Got cut from JV. Earned a Minnesota Twins tryout. A pickup-game collision tore my ACL, but I still made the college team. How you respond to failure can make a difference.
In Episode 010 of The Long and Short of It, Jaacob and Jennifer pull a card that reads: “Tearing my ACL after senior year + NBA dreams,” and trace how a knee injury at 17 shifted Jaacob’s trajectory—and his mindset. He describes making a college basketball team while braced and tentative, the long tail of that fear in later competition (from long drive to Speedgolf), and even recurring dreams about performance at moments of truth. Together they examine how early trauma can create protective patterns that mute our power, how to spot those “blind spots,” and how the point of some setbacks may be to redirect us toward a new path.
Would you believe there are golfers far more talented than Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods? In this clip from The Long and Short of It podcast (Episode 009), Jaacob reflects on how the system weeds out potential greats, while Jennifer shares the story of a village kid with a beautiful swing.
When I turned pro in golf at 27—after starting as an average golfer only six months earlier—I wasn’t sure where the journey would lead. By the time I neared 30, I didn’t know how I was going to keep going. But even if my golf career didn’t work out, I already felt like I’d won—because it brought me to Jen.
In Episode 009 of The Long and Short of It, Jaacob and Jennifer open with the “rainbows” in the room (spoiler: window crystals) before diving into what they’d tell their 20-something selves—now that Jennifer is 46 and Jaacob is 49 (50 soon). Starting, as usual, from a moment in Jaacob’s golf career, they revisit his mid-20s leap from a stable corporate job to professional golf—despite being an average golfer at the time.
Golf is played in three-dimensional space—swing technique, shot dispersions, equipment, strategy. But what if we can access other dimensions to play differently—and better?
In this Short, I'm talking about shifting awareness into one-dimensional space: no hole, no wind, no separation—just oneness and flow.
Pulled from a longer experimental round blending golf with quantum physics, spirituality, and philosophy.
As part of a 6-hole experiment at Belle Isle Golf Detroit, I played across dimensions of space. Felt the wind in strong 3D, then softened into 1D before a birdie putt.
Is it possible that a better way to play golf exists beyond traditional means?
In this experimental round, I push the boundaries of the game to explore golf as a multi-dimensional experience—where quantum physics, philosophy, spirituality, play, and more all collide on the course.
Golf can be more than just mechanics—it can also be a practice in balance and awareness. In this short, I use golf as a meditation by syncing my breath and body with the environment around me. Surrounded by the water, earth, air, and sun of Belle Isle Golf Detroit, I walk into each shot with calm focus, working to release tension and stay grounded. This is golf as mindfulness in motion, where every swing becomes a way to connect with nature and inner balance.