News

The sand artist of St. Andrews: An interview with Rob Ogle

Published

1 year ago

Feb 20, 2025

Rob Ogle is an artist. I learned of him through a work colleague, a man of letters who happened to be in St. Andrews one day with his wife, during commencement exercises at the town’s university, and happened to enter a certain pub, and happened to strike up a conversation with another USA chap. That’s how Lucy and Larry met Rob, who invited them down to the West Sands beach, to watch him ~~work~~, nay, create. You could call this interview, golf-adjacent, although Rob does spend time looping for tourists around the auld toon’s courses. His is one of those tales where thirst for adventure merges with true love, to create follow your heart. Thanks to Rob, many visitors to St. Andrews come away with the greatest of souvenirs.

Tell us who you are, where you grew up, and what you did to reach adulthood. Any specific skills that you would use again, later in life? What was your professional career like, prior to coming to Scotland?

My name is Robert Lloyd Ogle III and I was born and raised just outside of Portland, Oregon. Went to Southridge High School and University of Oregon. Worked at Portland Golf Club, host of the 1947 Ryder Cup, and then transitioned to Nike as a sales rep. At Portland Golf Club I was the first assistant for a few years and then went to work on the grounds crew just before transitioning to Nike. While on the grounds crew, we were told to take bunkers in different directions so the sand wouldn’t build up in the same areas, my first ever sand art was born then, but little did I know it at the time.

You made a life switch to move to St. Andrews. How did that come about?

Moved to York, England, 2014/2015 with my wife as she obtained her masters. Moved back to Portland, had our son Hudson in 2016. My wife then wanted to get her PhD and she applied to three universities and she picked St. Andrews (I was open to any/all options but was very excited when she picked St. Andrews).

We are told that you’ve done a bit of caddying in The Auld Toon. Which courses and why?

I typically caddie at the Castle Course but have caddied on the Old, New, and Jubilee courses. Castle Course was designed by David Mclay Kidd (who designed a course in Oregon, Bandon Dunes, original). It’s a challenging course but I think it’s the only course in town that makes a caddie look good.

Let’s get to the heart of the matter. You are a sand artist, but not in the bottled, colorful way. What is this amazing craft and what tools (physical and intellectual) do you use to create your art?

Sand srt officially started at the beginning of the pandemic as a friend dared me to draw his logo in the sand, this also gave me my hour of outside excercise. It has slowly but surely taken off from there, especially when the Tiger Woods logo went viral after his unfortunate car crash. I only use two rakes (one for the writing and the other one for the bigger bits of shading in. I am a certified drone pilot as well and use a DJI Mavic Pro 2. The art always starts with the requested text/logo/message and then I add the art around it as I see appropriate. I typically listen to music (all sorts of varieties) when I’m working but it’s never bad to just listen to the sound of the sea/birds. My work is very weather and tide-dependent — typically working as close to low tide as possible on dry and hopefully not too windy days (harder than you think in Scotland).

Is there a question that we haven’t asked, that you would love to answer? There had better be, because we have leftover space. Ask it and answer it, please, and thank you for your time today.

How much I charge? Usually £140 per hour with each piece taking that amount of time. Pieces can be adjusted to the customers liking and I always give discounts for local companies to help promote their business as efficiently as possible.

Biggest/longest piece? 4.5 hours was the longest and biggest piece, it was for my mom’s birthday.

How do I drum up business? Word of mouth usually and social media (@ogleing on Instagram or Rob Ogle III on FB), along with my website.

News

Best current stock shaft 2026 – GolfWRXers discuss

Published

21 mins ago

Jun 11, 2026

Will Schube

In our forums, one user is asking for thoughts on the best stock shafts offered in 2026. Stock shafts are the shafts included with a club when it’s purchased from retailers or OEMs.

@DTorres asked:

The last couple years has seen a lot of updates and additions to no upcharge stock shafts, which do you think is the best offering in 2026?

Im a bit of a shaft nerd and recently during my Members Testing with the Callaway Quantum Triple Diamond I found the updated Project X Denali Frost Black to be a fantastic stock shaft. I absolutely did not mesh well with the original Denali. Just curious what other people think are the current best Stock shaft offerings out with new models and stock Ventus options and LinQ options popping up here and there.

We were given the option for any stock shafts for our members review. I went with the 70g Black Frost 6.5 because it’s a shaft I don’t have, it’s an updated version of the original Denali and hear little about. I typically use a Diamana WB, GD VF or a HOF Raptor. I’m not saying it was neck and neck with any of those but it was a pleasant surprise I’m not accustomed to in stock shaft offerings.

Our members in the forum have been offering up their own thoughts on the best stock shafts available in 2026. Here are a few posts from the thread, but make sure to check out the entire discussion and have your say at the link below.

rsballer10: “IMO – MCA Ka’ili White Darkwave, Tensei 1k Black/white, UST Lin-Q White. People are free to spend their money however they see fit, but for me personally the shaft catalogs these days have enough options that I don’t see the value of a $400 upcharge. I have never had a problem finding a no upcharge shaft that fits the bend profile and weight that I need. Whether the paint job is good enough or not is above my pay scale.”
bcflyguy1: “Project X Titan Black. I’ve had one in 60TX in my Quantum TD Max for several weeks now. Have to give Titlieist their flowers for finding a way to make it available as a featured option; very shrewd bit of business and one that I suspect will be duplicated by the other companies. TT/PX have a certified banger on their hands with Titan.”
CTG77: “Undoubtedly, it’s the Tensei 1K RIP shafts from Titleist. The Tensei line gives about 98% of the performance of a Ventus VeloCore+ shaft at a tiny fraction of the cost if you’re looking for a blue or red profile. The white is not an exact match for Ventus Black, but it’s closer to it than the non-VeloCore+ Ventus shafts that come from Callaway or formerly came from TaylorMade.”

Entire Thread: “Best current stock shaft 2026.”

News

GolfWRX’s Father’s Day Gift Guide (2026)

Published

2 days ago

Jun 9, 2026

GolfWRX Staff

A reminder from your friends at GolfWRX: Father’s Day is June 21. And as we do every year, we’re rounding up the best gifts for dad.

As we say every year, there’s no better golf-related Father’s Day gift than a round of golf with pops. Be it a country club or your favorite muni, take the time to get together to play 18 if you can.

Let’s get to the gifts.

Ghost Golf Qualifier Diamond Polo

We like the new polos that Ghost is offering, as the fabric and fit are so good. These new Qualifier Collection polos breathe well, are lightweight, stretch with your swing, and of course look great. You can wear them on the course, in the office, or just out at a casual event and they will fit right in.

Buy here.

STR8-Strip Grip Tape Remover

If your dad is an equipment aficionado and tinkers with his clubs, this tool works wonders. Removing grip tape has never been easier, just put a little head on the tape and the STR8-Strip peals it right off the shaft without any damage.

Buy here.

Why Golf: Putting Thing

When it comes to practice, it is good to have a purpose. This “Putting Thing” sure does it. We know from personal experience how challenging it can be and how rewarding it is on the practice green. This also provides some competition for your kiddo to see who will unload the dishwasher or do the next chore around the house.

Buy here.

OluKai Lae‘ahi Men’s Breathable Slip-On Shoes

Riding to and from the course in style and comfort is always a good thing. If you’re in a hurry, it’s a nice feature to slide into your shoes and get to the tee time. For the post-game shoe, at your locker or while putting your clubs away in the car. Nice to slide into a shoe that looks good anywhere. Pair that with meeting the family for dinner, no need to change!

Buy here.

Therabody Theragun Relief

A little wellness goes a long way. Keeping loose is a good way to go when it comes to the weekend game or treatment during the week. If there is a little ache or pain, the Theragun is there to help out. Help loosen up the back for a pre-game warm-up or cool-down.

Buy here.

World Cup golf apparel

Something for the soccer dads. Embrace the World Cup fever this summer on the course with custom gear to support the nation of your choice.

Buy here.

FootJoy Pro SL spikeless golf shoes

Give the old man a break and save his feet with the Footjoy Pro SL Men’s Spikeless Golf Shoes for some added comfort on the course.

Buy here.

Bushnell Wingman 2 GPS speaker

Combine all the hits as well as some game improvement with the Wingman 2 Golf GPS Speaker by getting audible distance readings from 38,000+ courses worldwide through the Wingman 2 remote or speaker.

Buy here.

Personalized Titleist Pro V1 golf balls

The No. 1 ball in golf is a safe bet, and the Pro V1 fits the largest chunk of the bell curve if you don’t know what ball pops plays. Add personalization for a, well, personal touch!

Buy here.

GolfWRX may earn a commission for purchases made through links on this page, at no extra cost to you.

Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2026 OccuNet Classic

Published

2 days ago

Jun 9, 2026

GolfWRX Staff

With the PGA Tour across the border in Canada this week, GolfWRX Tour Photographer Greg Moore stayed stateside and headed to the OccuNet Classic presented by Amarillo National Bank in Amarillo, Texas.

It’s always interesting to see what the guys are playing on the KFT, and this week certainly hasn’t disappointed so far, with some incredible wedge stamping on display.

Check out links to all our albums below.