@djpie ending the episode with a terrific John Prine song over that montage is elite, elite, elite. Never stop making these
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Isn’t this kind of @golf4miami’s point that he keeps getting roasted over?
What is the point of the megabonus if there is no budget? Why would they go crazy over it if it doesn’t affect the adventure they are on? Is Neil shooting under par a rare thing still? Isn’t he good now?
I have not watched a Strapped in several years and have no real opinion, but it was the reason I started liking NLU shit in the first place. I just noticed some nonsense in here and have been following along a bit today
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You think going from $500 to $800 is bad?
How about going from free to $90?!
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That does bring forth the question: what would be a worthy megabonus replacement reward?
A round somewhere cool? A trophy perhaps? Maybe one of DJs finds from the scavenger hunt episode?
This would be a cool twist. C suite round if they hit the mega bonus.
Would make it tougher to pick the location though
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Gotta have the PJ on standby!
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Always great to see Randy and Neil on an adventure together, with the Pie Man as the invisible hand alongside. The call in segment was extremely enjoyable, especially when you see the cast of dignitaries who participated.
I understand why some people anchor around the budget. However, while that led to some entertaining shenanigans previously, I think Strapped has evolved beyond the budget driving every single moment of the trip. You still need the budget to frame how much a trip to a given location will cost, but, to me, Strapped is now about watching Randy and Neil go on an adventure in a environment in which we’ve come to love watching them - off beat places/courses that won’t break the bank.
Whether the budget is $500, $800 or $1K doesn’t matter to me. I just want to see my “friends” have a great time eating, carousing and playing some golf.
Edit: Hearing Machinehead caused me to binge Bush and subsequently Presidents of the United States of America after watching the episode. Junior high me was pumped.
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Ben Foster looks like the OG milf hunter there.
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There is a bonus though. Even if it has a little more leeway they weren’t way under it this time and were in a fairly low spending area from what I can tell, West Texas being what it is. So even with the expanded budget, a $500 bonus to go nuts with for an under par round would still be great TV, as they say.
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$500 today doesn’t spend like it did a few years ago. $800 seems more than fair.
Also, I don’t care what the number is really.
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Midland spoilers: Man, Short Muni course, crushing a drive, being 75 yards out and under a tree…and making a bogey, I’ve done that so many times at my local muni I’ve never felt so connected to Neil
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Does anyone think that maybe the relatively large increase in the budget might be future-proofing from immediately upping the budget two or three series from now? And perhaps that not every place will be as cheap as West Texas, so that maybe Strapped: Minneapolis or Strapped: Louisville isn’t a complete ball-buster?
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It’s not about the money. It’s about climbing the mountain after falling down 100 times.
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But isn’t Neil good now? Or is this like a ‘do it on camera’ type thing?
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Can’t speak for him, but I’d say yes.
Couple of 72’s in his last 20 on GHIN, but nothing under par.
A good player in his own right, but definitely still reasonable that the Mega Bonus bit remains a part of the content.
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He’s never gotten the mega bonus in Strapped. So it’s still definitely a thing. He’s very good but not scratch or better.
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That would be amazing. And let Randy & Neil pick the most BFE destination ever.
Edit to add on a separate note: maybe the accommodations should get excluded from the “fun budget” going forward, like the rental car and airfare. Just pick a reasonable local AirBNB (or hotel that really matches the local vibe), and let the Strapped story be about how far $500 or $800 or whatever can go for golf, dining and local experiences. Highlighting fun ways to play golf, explore cheap eats and other local attractions is always the more fun part of the budget challenge IMO, not seeing whether or not the fellas have to share a twin size bed in a $39 airbnb room because the greens fees were $100.
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It’s really difficult for people of a certain age to get together away from their lives for a few days and do some version of what they used to do all the time. Even if they work together.
I’m less concerned about how the finer points evolve and more concerned about the fact it happens at all. YMMV.
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2025 NIT champion Richman Houston is gonna rock
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