What if the hardest things you've been through weren't holding you back, but are instead shaping your strength?

Author and Advocate Misty Carson joins us to kick off season 12, by challenging one of the most common beliefs around trauma: that it's something to "get over." Instead, she shares how trauma, adversity, and early instability can become the foundation for resilience, perspective, and purpose.

Misty defines the moment when one decides whether your past will define you or drive you. We go through the steps of how it takes intention, accountability, and sometimes creating distance from the patterns and people that shaped you, even if they love you. Even if they mean well.

This is an inspirational conversation about how we turn pain into purpose when we realize that the difficulties we go through can be the very things that moves us forward…on The Back 9.

Pre-order your copy of Misty's book, The Unbreakable Advantage, here.

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We have spent years learning what it really takes to rebuild our lives —and find love again—after divorce.

As Season 12 of The Back 9 begins, we reflect on why these conversations matter. After more than 100 episodes exploring all aspects of midlife transitions, one theme that keeps resurfacing is that divorce can shake a man's identity to the core.

It's also the question shaping the book we're currently writing—about how men heal, rebuild, and eventually find love again.

We talk about the real work behind that process: learning to be alone, facing disappointment, and doing the personal work before stepping into a healthy second relationship.

Because love after divorce is less about the comeback story, than it is about becoming the man who's ready for it…on The Back 9.

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Have you noticed the moment when the Back 9 of life stops being a metaphor and starts feeling real?

As Season 11 of The Back 9 wraps, we reflect on the shifts that come with midlife. Our daughters are grown. Our health and longevity feel personal. Time carries more weight.

This season we explored fatherhood, friendship, identity, reinvention, and building the next chapter. In this 19th Hole, we turn the conversation inward.

We talk about mortality, letting go of roles that no longer fit, and the clarity that comes when we realize time matters more than ever.

Because while none of us knows how many holes are left—but we can choose how we play them…on The Back 9.

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What happens when the dream ends before you're ready?

Heavyweight contender Joe Mesi once carried the pride of his hometown on his back. They packed arenas, he had the Olympics within reach, and the path seemed clear—until a brain injury ended his boxing career overnight.

Joe joins us to talk about the identity crisis that can follow when athletes lose the one thing they were built to do. We explore life after sports, rebuilding purpose after career loss, and how reinvention often begins in the hardest moments.

From the spotlight of professional boxing to marriage, fatherhood, and a new career, Joe shares what it really takes to move forward when the first dream disappears.

It's a conversation about valuing fulfillment over fame…on The Back 9.

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40 years of marriage. Three sons raised into men. This is the long game of fatherhood.

Veteran sportscaster Vince Cellini joins The Back 9 for a steady, practical conversation about healthy masculinity in fatherhood, long-term marriage and evolving identity in midlife.

We talk about raising sons into capable men, balancing career ambition with presence at home, and staying consistent when work never really turns off. Vince shares how his blue-collar roots shaped his leadership as a husband and father and what changes when your children become adults.

It's a grounded discussion about how consistency becomes our most important stat…on the Back 9.

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What happens when you achieve the life you planned… and realize you're still not happy?

Kee Kee Buckley had the Hollywood executive title, the resume, the access, but she felt she had lost her identity. When she got laid off she packed her Prius, grabbed her rescue dog Yoda, and drove across the country searching for Shama — the Sanskrit word for inner peace.

On this episode of The Back 9, we talk with Kee Kee about identity loss, career pivots, spiritual awakening, and the courage to leave a life that looks successful but doesn't feel aligned. From spiritual communities to long stretches of silence on the open road, Kee Kee shares what it really takes to reset your life in mid-chapter.

This is a conversation about burnout, red flags in relationships, reinvention, and why inner peace isn't a destination — it's a daily practice, and it's one that's never too late to undertake...on the Back 9.

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Men need strong friendships. Few of us are lucky enough to keep them for decades.

On this episode of The Back 9, we sit down with Jim Brock Jr. — a 30+ year friend — to talk about the rare power of long-term adult male friendship and what it takes to stay connected through the peaks and valleys of life.

What makes a friendship survive decades? What allows two men to be instantly available for each other no matter the circumstances. How can you pick up the phone after years and feel like no time has passed?

Jim shares what it was like coming out as a gay man later in life, navigating sexual identity in a polarized political culture, and how real friendship holds steady even when beliefs and identities shift. We talk about emotional trust, loyalty, and adult male connection, and why those bonds become more meaningful as life moves forward.

It's an episode that explores true masculinity through the kind of friendship that lasts a lifetime...on the Back 9

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What do you do when your industry shifts — and your 21-year run suddenly ends?

This week, we sit down with longtime ESPN producer Gus Ramsey to talk about career pivots, layoffs, reinvention, mentorship, and retirement planning on the Back 9.

After producing SportsCenter's most important shows during its peak, Gus was forced to recalibrate. Instead of chasing relevance, he focused on usefulness — launching a coaching practice, leading the prestigious Dan Patrick School of Sportscasting, and mentoring the next generation of broadcasters.

Now, at 59½ — emphasis on the half -- he's made another intentional pivot: retiring, relocating, and redesigning life on purpose.

This episode is about reading the signals, protecting your integrity, and making bold midlife career moves without losing yourself…on the Back 9.

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Instagram: @Back9_Podcast