Tin Cup – Bland Trap

Tin Cup re-teams director Ron Shelton with his Bull Durham star Kevin Costner. The pairing, which was stellar in 1988’s Durham, fails to rediscover the magic of that film.

That’s primarily because Roy McAvoy, the titular Tin Cup, just isn’t likable. He’s an obtuse man-child—much more akin to “Nuke” Laloosh than “Crash” Davis. And his foibles, which are on full display throughout, are never adequately addressed. One would be justified in arguing that his growth arc may actually be a negative one.

Despite that, there is fun to be had on the back nine, especially if you ignore the forced romance sub-plot; and Tin Cup is at its best when it’s tapping into the more spirited aspects and nuances of golf.

In addition, its ending holds to this day. McAvoy’s insistence on going for it all amplifies what could have been just a typical sports movie. That boldness is probably why critics appreciated it (72% on Rotten Tomatoes with 53 reviews). Audiences did, too. Though not a huge success, Tin Cup did manage to rake in $70+ million on a budget of $45 million. We’d say that’s at least a box office par.

Now sit back, grip and rip the top off a Modelo Negra, and define the moment! I, the Thunderous Wizard (@WriterTLK), Chumpzilla, Capt. Cash, and Mayor McCheese are letting the big dog eat!

This Week’s Segments:

• Introduction/Plot Breakdown – Tin Cup works very hard to stretch the limits of Kevin Costner's charm. (00:00) 
• Lingering Questions – We hear from our brothers in beer at Hop Nation USA, and then assess whether this movie ended appropriately. (53:14)
• The "Golden Tassle" Trivia Challenge – The Double Turn Podcast shanks one out of bounds, and then Chumpzilla challenges the field to a series of questions relating to the movie. (1:09:17)
• Recommendations – We offer our picks for the week and next up: We begin "Hops and Spooky Flops" with the long-gestating episode, Event Horizon.  (1:24:55)

And, as always, hit us up on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram to check out all the interesting factoids—the inspiration for Tin Cup's infamous 12 and more—from this week’s episode!

You can find this episode of Hops and Box Office Flops on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Podbean, Spotify, Acast, TuneIn, iHeartRadio, Vurbl, and Amazon Music!