting. J...

Bella McCauley will be teeing it up in this year's Augusta National Women's Amateur. This will be the 6th running of this tournament and it features 72 of the best American and International Amateur golfers in the world. The three-round tournament consists of 36-holes at Champions Retreat Golf Club, with the top 30 and ties advancing to Saturday's final round at Augusta National Golf Club.

00:00 Introduction 02:05 The Turn 07:19 Vi...

In this episode of the 2nd Swing Thoughts podcast, 2nd Swing Master Fitter Aaron Roth joins Drew, alongside sisters Bella and Reese McCauley for a discussion on the fitting and equipment needs these University of Minnesota golfers require. Then 2nd Swing Master Fitter Kevin Kraft also joins the show to talk about some of the biggest fitting trends from golf companies he's seen so far in 2025.

00:00 Introduction 02:45 The Turn 12:31...

This episode of the 2nd Swing Thoughts podcast features an in-depth interview with University of Minnesota golfers and sisters Bella and Reese McCauley. The McCauley's take us inside the life of a Division 1 golfer. Then Drew and Sean each make their picks for the The Players, with each of them selecting 5 golfers playing this weekend, plus they break down the latest news from the PGA Tour and the world of golf in general.

00:00 In...

This episode of 2nd Swing Thoughts introduces a new mini series with Bella McCauley and her younger sister, Reese McCauley. The McCauley Sisters are two of the most accomplished golfers ever in the state of Minnesota, having won several state championships and now earning accolades as college golfers at the University of Minnesota.

00:00 Introduction 04:06 How They Got Into Golf 07:25 Friendly Sibling Rivalry 10:00 Year Round Pract...

In this episode of the 2nd Swing Thoughts podcast, we have a pair of featured guests. First up, it's 2nd Swing Master Fitter Kevin Kraft who shares his top new clubs for each category in 2025, plus he reflects on his list from 2024. Then in a new mini-series, University of Minnesota Men's Golf Coach Justin Smith speaks about the ways collegiate golf has changed from a technology standpoint from his days playing for Minnesota in t...

Erik van Rooyen is a Two-Time PGA Tour Winner, with his last win coming at the 2023 World Wide Technology Championship. His other PGA Tour victory came at the 2021 Barracuda Championship. The South Africa native has also racked up 3 other wins internationally in his professional career, capturing both the Eye of Africa PGA Championship and Hainan Open in 2017 and winning the Scandinavian Invitation in 2019. Before playing professio...