HR2 Keith Blakely: Golf Gear, Richard Rush: Tariffs, Car Reviews 5-12-25 by John Rush
SPEAKER 08 :
This is Rush to Reason.
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It’s Rush to Reason with your host, John Rush, presented by Cub Creek Heating and Air Conditioning.
SPEAKER 09 :
All right, we are back. Hour number two, Rush to Reason, Denver’s Afternoon Rush, KLZ 560. Appreciate you all listening, by the way. And I’ve got a special guest joining us right now, which I’m excited about because there’s some things going on in the golfing world that I know nothing about, especially with golf balls. Keith Blakely joining us now. Keith, welcome. How are you?
SPEAKER 07 :
I’m good.
SPEAKER 09 :
How are you? I’m doing very well. And I will just tell you straight up, Keith, that I love golf. Don’t play near as much as I would like to. My boys and I used to play quite a bit when they were younger and didn’t have families of their own. And they’re raising kids, so you know what that means. It’s always a little bit harder to get out on the course. But the nice thing about golf is we can always go back to it. It’s not that big of a deal. Golf clubs can sit around, and I’ll get back to them at some point in time here. You are going to tell me about the overhyped, overpaid, and underperforming golf balls that are out there that this is something I know very little about, by the way.
SPEAKER 07 :
Well, there’s a lot of golf balls out there, that’s for sure. There are millions of dozens of golf balls sold every year. And Encore Golf just happens to be one of the many names that you can find online or in various pro shops and that sort of thing. But We believe that we have, in essence, changed the paradigm of tour golf balls with technology. And that’s something that a lot of folks like to talk about, but very few actually have achieved. And we’re excited about what we’ve accomplished so far and really excited about what’s still to come.
SPEAKER 09 :
Okay, so I guess first things first. Give us a little history, and this I have done. I’ve watched a few videos of late, not because of you guys. Actually, before you even came along and I had a press release for you or an opportunity to do an interview, I had actually, believe it or not, been looking at Some of the changes that had happened from golf balls way back when. And, you know, at one time, as you know, they were all, you know, kind of spiral wound, big rubber bands, if you would. And then that technology changed and so on. And so I followed along a little bit of that and watched some of the technology. But I honestly will tell you, Keith, that other than knowing the changes that have been made, I have no idea where we’re at in today’s world, technologically speaking, when it comes to golf balls.
SPEAKER 07 :
Well, what’s interesting is that there are rules that have been in place that govern how well a golf ball can actually perform under some standard test conditions. And these are rules that the USGA and the RNA, Royal and Ancient, have imposed on all golf ball manufacturers. So when you look at the evolution in golf ball construction and golf ball technology over the years, you have to put it in the perspective that there is a limit to how far a golf ball is permitted to fly under standard test conditions. There’s a limit to how fast it’s It’s allowed to come off the face of the club. There’s a limit in how much it can weigh. There’s a limit in its size. And it has to be a symmetrical product so that you can’t create really unusual spin characteristics so that you never hook or slice. And so the difference between… Okay, I got to stop.
SPEAKER 09 :
Hang on. I got to stop you for a moment. So you’re telling me that you could create a ball that would eliminate my slice?
SPEAKER 07 :
There used to be a ball that could absolutely eliminate your slice. The problem was it was going to go about 40 to 60 yards shorter than you would like it to go or that a normal ball would go. It would go straight, but it wouldn’t go very far.
SPEAKER 09 :
But at the end of the day, if I’m in the fairway versus off someplace chasing my ball down, isn’t that still better?
SPEAKER 07 :
It depends on your game. And most, most people who bought that ball, I think it was called the Polaro.
SPEAKER 05 :
Okay.
SPEAKER 07 :
And, and the folks, it was written up in the New York times. And of course, everybody read about it and they sold a bazillion a dozen right away. But I don’t think there were too many people who bought it a second time. And I think that was because of that, that drop off in distance, even though you want to be in the fairway, you know, that the moment you tee your golf ball up, what are you trying to do? You’re trying to drive it, you know, 200, 300 yards, whatever your, your capability is, and you’ll take the chance of it going a little bit right or a little bit left, even though, like most of us, it goes a lot right or a lot left.
SPEAKER 09 :
Yeah, yeah. I think if most people are really serious about their game and having a lower score, having that less distance but keeping it in the fairway would be better. But, hey, we’re digressing. Tell me about you guys’ ball. And I’m learning. I knew that there were some – limitations to what could be done because of rules, I guess just like you could talk about a baseball or a football or a basketball and so on. The difference, though, in those cases, those balls are just being thrown, they’re being caught, they’re being hit with a baseball bat, or they’re being, in the case of basketball, thrown through a net. When it comes to golf, that’s a whole different world, is it not?
SPEAKER 07 :
Oh, it totally is. And part of the reason is that you’ve got so many different things that you want to do with that ball. As I said, you know, you want to drive it 300 yards, but then you want to be able to put a lot of backspin on it to, you know, land on the green and grab.
SPEAKER 05 :
Right.
SPEAKER 07 :
And then you want it to roll perfectly straight. So there’s. There’s different types of impact, different types of performance expectations that all have to come from the same product, that same golf ball, because you’re not permitted to switch golf balls.
SPEAKER 09 :
I wanted you to explain that because that’s something that I did know is once you get rolling, quote unquote, that that’s the ball that you’re playing with. And throughout tournament play, for example, you’re not allowed to switch things up, correct?
SPEAKER 07 :
That’s correct. Unless you damage the ball and it’s unplayable, and even then you have to replace it with essentially the same type of ball, the same model.
SPEAKER 09 :
In other words, you’re not allowed to drive with one, go out there in a fairway because you know now you’re going to either be chipping up onto the green or maybe you’re doing your second shot because it’s a long 500-yarder. Reality is you’re not changing that ball mid-play in that particular scenario, correct?
SPEAKER 07 :
Correct, and that’s why the balls that we have developed are finding such tremendous interest amongst good golfers because they combine the ability to achieve significant distance improvements over a lot of other golf balls without losing the ability to perform really well in the short game with spin rates, with feel, and with what we call perimeter weighting, which not only leads to, I’ll say, more accurate putting because it’s kind of like a wide track tire. But actually off the tee, that perimeter weighting leads to a tighter shot dispersion and more stability in the wind, both of which are going to keep you closer to the middle of the fairway.
SPEAKER 09 :
Okay, so give me some insight into Encore and what you guys are doing that separates you from what – let me back up for a moment, Keith. What are currently a lot of the other quote-unquote name brand – and if you can talk about it, fine. If not, you want to move on, that’s okay as well. But what are the other name brand golf balls doing that’s different from you guys?
SPEAKER 07 :
Well, most of the name brand golf balls are doing a lot of the same things. There are different architectures for golf balls. Some balls have what they call are two-piece. Some are three-piece. Some are four-piece. TaylorMade has the TP5, which is a five-layer golf ball. And they all talk about the ability to control spin rates or lead to higher launch angles or lower launch angles for other people. To be honest, there’s a lot of marketing and not really a lot of technology that’s involved in that. We came to the market originally, believe it or not, with a golf ball that was made using a hollow metal core. And the purpose behind that, coming back to your early question about keeping it in the fairway, is that by shifting the weight from the inside of the ball to the outside, what you basically do is you slow down the side spin when you miss hit the ball off the tee. And that does tend to reduce the hooking or slicing. And as long as you can do that without a distance penalty, you now have a superior product. Unfortunately, The fact is that there is a slight distance penalty when you use that hollow metal core. So over the years, with the expertise that our ball designers had and our background with advanced materials and nanotechnology, we were able to come up with an alternative, which is to put some very heavy materials. close to the surface of the golf ball, but still rely on a solid rubber core, which is what all of the big OEM golf balls use today. No longer do they use the liquid core or the wound cores that you described with rubber bands. Everybody’s gone to solid polybutadiene rubber cores. We can do the same, but now we can keep that perimeter weighting effect that we used to get with a hollow metal core by loading up what’s called the mantle layer. with very heavy metals and that that gives us that performance advantage unique spin characteristics and just tremendous performance across the board so it is a superior product but it’s not being priced at a superior product level so we’re making it accessible and you know very affordable for folks who are more casual golfers but really want to get the best performance they can out of that one piece of equipment they use on every stroke.
SPEAKER 09 :
Dumb question on my part. Why isn’t others doing what you’re doing? In other words, why have the quote-unquote legacy golf ball makers that have been around, and I won’t name names, but they’ve been around, as you know, Keith, forever, and to give them some credit, they’ve made some advancements and did some things, technologically speaking, that probably was really great in their day, but it’s almost like they fell off. Why aren’t they doing what you’re doing?
SPEAKER 07 :
Well, to a certain extent, most of them don’t feel the need to. In other words, they’re not seeing the kind of lost market share that I’d like them to see from Encore Golf. I think at some point they will all try to develop their own version of this. But we do believe, again, that we’ve got some unique characteristics. We have some patents that have issued. At the end of the day, we’re really kind of a niche company. golf ball company that’s bringing high performance to a community of golfers that don’t feel that they have to play the same ball that, you know, whoever, you know, pick your pro.
SPEAKER 09 :
Pick your pro, right.
SPEAKER 07 :
And if people give it a try and find that the ball performs better for them than what they’ve been using, they’ll generally stick with it because it’s, you know, Again, the golf ball really does impact your score more than almost anything. And, of course, it’s a lot less costly than a new driver.
SPEAKER 09 :
Absolutely. Okay, so I do know this. This is one thing that I kind of learned. learned years ago because I myself, I’m not a great golfer, Keith. A, I don’t play near enough is what you should to really be good. Golf to me is one of those games that if you really want to get good at it, it’s like anything else. You got to practice, practice, practice, play more golf. You get better the more you play. Maybe I’m wrong in that, but I think it’s a memory-type sport to where you’ve got to get that mechanism and that memory down. The more you do, the better you get at it. Yes, I understand that there’s things that you can practice on and change, and that’s where pros come in. The trainers, I guess I should say, the golf pros can come in and kind of help you with that. your swing and correcting certain things and bad habits and so on. But I also know this, Keith, there’s not that many scratch golfers out there. In other words, there’s not as many good golfers on the course as what most people would think there are. I think we all have in this, you know, in the back of our head that, oh man, so-and-so’s, you know, way better than I am, or this guy’s way better, or that person’s way better. You know, at the end of the day, I don’t think there’s that many really, really great golfers. I think there’s some guys out there that think they’re better than what they really are. So my point is, why wouldn’t anybody want to try your ball to improve their game?
SPEAKER 07 :
We think that anyone that hears about us and understands what the affordability aspect of it is and understands that there is real technology involved would want to. That doesn’t mean that everybody will switch. Again, for a variety of reasons, a lot of guys that play country clubs, whether they’re scratch golfers or they’re in the 90s, don’t want to be seen with anything other than a Pro V1. But a lot of guys that have played Pro V1s and tried our balls, they tell me, yeah, the Pro V1’s in my swag bag. I’m playing the Vero X1 or the Vero X2, which are Encore models of tour balls because they’re getting more distance, they’re getting tighter shot dispersion, and they love how it feels.
SPEAKER 09 :
Yeah, I’m one of those, Keith, where, frankly, I’ve never been one to where I care what the name is on the clubs that are in my bag, the bag itself, the ball. I mean, I’m one of those where it’s like, listen, at the end of the day, if I can do something that will help me hit the ball straighter and be a better golfer and have more fun at the end of the day, because what I mean by that, and as you know, Keith, the less zigzagging around the course you do, the more fun you have, in my opinion.
SPEAKER 07 :
Absolutely. And you are right about the practice element. Golf is one of those games that it is tough to get better if you aren’t somehow routinely getting out on the course. It’s just tough. All right.
SPEAKER 09 :
Tell everybody listening how they can buy your golf balls.
SPEAKER 07 :
Well, the easiest way is to go to the website, which is www.oncore.com. There’s actually a ball fitting that they can do that lets them put some information in about their golf game or about their swing speed, about the things that they like, what kind of ball they might be playing with if they know right now. And it’ll guide you to one of the four different golf ball models that we offer to try and give the best results with the initial trial and results. First-time users, I think, get an automatic discount applied to the price of the golf balls.
SPEAKER 09 :
Nice, nice. Well, Keith, hey, I’ve learned a lot. I appreciate you. And, again, I learned a lot just by reviewing some things prior to you coming on. And I, for one, knew that the golf ball itself mattered, although until talking to you I didn’t know how much it mattered. So thank you for taking time to really sort of expose this, if you would, and give us an opportunity to – in most cases, by a golf ball that at the end of the day will improve people’s game.
SPEAKER 07 :
Absolutely. Happy to do that.
SPEAKER 09 :
Thank you, Keith. Well, you’re welcome anytime. I appreciate it. It’s been a joy. Thank you. You’re very welcome. And, yeah, folks, I would love to play more golf. As you guys know, I spend more time here with you all than I do doing those sorts of things, but I do enjoy playing when I get the opportunity to do so. So I learned a lot from Keith, by the way. Veteran Windows and Doors is next. And I tell you what, when you look at replacing windows and doors in your home, make sure you do it correctly, that you save as much money as possible, and you don’t get caught up in a lot of the gimmicks that are out there from a lot of the other window and door companies. Give Dave a call today. Find him at klzradio.com.
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SPEAKER 09 :
All right, we are back. And some of you asking me about golf, by the way, and, you know, how much do I play? And have I ever been to this particular, you know, place to buy gear and this, that, and the other? Folks, I’ll just be straight up honest. I don’t play enough golf anymore to invest in hardly anything. And I, you know, if this last… a guest that we had on even asked if he could send me, you know, a sleeve of balls. I mean, I would probably take them and probably loan them or give them out, not loan them. I would give them out to somebody else that I know plays some, because I don’t play enough golf anymore to even accept a, you know, sleeve of, of golf balls, to be honest with you, because I just don’t play enough. And, and I, I do enjoy playing. I love being in the outdoors and being around the course. It’s fun and it’s beautiful. To me, it’s actually somewhat relaxing as long as you’re hitting the golf ball fairly well. Surprisingly enough, I have lots of friends that play a lot of golf that are actually very good golfers. at golf I’ve got some clients actually that play golf that are extremely good at golf but I just with all of the things going on right now in my world and so on and you know could I even play some golf on vacation and such yeah I could but frankly I just don’t to me dragging clubs around and doing all the things it takes to actually play golf I just don’t have time and you know Richard and he’s joining us now but you know the boys and I we used to play you know, quite a bit, Richard, you know this, and you guys were younger and we had a lot more time. We actually played, you know, a fair amount of golf at one point in time, but life changes and maybe we’ll get back to it at some point. But, you know, either you or I right now play a lot of golf.
SPEAKER 08 :
You know, it is a great game. It’s a fun game. It’s a frustrating game, right? We all, I think we’ve all experienced all of the above with golf, right? It’s the biggest, you know, it’s the funnest, most frustrating game there is out there, right? Because The only thing that keeps you coming back in golf is your occasional really good shot that you hit. It’s the hardest part for it, but at the same time, it’s the best part for it. The biggest thing with golf is the time that it takes. It’s just a It’s just a hard thing to do.
SPEAKER 09 :
Somebody asked me that they can’t picture me playing golf because they don’t picture me having the patience to play. And, Richard, you’ve played with me. You can attest that, no, when we get out there and I set the time aside and we’ve got this block of time that we know we’ve got the ability to play and so on and all of that, no, I actually don’t throw – you know, temper tantrums or I’m not one of those guys that goes out there and throws clubs into the water and all of that. I’m not that guy. I actually do enjoy it. And even when I hit a bad ball, I’m like, OK, well, you know, I’m not a pro. It really isn’t affecting the way, you know, my day ends or starts tomorrow. So at the end of the day, as long as we all have fun, I really don’t care. So, yeah, no, I’m definitely Richard, as you know, somebody that can go out and have fun and enjoy playing and so on. And I don’t take it that seriously, I guess. Maybe that’s the way to say it.
SPEAKER 08 :
Yeah, and I know a lot of golf, and even the president, right? President Trump, golf is one of his outlets. I know people give him a hard time, and sometimes it’s justified. I feel like he’s playing golf quite a bit. But a lot of times, deal-making is done on golf courses for a lot of people. A lot. A lot is. And it’s done to do business and to get to know people. And you can, right? I mean, granted, I feel like when I’m doing business with people, I like to do something that I’m good at, sort of a situation. But that’s neither here nor there. And so it is. It’s just a time-consuming thing. As you know, especially when you have young kids, it’s a harder thing for me to do just because it takes me the time to go out. Even if you only play nine holes or a par three, it’s a lot to go take two hours to go do something. I’m not saying it’s wrong. I’m not saying people who play golf is wrong. It’s just one of those sports that takes a little bit more time to get into. Yeah.
SPEAKER 09 :
Well, and I think for me, and you are looking at it, and you’ve learned this from me, when I had kids and a family and had lots of things going on personally, and I know everybody’s different, and I’m not attacking anybody that does this, Richard, you know that, but I just always felt like I had a lot of kids and had things and obligations at home, and there were different things we needed to do. Honestly, I felt like you guys were more important than me going out and playing a round of golf, and I felt like it was important for me to be there to help. You know, your mom, we had a large family. There was a lot going on. And I just didn’t feel like it was right for me to be out, you know, enjoying myself on the golf course while everybody else was still at home having to do all sorts of other things. And again, I’m not against any guys that would go and do that. And I know everybody needs their own, you know, mental release from time to time. And I understand all of that. I just personally for me, this is for me only. I just felt like I needed to be home and I worked a lot out. You know, again, I was one of those guys. you know, you know, I’ve been self-employed literally my entire adult life. And I worked so much on top of the things you and I are talking about. I didn’t have a 40 hour a week job. And maybe if I did, I wouldn’t have felt as bad going out and playing golf, but no, I worked, you know, 60 to 80 hours and I just couldn’t see, you know, going out and spending another five or six playing golf and everybody else was at home.
SPEAKER 08 :
Yeah, I’m with you. I agree. It’s again, it’s, You sort of change and learn. And now, again, this is not to say, because I also know a lot of people that are good people, good family guys. And I know a lot of people also take their younger kids with them on the golf course. Right, Dad? Right. It’s one of those things.
SPEAKER 09 :
But in today’s day and age… And by the way, as you got older, when you boys got older, we did do some of that. And that’s where we did play some golf and we had some fun. But for you guys, that didn’t happen until you got old enough to really be able to walk the course and honestly not be… You know, quote unquote, having to be drug around the course when you guys were able to actually walk around the course and do it on your own. We did some of those things and we had a lot of fun. And, you know, now a different season of life is here.
SPEAKER 08 :
Exactly. No, I’m with you 100 percent. And again, it’s just it’s just one of those things that’s just a little bit. A little bit different. Not a bad thing. It just kind of is what it is.
SPEAKER 09 :
Right. And again, I’m not trying to belittle anybody that goes and does those things. Now, really quick, because I’m not sure if you heard the last interview, but reality is the last guy that I interviewed has a golf ball. that I do believe for a lot of golfers out there, it’s called Encore Golf, I think for a lot of not pro golfers, but guys that are just out there trying to do the best they can and have fun, he’s got a golf ball, frankly, that will work for most individuals, and each golf ball tailored to your style of golf and what you’re struggling the most with. revolutionary by the way that hasn’t that you you haven’t seen that you and i’ve talked about that on the golf ball end of things before just you know kind of one-on-one never on air but reality is there hasn’t been a lot of quote-unquote golf ball changes for quite some time truthfully i mean even though guys will tell you that we got the best golf ball out there it isn’t a whole lot different than the one they put out last year you know i i just i struggle sometimes i know you know a lot of people right there’s lots of you know talk about you know a
SPEAKER 08 :
pro v you know the pro v ones right and you know bridgestone and all these different you know all these different types of of of golf balls out there i wish and maybe it sounds like your last interview was the case and it was sort of a i feel i wish it was a situation maybe he’s getting there where you could tailor right you know they make clubs right they make clubs for beginners they make clubs for for non you know for more experienced guys they do make They do make golf balls better, like you say. At least they say they do for people who can control it better or whatever it is. I want the most forgiving clubs and forgiving golf ball out there. Yeah, it may not go as far. It may not give me the control, right, because you’ve got to sacrifice – Some of that, you know, one thing in order to get the other, right? You can’t have a really forgiving golf ball, but something that gives you a lot of control either. I just want something that, you know, if maybe I slice it, you know, super far, it’s not going to go that far, right? For something about the ball.
SPEAKER 09 :
And it’s interesting because everything you’re saying, they actually have a, you know, quote unquote, you know, dial in your game. So there’s actually a questionnaire that as a golfer, you can go through that talk about you, your game, what you maybe struggle with, and they will, tell you, okay, this is the ball, this is our ball that you should be using to help you with your game.
SPEAKER 08 :
Fascinating. And I think that’s a, well, and again, there is an untapped market there because I do know the game of golf, it grew, it sort of took a step back, and then during COVID, especially because it was about the only thing you could get out and do, but then they were weird about the flag sticks and everything, so you hold on to the conversation there. I’m with you. I think that there’s room for that, right, Dad? Because you can get It’s just one of those things. Let me take a step back. It’s one of those things golf is where you have to do it a lot in order to enjoy it. I feel like you have to get good at it. Right. You have to practice and you have to get better and you have to do certain things. And I just feel like sometimes sometimes even these these courses and even these these club makers, they sort of make stuff for the pro user. And at times I wish they made stuff for just the average user.
SPEAKER 09 :
I agree. Anyways, it’s an interesting question here for those of you guys that are out there listening where you’re thinking about, well, maybe I could do something along these lines. Okay, well, you know what? Just there you go. You could actually be, you know, because a lot of people, by the way, Richard, will pick balls based upon what they see their favorite, you know, pro golfer playing with or they like this color or they like the swoosh or on and on we go. And frankly, Richard, I think there’s a lot of people out there that, you know, They don’t know one ball from another, but what they don’t realize is that ball is making a difference in their game, and they don’t even realize it.
SPEAKER 08 :
Well, and like you say, it sounds like this is the way to maybe be able to do that as far as, you know, kind of helping. helping people that maybe didn’t even realize they needed help, you know?
SPEAKER 09 :
Right. There you go. Okay. China, the trade deals. I talked a little bit about that. I know you and I were going to talk a little bit about that as well. We don’t have a ton of extra time. Sorry I used enough of that talking about golf balls. I just find it fascinating because the whole golf ball thing to me is just – Absolutely fascinating, knowing that they could actually even make improvements to the ball that would even make the ball do, you know, make the make the scores even come down farther for some of these guys, which is a whole nother conversation when it comes to the courses and how tough they can get in pin placement and and and. But the reality is, believe it or not, they could make a ball. They would actually even make these pro guys better than they are right now, which I just I just find that fascinating.
SPEAKER 08 :
Well, and like you said, every little bit. And it’s funny you’re talking about golf because the PGA Championship is actually coming up this weekend. And you are correct. All these guys, especially these pro guys, are looking for every little advantage they can get. And, you know, they do change golf balls. Yes, there’s certain standards that these balls have to meet. But, yeah, all these guys are looking for every different thing. And in theory, I guess, again, I don’t know all the rules or the specifications on what the golf balls have to do. But if you could get a golf ball that could – I don’t know, in theory, you know, play specifically to your game, even as a pro dad, right? You know, maybe you’re Phil Mickelson and you like to, you know, hit you, you play with your irons or you even tiger, right? You know, new tiger who’s maybe he can’t hit the ball as far, but he needs the ball to do something else. I think that would be fun. Actually. I still, and I know golf’s like a game of purist that I would love it. If golf would, you know, adopt or you could change balls in the middle of the fairway, you know, like, Okay, you’re hitting a shot out of the rugby net, but obviously there’s different rules as to why. You’ve got to hit the ball as it lies and sorts of things. But it would make for a more interesting thing, right? You give these pros the ability that… to kind of up their game a little bit, and there’s no telling how well they can go.
SPEAKER 09 :
Exactly. Anyways, I find the whole thing fascinating because there’s a lot of effort and there’s a lot of focus, as you know, Richard, put onto drivers and upon even the different putters. Is it a long putter that a guy uses literally two hands on, or is it a regular old-fashioned putter, and on and on we go. You just go down the line, and I think, just as a side note, It would be interesting to see, and I know we talk about this a lot, even with the Michael Jordans of the world, where if he was playing with some of the laxer rules that are out there now regarding everything from fouls to traveling to this, that, and the other, how much better would he be? And so you go back in time and you look at the Ben Hogans of the world, and if you could put the clubs that the guys are using today in a guy like Ben Hogan’s hand, or even Jack Nicklaus’s hand for that matter, how good would those guys, how much better would they have been in their time?
SPEAKER 08 :
Well, there’s, like you say, there’s a certain piece of technology that has made the guys, you know, better. The dominance of some of these guys is really kind of incredible. Again, you look at Tiger even compared to Jack. But, yeah, you look at it. I mean, these guys were hitting balls with, you know, wooden clubs. Exactly. Wooden faces.
SPEAKER 09 :
Literally wooden clubs. Wood shafted clubs. Absolutely.
SPEAKER 08 :
Yeah. And then, like you said, the faces were a lot smaller. You know, drivers, they weren’t as forgiving and friendly. So we’ve made advancements, and like you say, the golf ball technology, I know it’s gotten better, and they’re doing a lot more stuff as far as tracking and ball speed and analytics. And like you said, it sounds like from your last interview, that’s sort of the future, right? To kind of get all of that done the correct way would really probably provide some value.
SPEAKER 09 :
I just looked it up, and I figured AI would probably add to this, but AI’s answer about Ben Hogan would be, Yes, Ben Hogan would likely be a very successful golfer today with today’s equipment. His ball-striking prowess coupled with his understanding of course management would translate well into the modern game, even if he couldn’t match the driving distance of the current pros. In other words, he may not go out there and smack the ball 350, 400 yards like some of these guys do, but his understanding of the game and how to play it would still make him very successful today.
SPEAKER 08 :
Yes, well, yes, it would. It kind of goes back to, I think, actually, I remember you and I had a debate when I was little about, you know, the players back then were longer and taller, and you’re like, no, they weren’t. And, of course, you were right, you know, because it just looks like it just from some of the stuff. But, yes, as the eras change, I do think in today’s day and age, Dad, with the sports, with the analytics, players are maximizing, and this is an all-sports, right, from golf to football to baseball. are maximizing their talent as much as they can just with the equipment available. But to say they’re more talented than before, I don’t know if that’s actually the case. I just think that they’re maximizing it.
SPEAKER 09 :
But like you say… Well, the only exception I think there is to that, and I’ll get your opinion on this, is you take some of these guys in football, whether it be not necessarily the quarterbacks, because frankly I think quarterbacks are way different. Are they smarter? Maybe. Are they as tough? Maybe. Absolutely not. Some of those old quarterbacks, the John Elways even of the day, where those guys could get smacked, blindsided literally, and get right back up and throw a touchdown pass the next time around. You don’t see that today because the rules won’t allow that to happen. So are the quarterbacks of old tougher than the quarterbacks of today? Yeah, 1,000% in my opinion. But… You take some of these receivers and corners and the athleticism that some of those guys have now, not saying the guys of old didn’t have it, and maybe it’s just the equipment that these guys have today, the gloves and so on, that we didn’t have 20, 30 years ago, but to me, the athleticism of some of these guys today is better than it used to be.
SPEAKER 08 :
It is second to none, and again, I think sort of what you give up, I mean, you even look at it with the Nuggets in the playoffs, right? You have series now tied 2-2. It’s been a very rough in tumble series right it’s been super super you know heavy and and just really physical you don’t see that as much anymore dad but to your point you know you get that play you know today as much as the players aren’t as used to it right they struggle to to adapt to it in certain ways but so to your point you put michael jordan in today’s nba where it’s a little bit more wide open in a typical game, you know, what would they do? But I also think players adapt, right? They adapt to the rules and such around them. And you, like you said, in the NFL, I do think that there are some levels of some of the freaks out there, right? You know, we talked about the draft. You got some of these guys that are 275 pounds running down the field at 22 miles an hour. That’s fast. You know, like that’s very fast to be doing that. And, And I think that it’s definitely it’s definitely an interesting conversation to have and one that we probably should have, you know, at a later date for a longer period, just because I think it is sports and just sports science. And that’s probably a discussion you have to have, right? The sports science of everything has changed so drastically over the years that it’s really hard to compare eras. We can attempt to, but to do so successfully is pretty difficult.
SPEAKER 09 :
Well, it’s hard, and I was just even looking at Michael Jordan. There are guys that say that if Michael Jordan was playing today, he would for sure average 40 points a game if he were playing in today’s NBA just because of what you said a moment ago, just the overall lack of – how should I say this, Richard? I mean – I’m sorry to say this, and I like watching sports and so on, but the most frustrating thing for me at times watching the NBA is when these stinking guys travel almost every stinking time they get the ball. Their pivot foot moves around on the court. They take two steps before they even take a dribble. They double dribble at times. I mean, they get by with stuff, Richard, that Michael Jordan could have never gotten by with.
SPEAKER 08 :
You are correct. Well, and like you say, Dad, the physicality of it is a much harder thing to – there’s just not that anymore. And so these guys do get away with that. And even honestly, they don’t even have to. but they still do, right, for a variety of reasons. And I’m with you. It’s a different game, and you’re that old boomer. It’s okay. You like how they did.
SPEAKER 09 :
I guess it’s because I used to get, you know, if you took one extra step in high school playing basketball, you would always get called for traveling and things like that. I watch what these guys do even on the court and how physical they are, which, frankly, wasn’t any different than when I was playing basketball in high school, but yet I would get called for fouls that these guys today are just getting by with all day long.
SPEAKER 08 :
Yeah, you’re 100% correct. It’s a new world.
SPEAKER 09 :
For guys like me, that’s the only frustrating thing, and I’m sure there’s guys listening that would agree with me. We would get called for every little ticky-tack thing there was back in the day, and I’d watch these guys literally brawl on the court. They’ve both got the ball in their hands, and it’s a jump ball, literally, and yet, no, that’s not how the ref saw it.
SPEAKER 08 :
No, different games.
SPEAKER 09 :
Anyways, all right. We’ll take a quick break. We’ll come back. We’ve got some cards we used to get in here today. We’ll at least get a couple in. Might even be able to get three in. We’ll see how things go. We’re a little bit behind because of me being out of town and you being out of town, so we’ll get things rolling along, though. Golden Eagle Financial coming up next. Al Smith would love to help you with your future finances. Talk to Al today, 303-744-1128.
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SPEAKER 09 :
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SPEAKER 09 :
Putting reason into your afternoon drive, this is John Rush. All right, we are back. And, Richard, we always take time each week to do car reviews. Again, I know we’re a little bit behind because of the season and vacations and so on. But what have you driven lately? Let’s start with your first one, which I believe is what, a Toyota Corolla Cross Hybrid?
SPEAKER 08 :
A Toyota? Yes, a Toyota Corolla Cross Hybrid. It’s kind of a mouthful, Dad, right? Yeah. It’s a great car, and, Dad, I think that’s a 2025, right? It feels like it is.
SPEAKER 09 :
2025, yep, that’s what I show.
SPEAKER 08 :
And a great car, Dad, it’s a little bit bigger of a car, right? It’s not a typical… Sorry, I’m pulling up my notes here. Yeah, it’s a compact crossover SUV. It’s kind of that new class of SUV. It’s not a full-size SUV, folks, that you’re probably used to seeing, but it’s also not a sedan either, right? And it’s not… It’s not super small. It just kind of fits into that mid, I guess I’m going to call it a midsize, I should be saying.
SPEAKER 09 :
Yeah, they’re going to call it a small one, but I’m with you. I think, you know, here’s what’s interesting. Toyota calls it one. You and I would call it something else like the rental cars do, by the way, because when you go to a rental car agency, what I would consider to be a midsize, and I think even the manufacturer would call a midsize, they’re calling that a full size. So I think you and I are on the right track.
SPEAKER 08 :
Exactly. I’m going to go with that. And so, yeah, like I said, that 2025, the Toyota hybrid system, as we always talk about, is really second to none, right? It’s really, really hard to beat that system as a whole and kind of what it does and what it can do and all of the above as far as… that goes let me see what’s new for 2025 no real changes it was introduced in 2022 it’s a little bit quick quicker and more efficient the hybrid model is right dad which is yes to be expected um it’s a it’s not quite as roomy but again i think some folks are going to miss that dad the idea is this is not supposed to be as big as an suv it’s just a little bit bigger of a car it’s kind of and actually i’ve got it here it’s four inches shorter lengthwise than the rav4 okay it’s it’s a little bit similar in size to a RAV4. So maybe, Dad, those four inches do help you if you’re in an urban environment, right? You’re not driving as much, or you like the looks of the Corolla Cross, right? That can be something, too, for folks. They like the look of that a little bit different. Again, changes to 2025 are purely cosmetic. As far as the interior, Dad, goes, it’s everything you would come to expect of Toyota. And what I mean by that, it’s simple yet elegant. And so it’s not the fanciest thing out there, but it’s really, freight you don’t have a ton of buttons to mess with to where it’s going to mess you up and because as you know dad some of these cars can get into they get a little bit uh well wordy’s not the right way but they get a little bit difficult to operate especially if you’re only in them for a short period of time so it’s gets away from doing that. As far as price, Dad, I don’t have this one on me, but it ranges from $29,845 to the XSE is $33,000. And Dad, like you, I talked about it. Yeah, really quick. The one you drove, $34,705 was the total. 34%, exactly. And that nightshade, Dad, let me see if I can pull up the notes for it. It’s obviously what Toyota’s done with a lot of these trim levels, Dad, is they sort of kind of give you different accented pieces to it, but the overall vehicle stays the same. And I apologize, I don’t have that note exactly in front of me as far as what’s…
SPEAKER 09 :
No, and this one we drove, you know, had, you know, of course, the JBL sound system, had the full moonroof in it. To your point, had the nightshade edition, which just gives you some two-tone paint coloring and some things like that. And again, that whole car, total price, sticker price, $34,705. Not a bad price at all.
SPEAKER 08 :
Exactly. Not a bad price, especially for a hybrid, dad, where you’re going to be able to go about almost 400 miles on a tank of gas. And that’s not me pulling from any standard number, dad. It’s just real world driving that you and I do. That’s something that doesn’t happen all the time. And that’s something that I really, really like. And like you say, kind of that nightshade edition is a little bit different, provides some value. So if you’re interested in this, folks, head to your local Toyota dealership. Again, 2025 Corolla Cross Hybrid Nightshade. Test drive it, and when you do that, let them know that John and Richard Rush from Drive Radio and Rush to Reason sent you.
SPEAKER 09 :
All right, I’m going to skip ahead to one that we both drove. I know you were going to do something else, but I’m going to slip this one in just because I think we have plenty of time to do this because we’re a little bit tight on time. But we drove this car, 2024 Lexus RZ, and that’s a 300E Luxury. Now, really quick, right off the top, this car I enjoyed, although I don’t normally knock cars, and it’s not a huge knock on this car, I think, as far as a plug-in goes. It works extremely well, had plenty of – Power, which if you drive an EV, you know what I mean by that. But my downs on this car, little noisier inside than what I would find with other cars that it’s competing with. And its range, by the way, is less than what I would like to see in this particular model. So 2024 Lexus RZ300E Luxury. $65,000 list price on this car, which if you look in that segment, not bad, although you’re going to find other cars for that price, Richard, with a higher range. And I only got about 45 seconds left. What are your thoughts?
SPEAKER 08 :
I would agree with you. I really like the soft-touch materials, lots of things. If you have a charger at home, Dad, a level 2 charger that can get you up in a night, right, it can get you filled back up in a night, I would highly recommend this car. It’s got all the Lexus luxury that you like, really responsive, the infotainment, all of that. However, if you’re having to fuel, quote-unquote, fill up at work, right, with plugging in, or something like that, you may find it lacking because it’s, again, only going to get you minimal range compared to the other EVs on the market. Not a deal breaker, just something to consider.
SPEAKER 09 :
Yeah, this one top range is about 180 miles where, frankly, other cars that it’s competing with are going to add 75 to 100 mile of range for essentially the same price. Again, my only dig, nice car, very luxurious. Outside of that, go check it out at your local Lexus dealer.com. Tell them that John and Richard Rush, both from Drive Radio and Rush to Reason, sent you. All right, Richard, with that, I will let you go. Thank you very much. And we’ll talk again Friday.
SPEAKER 08 :
Sounds good.
SPEAKER 09 :
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SPEAKER 09 :
All right, we are back. That’s going to wrap it up for hour number two. Got another full hour coming your way, which I have no guests, by the way. So some of you would like to call in and even comment on some of the things I was talking about in the first hour regarding the Colorado GOP and some of what happened today along those lines. Feel free, 303-477-5600. This is Rush to Reason, Denver’s Afternoon Rush, KLZ 560.
SPEAKER 14 :
I’m a rich guy
