Is Stick a True Story? Are Pryce Cahill and Santi Wheeler Based on Real Golfers?

Created by Jason Keller, Apple TV+’s ‘Stick’ is a sports comedy series that follows a washed-up golf player named Pryce Cahill. He used to be a highly successful player, but one incident of breakdown led him to lose everything he held dear. It has been years since the incident, but he has not been able to pick himself up. He hasn’t been able to find a purpose that lights a fire in him. That is, until he meets Santi Wheeler, a prodigy whom Pryce wants to turn professional, hoping that his success could be a turning point for both of them. However, things are not as easy as they seem, and that’s what becomes the core of this deeply human story.

Real-Life Golf Pros Added a Realistic Touch to the Fictional Stick

‘Stick’ is a fictional show that originated in the mind of Jason Keller, who was interested in the idea of exploring a story about not living up to one’s potential. At the time, golf wasn’t particularly on his mind, but he was more focused on the story of a person who had shown great promise once but, due to some circumstances, had failed to live up to his full potential. The impact of not being able to have what they dreamed of is meant to have a profound impact on a person, which leads to the question of where their life goes next. These questions led to the creation of Pryce Cahill, and eventually, Keller decided that golf was the best way to traverse this journey.

With golf becoming a character of its own in the show, it was important to ensure that the sport was portrayed as authentically as possible. Actors Owen Wilson and Peter Dager received golf lessons so that they could understand the basic jargon of the sport, as well as its intricacies, to become comfortable talking about it on the screen and add a sense of realism to the conversations between the characters. Real-life golf players like Collin Morikawa, Keegan Bradley, Max Homa, and Wyndham Clark have cameoed in the series, which makes the show feel more realistic. Moreover, golf pros were also present on set every day as consultants so that no detail was overlooked.

Jason Keller Wanted Stick to be a Feel-Good Show

While the sport is an important part of the show, it is more of the human elements that led Keller to write the show. With each character, he wanted to show a form of hardship that they are struggling with, which holds them back, but also becomes the precursor of their storylines. Moreover, the show also shines a light on the importance of finding a family on this journey and how it can help a person grow, despite the boundaries they have placed on themselves. With each character, the writer created a different personality, which means the group would clash but also complement each other in a way that makes them realise that they need each other more than they imagined.

At the end of the day, Keller wanted the show to have a warm and uplifting tone, which forms the core of the story. Despite the heavy presence of golf, he did not want the show to be just for golf lovers. He wanted the audience to connect to the story on an emotional level and invest in the personal growth of Pryce and Santi more than their professional arc. Through this connection with the story and the characters, ‘Stick’ presents itself as a realistic show even though it is firmly rooted in fiction.