Behind the Scenes Top 10

Glass Shattering Blog Post #1

Ok, so from feedback I’ve received from episode 1 on Big Break Greenbrier, most of you want to know some behind the scenes info, so here is my “Top 10 Things You Should Know about Episode #1” (For those of you that don't know, I safely moved on to the second episode).

1) Before each challenge, on the range, the producers let you know what you should prepare for. That morning they said, “Work on your knock down shots.” Instantly all of us knew it was going to be the glass breaking challenge. Most of the players started practicing low shots on the range. That seemed obvious. But I wanted a reference point as to where my ball was flying in the air at around 15 yards in front of me. So I went to the side of the range and practiced hitting leaves on an overhanging tree. From watching the show I made some estimates as to where the glass would be. It appeared that 7 iron was the club. When we got to the location of the challenge though, and I saw the “-:20” pane, I quickly realized that was the one to go for. That meant 3 iron and not 7 iron. I figured all that specific practice was for nothing. Luckily it helped I guess.

2) After I broke the glass in what I thought was 2.4 seconds, I didn’t know how to react not only because it happened so f’n fast, but also because the only people around were the crew members, and they were being uncomfortably quiet. So what did I say right after I broke the glass? “I think I broke something.” Turns out I did. To be honest, I said that because I thought I broke the camera behind the glass.

3) Right before each player went to the glass breaking challenge, they got to hit 4 practice balls in an adjacent fairway to loosen up. Quite the warm up. Most players would probably just hit the four shots one at a time, trying to hit it low as if they’re hitting it through the glass. I did that, but I tried to replicate the challenge as much as possible so I placed the balls down all grouped together, then pulled them apart and rapid-fired them as quickly as possible. I guess I didn’t have to rapid fire them in the actual challenge, but I was prepared to. For those of you that don't know, I have got 11 balls in the air at the same time. Rapid fire is my game!

4) One the sideline, once we completed the challenge, we started betting with each other to guess the time of the next competitor. I wasn’t very good. I still owe Rick Cochran $10 I think.

5) The producers instructed us to ask each player what time they got when they walked back. What made it awkward was when they asked me what my time was. “I broke the world record” is what it felt like I was answering each time. There’s no humble way to say that you did it in -14.8 seconds.

6) The glass breaking challenge went from 8am to 12:30pm. I was lucky to go first. The last guys had to wait a long time, and with each one of them it seemed they overthought it more and more. Not to mention they had a lot more divots to contend with.

7) On the second challenge, where Chan reacted like he won the Big Break…twice in a row, well, he actually took about 6 minutes to hit each shot. The commentary on the sideline was priceless. I guess he needed time to digest the grass he just ate.

8) Greenbrier is at 1800 feet. With the heat and humidity in the afternoon, the ball goes really far there. That's probably why guys were airing long in the second challenge.

9) Derek, who was my roommate, was better than most of the players there, yet he was first to go. That’s the Big Break for you. It can be a crap shoot. He simply hit his shots too solid in the second challenge and it cost him.

10) And yes, they load you up with makeup, but only for the evening interviews. When I was on the course I was makeup free. Makeup sucks. I don’t know how you ladies deal with it.

Wanna know more? Just ask below. Otherwise, I’ll see you next week.

@jameslepp