As quarterback of the the city’s maiden football team (that’s the Falcons, not the Bulldogs, for those scoring at home), Ryan enjoyed an unusual life at the center of the city’s movers and shakers. And as a golfer with a real passion for the game, that unusual life portended very good things for his golf course invites.
On this week’s episode of GOLF’s Subparpodcast, Ryan joined hosts Drew Stoltz and Colt Knost to talk about some of the finest golfing exploits of his post-football career, including a brief conversation that might be of interest to any future Masters attendee: His personal list of favorite Atlanta golf courses.
Those who have attended golf’s first major over the years know that Atlanta is often the easiest airport to reach town by, and those who have attended also know that tee times in the Atlanta area during Masters week can be hard to come by. Ryan knows this well, which is why he started his list of Atlanta golf with the holy grail of Georgia golf, Augusta National.
“Augusta is only two hours down the road, Atlanta East,” Ryan said with a chuckle.
As for some of his other favorites in Atlanta, Ryan came out swinging.
“Peachtree, I don’t know if you guys have ever had the opportunity to play,” Ryan said. “Man, it’s so much fun when you get a chance to play there. I’ve been lucky to be over there with friends and that place is awesome.”
“I’m excited to see what East Lake is going to look like after the redo. I love that place for what they’ve done for the community around it. I think it’s really special how they’ve impacted the community with the golf club.”
“To me it was time for a little bit of new grass around there, maybe a little bit of a different look, and from what I’ve heard it’s incredible. It’s a good golf course.”
“Golf Club of Georgia, I used to play a lot there. My first three years in Atlanta I used to live over there. One of my buddies, his wife worked there, and so we played over there all the time. It’s a sweet place.”
Not bad, Mr. Ryan. Between those three options you’ve got a unanimous top-50 golf course in the United States, per GOLF’s raters, the annual host of the PGA Tour’s Tour Championship, and a 36-hole club with a championship pedigree.
Ryan would love to take credit for being a scion of the Atlanta course scene, but as he says, it’s far simpler than that.
“There’s tons of good golf,” he said. “Maybe not crazy, top 20, top 25 in the country, but there’s a lot of good golf courses in and around Atlanta.”
To hear the rest of his interview, check out the link below.
James Colgan is a news and features editor at GOLF, writing stories for the website and magazine. He manages the Hot Mic, GOLF’s media vertical, and utilizes his on-camera experience across the brand’s platforms. Prior to joining GOLF, James graduated from Syracuse University, during which time he was a caddie scholarship recipient (and astute looper) on Long Island, where he is from. He can be reached at james.colgan@golf.com.
