How to Actually Qualify for a USGA Four-Ball

Play Pause

Everyone tells you golf is an individual game. Zach Healy and Jack Larkin Jr. are quietly proving how much better it gets when it isn't.

The two former University of Georgia golfers — roommates for all five years, four-ball partners ever since — join Matt and The Professor to talk about the format that's given them a second golf life: USGA Four-Ball. They've made a habit of tearing up the amateur scene, and this year they finished T2 in stroke play and came a single shot shy of the championship's single-round record with a 63.

What the conversation dives into:

Why the best four-ball teams aren't the perfect ones — and how one early bogey stopped mattering
The 63 in the Arizona desert: six birdies in the first eight holes, cocktails in hand, trading who could one-up the other
The unglamorous re-navigation back into competitive golf after college, and why you have to be willing to shoot 80 in a qualifier to get sharp again
Getting smarter as you get older: swapping a 15-year putter for a "spaceship," and checking the ego at the door
Gamesmanship inside the ropes — walking fast, talking a lot, and where the line actually is
Jack Larkin Sr., the family blueprint for playing high-level golf at 65, and who wins when three Larkins tee it up

Connect with our guests

Zach Healy — 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/z_jhealy | 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zachary-healy/

Jack Larkin — 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jlarkin_uga | 💼 https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-larkin-b738a4126/

Follow The Bag Drop

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thebagdrop
🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/thebagdropgolf
📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBagDropGolf

Listen to The Bag Drop

🎧 Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-bag-drop-untold-stories-in-golf/id1430328006

🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2xRWtUBJH8RazdLw14oaGH

🎧 Transistor: https://thebagdrop.transistor.fm/

Join the NewClub community

🌍 Website: https://www.newclub.golf

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/newclubgolf/

🐦 X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/newclubgolf

📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@newclubgolf

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/newclub

Support our Partners

🐝 NewClub: https://www.newclub.golf

🏌️ Titleist: https://www.titleist.com

🌐 Golf Blueprint: https://www.golfblueprint.com

Connect with Matt & The Professor

🎙️ Matt Considine — 🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/consequential85 | 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/consequence18/ | 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matt-considine-103bb21/

📚 Dr. Kevin Moore ("The Professor") — 🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/kevcmoore | 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kevcmoore | 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-moore-177b30b3/

Chapters:
00:00 One season, one complaint — doormen, summer, and the Midwest golf report
05:30 Meet Zach & Jack: how the Professor first crossed paths with the Georgia team
06:08 The Professor's teach: which clubs have hosted the U.S. Amateur most
09:16 Partner spotlight: Titleist, the GTS, and matching your ball
10:41 How do you actually qualify for the USGA Four-Ball?
12:35 Why the best teams aren't perfect
13:31 Steady Eddie vs. the EKG machine: how partners complement each other
17:00 The 63: six birdies in eight holes and a run at the record
19:45 Birdie juice — transfusions, screwdrivers, and desert superstitions
22:49 How they met, and five years as roommates
25:19 Walking into UGA and realizing you're not the best guy anymore
30:32 What makes a great teammate
34:29 Zach's shot at pro golf, and the pay-phone moment he hung it up
39:44 Jack the working man, and the hard road back to competitive golf
45:00 Getting smarter with age: efficiency, ego, and the spaceship putter
52:24 Jack Larkin Sr. and the family blueprint for golf longevity
56:08 Course selection, home-site traps, and football-weekend regrets
1:01:00 Match play, momentum, and a two-down-with-two-to-go comeback
1:04:30 Gamesmanship: walk fast, talk a lot, never cross the line
1:09:00 Why team golf makes the whole thing more fun

What is The Bag Drop?

The Bag Drop features weekly stories from the culture, community and characters shaping golf today. Produced by NewClub Golf Society, each episode blends authenticity and expert insights for passionate golfers at all levels. Special guests from clubs, courses and every corner of the changing landscape join us for thoughtful, in‑depth discussions on all things golf.

What is NewClub?

Founded in 2017, NewClub is the premier private golf society in the United States. It blends the community and access of a private club with the variety and affordability of public golf. Members enjoy thousands of reserved tee times, competitions and events at exceptional partner courses across our local chapters, as well as signature trips and exclusive perks. NewClub is revolutionizing golf membership, making the game more meaningful for those who love it.

Creators and Guests

Host

Matt Considine

Founder of NewClub and our resident feel player. Matt’s junior golf career led him to the University of Akron where he met our co-host. During his junior year, Matt Studied abroad in Ireland and discovered golf societies. Subsequent trips to Scotland fed his passion for the history, ideals, and culture of accessible, affordable, and sustainable golf, a concept he would later bring to the U.S. with NewClub. Known for his interviewing style, quick wit, and compelling storytelling, Matt brings thoughtful, reflective conversations to The Bag Drop. His professional journey before NewClub included multiple leadership positions in growth-stage startups, where he managed teams responsible for more than $250 million in revenue. Matt actively gives back to the game as a Board Member of the First Tee of Akron and past chair of the Evans Scholar Foundation. Proudly based in his hometown of Akron, Ohio, Matt finds inspiration in family life with his wife, their three children, and their golf dog, Gypsy.

Host

The Professor

NewClub's Chief Ambassador and every golf sicko's favorite educator. Kevin is a thoughtful and deeply curious host. His studied, constructivist approach adds intellectual enrichment and balance to the show. As a professor of Math Education at the University of Georgia, Kevin's background in applied mathematics and cognitive psychology uniquely informs his insights on golf strategy and performance. Originally from Ohio, Kevin was a Division I collegiate golfer at the University of Akron, where his passion for understanding mathematical thinking began. After earning his doctorate from Arizona State University, he combined his analytical expertise with his love for golf by co-founding Golf Blueprint, an organization aimed at helping golfers optimize their games through data-driven strategies. Kevin enjoys balancing deep philosophical discussions with simple pleasures, such as indulging his sweet tooth, cheering on college football, and spending relaxed evenings with his friends, his wife, and their beloved dog, Nole.

How to Actually Qualify for a USGA Four-Ball

Creators and Guests

Listen Anywhere