Lawrence Auer shares lessons from playing 500+ golf courses worldwide, his journey from Australia to Alabama, and why small-town golf still defines the game.

Show Notes

• Lawrence’s start in Australia and early golf influences
• Journey to the U.S. and career in Mobile
• Differences between public and private golf environments
• The significance of municipal golf courses
• Playing 500+ courses across 8 countries
• Favorite golf destinations and future trips
• Hidden gem courses vs “name brand” golf
• Why golf is one of the most accessible lifetime sports

Travis Key joins Chris and Gregg to talk about growing up around golf, falling in love with competitive golf later in life, and how a frightening dehydration incident on the course led to the launch of Strokes Gained. Travis shares the origin of the brand, how they developed the product, what makes it different, and what it has been like building a golf business while raising a son who is now deep into junior golf. This is a conversation about golf, fatherhood, entrepreneurship, and the realities of trying to build something in the game.

Show notes

This week in the Cart Barn, Chris and Gregg welcome Travis Key, co-founder of Strokes Gained, for a conversation that goes far beyond hydration.

Travis talks about:

• how his dad introduced him to the game
• why competitive golf hooked him later in life
• what he has learned from watching and caddying for his son in junior golf
• the frightening on-course dehydration incident that sparked the idea for Strokes Gained
• how he and his partner built the brand, developed the formula, and secured the trademark
• what it has been like scaling from a startup idea to placement in clubs around the country

This episode is part golf story, part founder story, and part reminder that the game has a way of teaching lessons well beyond the scorecard.

Short episode description

A dehydration scare on the golf course led Travis Key to build Strokes Gained. He joins Chris and Gregg to talk golf, fatherhood, competitive golf, and what it takes to build a brand in the industry.

Keywords

Cart Barn Podcast, Travis Key, Strokes Gained, golf hydration, junior golf, golf business, golf entrepreneurship, competitive golf, Alabama golf, PGA Show, golf founder story, hydration for golfers, golf lifestyle, golf stories

Chris and Gregg spend a few minutes talking Masters Week, why Augusta still feels different from every other tournament, the traditions that make the event special, favorite memories, and Gregg’s firsthand stories from covering the Masters during Stewart Cink’s early career.

Full show notes

Masters Week hits different, and this episode is a quick conversation about why.

Chris and Gregg talk about what separates the Masters from every other event in golf: the familiarity of Augusta National, the traditions, the music, the visuals, Amen Corner, the Par 3 Contest, and the way the week feels like the true start of golf season.

They also get into some favorite Masters moments, memorable shots, favorite holes at Augusta, and Gregg shares stories from covering the tournament early in Stewart Cink’s career — including the “pink badge of shame.”

If you love the Masters, this one will feel like a conversation you’d have sitting around the clubhouse or watching coverage with a cup of coffee.

What’s covered in this episode

• Why the Masters feels different from every other major
• Augusta traditions that still stand out
• The food, atmosphere, and no-cell-phone experience
• Why the Par 3 Contest is such a unique part of the week
• Gregg’s credential story from covering the Masters
• Favorite Masters moments from Jack, Tiger, Phil, Bubba and more
• Favorite holes at Augusta National
• Quick picks for who could contend this year

Keywords

Masters Week, Masters Tournament, Augusta National, golf podcast, Cart Barn Podcast, golf traditions, Amen Corner, Par 3 Contest, Masters memories, Augusta stories, Jack Nicklaus 1986, Tiger Woods 1997, Phil Mickelson Masters, Bubba Watson Masters, Stewart Cink, golf in Alabama, major championship golf

Jason Deegan of Golf Pass joins The Cart Barn to break down the Golfers Choice rankings for Alabama’s best public golf courses. The conversation covers how the list is built from real golfer reviews, why Alabama continues to offer exceptional value, and how the RTJ Trail remains the foundation of golf in the state while other courses continue to gain recognition.

This week in the Cart Barn, Chris and Gregg welcome Jason Deegan of Golf Pass to discuss the Golfers Choice rankings for Alabama’s top public golf courses.

Unlike traditional rankings, these lists are built from reviews by everyday golfers, offering a different perspective on course quality, value, and overall experience.

But this episode goes beyond a list.

It highlights something bigger: the depth of golf across Alabama.

While the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail remains the backbone and premier golf experience in the state, this conversation explores how a number of other public courses are earning strong reviews and creating great experiences for players across all skill levels.

In this episode:

• How Golf Pass builds the Golfers Choice rankings
• Why player-reviewed lists differ from expert rankings
• What golfers actually value: greens, service, pace, and overall experience
• Why Alabama is one of the best value golf destinations in the country
• Hidden gem public courses across the state
• How accessibility and affordability are shaping golf travel decisions

The takeaway is clear:
Alabama golf is not just strong—it’s deep, accessible, and built for real golfers.

alabama golf, golf pass, jason deegan, public golf, golf rankings, golfers choice, rtj trail, robert trent jones golf trail, golf travel, value golf, golf podcast, cart barn podcast

Kim Evans shares her journey from Decatur, Alabama to building Auburn Women’s Golf into a national powerhouse — and the life-changing moment that put everything into perspective.

What does golf really give you?

For Kim Evans, it was more than championships, coaching success, or building one of the most respected programs in college golf. It was relationships, resilience… and ultimately, a moment that changed everything.

In this episode, we sit down with Kim Evans — Decatur native, former Auburn Women’s Golf Head Coach, and one of the most influential figures in college golf — to talk about her journey from small-town Alabama to building an SEC powerhouse.

We cover:

• Growing up in Decatur and learning the game at Decatur Country Club
• Her path through Auburn and into the golf business
• Coaching at Georgia Tech and working with players like Stewart Cink
• Building Auburn into a national contender
• The realities of coaching, recruiting, and leading at a high level
• And the moment a simple conversation led to a decision that saved her life

This is a story about golf — but more importantly, it’s about people, perspective, and what really matters when it’s all said and done.

golf, college golf, auburn, sec, coaching, leadership, golf stories, podcast

Joy Green shares what it was like working inside a startup television network before it became The Golf Channel—and the unexpected moments that surrounded the early days of Tiger Woods.

Joy Green takes us inside a moment in golf history that most people never saw—the early days of The Golf Channel before it became what it is today.

From walking into a completely unstructured startup environment to witnessing the habits of a young Tiger Woods before the world knew his name, Joy’s story gives a rare, behind-the-scenes look at how both a network and a legend were taking shape at the same time.

This conversation isn’t about polished success—it’s about uncertainty, figuring things out in real time, and being close enough to something special before anyone realized what it would become.

If you’ve ever wondered what it actually looked like behind the curtain in those early days, this episode delivers.

golf podcast, golf channel history, tiger woods early career, golf stories, behind the scenes golf, sports media, golf industry, cart barn podcast

In this episode of The Cart Barn, Chris Lemley and Gregg Dewalt sit down with Mike Beverly, President and CEO of Sunbelt Golf Corporation, the company that operates the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail.

Mike shares the inside story behind one of the most ambitious golf development projects ever created. With 26 championship courses across Alabama, the Trail attracts golfers from all 50 states and more than a dozen countries each year.

They discuss the vision of Dr. David Bronner, how the Trail continues to grow, the operational challenges of managing hundreds of holes of championship golf, and why the RTJ Golf Trail remains one of the greatest values in golf travel today.

The Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail is widely considered one of the most unique golf destinations in the world. Built across the state of Alabama, the Trail features 26 championship golf courses at 11 different sites, drawing golfers from across the United States and around the world.

In this episode of The Cart Barn, Chris Lemley and Gregg Dewalt sit down with Mike Beverly, President and CEO of Sunbelt Golf Corporation and the 2025 PGA Professional of the Year for the Dixie Section.

Mike has spent nearly two decades helping guide the Trail’s growth and operations. Today, the Trail plays hundreds of thousands of rounds each year and continues to expand its influence in golf tourism.

During the conversation, Mike discusses:

• The original vision behind the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail
• How the Trail transformed golf tourism in Alabama
• Managing more than a thousand employees across multiple golf sites
• Renovating and maintaining championship golf courses at scale
• The impact of the Trail on Alabama’s economy and tourism
• Why the Trail continues to be one of the best values in golf travel
• The future of golf and continued growth of the Trail

If you love golf architecture, golf travel, or the stories behind great golf destinations, this episode provides a fascinating look behind the scenes of one of the most successful golf projects ever created.

Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail
RTJ Golf Trail
Alabama golf
golf tourism
golf travel
golf podcast
golf courses Alabama
golf course architecture
Sunbelt Golf Corporation
Mike Beverly
golf industry
golf operations
golf destination
golf trip planning
golf in the south

The Golf Channel was founded in Birmingham, Alabama — and nearly collapsed before it ever became profitable.

In this episode, Del Woods, founding CFO of The Golf Channel, shares the inside story of building the first 24-hour golf network, bringing Arnold Palmer into the deal, raising startup capital, and surviving the financial pressure that nearly ended the company.

You’ll hear:
• How the idea for a 24-hour golf network began
• How Arnold Palmer became involved
• The capital raise that made it possible
• The near-bankruptcy moment in 1996
• What it was like playing Bay Hill during that stretch

This is a golf history episode — and a sports media startup story.

Follow the Cart Barn Podcast for more conversations documenting Alabama’s impact on the game of golf.

Golf Channel history
Arnold Palmer
Sports business
Golf media
Sports television
Media startup
Birmingham Alabama
Golf history
Bay Hill