[upbeat jingle] - Hello, I'm Nido Qubein and welcome to Side By Side.

My guest today is as comfortable discussing technology as he is tea times.

He's a business leader, a philanthropist, and the driving force behind one of the nation's oldest PGA tour events, North Carolina's PGA Wyndham Golf Championship.

Today we welcome Mr. Bobby Long.

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- Bobby, welcome to Side By Side.

We're glad to have you here.

I've got to take you back to when the Wyndham Championship was somewhat in trouble, and they called upon you to come into the inner circle and make something happen.

And you did.

And today the Wyndham championship is, is really a, a big deal and very, very successful.

Can you take us back to that moment and tell me what is it you did and why?

- So well, first of all, Nido, I'm thrilled to be here with you and I've admired forever everything you've done.

In 2003, I had sold my business in 2002 and unfortunately had been in the newspaper and that kind of stuff.

So I was getting a lot of calls by a lot of different people for charitable contributions, et cetera.

One of those calls was from a kid named Mark Brazil.

And, and so in 2003, he called and said, can we get together and that kind of stuff, and I put him off and put him off.

And I was fortunate enough to play on the Wachovia Championship Pro-Am, which was the first year.

And they did a bang up job and on the way back from there, I, I called Mark and I said, where, where are you?

And he said, I'm actually on the practice tee at the Wachovia Championship.

And I said, well, and unbeknownst to me, he was actually interviewing for a job.

And so I said, well, how, how long would it take you to be in my office?

And he said, I'll be there in two hours.

So he came and he said, here's where we are and I was like, this looks sort of bleak.

They were in the fall and they were under the Chrysler banner.

Chrysler Championship.

Chrysler was going to exit golf.

And he said, and so I said, Mark, what does it take for us to, to be great?

Where are we now on the report card?

And he said, we're not very good, but to be great, we, we need to get inside this new thing called the FedEx Cup.

And I said, well, can you, can you do it?

Can we put together a business model?

Because as you know, if you don't have a sound business model, you don't have a chance.

And if you don't have an energetic leader, you don't have a chance.

And Mark was that and he had the business model.

So the, the golf tournament at the time was mainly supported by Greensboro at 93%.

And the size of PGA tour events was much larger than that.

So we needed to embrace the, our entire region.

And, but first we had to get a title sponsor.

And, and so, I believed in Mark, I believed in and what he could do.

I loved his enthusiasm.

He worked tirelessly.

And, and so then we, we started out to try to get in the FedEx cup and, and, and find a title sponsor and I can tell you a little bit about that if you would like.

- The amazing part is that you, you you're known as the handshake guy, by the way, you, you make deals based on a handshake.

You, people trust you and they want to do business with you and they want to follow you.

And I believe part of that is because you've developed a skill of, of recognizing talent when you see it.

Skill, when you see it.

Leadership, when you see it.

So you've just told us a story where you, you like this guy and you thought this Mark guy can do something.

And then you put your armament behind him, if you will.

How did you get Wyndham to participate at this tournament?

- Well, it's a great, it's a great question.

And the first thing was to try to get inside the FedEx Cup.

And so we got a meeting with Tiger's agent and because Tiger, Tiger had a lot to do with the TV ratings, and we were like, can you get us a date inside the FedEx Cup?

And so he came back and he said, we've got this one date.

And it was after the PGA championship and right before the playoffs and I was like, well, wait a second.

That's when everybody's going to take the week off.

And he said, well, not the people that are trying to get into the playoffs and people trying to keep their card.

And I said, okay, there's a story around that.

And then, but how are we going to get a title sponsor?

And can we incentivize you to find us a title sponsor?

And so he, he then went to the PGA tour and called us back and said, they will give you this date, the date that I just mentioned.

But since you are not going to have a title sponsor, since Chrysler is exiting, you have to put up a, a letter of credit for $25 million.

- And what year was this, Bobby?

- [Bobby] This was 2005.

- 2005.

- And, and so the question then was, well, how long do we have to do that?

And, and because we, we certainly did not want to go around the region and say help bail us out when the problem was predominantly a Greensboro problem, because we had not kept pace and it would be disingenuous to go to you and others and say, cough it up.

And, and so instead we said, we're going to try to cover this and then, so I asked, I asked this guy, I said, how long do we have?

And he said, you've got three business days to do it.

And I said, well, tell them, we'll have it on their desk tomorrow morning.

- And you did.

- [Bobby] We did.

- And the rest is history.

- Not really because then what happened is we had to get a title sponsor cause we're on the hook.

- I see, the sponsor is important because they bring in significant funding?

- Yes.

So we were taking the place of the title sponsor because we didn't, we didn't have a title sponsor.

So we're on the hook for that letter of credit.

And so that's when I met Steve Holmes after eight months, eight months of nobody showing up.

- How did you talk him into becoming the sponsor?

- Well, I, I said there are two ways to do negotiations and my, my way here to four would be to hold the cards super close to my chest and in this case, he knew that we had no hand.

And so instead I said, Steve, you know, we're in a desperate position.

You know, we don't have any, nobody's shown up for the last six months.

The tournament's coming up, and so we'll hear all our cards and we'll cut you the greatest deal of all time.

And he said, pick up all those cards.

We will take the whole thing.

And that was like, you know.

- [Nido] A gift from the heavens.

- Well, and I said, why would you do that?

And he said, because we believe in good partnerships.

We expect this to go for a long time.

And we think you'll be a better partner if we do our part, which was, I'd never witnessed that before.

- That's leadership at its best, isn't it Bobby?

And so you went on to be inducted in the Carolina's Golf Hall of Fame.

You then became member of the Augusta National.

When did you become member of Augusta National?

- 12 years ago - 12 years ago.

And now, there are how many females in Augusta National?

It's up to three?

- No, no, no more than that.

We're growing all the time.

- Yes.

Well good.

So let's move from golf, which has become quite successful with Wyndham PGA tournament.

Well attended.

Has a great sponsor.

Sponsors gets a lot of attention near and far carried on the national network.

Let's go to technology because you are in the re-insurance business.

- [Bobby] Right - And now you're really so invested in technology.

And you are the grandfather of really putting a lot of resources, venture capital into companies or into persons that you see some promise in their products and the processes in their projects.

Can you take me to the very first time that you invested in a technology company?

Where were you?

What were you thinking?

Did you know anything about technology?

Just take us there for a moment.

- I basically didn't even know how to spell technology and, and what happened was that because of Mark and because of following his enthusiasm and working through all the difficulties, et cetera, it was like a startup.

Mark, Mark Brazil with the tournament.

So I was like, okay, how is that?

How can we use that as a template for other things that could be beneficial to North Carolina?

And it could be rewarding intellectually.

And again, they have to have some form of business model that works for a lot of people.

So that if you had those three things, then you had a multi bottom line.

So I knew that I was too attention deficit to run it myself.

So I was like, okay, who, who do I get to do this?

And Louise and Jim Brady had done some stuff with the community foundation where I thought that they, for the young people deal, that they might be able to sign up 20 people.

And they signed up 340.

And so I was like, okay, well, these are can-do people.

So Louise, I was like, 'she's a crackerjack business person.'

She's got the enthusiasm of Mark Brazil, et cetera.

So it fit.

And plus, that unfair advantage that women have on the intuition side, on reading people.

So to your point earlier, it is about, the technology, but if the people don't fit as good as the technology can be, we will not do it unless the people are exemplary.

- [Nido] Yes.

- So, so what happened was to convince Louise to do it, to come on board, went to a friend of mine in New York, who is a very notable figure in the investment world and the whole bit.

And he said, you have great academic people and scientist in North Carolina, but you have no venture capital.

So go to the, your number one scientist and see what they're up to.

And then if you like it commercialize it.

So.

- So, so how does that work?

I want to make sure I understand.

So your friend suggested that you spot some academics and professors who are doing significant research and to spot one of those and say, you've got the idea you need the capital.

I'll bring the capital.

We'll partner with this.

Was the first company, was it Carbon?

- [Bobby] Yeah.

- It was Carbon.

- [Bobby] Yeah.

There were actually three that happened in one meeting.

- Really?

- Yeah.

- So you went to that university's campus, you sat down with this individual and you said, tell me your ideas?

- Yeah.

So what happened was, so I have a, I have a friend named Tom Nelson and his brother Steve.

So Steve lived in Chapel Hill and all I'd heard about was Joe DeSimone, Joe DeSimone, Joe DeSimone.

So I said, well, get us a meeting with Joe DeSimone, so we can fulfill the, the advice that our friend in New York had given.

So we walk in and this guy was not only brilliant, but he was a eminent professor of chemistry and chemical engineering.

And in chemistry, I had a, I had such a hard time in chemistry that I dropped it when I was a freshman and went back and took it as a senior because I didn't want to feel insecure about chemistry, the rest of my life, and, and yet when Joe talked, I understood it, pretty well.

Anyway, I said, what are your, with Louise, and I said, what are your three best thoughts?

And he said, well, a 3D printer that would be like raising Terminator out of a puddle of liquid.

And so what can you do with that?

And he said, "Well, we can make the next generation of chips.

"We can make micro needles, we can do vaccines in micro needles."

And I said, "Well, what does that mean?"

And he said, "Well, that's like a little band-aid."

He said that you can put on your skin.

And, for the vaccine that we've all just taken for COVID we would need a 50th of the dose versus going in our arm muscle and, and it wouldn't need to be refrigerated.

And so, and then you could build in time release.

So anyway, he said, "I can, "I see that coming and I can do that with this printer."

And he said, "and the next thing is, "I've got the next generation battery that I'm working on "with some scientists at Berkeley.

And then I've got a thing for pancreatic cancer."

- Yeah.

Wow.

This is very intriguing, Bobby.

This is the essence of the entrepreneurial spirit.

This is the essence of someone who spots an idea and resources the idea, and the idea grows.

And then it serves society at large, in a meaningful way.

You mean, you just met with this, this wonderful academic and you decided to put millions of dollars in his idea?

- Yes.

- [Nido] And did you sleep that night?

- Actually, I slept quite well.

I was so excited about it because I was like, my gosh, here's Mark Brazil.

And that was really fun, scary, but really it's not for the faint of heart.

Then Louise has a total can-do attitude.

And then I met Joe and I was like, "How do you get better than this guy?"

And, and so basically we said, "We don't care what the valuation is.

"You tell us what the valuation is.

You tell us how much money you need and the answer's yes."

- And how many of those projects are you in?

How many of those companies?

- 29 - [Nido] 29.

Are they all in Silicon valley or...?

- No.

They are, they're several in, well, the main ones in, in, in the Bay area are Carbon, The Battery and then Alzheimer's drug.

And that I'm quite excited about, which is such a difficult issue.

And then coming back all the way across.

So we've got them in the Midwest, the New York area.

And of course in North Carolina, quite a bit in North Carolina.

- So this is all of this is under Piedmont Capital Partners?

- Yes.

- Well, you know, listening to you, what fascinates me is you are a great American who took risks, building your first business.

You worked hard, you had to make difficult decisions.

You found solutions to problems that perhaps others were not able to find that quickly.

You succeeded.

And then you wanted to multiply that into a zone of significance.

And so when I hear you speak about the Wyndham Golf Tournament, there's really nothing in it for you.

This is a charitable, in fact, you've founded the charitable foundation to sponsor that.

And in fact, you give a lot of contributions to other nonprofits in the region, and then you were intrigued by these professors who are doing amazing things, but more so you were intrigued by the result of what they're working on.

So when you speak about Alzheimer's or, or the little bandaid, you know, with a vaccine, there's a sparkle in your eye, there's something about you that just comes through.

And that's a remarkable, that's a remarkable trait Bobby.

I hope that you acknowledge that God has given you an incredible skill and talent and a seed for greatness, because you are doing it through other people and helping other people grow.

29 companies that are hiring people and coming up with technologies and serving society, not only in the United States, but perhaps globally as, as well.

You started with Carbon and those two, three ideas.

And how long has it been to get to 29 companies?

- So that started in 2013.

- Okay.

So wow.

So in, in less than a decade, were 29.

Any of those went public?

- Yes.

Actually one went public earlier this year and this one I'm actually quite excited about.

It's called NexImmune.

So what happened here was that there's a fellow named Sol Barer.

And Sol Barer was born in a concentration camp and by the luck of the draw he got out and he ended up in this country and he is the, he is one of the greatest Americans of all time, because he is thankful every single day for the opportunities he got here.

And he worked his way through, I mean, so much sweat and the whole bit, somebody, and he founded a company called Cell Gene, which at the time was nothing, but he, through perseverance, he created the greatest, the greatest cancer drug there's ever been.

So in this case, he spotted a technology that tames the immune system.

So the immune system is the most powerful drug ever created, and it can cure cancer.

And it can also, if you are able to tame it, then you can, you can cure type one diabetes.

You can cure auto immune diseases, all these afflictions that unfortunately our friends and loved ones have.

And, and so anyway, that's that went public in February.

- Went public and what was the, the, the price of the stock when it went public?

- So it's, it's down a little bit from where it went public, but this is one of those things where they were raising money.

It was a successful IPO, initial public offering, but I'm excited about what they're doing.

Take, take diabetics.

Yeah.

Okay.

Go ahead.

- Yeah.

Well, it, it, it takes time for these companies.

It takes time.

There are ups and downs, but eventually they, they, they do very well.

So.

- I'm not selling any.

[Laughs] - Look, it's, we could talk to you for hours because we're intrigued by the America that created opportunities for so many.

You know, America has a lot of blemishes in its history, but we have to focus on the goodness in this country.

And, and as your friend appreciates what this nation stands for and the opportunities that are laden within it, that's really what you're creating.

And I'm fascinated by all these discussions, especially when you're talking about technology companies that creates medicine, and that creates a better, you know, living, living space for all of us, with health and so on.

I want to take you back in a full circle, back to golf.

I remember, and I want you to tell me the inside story on this Bobby.

I remember when the Wells Fargo PGA in Charlotte had to delay for a year, they would lose their, their slot, I guess, or their time when the calendar.

Quail Hollow had to do some work at Quail Hollow.

And they were in, in, in a difficult time trying to figure out what do we do?

We gotta, we gotta maintain this.

And they turn to you again and you solved it for them.

And you took them down to Wilmington, North Carolina.

Tell us that story briefly.

- Well, a few of us had started a club there called Eagle Point golf club.

And we were quite proud of it as being a great test to golf.

And so our buddies, Johnny Harris and Mac Everett called and said, would you, would you be open to doing this in 2017?

And, and so it was a chance to do something for the Wilmington area.

And, and it was also a chance to demonstrate our product and how good it can be.

And so it was a lot of fun.

- And you did it.

And it was very successful and everybody was happy.

I read somewhere the story of you being down at the Augusta National, and a little boy was with his daddy, right out on the green.

And somehow this little boy got injured and some blood was coming out.

And there was a doctor there who was trying to attend to him, but the doctor did not have the resources to make it happen, whatever first aid materials, and you happen to be standing there.

And, and they didn't know who you were, but you said, give me a second.

And you ran back somewhere and you came back within seconds with all of the first aid that they needed.

And nobody remembered who the doctor was, but everybody remembered who Bobby Long was.

What did you do?

You ran back where, how did you find this stuff?

- Well, the resources available around Augusta National are amazing.

And I was, I was shocked when, when anybody even mentioned that story, because what a joy for me.

Here was a little kid.

And I, I remember taking my son as a little kid to, to the Masters long before I was involved with it at all.

And Augusta is the most hospitable place of all time, so I was simply doing my duty.

So it was a joy for me.

- Yeah.

But Bobby Long, that duty is a pattern in your life.

One can, one can point to hundreds of points of light that you lit for others.

And that's why I believe you were blessed.

That's why I believe you'll have the mind that you have and the capacity that you have to be a leader in the community, almost everything that needs help and comes to you.

You find a way to make sure it's a win-win-win for everybody.

What's next for Bobby Long?

You are, you are involved on all these boards.

You're investing in all these companies.

You're, you're, you're chairing the, the Wyndham Championship board and the charitable foundation that this is related to.

What's next for you?

- Well, first of all, thank you for saying that.

And I do think that the people that I've admired the most have when they've achieved success, instead of swelling, they grow.

And if they grow, then they're giving back.

And if they're, anyway, you know, the difference and we can all spot the difference.

But the, the one thing that, and, and always, you have to put these things in context from a timing perspective, but I am very concerned about underprivileged.

And I'm very concerned that a lot of three-year-olds have no chance because they're already lost from, from when they're born to age three.

And then how do we, how do we make that into something that benefits our community?

So California tech companies right now, for example, are looking to establish more presence on the East coast.

Well, why not here?

And, and how about at the same time we prepare these underprivileged youth for hope in places like that and provide the educational opportunity for them instead.

- Something tells me you will do that, and you'll do it in a great, great way.

Bobby, thank you for being with us today.

Keep on doing great things to make our world a better place.

Thank you, sir.

- Thank you, Nido.

- Funding for Side By Side with Nido Qubein is made possible by: - Here's to those that rise and shine to friendly faces doing more than their part.

And to those who still enjoy the little things You make it feel like home.

Ashley HomeStore.

This is home.

- The Budd Group is a company of everyday leaders making a difference by providing facility solutions through customized janitorial, landscape, and maintenance services.

- Coca-Cola Consolidated is honored to make and serve 300 brands and flavors locally.

Thanks to our teams.

We are Coca-Cola Consolidated your local bottler.