We want to thank Golf Genius Software for presenting this episode of The ModGolf Podcast!
Are you a golf course owner, manager or operator looking to increase both your profit margins and on-course experience?

Golf Genius powers tournament management at over 10,000 private clubs, public courses, resorts, golf associations, and tours in over 60 countries. So if you’re a golf professional or course operator who wants to save time, deliver exceptional golfer experiences, and generate more revenue, check them out online at golfgenius.com.

If you didn’t get the chance to listen to all of our twelve Season 15 episodes, this bonus show gives you a recap of the great conversations I had with some of the golf industry's top influencers, innovators and entrepreneurs. Hopefully this will inspire you to listen to a couple of the episodes listed below. Let us know which ones you enjoyed the most and why you liked them!

Our Season 15 guests were:

Episode 1
David Hinkle and Rio Valeriano - T36 Golf Co-Founders
"We’re flipping the script on traditional golf and redefining the sport for a new generation of golfers" T36 Golf Co-Founders David Hinkle and Rio Valeriano join host Colin Weston to share how their "Double Loop" design delivers a full 18-hole game experience with a smaller environmental footprint and shorter playtime.
Click to listen >> CREATING A NEW TYPE OF GOLF

Episode 2
Tyler Simmons - CEO and Founder of BucketGolf
"Seeing my roommate throw his clothes into his pop-up laundry hamper, I realized that I should instead make retractable pop-up buckets which cut our product cost almost in half." Tyler Simmons - CEO and Founder of BucketGolf shares how they have created a portable, fun golf game that anyone can enjoy almost anywhere.
Click to listen >> TURNING A HOMEMADE GOLF GAME INTO A GLOBAL BUSINESS VENTURE

Episode 3
Nick Darby - UK non-profit Get Golfing
"It was such a shame seeing all these beautiful golf courses going downhill. So our job is to save as many courses as we can to keep golf flourishing." - Nick Darby with UK non-profit Get Golfing shares how they are on a mission to revolutionize the golfing experience.
Click to listen >> A NON-PROFIT ON A MISSION TO REVOLUTIONIZE THE GOLFING EXPERIENCE

Episode 4
Jared Solomon - CEO of Five Iron Golf
"It doesn't matter that we made a million dollar mistake, let's keep moving forward and learn as we go". Jared Solomon - CEO of Five Iron Golf joins host Colin Weston to share how four co-founders built a successful indoor golf entertainment business starting from the back room of a Manhattan men's clothing store.
Click to listen >> LEARN BY DOING AND JUST KEEP MOVING FORWARD

Episode 5
Carolin Pinegger - "The Golf Pitch Challenge"
"I felt like I was treading water and not because I wasn't working hard enough. I was doing my very best and wasn't getting where I wanted to be. I needed to pivot and change!" Golf entrepreneur and Ex-Pro Golfer Carolin Pinegger shares her personal story and latest collaborative venture: The "Shark Tank for Golf Innovators" called The Golf Pitch Challenge.
Click to listen >> EMBRACE CHANGE TO FUEL ENTREPRENEURIAL SUCCESS

Episode 6
Ann Liguori - Author of "Life On The Green"
To celebrate her recent book "Life on the green - lessons and wisdom from legends in golf" host Colin Weston creates a game show called "Who Said That??" to test Ann's ability to recall quotes from the dozen stories told. We hope you like this fun and inspiring episode as much as we enjoyed making it!
Click to listen >> TAKING AN ENTREPRENEURIAL APPROACH TO BUILD A CAREER IN SPORT JOURNALISM

Episode 7
Igor Vainshtein - Founder GolfTrak.app
Entrepreneur Igor Vainshtein joins us to share his incredible journey that started when his parents immigrated to Australia from the former USSR with $200 and no English skills whatsoever. We discuss the ups and downs of entrepreneurship and Igor's passion to constantly innovate and create products that customers want.
Click to listen >> EMBRACING LESSONS: WISDOM GAINED FROM FAILURE

Episode 8
A BRIEF HISTORY OF SYNTHETIC TURF
Known initially by names such as AstroTurf, ModSod and Artificial Turf, we explore the origins of synthetic sport surfacing with a focus on applications in the golf industry. Host Colin Weston speaks with subject matter experts Bob Johnston (Principal, JSA Sport Architecture) and Jeffery McDaniel (Synthetic Turf International) to uncover the history and explore the future of this multi-billion dollar industry.
Click to listen >> A BRIEF HISTORY OF SYNTHETIC TURF

Episode 9
Tim Briand - Foresight Sports
So how do golf launch monitors work and what is the technology behind them? Tim Briand with Foresight Sports joins host Colin Weston for an engaging and in-depth conversation about the massive growth in the launch monitor sector for both the professional player on the range and the recreational player having fun in a golf simulator.
Click to listen >> TECH-DRIVEN PRODUCTS THAT BOTH TRAIN AND ENTERTAIN

Episode 10
Kevin Carpenter - The GratiDude / Grateful 4 Golf
"I am perfectly content helping one person at a time, as every ripple makes a wave". Kevin Carpenter, aka The GratiDude joins us to share the impactful work he takes on through his Grateful 4 Golf non-profit program and his discovery of "The superpower of meditation".
Click to listen >> SHARING AN ATTITUDE OF GRATITUDE

Episode 11
Jeff Nicholson - VertaCat Mobility Riders
Stand tall, roam free, and “Stand and play the VertaCat way”. Jeff Nicholson joins host Colin Weston to share how their 70 year old manufacturing company saw an opportunity to give back to the sport they love by creating the VertaCat all-terrain mobility rider for paraplegic athletes.
Click to listen >> "THIS IS GOING TO CHANGE MY LIFE!"

Episode 12
Barney Adams - Adams Golf Founder / CEO of Breakthrough Golf Technology
We are joined by golf industry icon and entrepreneurial legend Barney Adams, who shares the trials, tribulations and successes he has encountered over his career that spans more than five decades. This episode provides you with lessons learned, key takeaways and nuggets of wisdom from one of golf's most successful entrepreneurs.
Click to listen >> IF YOU DON'T LOVE IT DON'T DO IT

Join our mission to make golf more innovative, inclusive and fun... and WIN some awesome golf gear!

As the creator and host of The ModGolf Podcast and YouTube channel I've been telling golf entrepreneurship and innovation stories since May 2017 and I love the community of ModGolfers that we are building.

I'm excited to announce that I just launched our ModGolf Patreon page to bring together our close-knit community of golf-loving people! As my Patron you will get access to exclusive live monthly interactive shows where you can participate, ask-me-anything video events, bonus content, golf product discounts and entry in members-only ModGolf Giveaway contests.

I'm offering two monthly membership tiers at $5 and $15 USD, but you can also join for free. Your subscription will ensure that The ModGolf Podcast continues to grow so that I can focus on creating unique and impactful stories that support and celebrate the future of golf.

Click to join >> https://patreon.com/Modgolf

I look forward to seeing you during an upcoming live show!... Colin

Special Guests: Ann Liguori - award-winning sport’s talk show host, Barney Adams, Founder of Adams Golf and CEO, Breakthrough Golf Technology, Bob Johnston, Principal at JSA Sport Architecture Inc., Carolin Pinegger - CEO of David Leadbetter Entrerprises / The Golf Pitch Challenge / Online Golf Coach, David Hinkle - Co-Founder and Principal at T36 Golf, Igor Vainshtein - Founder of GolfTrak.app, Jared Solomon, CEO and Co-Founder of Five Iron Golf, Jeffrey McDaniel - Global Director of Business Development at Synthetic Turf International, Jeffrey Nicholson - Chief Marketing Officer with VertaCat, Kevin Carpenter, Coach, Teacher and The GratiDude / Grateful 4 Golf, Nick Darby - Golf Retail Sales Manager at Get Golfing, Rio Valeriano - Co-Founder and Principal at T36 Golf, Tim Briand - Director Of Business Development at Foresight Sports, and Tyler Simmons - CEO and Founder of BucketGolf.

Jared's Five Iron Golf story begins in early 2015 with Mike Doyle teaching simulator lessons in the back of a men’s clothing store in midtown Manhattan. As the demand for Mike’s lessons grew throughout 2015 and 2016, Mike and student Jared started dreaming about an indoor facility where Mike could teach more lessons and golfers could work to improve their games — all while flipping standard golf culture on its head and appealing to everyone.

We want to welcome our new Episode Presenting Partner Synthetic Turf International!

Synthetic Turf International - also known as STI - is the industry’s premier producer and supplier of high-quality, natural-looking grass products for residential and commercial applications, both indoors and out.

I have collaborated on projects and ventures with STI for over 10 years through my Sport Entertainment company, so I have seen first hand how innovative, passionate, and creative they are.

Speaking of Synthetic Turf International clients, Five Iron Golf has installed their turf products in the majority of their venues.

If you are considering an artificial landscaped grass lawn, a putting green, golf tee lines and hitting mats, a synthetic sports field, playground turf or a dog park, then I highly recommend STI for your next project. And all of STI's grass products are crafted completely in-house and proudly made in America.

To learn more about the endless synthetic turf application and installation possibilities that Synthetic Turf International has to offer, contact them at synthetic-turf.com.

"At our Las Vegas location we originally had a putting green in the center. We realized that nobody wanted a putting green. And so we put in shuffleboard. Nobody wanted shuffleboard and we put in the high top tables where people could just drink and were like, "Okay, this is what people want". And I like to believe that I've cultivated the spirit with the other Founders that it doesn't matter what happened, let's move forward. We're literally inventing a concept over here. The best thing that we can do is test and fail, test and fail and move forward and take everything that we've learned and hopefully use those for the franchises and our own future corporate stores and do the best that we can."

Episode Chapters
03:20: How and when Jared was introduced to golf
04:40: The Five Iron Golf origin story. Spoiler: it involves hitting balls in the back of a Manhattan men's clothing store!
07:15: Jared explains how he and the three other co-founders mustered up the courage to launch Five Iron Golf
10:10: The story behind the first Five Iron Golf location opening in mid-town Manhattan
12:50: How Five Iron creates experiences for both the casual and passionate golfer without alienating either one of the groups
16:15: "We want our Five Iron locations to look like modern art museums". Jared discusses their design guidelines and how grafitti art became the focal point for their brand vision
19:10: How Five Iron finds and hires artists to collaborate at each of their venue around the US
20:45: Selection of the Five Iron Golf name and logo design
23:40: How Five Iron scaled from one location to 25 and counting
26:50: Jared's thoughts on starting a company and when to bring in outside investment
28:10: Franchising vs the owership model for venue locations
29:30: Mistakes made along the way and what the leadership team has learned from them
32:50: The power of partnerships and collaborating with golf brands and influencers
34:10: What the future has in store for Five Iron Golf

You can also learn more about Jared on his bio page.

Want to learn more about Five Iron Golf, find out if there's a location near you and to book a fun experience for you and your friends? Have a look at the Five Iron Golf website or email Jared Solomon at jared@fiveirongolf.com

With Mike and Jared clueless as to how to actually execute their grand idea, the final two co-founders, summer camp friends Nora Dunnan and Katherine Solomon (also Jared’s wife) entered the scene. With Nora operating the ship and Katherine navigating through some early legal storms, Five Iron Golf was launched and open for business in mid-2017.

Five Iron has quickly re-shaped Manhattan's golf culture, growing from Mike’s original lesson crew to a re-imagined, high-tech, inclusive urban golf experience for golfers and non-golfers alike. Five Iron is for everyone.

For the serious golfer, Five Iron hosts ten Full Swing simulators, a Trackman lesson studio, four teaching professionals, lessons, club storage, showers, practice time, leagues, 100% top-of-the line clubs to use (complimentary), and in-house club fitting specialists Club Champion.

We want to thank Golf Genius Software who have supported The ModGolf Podcast since 2019!
Are you a golf course owner, manager or operator looking to increase both your profit margins and on-course experience?

Golf Genius powers tournament management at over 10,000 private clubs, public courses, resorts, golf associations, and tours in over 60 countries. So if you’re a golf professional or course operator who wants to save time, deliver exceptional golfer experiences, and generate more revenue, check them out online at golfgenius.com.

Join our mission to make golf more innovative, inclusive and fun... and WIN some awesome golf gear!

As the creator and host of The ModGolf Podcast and YouTube channel I've been telling golf entrepreneurship and innovation stories since May 2017 and I love the community of ModGolfers that we are building.

I'm excited to announce that I just launched our ModGolf Patreon page to bring together our close-knit community of golf-loving people! As my Patron you will get access to exclusive live monthly interactive shows where you can participate, ask-me-anything video events, bonus content, golf product discounts and entry in members-only ModGolf Giveaway contests.

I'm offering two monthly membership tiers at $5 and $15 USD, but you can also join for free. Your subscription will ensure that The ModGolf Podcast continues to grow so that I can focus on creating unique and impactful stories that support and celebrate the future of golf.

Click to join >> https://patreon.com/Modgolf

I look forward to seeing you during an upcoming live show!... Colin

Special Guest: Jared Solomon, CEO and Co-Founder of Five Iron Golf.