Robo pros. It’s an unflattering term, often lobbed at the world’s best players and rooted in a widespread perception of elite golfers as interchangeable parts. They all hit it miles. They all have deft hands around the greens. And if you ask what’s on their mind, you’re likely to get a well-rehearsed answer delivered in the same measured cadence. Different faces, same swings and swing thoughts.
That sameness extends, in the popular imagination, to how tour pros see golf courses. Fairness. Predictability. Consistency. Put up a purse and they’ll peg it anywhere – from a tarmac to a Tillinghast – so long as the yardage adds up, the ball bounces straight and the checks don’t bounce at all.
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Michael Campbell doesn’t fit that mold.
Best known as the New Zealander who stared down Tiger Woods at Pinehurst and won the 2005 U.S. Open, Campbell is no longer grinding on Tour, but he remains connected to the game through the golf academy he runs in Spain – and through a way of thinking about golf that’s refreshingly relatable.
Campbell was a guest on a recent episode of the Destination Golf podcast, recorded on-site at the Punta Mita Invitational in Mexico. The event is a three-day pro-am unlike any other, with rotating teams, relaxed competition, and the kind of dinners and late-night conversations that rarely happen at pay-to-plays where you shake hands with your pro on the first tee and say goodbye on the 18th green.
In his conversation with Destination Golf co-host Simon Holt, Campbell dived into course design, using New Zealand’s Te Arai as a lens. Though Campbell enjoys both courses, North and South, he really lights up when discussing the North, a Tom Doak design that Campbell lauds for its wild greens, quirky contours and endless strategic demands.
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“It’s tough and I really enjoyed it. You’ve got to control your ball because the greens are undulating,” Campbell said. “I played on a windy day as well and it was tough.”
The episode ranges further still, touching on Campbell’s memories of battling Tiger, his experiences navigating discrimination in a predominantly white sport, and his own ambitions to move into golf design. You can can listen to it all here.
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