Behind the Scenes of Neal Shipley’s Incredible ‘Full Swing’ Appearance

Before the Masters, no one knew Neal Shipley’s name. Sure, he was the runner-up at the U.S. Amateur and that’s how he got into the field, but the casual golf fan had no clue who he was.

But that quickly changed once he was the lone amateur to make it to the weekend, automatically giving him low-am honors and a seat in Butler Cabin on Sunday afternoon alongside eventual winner Scottie Scheffler and the broadcasting GOAT himself, Jim Nantz.

In fact, his appearance produced one of Golf Twitter’s favorite memes of the year.

But it’s safe to say that his visit with Scheffler and Nantz might not have been his favorite moment of the week, because his playing partner during the final round was as good as it gets.

Mr. Tiger Woods.

Luckily for golf fans and sickos alike, Full Swing cameras were rolling for it all.

What didn't make the cut was a moment as wholesome as they get, when Shipley and Woods were rounding Amen Corner and the Full Swing crew was nearly hiding in the bushes filming behind long-lens cameras. The then 23-year-old Shipley gave his caddie a glowing recommendation to Woods, if he were in the market for a caddie. It's those raw, real moments—even the ones left on the editing floor—that show how well this show encapsulates the golfers it features. It's not just an interview or some clips, this is our opportunity to take the long walk inside the ropes of professional golf.

And that's exactly what Skratch's new podcast, "Vanity Index" will be highlighting and expanding on all season long. Skratch founder and Full Swing creator Chad Mumm has teamed up Wells Adams of Bachelor to walk us through the first seven episodes of Full Swing with insider information straight from the source.

On top of a few great nuggets from the set of “Happy Gilmore 2”, episode one offered an inside look at Shipley’s presence on Full Swing Season 3 from producers Mary Stamm-Clark and Ella Briscoe.

“He’s an absolute legend. So great. He’s just one of the funnest people to be around. Laughs and laughs over and over," Stamm-Clark says.

The producers set up the "can't make this up" scene when the crew visited Shipley to interview him about the Masters while he was Ohio State.

“So we went to film his Masters interview, and I think he lived with seven guys, and you walk in and it’s as sweaty and smelly as you’d expect," Stamm Clark says. “He opens the door to his bedroom and he’s like ‘Is this okay?’ and I’m like ‘This is fine. We’ll work with it'...so yeah, you'll see shots of his dorm room, it's amazing."

“But he’s so funny about it, as well, he’s like riffing on the fact that he’s put his XBOX on two beer crates, he’s like ‘I mean, it’s functional. Why would I not do that?’”

Like Joel Dahmen before him, Shipley’s popularity in golf and out on TOUR is going to be the stuff of legend after everyone sees him on Full Swing.

You can listen to the first episode of Vanity Index wherever you get your podcasts.