Buckets & Birdies
The Buckets & Birdies Podcast hosted by @cbills23 and @mg1nyard
23 minutes of hoops, golf and sports across the state of North Carolina.
Buckets & Birdies
Wheels Up, Augusta!
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The Buckets & Birdies crew takes the podcast on the road to Augusta, Georgia for the most iconic week in golf. Marcus and Carter wrap up an unforgettable NCAA Tournament run — breaking down the Final Four, the championship game, and all the moments in between.
Then it's pure Augusta: the incredible athletes and musicians they've met, the electric atmosphere, and their predictions for how the biggest week in golf will play out.
Live, on location, and ready for it. 🏀⛳
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Buckets and Birdie Podcast. Buckets and Birdies is a weekly glimpse into the worlds of basketball and golf. We'll also balance national sports trends with ACC insights and provide a lens of notable happenings of sports in our home state of North Carolina. Two friends and industry professionals are getting together to bring you 23 minutes of fun each week with shared experiences around buckets and birdies. He's Carter Bills, a sports agent and seasoned consultant in the golf base.
SPEAKER_02Joining me on the mic is national champion Otario Great, Marcus Kinyard.
SPEAKER_00Welcome to Buckets and Birdies.
SPEAKER_01Welcome to a special episode of the Buckets and Birdies Podcast.
SPEAKER_02It's Sunday, April 12th. Good to be with you, brother.
SPEAKER_01Yes, sir. And Carter, this is a Sunday unlike any other.
SPEAKER_02No doubt. It's Major Championship Sunday, Marcus. We're in Augusta. It's not bad.
SPEAKER_01We're here at the Wheels Up Clubhouse, just steps away from Augusta National. An amazing venue to be in, a phenomenal place to take in the tournament. Wheels Up is the leader in private aviation. And here at the Clubhouse, you got great food, great staff. Again, thank you very much to the Wheels Up crew. We're glad to be here.
SPEAKER_02And as positive people who love positive things, we'll start as we do always with the quote of the day.
SPEAKER_01Yes, sir. The car of the quote of the day today is the most rewarding things you do in life, are often the ones that look like they cannot be done.
SPEAKER_02Arnold Palmer. Yes, sir. The great, great Arnold Palmer. And I think, Marcus, that takes me right into off the top. What a leaderboard we have. I'm thinking it may look like it cannot be done for somebody. I'm thinking someone comes from behind today to win. Roy McElroy up top. Cam Young, great Saturday yesterday, up top with him at 11 under. But I'm thinking somebody might make a Sunday surge.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, you know, last night you were talking about Scotty maybe making that move. Playing back right now, but someone who definitely knows what it takes to get the win on a Sunday down here in Augusta. So we'll see what happens. My guys that I picked earlier in the week are definitely not in the running anymore, but that's the beauty about this thing, man. Let's just see what happens.
SPEAKER_02That's it. I picked God up early in the week. I did say last night, Scotty Scheffler four within the lead. I kind of like Scotty on Sunday. When Scotty's coming on Sunday, he starts pressing that gas. But Rory's gonna be right there. Awesome to see Sam Burns playing well. He's gonna be right there. Cam Young coming off his players win, he's gonna be in the mix as well. And um also like Jason Day. Jason Day, for the past few years in a row, has played well at the Masters. He's there again today. What a moment it would be for Jason. Let's let Jason have a Sunday. I'd enjoy that as well.
SPEAKER_01Carter, I know we're excited. We're here in Augesta on a Sunday, but before we get too deep in the Birdies, we gotta talk about buckets. We saw a lot of buckets last week, all ending obviously with a national champion in Indianapolis, Michigan Wolverines take home the crown.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, Marcus, this is my favorite week of the year. It always starts with NCAA Tournament National Championship on Monday night for the men.
SPEAKER_01Yes, sir. So Michigan takes home the crown. They kind of beat the brakes off of Yukon there, man. I was expecting a better game.
SPEAKER_02I was expecting a better game too. Yukon's been really tough, really gritty, prides himself on defense. We talk about them taking on the personality of their coach, and they did that. I think they just got outmatched by a team that's playing better than anybody in the country now, and they proved that.
SPEAKER_01There's no doubt about it, man. They really took it to everybody. They look like they played on the played with a chip on their shoulder every single game. You got to hand it to them. They played phenomenal throughout the tournament. Um, really put a stamp on it. Congrats to the Wolverines.
SPEAKER_02And shout out to Elliot Cadeau, the former Tar Hill, most outstanding player. He was really the engine that could for that team. It all starts with passing and defense, and two things he continued to get better at. Got better at his outside shot and took some pride in being a leader on that team as a first-year player for Michigan, and the Wolverines cut down the nets.
SPEAKER_01Man, absolutely. He was phenomenal. Congrats to Elliott. Congrats again to Michigan. Great team.
SPEAKER_02Well, Marcus, in addition to the final four in the national championship, there was also some coaching news that over the past couple weeks. Uh, were you busy at all?
SPEAKER_01Just a little bit, Carter. Just a little bit. No, but um obviously we know now that the University of North Carolina's got a new men's basketball coach, Mike Malone, who we hired earlier this week. Um I think it's a phenomenal hire. I'm super excited about it. Someone who comes with a championship pedigree, uh, who's excited about being in Chapel Hill, who has clearly acknowledged and accepted and really kind of leaning into and embracing this idea of the Carolina family and the tradition of Carolina basketball, but also wants to think, you know, with a new lens, right? And also wants to innovate and continue to change as the game is adapting. But I think, you know, balancing those two things and bringing them together is gonna be great. But I'm just really fired up about his energy. That's awesome.
SPEAKER_02I didn't even really know he was in the mix. Sounds like maybe he was longer than most people realize, and I'm excited about it. You know, I didn't know it. They announced it. I'm down here, you're busy, you're working, and it's like, whoa, Mike Malone, I didn't even know again he was in the mix, but uh couldn't be more excited. Uh, you start seeing the videos of him being fired up as the coach when he takes the Denver Nuggets to win the NBA championship, and that gives you the feels. He's a winner. He's passionate, he's fiery, his daughter plays volleyball in North Carolina, right? There's connectivity. I heard an interesting story this week, Marcus, that a young Mike Malone in his 20s wrote a letter to then coach Dean Smith, I think 1995. Rashid Wallace and Jerry Stackhouse just come off their final four game. Coach Smith, they said the first thing he did was call Vince Carter and Antoine Jameson and secure those coming in for the next year, which was the right call. And he responded to a letter of a young man who wrote in, Do you have any vacancies on your coaching staff? Uh and the end of the article that I was reading and hearing about, that that young man was Mike Malone. And I thought that was special, man. It's like, wow, I've wanted to be Atariel for a long time. Well, Mike Malone, you're now a Tar Hill and we welcome you into that.
SPEAKER_01Yes, sir, welcome to the family. And you know, that's such an incredible story. Great to see that it comes full circle. Um, you know, and as you mentioned, just again, his energy and his excitement. Got to spend a couple minutes with him earlier this week or last week for that matter, uh, before his press conference. And, you know, there's a lot of energy and a lot of excitement around this hire, and uh, I know that he's ready to get to work.
SPEAKER_02And as we look across the target state, we had another head coaching hire.
SPEAKER_01We did, and you called it. We were talking about what NC State was gonna do, and you called it. They needed to take a look at Justin Ganey, and they definitely did.
SPEAKER_02I just wanted to make sure my guy got a look, and man, I'm happy for him. Uh, I've seen a lot of people post he's from High Point where I'm from, just excited for him and uh what opportunity he has, and I hope he's their coach for years to come.
SPEAKER_01So I know it's super early right now. We just finished college basketball. What do you think is gonna happen this offseason and what is your way too early look at next season?
SPEAKER_02The portal opens right when the national championship finishes. That mix is already going on. Being here in Augusta, I haven't even got a chance to look at who is where, who's even been retained in North Carolina. Um, way too early. I'd love to see the Tar Heels do well. You know that. I'd love to see my High Point Panthers back in the NCAA tournament again. Um they I did see they retained Cameron Fletcher. Our best player is the only top 100 player to sign out of high school. Um started obviously with Coach Cow, as we talked about. The only top 100 player uh from high school that high points really had. And so it's great to have him back because I thought for sure he put the country on notice and was gonna get plucked. So great to see him stay. Um, so it'll be interesting to see who stays and who goes. You know Dan Hurley's gonna have the Yukon Huskies right there, restocked, reloaded, and ready to fire again.
SPEAKER_01No, you make a great point. There's gonna be a lot of movement. We got no idea who's going where. Um, but I got a good feeling that you know in the triangle and throughout North Carolina, there's gonna be some strong teams that get put together. You think about North Carolina looking at some guys from Wake Forest. But yeah, it's gonna be really interesting offseason. Uh Coach Malone and all the other coaches got a lot of work to do.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, another coaching hire across North Carolina. Marcus, how about your boy Wes Miller getting the head coaching job in Charlotte?
SPEAKER_01I love it. I love it. He's from Charlotte, um, obviously a dear friend of mine, played with Wes for a couple years. Um, unfortunate that it didn't work out in Cincinnati, but but I'm very grateful to have him even closer back in the state of North Carolina in Charlotte. I know that he's gonna have the 49ers ready to play this season. Excited to see what that looks like. And you got Marcus Page gonna join him. So it's great to again keep that Carolina connectivity um over there in Charlotte and really looking forward to seeing them this season.
SPEAKER_02I think you'll get some Tar Hill fan eyeballs on the Charlotte 49ers program this year because of that. So happy for Wes, happy for Marcus Page.
SPEAKER_01Listen, I know they're green and white, but there's gonna be a lot of Carolina blue in that stadium.
SPEAKER_02So we talk about this being the greatest week of the year, Marcus. It all started for the NCAA tournament though back in March. We do love March. Hard to believe the season's over. As the brackets come down, what stuck out to you? What do you remember? What were the highlights or the lowlights of this NCAA tournament season?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, you know, obviously we're always gonna start with Carolina. Unfortunate that we didn't make it out of the first round. Actually, had a guy from VCU here in Augusta uh remind me of that game. Uh that was how he introduced himself to me uh this week, which was funny. But um, you know, really we saw a lot of teams that we thought would make it to the Final Four, we thought would make it to the Elite Eight, get bounced early. You know, you saw Virginia get knocked out early, uh, we saw Florida get knocked out early, we saw Houston, maybe I would say they got knocked out early. Yeah. Um, you know, so a lot of teams that that couldn't quite make it through the way that they thought they would. Um happy to see that Duke didn't make it too far as well. But, you know, ultimately what we saw was the same thing that we always see. Christmas in March. We see teams that are out there just giving it their all, making history, beating the big guys.
SPEAKER_02Speaking of Duke going out early, I was not with you playing golf, but how about you and Dion on course watching the tournament live? You know, you're thinking Duke's gonna win. I think as you were telling me, you weren't really paying attention. All of a sudden you and Dion get a little locked in. It's getting closer, it's closer. He hits the three.
SPEAKER_01Eruption. We went crazy.
SPEAKER_02Eruption, like unbelievable.
SPEAKER_01That that was amazing. I mean, it was the perfect mix of buckets and birdies. You got a bunch of hoopers watching the NCAA tournament in a golf cart. Um, I was not in the fairway, I was way out in the rough, so we figured let's park this thing, let's take a look at what's going on. And you know, every hole, we're seeing the score. Okay. Yukon is down six, Yukon's down four, Yukon's down three. We're like, all right, we gotta stop and watch this thing, man. And uh just glad that I had the camera with me. It was a great moment that we caught out there, man. But that that shot, I mean, it just sent me into a into the stratosphere, man. Uh, I loved it. For the one moment, I was a Yukon fan.
SPEAKER_02I'm so glad you had the wherewithal to flick the camera on for a minute. I called you after I saw it. I'm like, hey, was Pablo there? Like, no, Pablo wasn't there. I just was like thinking, hey, Dukies might go down here. We didn't know in that dramatic a fashion, but what a shot, what a game. I think that's one that's gonna be remembered for the rest of the time.
SPEAKER_01Without a doubt. Immediately one of those shots that you're gonna watch for the next hundred years, talking about the NCAA tournament. I mean, that is an iconic NCAA basketball shot.
SPEAKER_02No doubt. No doubt. It was Houston for me, Marcus. Like thinking about the Cougars, that was my pick to win the national championship, so I didn't do too well there. Um, and yeah, let's think about who made the final four from your bracket. I think you had all two seeds.
SPEAKER_01I had all two seeds. So I had UConn, and I think that was it, right? Was UConn the only two seed? We had UConn, Michigan was a one seed, Arizona was a one seed, and Illinois was a three-seed. That's right. So yeah, um, I was one for four, so not great. But I'm pretty sure in one of the brackets that I chose, I had UConn win the championship. Right. Um so I did get them in the national championship game at least. But we talked about this too, Carter. Very glad that they did not win a championship so we can hold on to our national championship titles.
SPEAKER_02Hold off on those banners. They've been putting them up there, man.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, I had Michigan State out of that region. I had Houston, I did have Michigan. Okay. Uh, and then I had Purdue. We probably think we both had Purdue as the two seed.
SPEAKER_01We did both have Purdue.
SPEAKER_02So Yukon marches on, they end up playing Illinois next. Kind of a bruiser game, made it a little ugly, but two tough defensive teams. Yukon comes out on top. Then we had Michigan and Arizona. Felt like one seed, one seed. Probably nobody was playing better than the both of them, so they deserved to be there. Uh, and wow, Michigan, what, it was 20-ish? I mean, Michigan really put it on them. And I think, Marcus, Michigan might have set the NCAA tournament record for point differential.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I think you're right.
SPEAKER_02Largest margin of victory, which was previously held by the 2009 national champion to my right, and that team, the North Carolina Target. So you guys beat everybody by double digits, and they really put it on people at the show. It was impressive.
SPEAKER_01I mean, Michigan really just they they they put they put the hammer down, man, every single game. And again, man, they really played with a chip on their shoulder, they played with energy, they played together. Um, I mean, they paid hurt, I mean, they laid it all out on the line. So, I mean, you gotta take your hat off to them. But they played an incredible tournament.
SPEAKER_02No doubt.
SPEAKER_01All right, Carter, we got a lot of birdies to talk about. So as we transition from buckets to birdies, your favorite game, nets and jackets, I will give you a year, you will tell me the Masters champion and the NCAA champion. Your year is 1989.
SPEAKER_021989 is Michigan Wolverine. Glenn Rice was the most outstanding player, and 1989 is Sir Nick Faldo.
SPEAKER_01Yes, sir. Bro, I'm all right. So I wanted to shout out the Michigan Wolverines, obviously, winning the national championship, but we talked about the possibility of Rory going back to back.
SPEAKER_02Oh, I see what you did there.
SPEAKER_01And joining a very elite group of folks, Faldo being one of them.
SPEAKER_02That's right, Marcus. So if Rory completes it, he would be the fourth. What a feat. Went backwards. Tiger Woods would be the last one to complete that in 2001, 2002. Faldo's won three, 96, but we go back 89-90. He did it back-to-back before that. And then Jack Nicholas, I believe, 1965, 1966. So it's only been done three times. Rory could be the fourth.
SPEAKER_01Carter, we talked a lot about basketball, um, but obviously we're here in Augusta on this lovely Sunday. We gotta start talking about some birdies. However, I'd love to talk about people that check both those boxes, people that check buckets and birdies. We've been bumping into a lot of cool people here this week. Who are some of the people that you've seen?
SPEAKER_02Man, uh, I really loved seeing Chris Paul. We had a great conversation with Chris Paul growing up in the same area, uh, watching the success he had, and then the success he's given back to youth basketball now. Um, and just just kind of hamming it up with him and talking about the people we knew. I mean, you what's the first thing he said to me when he said, Wait, you're from a high point? He said, You know Will Price and Landon Click? I'm like, immediately texting him. You know, first thing CP says is your name. So I know that means a lot to Will, who was one of the best players in our area coming up. Uh, and Lannon was always really good. You know Landon really well too.
SPEAKER_01I do, yeah, man. It's super cool to come all the way down here to Gesta, be here for golf, but then meet one of the greatest players to come out of the state of North Carolina, bring a full circle, talk about North Carolina hoops. And again, shout out to CP3 for what he's doing to support youth hoops in the state of North Carolina. We also saw J.R. Smith. Yep. We also saw Rich Paul. Yeah. I mean, we've seen a lot of guys here that got a lot of buckets and now love burdy's.
SPEAKER_02I know. Rich, all Rich wanted to do was talk about golf. I forgot it. We've seen so many people, I forgot about Rich Paul. Rich might have been my favorite person I've seen. Like he was he was fantastic to speak to.
SPEAKER_01And then we also got to run into a Tar Hill fan. Yep. Big golf guy, but clearly a hoops guy as well. Our boy Manolo.
SPEAKER_02Manolo. I know. I'm t I'm telling you and Pablo what a Carolina fan he is. And everybody's like, is he is it really? Was it just a Carolina Duke game? Did he just want to talk about Trimble for three? But he sat down with you, he talked to us. What did you think? Carolina fan?
SPEAKER_01Dude, he is definitely a Carolina Duke. I'm sure that I love it. And I can't wait to get him at Chapel Hill for a game. Looking forward to having him and hosting him, uh play some golf with him as well. It's gonna be a good time.
SPEAKER_02It's gonna be a great time. What was your favorite thing about Manolo? What was your favorite thing about the discussions we had with him?
SPEAKER_01The fact that he is just a pure comedian literally had me laughing the entire time that we were together. Could hardly talk to him because I was laughing so hard. Uh, but clearly just a very energetic uh and positive guy. And again, man, just really looking forward to hanging with him.
SPEAKER_02You're right. He is incredibly talented. He started doing like other voices. We heard Arnold Schwarzschneider like, I didn't know he had that kind of range. I knew he had Manolo range, you know, smack that. I knew I knew he had that kind of range. I didn't know he had Arnold range. Like, unbelievable though. Had us crying.
SPEAKER_01He did, truly. Awesome dude. Shout out Manolo.
SPEAKER_02Marcus, who else did you see this week? Who is who is your favorite or some of your favorites?
SPEAKER_01Uh getting to see SVP. That was super cool. Um, we also watched Peyton Manning perform live on stage with Dirks Bentley. That was awesome. Uh, didn't know that he had a music career in him. Um, who else did we see? Uh we also saw Victor Cruz, we saw Golden Tate, got to meet Golden Tate here, which is really cool. Minwoo Lee, that was awesome. We saw Danny Willett, former Masters Champion as well. That's right. Pretty cool, man, to be bumping into all these folks here in Augusta.
SPEAKER_02Not a terrible week. CC Sabathia.
SPEAKER_01That's right.
SPEAKER_02So Marcus Encourse, Dr. Condoleez Rice. I think it's always special seeing her. It's one of the most impressive people, maybe in the history of the world.
SPEAKER_01I was very fortunate to bump into her in Chapel Hill earlier this season when our football team played Stanford. Um, but really cool that she's here, a member of Augusta National. Uh pretty cool story.
SPEAKER_02So you you mentioned Peyton Manning, Marcus. He was not the headliner. Maybe he was the headline of the night. Who was headlining on that show?
SPEAKER_01That was Dirk's Bentley, which was awesome, man. And so we're here thinking about buckets, birdies, but we gotta think about some beats too, man. Like I said, we had Dirk's Bentley performing. We got our friends right here at Wheels Up, Barn Storm. Love those guys, they're doing great work. A lot of them from North Carolina, which is super cool as well. Carter, we also saw Dave Grohl, saw Ryan Tetter right here at Wheels Up. I mean, it's been an incredible, incredible week.
SPEAKER_02My boy Kelly James, you saw?
SPEAKER_01Yes, sir, exactly. Kelly James is a good one. Yes, sir.
SPEAKER_02Buckets, birdies, and beats. It's been a musical week, no doubt. Yes, sir. Hey Marcus, by the way, didn't I see a video of our boy Pablo Vega on stage with somebody?
SPEAKER_01Sure did, man. Our boys at Barnstorm. Had Pablo up on stage, grabs the mic, and he's singing Boots, Scoot, and Boogie. Dude, it was incredible. I had the crowd going wild. It was awesome.
SPEAKER_02I hope he was dancing with it. Love, Mr. Pablo. All right, we've talked, Marcus, a lot about all the people and the places, but what's been your favorite thing of the week?
SPEAKER_01Honestly, just being out on the course. Um, you know, we've always talked about it being the star of the show here this week. Um, it is absolutely stunning out there. And so to be out there earlier in the week for some of the practice rounds and just seeing all the people and the families that that gather and then and come here and just to see that everybody's having such an incredible experience. Obviously, you got to see some really fun golf. You know, I got to see some guys skipping down 16. Um, but really just seeing everybody be so happy to be here. Uh it's a beautiful golf course. Um, so for me, that's been the best experience.
SPEAKER_02It truly is unlike any other. It's it's the best, Marcus.
SPEAKER_01What about you, Carter? What's been your favorite thing this week?
SPEAKER_02Man, I think my favorite thing is just being with the people. Everybody and a lot of folks that we see come come here, it's their first time. And everyone's just ear to ear. As you said, it's the star of the show. And my favorite thing is just seeing people experience it for the first time and love it. Uh, and I love that. Marcus, by the way, you met a couple great friends of mine for the first time that I've been dying for you to meet along the way. Awesome influencers, movers and shakers in the golf space. You met Earl and Elajuan from Eastside Golf. And what did you think about those fellas?
SPEAKER_01Man, I love meeting Earl and Elajuan. I I love following Eastside Golf, and it's really cool to get a chance to spend some time with those guys. Um, really looking forward to seeing how they continue to grow their brand and really make a mark on the game of golf. Uh, Will Lowry, I had the pleasure of meeting a couple years ago while I was here. Always great to see him. You see him out and about all the time in the golf scene with Charlotte Guy. Charlotte Guy, exactly. Really cool bringing that back to North Carolina. Also got to hang out with Teal Barber. Been following him on Instagram for a long time. Also love what he's doing in the content space. But again, just bringing that awareness to golf, making it accessible, making it fun. Um, that's what we're all here for.
SPEAKER_02I love it.
SPEAKER_01We talked about the course being the star of the show. It's been giving some players some trouble this weekend. What are you seeing and how do you think we're gonna finish this Sunday?
SPEAKER_02Well, we saw Roy McElroy just blow the field away in the first two days, and now we've seen some other guys that are right there in the mix on the leaderboard. I think it's shaping up to be another epic Sunday at Augusta.
SPEAKER_01So, Roy, if I'm not mistaken, after the first two days, had the largest lead ever. Largest lead ever. Interesting. So he's he's a front runner, obviously. I mean, who else is up there that you think is gonna be fighting for the title?
SPEAKER_02I think Cam Young right there is is gonna be tough to beat on a Sunday where he's playing more confidently than ever, sits at third in the world right now, coming off his player's win a couple of weeks back in Pontavidra Beach. I mentioned off the top, I think Jason Day is gonna make a surge. I got a good feeling about Jason. And gosh, anytime Scotty Sheffer is within four or five shots of the lead on Sunday, he's got an ability to press the gas, Marcus, that maybe we haven't seen since Tiger Woods.
SPEAKER_01Wow, that's a big name to be dropping. We haven't talked about Shane Lowry. He's in the mix. Firmly in the mix. Holand won yesterday? That's right. On six. Big roars. Big roars.
SPEAKER_02So I mean Shane is not afraid. Shane could very much do this. Uh, and Shane is just an awesome guy. Shane would be a great champion.
SPEAKER_01And you know, Carter, you're talking about moments here in Augusta. Clearly, Sunday is full of them, right? But Rory's got an opportunity to go back to back. That's only been done, what, two times? Three times? Two times.
SPEAKER_02This would be the fourth time ever back-to-back champion. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01So that could be an interesting storyline too.
SPEAKER_02Unbelievably special. Uh, and we he'd be an unbelievable back-to-back champion. He's already won for the ages, and it'd be just another jewel in his crown. All right, guys, that's all for today.
SPEAKER_01Thanks for tuning in to another episode of the Buckets and Birdies Podcast, live from the Wheels Up Clubhouse.
SPEAKER_02That's 23 minutes of our thoughts for you from Marcus Ginyard. I'm Carter Bills.
SPEAKER_01We'll catch you next time.