Former amateur star Neal Shipley is keeping things light in more ways than one during his rookie season on the PGA Tour.
My senior year of high school I was honoured to be voted ‘Best Dad Bod’ in the yearbook. Humour was, and still is, a requirement in my friendships. I studied pretty hard and took a lot of AP classes but never took myself too seriously. The back-up plan was always a job in finance in New York if golf didn’t work out – I love math – but I’m so glad to be where I am now, competing against the best in the world every week.
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According to my parents, the first time I touched a golf club was the day Vijay Singh won the PGA Championship at Whistling Straits in 2004. My parents didn’t play, but my dad had an old set lying around. I was 3½. The story goes that I knocked the bag over, dragged out the 9-iron that was bigger than me and tried to swing it in the backyard.
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At first, I played the public courses outside Pittsburgh. When my dad realised I needed real instruction and a consistent place to play, in middle school we joined St Clair Country Club. It had a nine-hole course juniors could play unrestricted. My buddies and I would go 27 or 36 every day in the summer, making wagers and stopping at the pool bar for burgers and milkshakes. Tabs often went on the losers’ family accounts. Both of my parents are in finance and worked a lot, so I spent way more time at the club than they did. Of my group of friends, five of us went on to play college golf.
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At James Madison University, I managed my time well to have a balanced experience. I would really bear down and grind on my schoolwork late into the night to get ahead, focus on golf at tournaments, then have fun socially when we got back to campus. Thanks to my AP credits and some summer classes,
I graduated in three years. When I went to Ohio State for my masters in data analytics, I still had eligibility, so I played golf there, too.
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From my love of math, I’m locked into the data of golf. There are lots of shots to be picked up by just out-thinking people. On tour, making good decisions over the course of a year can turn into hundreds of thousands of dollars. If you look at the data, there are actually plenty of times when short-siding yourself is the best play, like if the miss provides a flat lie. I assess each scenario knowing the better shot might be an unlikely one.
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I finished my graduate degree in 2023 and had an unbelievable summer. I qualified for the US Amateur at Cherry Hills, entered matchplay in the middle of the pack, then made it to the final. A friend from home told his dad that he had to go watch me. His dad has done very well for himself and generously flew a big group out. So, I’m on the second hole of the final match when 12 of my friends show up. I don’t think I could have played much better in the final – Nick Dunlap beat me. We still had a proper celebration, though. The guys had brought a local Pittsburgh beer we’re all very fond of.
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At the 2024 Masters, I was the only amateur to make the cut. Played with Tiger. On Sunday, I’m in Butler Cabin with Chairman Ridley, Scottie Scheffler, Jon Rahm and Jim Nantz. I was so out of place. I wanted to get out of there as fast as I could without making any mistakes. I kept looking at the teleprompter to make sure I didn’t speak too soon. Later, I’m in the car and my brother erupts with laughter. He says, “You can’t see this; it’s so bad.” I grab his phone to find out my side-eyeing has become a meme. I felt like a dumbass, but it was funny. It was a surreal week. Capping it off by going viral only felt appropriate.
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After finishing as the low amateur in the US Open a few months later, I received several PGA Tour sponsor’s invites, played five weeks in a row and made four cuts. In 2025, I won two tournaments on the Korn Ferry Tour and locked up my PGA Tour card for 2026.
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I’m working with a nutritionist. We started simple. I took pictures of what I ate, and we’d review, making changes like eating less toast and more fruit for breakfast. Easy enough. Then I did some bloodwork to find out if I had any food sensitivities. Next thing I know, I’m gluten-free and dairy-free. I went along with it and tried a cheat meal a few weeks in. I felt so horrible, it made me want to never stray again. That beer
gut I had at the Masters in 2024 is gone. I’ve been in the gym more, too. It’s a different lifestyle, and it feels great.
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This year, I’m focused on fun, keeping it light and being myself. If I do that, I know a lot of good golf will follow.
Photograph by stephen denton
