How Gary McCord, with the help of Tour wives, got so many pros to appear in Tin Cup

There’s an old adage that goes, “happy wife, happy life.” Gary McCord used that relationship trope to his advantage when recruiting PGA Tour pros to take part in the classic golf film Tin Cup in the mid-90s.

In a recent Subpar podcast with Colt Knost and Drew Stoltz, McCord explained his role in securing commitments from PGA Tour pros to participate in the film.

McCord served as a technical advisor for the movie, using his breadth of golf knowledge to give the film a more authentic feel. One of his tasks was to find a group of professional golfers to participate. The only issue was McCord didn’t want to go through the laborious process.

“This is not going to be fun,” McCord said. “I don’t want to call agents up.”

So he hatched a plan. He called producer Gary Foster and pitched the idea over the phone.

“I called Gary up one night and said, Gary, I’ve got an idea,” McCord said. “Can I get (co-stars) Don Johnson and Kevin Costner to go to a dinner? … I’m going to call up the Tour wives and I’m going to have a dinner with two of Hollywood’s finest and tell the girls what to expect if their husband is in this movie.”

McCord gathered the talent before the dinner and told them to use their acting prowess to “pile it on.” The plan worked.

“I witnessed greatness,” McCord said. “They had the girls in the palm of their hands … Every wife comes up and says, ‘When do you need him there?’ No agents. No nothing.”

He did not specify the wives who were present, but there was a solid contingent of Tour players who appeared in the film, among them Fred Couples, Peter Jacobsen and Phil Mickelson. The movie went on to considerable success, grossing over $76 million at the box office, and still lives on as one of the classic golf movies of all time.

The interview covered a variety of topics with McCord, including his departure from the CBS broadcast team, David Feherty soiling himself and having to interview Tiger Woods and much more. Check out Subpar every Tuesday for more in-depth interviews with the biggest personalities in golf.

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