Georgia head coach Chris Haack is aware of PGA Tour expertise when he sees it.
Or so he thought.
The legendary Bulldog has seemingly deployed a military to the PGA Tour over the a long time, together with almost a dozen winners, main champions amongst them. However till final Sunday, Haack’s disciples who’d arrived within the massive leagues had at all times completed so with at the very least one All-America placard hanging on their wall.
The person who simply bucked that pattern is Will Chandler.
Chandler didn’t even sniff All-America honors in 5 years buried on Georgia’s depth chart, and but the 27-year-old Atlanta native shocked the world – nowhere greater than Athens, Georgia – by incomes his PGA Tour card on Sunday on the last stage of PGA Tour Q-Faculty, the place he was certainly one of six graduates to advance via the grueling qualifying event.
“He’s probably the most unlikely man I’ve ever had make it to the Tour,” Haack mentioned. “There’s little question about it.”
That mentioned, Haack wasn’t completely shocked, including of Chandler: “Most likely additionally one of many hardest employees I’ve ever had.”
Haack’s cellphone is crammed with pictures taken by others of Chandler within the wild – or, in Chandler’s case, on a driving vary someplace. Haack recollects one summer time whereas Chandler was nonetheless on the workforce, a buddy was taking part in Cherokee Nation Membership, Chandler’s dwelling course, and on the way in which to the primary tee, he noticed Chandler on the far facet of the vary, beating balls, and snapped an image to textual content Haack.
When the group putted out on No. 18 some 4 hours later, Haack obtained one other textual content.
Chandler hadn’t moved.
The truth that Chandler obtained so little out of that dedication in faculty dumbfounded these round him, particularly Haack, who would usually surprise what occurred to that athletic recruit with nice fingers who received a number of instances on the AJGA. Chandler certified for 20 faculty tournaments, most as a person, and completed within the backside third of the sphere in 13 of these. He beat simply 28% of his competitors, too.
And his solely two profession top-10s got here in particular person occasions in Puerto Rico.
“I used to be not superb, to be sincere,” Chandler mentioned. “And taking part in as dangerous as I did, there have been a variety of instances the place I’d get discouraged. However I additionally by no means misplaced my love for the sport.”
Chandler turned professional in 2021, the identical summer time as Georgia stars Davis Thompson and Spencer Ralston, however as an alternative of heading to the Korn Ferry Tour or PGA Tour Canada like these guys, Chandler was consigned to the mini-tours, primarily the GPro Tour, the place he’d earn simply sufficient money to maintain going. Chandler earned full standing in Canada two summers in the past, solely to overlook 5 of 9 cuts after which fail to get out of first stage later that 12 months.
However at first of this 12 months, Haack’s cellphone began buzzing once more. This time it was rumblings that Chandler had been taking everyone’s cash in video games round St. Simons Island, Georgia, the place Chandler lives.
Not lengthy after that, Chandler went on a run, Monday-qualifying for 4 Korn Ferry Tour occasions, the primary coming in April on the Veritex Financial institution Championship. He turned that success into 10 begins, together with a T-2 at The Ascendant in July, and conditional KFT standing for subsequent 12 months through his No. 85 end in factors.
Chandler arrived at last stage final week in Ponte Vedra Seaside, Florida, having lastly mastered, with assist from new teacher Mike Lipnick and sports activities psychologist Dr. Mo Pickens, a work-smarter-not-harder method. When he bogeyed his last gap on Saturday at Sawgrass Nation Membership, nonetheless capturing 3-under 67 however leaving himself three pictures outdoors of the highest 5 and ties, Chandler shortly headed throughout the road to TPC Sawgrass, the place he’d play the Dye’s Valley Course for Sunday’s last spherical, to stroke a couple of putts and get readjusted to the inexperienced speeds.
That explains a perplexed Chandler that subsequent morning, as he couldn’t get something to drop on the entrance 9, which he performed in 1 over and with no birdie, his PGA Tour hopes all however dashed for yet one more 12 months.
Or so he thought.
“I modified balls on the flip and began holing all the pieces,” mentioned Chandler, who rattled off three birdies in a six-hole stretch earlier than hitting 4-iron to 60 toes on the par-5 sixteenth gap and draining the emphatic eagle putt that launched him again into the hunt.
“I didn’t even know I used to be actually in rivalry till I made eagle,” Chandler added.
Later that night, Chandler was nonetheless in shock as PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan handed him his bodily card, marking Chandler as certainly one of 10 Georgia alums who may have full-time standing subsequent season. Ever since these twilight rounds as a child, the place he and his dad, Ricky, would velocity round Cherokee, usually taking part in matches in opposition to one another, Chandler had dreamed of this second. However he admits, “It simply appeared so distant – it appeared so distant even like a month or two in the past.”
Chandler is now proof that any ‘Dawg can, actually, have his day.
“You at all times simply thought to your self, man, that poor man, he simply works so onerous at it,” Haack mentioned. “However golf is humorous, and generally it simply clicks, and one thing occurs, and you’ve got that magical second on the again 9 like he did, and subsequent factor you’ve obtained your PGA Tour card.”
For as soon as, Haack is blissful to be fallacious.
