Loren Roberts is one of the most decorated players in Champions Tour history, with eight PGA Tour wins and 13 more on the senior circuit, and Tommy Thompson sat down with him for one of the most personal conversations Links for Life has ever had. Loren walks through his unlikely path to the tour, the 1994 US Open playoff against Ernie Els that still sticks with him, and the faith commitment that reframed everything, including two putts, same prayer, two very different outcomes. He also shares what he sees most average golfers doing wrong on the greens, and the one drill that fixes it.

What You'll Hear in This Episode:

• How Loren got into golf later than most and almost became a club pro instead
• The story of selling shares of himself to ten club members to fund his first year on tour
• What it felt like to receive the Bay Hill trophy from Arnold Palmer, twice
• The three-way US Open playoff against Ernie Els and Colin Montgomerie, and the prayer Loren said over that final putt
• Why representing his country in the Ryder Cup made him more emotional than any tournament win
• His number one putting tip, focused on speed over line, and the one-hand drill that unlocks it

(0:00) Intro

(4:17) Starting golf late, road to tour

(10:36) The Bay Hill win that changed everything

(18:42) Faith on tour and the Bible study community

(22:00) Same prayer, two putts, two outcomes

(27:07) The Ryder Cup and playing for your country

(39:46) Putting tip and the one-hand drill

(44:42) Faith, forgiveness, and a closing life lesson

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In this episode, Tommy sits down with Kris Lynch, founder of Golf Yourself Healthy and host of the Golf Yourself Happy podcast, for one of the most personal conversations Links for Life has hosted. Kris shares the story of his son Innes, who was born still in February 2023, and how that loss became the inspiration behind a platform helping golfers use the game as a path to mental and emotional health. This is a tender, honest episode about grief, golf as therapy, and the choice to embrace the rough instead of running from it.

What You'll Hear in This Episode:

• Kris's journey from Scotland to London to Wales and his complicated early relationship with golf
• Why Kris took redundancy from an 11-year banking career to go full-time on his coaching platform
• The story of his son Innes and the surge of inspiration that founded Golf Yourself Healthy
• The Scottish Gaelic meaning of Innes and the symbolism behind the Golf Yourself Healthy logo
• The tagline "embrace the rough and cherish the fairway" and what it really means
• A PGA study on golf elitism that showed half of UK golfers don't identify as golfers
• The HAPPY framework, habits, acceptance, presence, purpose, and your call to action
• Tommy and Kris on the good hard story and why we often climb someone else's ladder

Timestamps:

(0:00) Intro & Kris' Story

(24:08) Embrace the rough, cherish the fairway

(31:32) Living an integrated life

(40:52) Founding Golf Yourself Healthy

(48:47) The HAPPY framework explained

(52:42) How to connect with Kris

Resources / Next Steps:

• Visit Kris at golfyourselfhealthy.com
• Follow the Golf Yourself Happy podcast on Apple, Spotify, and YouTube
• Email Kris directly at chris@golfyourselfhealthy.com to connect or explore coaching
• Pick up Treasures in the Dark by Katherine Wolf, referenced in the conversation

Tommy sits down with Wally Armstrong, who spent ten years on the PGA Tour, tied for fifth at his rookie Masters, and went on to help start both Links Players and College Golf Fellowship. Wally walks through the full arc of his life, from caddying for Gary Player to writing The Mulligan with Ken Blanchard to the moment in 2004 that finally taught him how to walk with Jesus instead of working for him. It's part golf history, part ministry origin story, part invitation into a more present kind of faith.

What You'll Hear in This Episode:

• Wally's path from the Indiana cornfields and an alcoholic home to captain of the Florida golf team
• Becoming a "chaplain without a prayer" and getting led to Christ before he even realized it
• The origin of the PGA Tour Bible Study and the players who came to faith through it
• Tying for fifth in his rookie Masters after mapping every green by hand
• Why he calls Jesus the greatest mulligan of all time, and how Ken Blanchard helped shape the book
• The empty chair story and the simple practice that ended 34 years of trying to earn God's approval
• Two practical golf tips from Wally on ball position and keeping your swing on plane
• Why he's still planning twenty years out at age eighty
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Timestamps:

(0:00) Cold open and welcome

(2:04) Introducing Wally Armstrong

(6:10) Growing up in Indiana

(8:06) Florida golf and the FCA chaplaincy

(10:25) The chaplain without a prayer

(13:08) Caddying for Dave Reagan and Gary Player

(15:21) Eight rounds of Q School and finishing fifth

(22:24) Mapping Augusta for a rookie top five

(28:01) Family life on tour in the seventies and eighties

(29:20) Founding the Links Letter and Links Players

(33:36) Starting College Golf Fellowship

(37:11) Writing The Mulligan with Ken Blanchard

(42:31) The empty chair and the transforming friendship

(47:42) Practicing the Presence of Jesus

(52:24) The Course Less Played and building your bag

(57:32) Refire don't retire at age eighty

(1:00:18) Wally's two golf tips for amateurs

(1:03:27) Where to connect with Wally

Resources / Next Steps:

• Visit Wally's site at wallyarmstronggolf.com
• Pick up The Mulligan, In His Grip, and The Practice of the Presence of Jesus
• Learn about Links Players and find a club fellowship near you
• Become a member of the Mulligan Club, free, all you need is a need for a mulligan

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