Ep39: Do World Rankings Mean Anything Anymore? PGA/LIV deal update. And Tiger Stories.

What a week in golf it has been, so much to talk about we barely have time for the show opener. And today's show isn't from the Australian Golf Centre, home of the PGA of Australia and Golf Australia, Nick is live from Central Victoria not far from Cathedral, and Mark is overlooking the beautiful 4th hole at Box Hill Golf Course in Melbourne.We start by looking at the Erik Van Rooyen's incredible win in the World Wide Technology Championship. A great performance with so many brilliant stories coming out of it, not only from Erik. Nick and Mark discuss how a number of Australian golfers from the current Order of Merit will be able to go to Round 1 of LIV qualifying, and how the PGA tour might respond to the players who do go to qualifying. Mark's view is that the PGA will not be impressed if any Australian player goes to LIV qualifying, and asks Nick for his opinion. Leads to a chat about what World Rankings mean, Nick believes that rankings may become less relevant over time.Mark mentions his view that LIV and PGA talks are not progressing. Nick describes it as an ongoing saga.Mark is over the moon that Robert MacIntyre is coming to the Australia Open, but less impressed about Michael Block and doesn't want him in with the big boys. Nick and Mark discuss some of the players coming out for the Open, the field of women and men is extraordinary.But....onto the big news story of the week. The Box Hill Pro-Am. Mark promised he'd shoot a course record of 62, however he shot 72, just a touch off the course record. Nick played well, particularly given he was injured. Mark has a tip for Nick on his speaking content and some of the stories he should focus on.Lots of feedback this week, and some great questions from you that Nick and Mark answer on the pod. Keep them coming in, always keen to hear from you. A ripping question from Chris about the 1996 Australian Open where only Greg Norman shot under par, given weather conditions, and Chris wants to know what the worst conditions Nick and Mark ever played in were.Leads to a great story when Mark thought his playing partner was going to be Tiger, but the pairing didn't go his way...instead Tiger was paired with Mark's nemesis.We also had a lot of feedback this week on one aspect of the Box Hill Pro-Am....to do with something Mark Allen was wearing. Troy has sent a video of a putting grip that he asks the boys for their thoughts on. You can see the video here.Nick takes us around the world with the PING global results.A great Top 5 this week, inspired by Andrew Kelly, Mark counts down the Top 5 most unusual starts to golf swings. And, while we're on Andrew Kelly, Nick's masterclass is on stepping into the ball when driving.Talk Birdie To Me, new episodes weekly wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe and you'll never miss an episode! If you've got a friend who is into golf, we'd love you to share the podcast with them, and if you can rate and review us wherever you get your podcasts that would be great.Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and TikTok, or send a voicemail to us here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.