Breaking Records Through Resilience with Josh Simpson

Okay, welcome back to the podcast and as always, I'd love to have guests on with inspirational stories.

People have achieved incredible things and I this is the first for my podcast.

I've got a world record breaker on my podcast and the man I've mentioned that has done an incredible thing this year, he's going to tell you all about it.

But I've got a world record holder, Mr. Josh Simpson, who's on the podcast to share his story.

If you don't know, Josh is going to share with you in a minute what he's done, but he is now officially a world record holder.

So.

Good evening, Josh, how are you?

I'm great.

Thanks for having me on.

So, mate.

Right, so for those that don't know anything about you, and obviously we've been following and sharing your journey a little bit over the course of the year.

Tell us how you are world record holder.

Tell everyone that doesn't, you know, didn't know.

What have you done?

Yeah.

So as of December 8, a few weeks ago now, I broke the world record for the most different golf courses played in a year.

So the record was sat at 580.

So that meant I needed to play at 581 in a 365 day period.

And yeah, we managed to do it.

Look, we've spoken, obviously, I've followed your journey since sort of February time.

Talk to people a little bit about, I want to unpick today how difficult it is to break a world record.

And obviously golf is the people who listen to this, that may be golfers, but I want to talk about the elements of the journey that you've been on and what's happened.

And obviously, you know, you were inspired.

One of the big things that struck me when I first met you is you were inspired to do something after a tragedy with your mum passing.

What was the, what was the, the moment where you thought I'm gonna do, I'm gonna break the world record for me.

Can you remember that moment where you thought I'm gonna do this?

I mean, it was a, it was an interesting way that it happened.

It was on a journey to the Netherlands last year with a good friend of mine and we were just, we had a very long drive over there and we were going from Calais and we.

Yeah, I just, he's a person that I really listen to when he talks.

He's very intelligent guy and he's a good friend and we were just chatting about life and whatnot.

And I said, you know what?

One day when I Retire.

I'd love to go and break a world record, you know, sorry, not break a world record when I retired.

Love to go and just buy a motorhome and play golf.

And then he says, why don't you, you know, try and break a world record?

And.

And we'd already, he.

We both already knew about the.

The kind of record that had been broken for the different golf courses.

And I kind of looked at that and thought, you know what?

That's crazy idea.

I don't know why that.

Dunno why that would be a thing at all.

And we got there and I thought about it a lot and I went back to him and I said, look, there's so many reasons why I don't think this is a good idea.

And every time I went back to him with a reason, he kept coming back to me with, actually, he was overcoming it.

And he said, well, look, you're in the primary life physically in terms of age.

You're 26 years old.

If you're going to do something like this, this is the time to do it.

You don't have a house, you don't have a partner, you don't have kids, you don't have anything.

The only that you're tied to is essentially the business that I ended up giving up.

And, yeah, I think I probably then spent the rest of that year really kind of wondering whether or not it was the right thing to do and probably did hit that button in November.

But I think I put that much time and effort and I had so many sleepless nights in terms of, am I doing the right thing?

Is giving up the business?

You know, what am I going to do at the end?

Am I going to be able to get a job?

There's so many questions.

Am I going to be able to afford to do something like this that by the time I hit the button on it in November, I was kind of determined that, you know, I was going to do it.

And we'll talk a little bit about the business.

Just so everyone knows you ran your own business.

Tell everyone what your business was and what you had to give up.

Yeah, so I had a domestic lawn care business, so dad passed it down to me.

We had about 450 customers all over Norfolk and we went and saw them four times a year.

So weed feed, scarifying, that kind of stuff.

It was a great business.

It allowed me a lot of freedom, you know, and a decent wage.

But the bottom line was everything that happened with Mum and especially losing her, so suddenly I realized that, you know, what Life is short and you don't know when your last day is going to be.

You don't know what happens to you at the end, as morbid as that sounds.

And I thought, well, you know what, let's do something good with it.

You know, we only get one shot at this.

And I want to kind of do something that I enjoy and I want to do something good and raise some money for charity.

And Mum was, that was her kind of centric.

She was very good at balancing all of the things that you had to do as a mom and a wife, obviously for working a full time job.

But even then she found time on top of that to raise money for charity and that resonated with me and I wanted to find my own way of being able to do something similar.

Yeah, and look, your stories.

But you know, not only have you broke the world record, but you've also, I think the last I saw you were up to like nearly 40 grand of money raised for some incredible charities.

And I think you probably, knowing you, you'll probably want to smash the 50 or 100k number to get to that place.

But just talk us through a bit that.

Because one of the things I think is really critical is about setbacks in life.

And yeah, unfortunately there are a lot of people who let the setback define them.

And you know, as someone that's lost, you know, I've lost my mum, you know, in the last five years, it's tough to go through, but I'm a bit older and maybe have got a bit.

But when you're 24, 25, when that happens to you, how did you.

You know, a lot of people can turn to troubled moments, can't they?

You can turn to drink, you can turn to drugs, you can turn to, yeah, lots of things and reasons as to why, you know, you might do something different.

But you turned on its head and said, I'm going to do something positive.

Can you remember sort of was there a moment you were thinking, I feel like I'm going to go down my Solaris for a bit.

And I mean, tell me, tell me about that part.

It's just, yeah, it's an interesting one.

I mean, I really, I think you realize that everything in life is meaningless in the respect of that so many negative things happen in your life and you think, I've had a bad day at work or I've had an argument with this person or whatever.

And we get so attached to the belief that, oh, you know, and we let that affect us so much and then until something like this happens, which is, you know, you go get home, mom's not feeling very well and within a space of a month she's gone, you know, and you think, well, you know, that's the person who's brought me into this life.

This is the person who I owe everything to for making me the person that I am today.

And she's just gone.

And, you know, how do you respond?

Everybody reacts in different ways to something like that.

And I think I became quite numb, you know, I wasn't someone, I didn't.

I've never been the person who really drinks a lot or has a lot of really bad habits, but I just kind of had this kind of like numbness and, you know, it was almost like, well, life's not going to be the same, you know, and then you go through this kind of grieving process of, well, she's not coming back.

So there's, you know, I'm never going to be able to see her again and again.

Depending on if you're a religious person or not, you know, then there's obviously things attached with that.

But it's tough, you know, it's, it's, it's a horrible thing to go through, not just as a 25 year old but, but at any age, you know, and it really makes you look at life differently and, and I think that was the little kick up the bum, so to speak, of going, you know, what, you know, what am.

I sat here just kind of autopiloting through life.

You know, I grew up and I did some things I regret.

I maybe wasn't the nicest person and I've learned from that and I've decided, you know what, I want to do something good with it.

Yeah.

I think it's so powerful what you said there and again, it doesn't compel to your.

Into what you did.

I remember when my mum passed four years ago, we did the NC500 on a bike in seven days with, you know, with four friends and we raised some money for, for Marie Curie.

And I remember looking back and thinking at least I felt like I've made, I made an impact.

And has this year made you feel a bit unstoppable now, do you think like, sort of like, you know, from tragedy has come this, you know, not tragedy, but from such, like you say, a difficult time when you, you know, and by the way, my mum was exactly the same.

It was five weeks, I think, and you sort of don't, you don't have time to process it.

But has it made you feel a bit like there's nothing you can't not do now.

Not really.

I don't know.

It's an interesting one.

I think it's, I still look at it like at the end of this, I mean a good example.

I put on a fair bit of weight this year, which is actually, I think a lot of people don't realize or certainly don't expect it.

And I, and I'm going right, the next thing you know, this year is obviously a write off.

I need to eat, I need to stay kind of energetic, I need all the energy I can consume and if I over overdo it, I'd much rather do that than underdo it.

But then I'm looking at it going next year I'm going to go to the gym and I'm going to do this.

And then I look back at the kind of times before when I've done that and I've not been able to stay motivated enough to go to the gym.

And I look at that and go, what excuse have you got now?

You've just gone out and done something that no one's ever done before.

How are you struggling to go to the gym?

And I think that really shows that it's a mentality thing, you know, and life is all about the way that you look at it, you know.

And I think it's interesting.

So many people just are happy with what they've got, which is absolutely fine.

Or some people may feel like they're not able to do something because of a variety of reasons that holding themselves back, they're too scared to make the risk.

And, and I was in that situation as well.

But yeah, it'll be interesting.

I mean obviously I'm still in the, in the challenge at the moment.

So there's a lot of things that are still yet to be determined in terms of what happens next and how I'm going to feel coming out of it.

But it's, yeah, you know, a lot of people say, oh, they're excited for me but I'm still kind of like I'm a bit nervous, you know, am I going to need to go down the job center and did a few weeks time or what?

You know.

Well, we'll talk, we'll talk about this in a moment because we know you're a bit.

But for those that you know, that haven't obviously experienced it because people, yeah.

And I say to people like, you know, I love my golf.

That's how I got to see a bit more what you do and you know, see it and.

But, you know, I'm 50 years old, so therefore my knees are a bit, you know, battered and bruised and whatever else.

But I find 18 holes a day.

If I.

If I play 18 holes, you know, it's my knees feeler.

You've gone pretty much most.

To give an extent of the.

Give people the extent of the.

This, you know, the scale of it.

Because it's been literally pretty much playing 36 holes a day for a long period of time.

Some 54 every day.

If you've not missed a day, I don't think have you at all played every day?

Every day.

So it's.

And that feeling of your bones and your body feeling tired.

I mean, how's it, you know, has it.

Because.

And those who don't know, you know, Josh is in his current.

In his motorhome, in his motor van, which he travels around the country and you might see him.

If you drive around, you see quest for 581, you'll see it's you driving it, basically.

So this is it.

And this is where.

Where are you tonight, for example?

You in some golf club car park, I assume?

I am currently in a retail park car park in.

Where am I?

Huntingdon, I think.

But, yeah, it's.

I suppose it's.

It just.

It's not really sunk in yet.

Even.

Even the fact that I've got the world record, it's.

It's quite tough to.

To kind of get my teeth into because it's.

I've not finished yet.

So even after.

It was quite hard to stay motivated after because it's like, well, I've kind of done it now, but also I want to try and push because I've got until the 23rd of January to keep going.

That's when my year ends.

So it's like, well, I want to make this unbreakable and I want to try and get it as high as possible, but it's like it still hasn't sunken because I'm still playing golf every day.

I'm still doing the same as I was the day before I broke the record, you know.

And so, yeah, we have.

We've had a long year.

It's, you know, that was one thing I really wanted to do was try and play golf every single day of the year.

And so far, we're.

We're on, what, 333 days?

And so we've kept that streak alive.

We've got Christmas Day, Christmas Eve and Boxing Day booked in, so we shouldn't miss them, you know, kind of failing any kind of, you know, miraculous horrible weather spike.

But I think the biggest streak was 87 days of 36 or more.

So I did two rounds a day or more for, for 87 days and then I did my busiest week was 20 courses.

So my full handicap changed in a, in a seven day period.

I did five days in a row of 54, 36 and then another 54.

So it was quite an interesting experience, your handicap changing that kind of quickly when for most people it probably takes them at least half a year.

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Now back to the podcast and just give people, you know, you know, when I walk, you know, Normally golf's a six mile walk, so you're sort of walking 12 to 18 miles a day non stop every day as well as obviously the physical exertion of golf and then not into.

It's, it's.

And to break the record, you know, you needed to play with someone, you needed to have it, you know, it's all officially done.

This is, you know, you had to get a card marked everything.

This wasn't, this wasn't just all a case of turning up and playing a few rounds, a few holes and you know, and I mean I played with you for six holes.

I had to go to admit me, but you had to play with someone else to mark the car.

It's very official the way it's all done, isn't it?

Of course, yeah.

I mean you wouldn't expect any different from Guinness, you know, and.

No, I know.

Still, people feel, oh, it must be that you've just turned up and played golf.

Actually there's a, there's a proper structure to it.

Right?

Yeah, there's, there's obviously more of a logistical nightmare behind the scenes.

I think everyone just kind of looks at it on the surface or may have just, you know, had a, around a golf and just chatted to their mates about it and you know, kind of almost a trivial Question of how many do you think you could do in a year?

Yeah, the logistical side of it actually organizing 600 plus rounds of golf that all revolve around working around my schedule, working around a golf club schedule and then also working around someone else's schedule to mark the card.

There's a lot of things behind the scenes that people don't see, which I've got two incredible people, Alex and Andy, who have been fantastic at helping with that.

But you know, maybe one day if I put maybe that down onto paper and maybe do a book or something like that out of it and that might shed a bit more of an insight of actually the, the behind the scenes stuff, which is a little bit different from obviously how it appears on the surface.

I think you should do a book actually, because there was a guy I did an interview with a number of years ago called Ben Rockett who broke he bro.

He was the world record holder for Le Jogle, which was Lands End John o' Graves and back again.

And I always felt his, his book was incredible.

A boy that had rickets and incredible story had some tragedy in his family as well.

And yeah, he did it in, I think it was five days, 20 hours, you know, to, on a bike basically to ride there.

And you know, you think it's incredible sort of what these achievements are.

When, when you, when you put that putt in.

I mean, I was there with, you know, the Caversham.

When you did that, when you put that final putt in and you sort of broke the record and you hugged your dad, did it, did it sort of feel a bit strange?

Did it feel like, you know, was there anything in your emotions that made you feel, wow, I've done it, I'll just, you know, because talk to me how that moment felt.

The whole day was an interesting one because there was a, obviously the, the, the charity day, there was a lot of people, there was nearly 100 people playing in the event and I had to organize that, get everyone signed in.

So I barely had a moment to breathe really all day.

And I was.

And I was a bit jelly legged at the round and I had actually had a bit more time to enjoy it.

But then obviously the documentary crew was there, so I did a fair amount of stuff for them.

So it was kind of, you're playing golf but you're also doing a few other bits as well.

And then it all just kind of disappeared.

And you know, the camera guy stopped asking questions and they went and set up on the 18th green.

And I think by the Time I got to maybe 17, there was a bit of a crowd behind the green there, looking at, watching me play the 17th hole and I thought, oh God, this is, this is sinking in now.

And, and I remember seeing off the 18 and not actually realizing that it was the 18th hole.

I thought it was the 17th still for some reason.

So I put one down the middle, which I was quite happy about.

And then, yeah, and then I kind of walked up the fairway and I had probably about 50 people behind me.

And then obviously there was a fair few people on the green.

It was a brilliant amphitheater type setting for the, for the 18th there.

So it worked quite well.

But it just became, yeah, it just became a bit of a blur.

It was almost like a bit awkward because it's like everyone's here to witness this kind of moment of me putting this ball in the hole.

And obviously I've never had an experience where I've had people actually watching me play golf or at least a few people.

So it was a very kind of daunting and almost like a bit of an awkward experience for me because this year for me was obviously about trying to do something that no one's ever done before and to raise some money for charity.

Whereas the reality is, you know, especially when you post stuff on social media, people see the videos and you get a fair few views on them every now and again, but it doesn't feel like it because no one's actually physically watching you.

And then you actually go to an event like this where people have followed all year and actually been part of something, which is a really amazing thing.

And then you get to the 18th and there's like, there's, that's actual people here.

Like, I'm, I'm a bit nervous now, so it was a great feeling.

Chatting to dad and, and obviously sharing that with dad was a, was a really cool moment and that's one that I, I certainly won't forget for the rest of my life.

It was a really cool day.

Yeah, I, I, I actually, I'm going to say I'm really annoyed about actually is I think that you should have had more coverage.

He ran a marathon every day.

And he said, he, he basically said he didn't get much coverage until the final day.

And then it appeared on the BBC news and whatever else.

And, and actually I'm a bit angry that you, I think you should have got a lot more.

I think I'm.

I know you've been.

You've had interviews with radio stations and Sky Sports News and a few other people, but to me, I. I don't know, I. I just felt a bit bad.

Not bad for you.

You know, you're not the sort of guy that worries about that sort of stuff.

But for me, I felt you should have had more for the.

And I. I just felt like there should be more people looking at it, because it's an incredible achievement to just do what you've done, as well as the logistics as well as the playing golf, as well as the.

In the midst of all of it, you know, being.

You are.

You know, you're still a young man doing this when there's lots of kids that would have quite happily gone down the pub or gone off the rails or whatever else.

So I personally.

It pays me off, actually, that you didn't get, you know, you should have been on BBC News and ITV News and all that sort of stuff, and have they been in contact or not or not really.

Well, firstly, thank you.

I mean, that's.

That's very kind.

Yeah, I don't think I've really heard much in the way of.

Of the.

Maybe the big kind of.

The big ones like that.

I mean, Sky Sports News were there and we did an interview just after I finished the last part.

But, yeah, I mean, it's, you know, you can only control what you can control.

And I think, you know, from.

From my perspective, it wasn't about this kind of, you know, big fame thing.

It was more just I wanted to do something and I wanted to, you know, to try and raise some money for charity.

And I think, obviously it's this kind of catch 22, because the more eyes that get on the challenge, the more donations you're likely to get.

But also, it's a bit like, you know, I kind of don't want loads and loads and loads of people, you know, on it as well.

So it's that kind of.

That balance, and that's something that I've certainly gotten used to this year.

I remember.

I remember pulling into golf clubs at the start of the year in a motorhome which was branded up, you know, saying quest for 581 on the side of it.

And I remember people staring at the van and I was like, I don't.

I don't like this.

And then I kind of just needed to take myself to the side and go, do you know what I mean?

Like, this is this is exactly why I've done that.

You know, I've, I've put everything on the side because I want the attention to try and get donations to charity and more awareness.

And I was like, I need to, like, I need to check myself here.

And then I, I, you know, I think it became a lot more normalized and I kind of still feel a little bit, you know, kind of skew if every now and again.

But, yeah, I'm a lot better with it.

But, yeah, as for the, you know, the challenge isn't over yet.

Maybe it gets a little bit more towards the end, the end of the challenge.

I mean, there's two kind of highs of the challenge, which might be a bit awkward from a reporting point of view, because obviously there's the day that I break the world record and there's also the day of the last day of the challenge, which is the final number that obviously I'm going to set for potentially anyone else in the future.

So, yeah, you might get a little bit more towards the end, but as I say, you know, I can only control what, what I come.

And that's a very measured approach.

I guess it's more people, such as supporters and people on myself, who just still feel a bit annoyed that you've not, you know, we've had that.

But like you say, it's what it is.

So what do you think the final number is gonna.

What, you know, is there a final number you've got in your head that you're thinking, actually, that'll make it tough to beat?

It's not.

I wouldn't go down that route necessarily.

I think it was.

It's.

Can we pick a number that's realistic with, with the pace that I've gone at this year and obviously the things like Christmas in the way.

I mean, I remember Patrick saying for the documentary that Patrick, the previous record holder, he said that 700 was impossible.

And I remember listening to that and going, it's not, it's really not.

Like, if I'd have just pulled my finger out a little bit more this year, I really could have done it.

I think 650 is the target that I've kind of set myself in my head.

But then again, chatting to Alex and Andy, my two kind of heroes this year, they seem to think that we can, we can smash more.

I think if I need 650, I need about an average of 1.5 a day between here to now and the end of the challenge, which I think is.

Is actually quite reasonable, considering I'm Going to go abroad and try and get some, some 36 holes guaranteed.

But, you know, it was the shortest, excuse me, it's the shortest day of the year yesterday and we still managed to get two courses in, so it's possible, you know, you're running around a bit like a headless chicken.

And I always thought it was possible to do two in a day.

You just need to be a bit smarter about the logistics of what course A to course B, in terms of travel time and also, you know, kind of making sure that you're, you know, playing with one other person, etc.

Yeah, yeah, definitely.

So let's just go for a couple.

You know, what's.

Can you, can you remember the toughest day in the whole, in the whole challenge?

Even though it's not over yet, you feel 30, 23 or 30 days.

What's been the toughest day?

Can you remember there was a, where there was a day when you're like, what the hell am I doing?

Stuff this, I'm in pain.

Or was there nothing?

Is there any day that particularly helps the mind?

I think the, the hardest days were, were actually when I had a flu.

I think I had that twice during the course of the year and that was really tough.

I mean, obviously on the surface the flu is, is a fairly minor thing, but when you're living in a van, you don't really have the, the necessarily home comforts that you normally would.

And, and you've got a.

The van is cold, the heating's not working, you're tucked away in a blanket and you've got, you know, a blocked nose and a headache and you're feeling horrible.

But the next day you've got someone who's waiting on the tea at half eight, who's ready to ask you another 50 questions about the challenge and is always curious, which is the same which has happened every day.

Again, no problem with that.

But when you're feeling really, really poor, that, that becomes a lot more of a chore.

And so I think they were the struggle days.

You know, I think I timed it quite well for the most part because at the start of the year it was cold, it was miserable, the heating was struggling in the van, but it was new, it was exciting.

And then I had things to, to like going down into Surrey around April time and then hitting the Cornwall and then Wales and then Scotland.

Like I had so much to look forward to.

I think maybe when I got back into England and that little stretch from maybe 80 to 100% was actually, you know, it's almost like we're running out of good courses to play or we're running out of the weather now and.

And so it's becoming even more of a chore.

And yeah, that was, that was a bit of a struggle, but, you know, that was hopefully what I was wondering would be the motivation to obviously get the record broken would be the kind of the thing I was looking forward to the.

But it was a bit of a struggle at parts.

But, you know, you're venturing into doing something that no one's ever done before.

It's not designed to be easy.

No, exactly.

And I've watched, you know, all your videos and I've seen how many breakfasts and, and different types of meals that you've had.

What's been the most common meal you've had during the.

I'm.

I'm going to put myself out there and say it's got to be a full English because if every time I've looked at your video and I've seen, yeah, full English again for him today, I've.

I must have counted hundreds of them.

So come on, what's the, what's.

What's the most popular meal you've had in the whole, in the whole talk?

It's got to be.

I don't think it's a full English, you know, especially.

I mean, I.

When it was when I was up in Scotland.

I mean, obviously they don't do them, but they, they have, they do it very differently.

They have so many meats on a plate.

They have a haggis and they have like square sausage and I wasn't a fan of all of this stuff, so.

Yeah.

And obviously full English is a quite heavy and obviously a lot of them is.

Is a pit of his struggle.

So I, I try and see if I could get something off the lunch menu, but obviously if you're finishing around a golf at maybe ten half turn, you.

You're struggling.

I think a golf club, it would probably be a ham and cheese panini or something like that.

I think that's a fairly safe bet.

A lot of golf clubs have it and it's, it's all right.

But obviously eating in the evenings, there's been a fair few kind of frequencies this year.

I think Nando's has been a fairly good one.

It's obviously good protein and it's fast food, but it's maybe not as bad as, as your kind of usual suspects or maybe a Toby Carvery.

They've been pretty good.

They're great value and it's again, you can kind of fill the plate up with some.

Some veg and some.

Some stuff.

And yeah, it's.

It's not too bad, but it's also been focused around other stuff, like can I plug.

Plug the laptop in somewhere while I eat?

And, you know, it's all of these little things to try and get as much out of everything that I do every day.

Yeah.

And what's been the best, you know, can you.

Is there.

Is there one round in the whole year in most golfers trying to remember their best rounds?

Obviously, you're a very.

You're four.

You're four or five.

Or maybe a bit about six now.

A bit to about six.

But what's the best round you actually had where you actually think that was the best golf?

I played, like, literally all 18 holes.

I was.

I was the business that day.

I went for a period when I was in, I think I want to say Wales now, where I got to the lowest handicap of the year, which is 3.0, which is the lowest handicap I've ever had.

And I just felt like I had it on a bit of string.

You know, short game was sharp and everything worked quite well.

And I think in that period, I shot my best ever round as well, which was one under.

So I beat golf, which I was like, I never thought I'd be able to do, which is a really cool experience.

So I hit 14 greens.

I mean, I left a few shots out there, I still think, but.

But, yeah, I just.

I could have held a few more putts, but I did hold a few putts as well, so it was a great day.

And that's one that I will have fond memories of, you know, kind of doing something like that.

Amazing.

So, look, I mean, punch that, you know, you've got just a bit, you know, for those that are listening to this maybe, or watching this, and, you know, I've got maybe the winter blues, you know, because we'll put this out.

Sort of, you know, thinking, you know, they're feeling a bit low or a bit down and they've had a tragedy or situation happen to them.

What's your, you know, what would be your message for someone at the moment of, you know, to maybe build on what you said at the start around how you just sort of said to yourself, well, why not?

But.

But what would be your message for someone?

Because I think you are, you know, just to add to that, I think you are a source of inspiration to people.

I think you certainly saw some inspiration to me for what you've done.

And yeah, you know, I think people listen to this stuff and they go, well, yeah, you know what.

What would you say to them if someone's feeling that little bit low, a bit down, or they've had something to happen to them like you did?

It's an interesting one because it's important to probably mention that everybody copes with these things in different ways.

And the way that I coped with it was probably the way that I look at life is that, you know what, Whatever hards you've been dealt in life and whatever kind of things happen, whether that's a good thing or a bad thing, you've just got to get on and deal with it, you know, You've just got to, you know, it's.

How can you pick yourself up and just get on with it?

You know, because after something like this happens, there's this kind of almost inevitable period of time where you go numb and you don't really know what to do.

And everything is so strange.

But all of this time is almost like, I don't want to say wasted, because everybody needs that time.

But the longer that you do that, you're just kind of in isolation or hibernation.

You know, you go into this kind of.

This state of kind of idleness.

And I think it's important to.

The way that I look at it is.

Is how can I change things?

How can I look at it and go, do you know what?

I want to push on, like, okay, I've had one of the worst experiences in my life happen to me.

It's absolutely horrible.

And I wouldn't wish that on anyone.

But it.

Life moves on, you know, you've got to get on with it and you've got to do something because, you know, it's cliche, but Mum wouldn't have wanted me to just sit there and.

And to be that person.

And I've gone, do you know what?

How can I take the positives out of this?

You know, I was a typical mummy's boy.

I was lazy.

I wasn't a good person, you know, and I All of these things and straight away, while mum was ill, I started.

I learned to cook, you know, so I could cook for me and dad and try and share some of the workload and to try and be a better person.

It's sad that it took for that to happen in order for me to do that, because one of my biggest regrets now is that, you know, why wasn't I able to cook for Mum every once in a while and to do These things for her.

But the silver lining of that is that, you know what, something negative's happened and I've changed the way that I do things because of that, you know, and, And I was, I suppose, forced to do that because I didn't have anyone to do the washing for me anymore.

I didn't have anyone to do the ironing for me and the cooking and all of this.

But I'd like to think that it should look at this and go, do you know what?

I'm proud, you know, because you've, you've even just things as simple as that, let alone going and, you know, maybe breaking a world record or being absolutely crazy in that regard.

But I just think, you know, I'd like to think that she'd go that, you know, what?

Bloody hell, you can do it.

You know, I think you, you know, you're right and you're.

I, you know, I think we take inspiration from the people that we, you know, we have had in our lives, don't we?

And actually having someone like that, that said, like you said, looking down, saying, yeah, she's.

And she is, she's incredibly proud looking down upon you and going, there's my boy.

He's gone and done something and made a positive element.

And I think that aspect of what you've done, I can say is a real inspiration for other people to go and say, look, nothing can get in your way if you believe something and you focus on it.

And of course, at the start, people think it's not possible, but like, say, as you said to your friend, you know, eventually you were starting to say, well, why can't I do this?

And when the excuses start getting knocked off, then it's like, eventually it's just standing up and putting a step forward, isn't it?

And I guess when you started doing in day one, day two, you didn't think you'd get to day five, of course one and course DO581 was a long way off.

Right, but that's always the way, isn't it?

You know, the, the journey of a thousand steps starts with the first one.

And I think, and it's going to sound horrifically morbid, but, you know, we're all going to go, well one day, you know, And I think it's moans in life and, you know, I just wanted to do something good with it, you know, how can I.

At the start it was like, what have I got myself into?

You know?

But I think the biggest thing and the biggest step that you can take is Actually promising to yourself that you'll investigate something, or, you know, I've always wanted to do this, or I've always wanted to do that.

You know, even.

It's just the baby steps with it.

It's promising yourself, right, firstly, I'm going to look at this and go, let's, you know, let's look at it from a.

An unbiased standpoint and go, right, what are the pros of this?

What are the cons of this?

You know, because you've always wanted to do something, it might not necessarily be a smart decision.

You know, I suppose it's worked quite well for me, but it's getting into that position of like, right, okay, at least.

The least that you owe to yourself is to investigate it and to do the research and to do that.

And then I got to that point where the pros for me outweighed the cons.

You know, I. I spoke to so many friends and so many family, and I laid it all out on the table for them.

People who did play golf, people who didn't play golf.

And I said, look, you know, I can only really see one negative, which is that I'm giving up a business that was, you know, set up, but I didn't really enjoy it.

You know, it wasn't something that I, you know, kind of wanted to do for the rest of my life, and I didn't want to live in Norfolk for the rest of my life.

And so is that really a con?

You know, and then you look at it and go, well, actually, I think the pros here, it's, you know, worth doing, and it's obviously a big risk.

And I'm not saying that everybody has to go out and, you know, have something negative happen and they decide to break a world record.

And I'd hope not, because I want to keep this for as long as I live.

But, you know, it's at the level where, you know, you just.

Everybody goes down this kind of route of just doing what is expected of them or what is normal and whatnot.

Like what?

You know, think outside the box and do something that you want to do.

Yeah, I love it.

Love it.

So, look, before we finish.

So obviously, the.

The, you know, what is next then, do you think?

Obviously, once the.

Once January 24th happens.

And by the way, you're not going to play on the January 24th.

Or are you.

Are you?

Because are you going to build?

No, no, no.

But I'm wondering, because you've got this addiction, right?

You've been playing and there's like a body for when you.

But you go in.

But I've got to go and play golf.

Or will you literally be having a day off?

I. I'm quite like my dad actually did mention at some point, like, you might have to wean yourself off it, like an addiction, you know, like a drug addiction or something.

You might just have to slow down.

But I am quite confident that I will be in bed for most of the day after, so I don't think there's any.

Any worries there.

And the last thing I will be doing is touching a golf club for a day or two.

But, yeah, what, what next is a.

Is an interesting one.

I think I'm still in the challenge at the moment, so it's quite tough to.

To really think about anything else.

I've got to try and, you know, all of my effort and energy at the moment is, is dedicated to this and to try and get the highest number of donations I can and the highest number of courses that I can, obviously figuring out ways to do that.

And then we'll see what happens.

I'm gonna probably go on holiday for a week or so.

If you've got any recommendations, I'm happy to hear them.

I want to go somewhere warm, but, yeah, I think we'll.

We'll probably look at, you know, we'll take stock of options and see what the crack is.

I mean, I think I still love golf.

I'm still passionate about the sport.

I need a little bit of break from playing it, but I think in terms of the, the game itself, I can see myself doing something in the golf industry as a job, but it's just figuring out what the kind of right move is.

Yeah, no, sure, sure.

Well, look, it's been incredible to see your journey throughout the course of the year.

There's lots of questions.

You're knackered, you've had 36 holes, then you've got 36 holes tomorrow.

So I'm going to leave you to it.

But thank you, mate, for being on the, on the podcast.

And yeah, I just, I think people listening to this, I think will will just be inspired in the same way as I was.

And look, one of the things as well that, you know, you maybe don't realize, but I think maybe you probably do realize, is that there's a ripple effect to what you do.

And I always think there's.

That, you know, when you throw a stone in the water, it's not the initial thing, it's the impact it has over a period of time, and it'll be the ripple effect of what you do of people going and looking back and seeing what you've done and you know, not maybe even the next month, but over the next few years and realizing that some it was possible and some it was achievable.

And you know, you don't know how many lives you've probably affected and people going, wow, that I can do something.

And I think that's the biggest testament to me that I think that is, you know, for you is just that element of you've made probably impacted thousands and even hundreds of thousands of people's lives without knowing it because you, you've done something by doing it or made this happen.

And I think that's the, the inspiration that people need right, is sometimes to just to realize, well, if a 25 year old guy from, from, from Norfolk can do it, why can't I be for a tragedy?

And I think that's the bit that's.

Yeah, overarch for me at the end of it was more just before I made the decision, it was like, if I don't do this now, am I going to spend the rest of my life regretting it?

And that was the part that I was kind of a bit petrified of because I was right at that level where I was ready to hit the button.

And it was the scariest thing I've ever done in my life.

And it was like, do you know what, what's the worst that can happen?

You know, you'll always get another job at the end of it.

You know, it's just, you've got to kind of release yourself from that kind of burden and, you know, dare to do differently, you know, And I think that's where I got lucky this year that I did hit the button because there was a lot of sleepless nights and a lot of times where I was probably close to saying, you know what, I'll just, just carry on as normal.

Because it's the easy thing to do.

Yeah, but, well, mate, you hit the button in an incredible way.

You became a world record holder.

You've still got more work to do.

I know, but to finish off.

But where can people read?

You know, obviously, you know, I know you.

I'll put links to the, to the channel and stuff as well.

But, and actually it was interesting.

I had a guy that, because I put a post about you on LinkedIn the other day and a guy that I started into business with came out and said to me, where's his donation?

I wanted to send him.

It's incredible.

So I think, again, he was an example of someone that.

That saw what you did and.

But where's the best place for people to reach you?

And obviously, where can they.

Yeah, best places on the website, I guess, to make a donation from there as well.

Yeah.

It's obviously on the socials.

It's Ginger Golf, so that's on Instagram and TikTok, and that'll have a day in the life every day.

So I post a little video every day of what I do and where I've been and who I've met and the kind of people I've.

Is a great.

It's great.

And it's opened up a lot of doors in terms of playing other courses this year.

And then the website as well, which is gingergolf.co.uk, and that has kind of a list of where I'm going to be for the next seven days.

It has a giant map of where I've been as well.

See if I've played your golf course and of course, more importantly, where you can donate to two fantastic charities, which is McMillan and Tapping House, a local hospice to where I'm from in Norfolk.

Yeah, amazing.

Well, as I say, it's.

It's been an incredible achievement.

And my final question, what was the best shower in the.

In the whole golf?

Because that's.

That's the other thing.

For anyone watching the videos, Josh always gives every shower in every golf club a rating.

I've not yet seen a 10, so I'm on 9.9.

Maybe I've missed a video.

Who were the tens then?

Sunningdale.

Right.

Yeah, I've had a shower.

Sunningdale showers are very good.

Molten brown in the showers, which is.

Yes, I remember that.

I remember that.

Which is a good sign.

This stuff that's dangerous.

Because that.

That means I'm now going to be buying that for the rest of my life, which could be quite expensive.

And the Caversham, actually, which was where I broke the record.

Now this.

It sounds biased, but there is a very stringent set of criteria.

It's been very sad for me this year because I get.

And that's the only thing I think of when I go into a shower now, is it.

How does it fit alongside the criteria that I've set?

But the Caversham, they've had.

They.

They spent a lot of money on their showers when they redid the whole thing and they're worth a.

Worth a go.

Well, there you go.

So you go so well.

Thank you so much for being on the podcast.

It's an absolute provision monitor.

So, you know, supported you through the journey, but also being part of what you've done and helped you, you know, help see, we'll see what you've, you know, how things have evolved.

And that's the bit for me, which has been a incredible journey for me as a, as a watcher.

But for you, you know, seeing it and seeing how you've done what you've done is just, yeah, breathtaking.

So congratulations on being a world record holder.

It must feel and well, like you say when you have in, in late times to come, when you sit back on your chair in the, in the porch maybe and you think, I'm Josh Simpson, I'm a world record holder.

Hopefully it will still be the, the case and no one's broke it by that point.

It will feel incredible.

So, so well done.

Brilliant, breathtaking story to, to see and yeah, thanks so much for sharing more about the journey mate with us now.

James, thank you for having me on.

It's been a pleasure.

Great stuff.

So there we have.

That was Josh Simpson, the world record holder for breaking the most amount of golf courses in a year.

And I think the most important thing from Josh's story is didn't want to live in regret.

So what can you do next year or the year after or in the next month that you will be in the same position as Josh and not look back and be in regret?

Maybe become a world record holder yourself?

Let's see.

But thanks for listening to the podcast.

As ever, it's great to have you with me.

Lots to share, lots of stories to people to interview to, to bring inspiration into your world, help you achieve what you want to.

But that's it for this week.

Thanks for watching or listening and see you very soon.

Take care.

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