Opinion & Analysis

The GolfWRX interview: Golf songster Sam Harrop

Published

6 years ago

Aug 29, 2020

Sam Harrop is one of five things that golf with a capital G needs in 2020. I have not the slightest inkling what the other four might be, nor do I much care. I can get through August and September with Mr. Harrop, thank you very much. Let’s qualify this: Sam with a healthy assist from golf’s new twitter darling, Byeong-hun “Ben” An. Harrop writes golf-themed tributes (these aren’t parodies) to classic and modern, popular tunes.

He plays them on the piano and signs along. We benefit. In the case of Benny An, his authentic and graceful appreciation served to authenticate the value of what Sam Harrop does. The lyricist/vocalist/instrumentalist was kind enough to push back from the keyboard and answer our nine questions on his newfound career arc (or hobby, you make the call.)

Enjoy this inteview with Sam Harrop, and also check him out on Twitter and on YouTube.

1. Tell us who you are and how you got acquainted with music, both singing and instrumentation.

SH: I grew up near Oxford in England and was involved in music from a young age. My parents started sending me for piano lessons at 8 years old, and I started singing in the school choir around the same time. I guess you could say music was my first love! I went on to study it at university and now work for a sheet music publisher as my day job.

2. What’s your trajectory in golf? Do you play? How young when you started? How’s your game?

SH: I didn’t play that often growing up or have proper lessons or anything, but my parents occasionally took me to the local pitch ‘n’ putt with my brothers. I started properly playing after university, but never to a very good standard! I’m a lefty and I play off 20 where unfortunately I seem to have plateaued!

3. You’re developing a following with your songs on social media, both YouTube and Twitter. What inspired you to begin this series of musical tributes?

SH: I honestly can’t pinpoint why it happened, but the day after this year’s Phoenix Open I just got this chorus in my head – “when will Tony Finau win again?” to the tune of the REO Speedwagon song, and over the course of the next few days I started changing all the lyrics of the original song to tell a story about Tony Finau’s pro career with a bit of light humour thrown in. I honestly had no idea how well (or badly) it might be received, but I figured I may as well stick it up on Twitter and gauge the feedback from the golf community I had been interacting with for several years.

4. To date, your tributes have been songs that fit well with the piano. Any chance we might hear a bit of metal, something electric?

SH: Honestly, probably not. If I played guitar too I might be tempted to change it up, but my M.O. is very much songs that work well on piano!

5. Back to inspiration. Do you work from the original song toward a theme/subject, or does the subject/theme drive you to find the proper song fit?

SH: Generally speaking, the subject is the driver behind these. After the Tony Finau song (which obviously started with the subject) I knew I wanted to do one about Anthony Kim as he’s such a legendary talent who disappeared, so I just had a think about what kind of song would work for him and built it out from there. Next up, I knew it had to be one about Bryson as you could write a whole double-sided album on him! So again, I had a think about what song would work (in this case it was swapping “turn around, bright eyes” for “turn around, Bryson”) and built it out from there.

6. If you could harmonize on one of your tributes, with whom would you work, and which song would you select?

SH: Well, I noticed on a recent post by Eddie Pepperell that there was an acoustic guitar in the background. He’s just such a great character on Twitter, you know it would be a fun collab.

7. You called this “an interesting little niche” but I’m thinking music festivals, when this pandemic is behind us. Not Electric Forest or Firefly, but something at a major golf championship, where the host venue has a spare course for the stage. Your thoughts?

SH: I had no idea where this thing was going to go when I started out, but I may have recently started daring to dream that some sort of live performance in conjunction with a tournament or golf event might not be a complete pipe-dream. Serenading the Masters winner in the Butler Cabin would be the ultimate dream, of course!

8. How excited were you when Benny An showed you his wedge on Twitter, with your lyrics stamped on the back? Are there any mountains to climb after that one?

SH: That was incredible, and completely unexpected. I was happy/relieved that he enjoyed the song in the first instance, but the whole wedge thing was mind-blowing! I’m kind of hoping he might send me the wedge when he’s done with it, although I wouldn’t be able to use it of course, being left-handed!

9. What question haven’t we asked, that you wish we might have? Here’s your chance: ask it and answer it, please.

Which 3 golfers would you choose to join you in a dream foursome?

SH: My all-time favourite player is (and always has been) Phil Mickelson – he’s obviously an incredibly entertaining player with loads of stories to tell, so he’d be number one. Secondly I think I’d go with JT. Despite being one of the very best in the world, he still comes across as very down-to-earth, and someone who’d just be great company for 18 holes. Lastly, I’m saying Eddie Pepperell because he’d keep you laughing throughout the round…and we can plan our duet of course! I’ve got to have a fellow Englishman in there, right? I think I’d be too intimidated to play with Tiger in case you’re wondering why he’s not on the list!

Opinion & Analysis

AVL: My U.S. Amateur local qualifying experience

Published

6 days ago

Jun 5, 2026

Andrew Von Lossow

This past Monday, I played in the U.S. Amateur local qualifier at Rock Creek Country Club in Portland, Oregon. A full tee sheet from 7:30 a.m. to 1:55 p.m., the top 11 scores would make it to the U.S. Amateur final qualifying.

I teed off at 10:48 a.m.. With the 7:30 am tee time, you can get a feel for the leaders’ pace, and they were off and running on the challenging setup at Rock Creek.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by GolfWRX (@golfwrx)

Getting to the highlight of the round on the par five 17th, a drive up the left side and 212 yards left to the front hole location. I took out a 5-iron with plans of middle of the green. The ball ended up 8 feet left of the hole, pin high. A slight downhill putt dropped in for an eagle 3 on the 17th. With the cut line looking to be anywhere from -2 to even par. This was the boost I had been waiting for all day.

With making par from the trees on 18, it was time to wait for a potential playoff with a posted score of one under par 71.

Three hours later, it was playoff time. 8 players for 6 spots. I made par on the playoff hole, which was good enough to advance to the U.S. Amateur final qualifying in July. USGA qualifiers sure deliver on all of the emotions in golf!

Club Junkie

Building my 2026 gamer WITB: Ranking the contenders and new putter projects – Club Junkie Podcast

Published

1 week ago

Jun 4, 2026

GolfWRX Staff

The annual What’s In The Bag build is underway, and on this episode of Club Junkie, Brian breaks down the clubs currently leading the race for a spot in his 2026 gamer setup. From drivers and fairway woods to irons, wedges, and shafts, he ranks the equipment that’s performing best and explains what’s separating the front runners from the rest of the field.

Brian also heads into the workshop to discuss several putter projects currently on the bench. From head options and shaft choices to build ideas and testing plans, he shares what he’s working on and which putters could become serious contenders for the bag this season.

If you’re a gear junkie who loves equipment testing, club building, and the never-ending pursuit of the perfect setup, this episode is for you.

Follow Club Junkie:
Instagram: @clubjunkiepod
TikTok: @clubjunkiepod
Threads: @clubjunkiepod
X: @ClubJunkiePod

Club Junkie

Tour Edge Exotics mini driver review + TaylorMade Spider ZT Max first look – Club Junkie

Published

2 weeks ago

May 28, 2026

Brian Knudson

On this episode of Club Junkie, I put the new Tour Edge Exotics Mini Driver to the test and break down the performance, forgiveness, distance, and where it fits compared to a traditional driver or strong fairway wood. If you have been curious about adding a mini driver to the bag, this one is worth a look.

I also dive into the new TaylorMade Spider ZT Max putter that was recently spotted and discuss the growing zero torque putter trend. Plus, there is a closer look at the new Project X Titan Yellow shaft showing up on the PGA Tour and what makes it different from other profiles currently out there.