Talking GolfGetaways: Your Golf Getaways Podcast · Mitch Laurance and Darin Bunch

Talking GolfGetaways Super Summer Recap!

·58 min·4 clips

Bandon Dunes opened Ghost Tree Grill, a steakhouse and raw bar next to Old Mac.

1. Talking GolfGetaways: Your Golf Getaways Podcast centers this episode on a summer recap across Pinehurst, Gamble Sands, Bandon Dunes, and Chambers Bay. 2. Mitch Lawrence hosts with Darren Bunch and Chris McKeown, while GolfPackagePros.com gets a sponsor mention at the top. 3. The episode asks what new golf-trip experiences, golf-course designs, and food-and-beverage changes are shaping these destinations. 4. Mitch Lawrence recounts meeting Kylie, Blake, and Chloe Nakagawa in Pinehurst after earlier podcasting with their Hawaii family. 5. Chloe Nakagawa qualified for the U.S. Kids World Junior Championship at Pinehurst for the first time and finished fifth. 6. Blake Nakagawa missed qualifying this year for the first time since he was four, but Mitch says he still chips every putt with a sand wedge. 7. Darren Bunch explains that Gamble Sands now has an 18-hole David McLay Kidd course, Quick Sands, and a second 18-hole course opening on August 1 next summer. 8. Darren says he is helping with marketing at Gamble Sands alongside Robert Thompson from Match Play Media and David Cow. 9. He describes the new Gamble Sands course as sitting on a ridge, with tighter holes, more force carries, and more elevation change than the original course. 10. Darren compares the property’s two-course dynamic to the kind of split players debate at Sand Valley between Mammoth Dunes and Sedge Valley. 11. Darren details The Barn at Gamble Sands as a walk-up food counter with pizzas, grilled sandwiches, soda, and a full bar. 12. He says The Barn was built for faster service when players are moving between 36 holes, Quick Sands, and the main resort facilities. 13. Darren notes that The Barn also creates lawn-game space, fire pits, and seating near the 18th green. 14. On the way home, Darren stops at Bandon Dunes and stays in the Inn at Bandon overlooking the Bandon Dunes course. 15. He goes to Shorties, the new 19-hole short course, and says the longest hole is about 160 yards. 16. Darren says Shorties feels like a full golf experience because of the walking, up-and-down movement, and sequence of short shots. 17. He then describes Ghost Tree Grill as a steakhouse and raw bar beside Old Mac, with smoked pork belly, steaks, toasted marshmallow ice cream, and fire pits outside. 18. The conversation’s tone stays loose and conversational, with Mitch, Darren, and Chris trading stories, teasing each other, and switching easily between golf, travel, and food. 19. Golf travelers who like resort design, short courses, and destination dining would likely want this episode. 20. Listeners looking for technical swing instruction or a single focused lesson may skip it.

As heard by us

A breezy golf-travel recap that focuses on course feel, trip logistics, and the on-property restaurant.

Talking Golf Getaways frames a travel recap as a practical look at golf destinations, with Darren Bunch's trip carrying the detail and Mitch and Chris keeping the banter moving.

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Why you'd press play

You want a fast, specific golf-travel episode with firsthand notes, course contrasts, and a little property detail.

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