Stick review: Owen Wilson comedy is more than Ted Lasso + Happy Gilmore

But while these foundations are similarly constructed on paper, the story built upon them is executed very differently.

For one thing, Ted Lasso takes place in a heightened universe, where everyone from journalists to pub landladies to millionaire executives are at least 45 per cent quirkier than you could hope for in real life. By comparison, Stick feels more rooted in the world we actually live in – and that's a definite strength.

Owen Wilson's washed-up golfer Pryce Cahill isn't prone to the bouts of extreme corniness that characterised Richmond FC's eccentric coach, nor is he treated like some kind of modern-day prophet as Lasso occasionally appeared to be. In short, there's a lot more of the everyman to Pryce and a lot less sanctimonious preaching.

It's hard to imagine better casting than comedy legend Wilson, who reaches new heights of affability as this plucky underdog, getting by on little more than luck and magnetic charm. He's no angel, by any means – one of his introductory scenes sees him scam a group of drinkers with former caddy and closest pal Mitts (Marc Maron) – but his heart is firmly in the right place.

There are also opportunities for Wilson to flex his dramatic muscles, as Pryce and his soon-to-be-ex-wife Amber-Linn (Judy Greer) work through a past trauma, which is powerfully alluded to from the beginning of the season. It's more than a token tragic backstory and utilised effectively while setting up this compelling comeback.

Relative newcomer Peter Dager provides a strong foil as Pryce's rebellious, hot-headed student Santiago Wheeler, whose mother Elena (Mariana Treviño) encourages to dream after a tough knock of their own. For someone with so few screen credits, Dager rises to the occasion of co-leading this series, which rests heavily on the backs of himself and Wilson.

To clarify, that's a backhanded compliment – they may be good, but they have to be because the supporting cast feels comparatively underwritten.

Stand-up comic Marc Maron is a generic grumpy sidekick, contributing surprisingly little besides a camper van (read: plot device) in the first half of the season, while the non-male characters leave even more to be desired.

Yellowstone's Lilli Kay appears as gender-fluid bartender Zero, who uses she/they pronouns, and spends a good deal of the early episodes chastising people about everything from meat eating to owning dogs to misjudged choice of words. There's always going to be humour to mine from a generational gap, but some of this material is already pretty stale.

As someone of a similar age to Kay (although probably slightly older than the character she's playing), I feel the need to rebut this depiction of my fellow Gen Z'ers. I promise you: we are not all this annoying.

It's also disappointing to see Judy Greer typecast as "nagging ex-wife" Amber-Linn, who occasionally pops up to give Pryce a good telling off. Admittedly, she is well-intentioned, but the character plays into an outdated stereotype of stick-in-the-mud spouses acting like disciplinarian mothers, rather than independent adults with their own hopes, dreams and capacity for joy.

Amber-Linn is almost indistinguishable from Greer's earlier characters in Jurassic World or Marvel's Ant-Man (among others), which stings as the actor is capable of much more – see Arrested Development and Archer. Also, the name 'Amber-Linn' sounds distractingly like Anne Boleyn and it never gets addressed, which drove me a little insane.

Fortunately, Mariana Treviño gets to have more fun as Santi's somewhat chaotic mother Elena, whose tenacity, outspokenness and generally unpredictable behaviour can often liven up a scene.

Stick's shortcomings don't stop it from being an enjoyable show, but they are frustrating wrinkles that can hopefully be ironed out in the second half of the season, or perhaps even in a second.

As it stands, I am still prepared to bet that this is the best golf comedy you'll see this summer – that's if the trailer for Happy Gilmore 2, starring a half-asleep Adam Sandler, is any indication.

Stick is available to stream on Apple TV+ from Wednesday 4th June 2025.

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