Play Ready Golf | Strokes Gained for the 9 to 5 Golfer

The Best Practice Tool Is in Your Bathroom - Payne Denman

August 28, 2026·50 min
Episode Description from the Publisher

Secrets of the elite Mid-AM: ⁠https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/secretsofthemidam⁠Practice smarter with the Play Ready Golf app. 7 days free, code ISAAK takes $20 off the year: https://onelink.to/93ggkvFollow Payne: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/paynerr/⁠He plays 3 to 4 rounds before a tournament and hits balls maybe twice a week. He has a day job in logistics and just won his 3rd straight Tennessee State Amateur, something only 2 other golfers have done in 100 plus years.Payne Denman has played 5 U.S. Amateurs, coached college golf at MTSU, Tennessee, and South Florida, and played pro golf on PGA Tour Latinoamerica before walking away. In this episode he breaks down exactly how he practices now: the 60 minute range hour he splits into 3 blocks, why he stopped hitting drivers and got better, the mirror work he does at home, and how he talks to himself like a coach talks to a player.Timestamps0:00 What he knows that college golfers don't0:43 How many hours he actually practices1:04 Mirror work, slow reps, and the 90 minute cap2:10 Week 2: money games instead of range balls2:33 The 45 minute session: where all the time goes3:14 Why he quit hitting drivers (and got better)4:41 Where college players waste unlimited hours6:33 A lack of intent repeats what's easiest7:10 How a coach fixes wasted practice9:22 Talking to yourself like a coach10:59 No coach? Write it down, 1 goal, max time12:53 Separate mechanics from target practice13:54 The 60 minute range hour: 3 blocks of 2015:31 Why range games die on the course16:22 Serial ball beating and why failure is the point17:44 Playing scared: fear and embarrassment off the tee19:14 Merion: the hardest course he's ever played21:39 How he preps for championship setups23:45 Adjusting to new grass, climates, and fog26:45 The day job advantage27:45 Down with 5 to play: birdies on 4 of the last 530:52 Fighting off the three-peat thoughts32:22 What pro golf taught him about failure33:35 The day he knew pro golf was over36:32 What he tells players who want to turn pro38:51 Reinstatement: the 4 year wait41:31 PGA Tour Latinoamerica and the $4,000 career44:32 What recreational golfers get wrong46:45 What's next for Payne

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