Written by Caleb Rummel
Like most people, sophomore Blake Chase finds a sense of retreat in a relaxing pastime. For him that pastime is golf. However, unlike most people, Chase has found great success in something that is merely recreation for others.
Starting out at 3 years old, Chase has been playing golf for most of his life, learning from his dad. He played in his first tournament when he was 10 years old, and it has been all uphill since then.
Graduating from Fort Worth Christian in 2009, Chase shattered Harding’s two-round tournament record in his first college debut. In the first round of that Bison FallClassic he also tied the school record of 66 strokes set by Brent Taylor in 1979. The Bisons went to place third in the tournament. Those skills and a natural leadership led coach Dustin Howell to make him the team captain his sophomore year.
“Much of Blake’s leadership is done by letting his clubs do the talking,” Howell said. “He has a fire to push other members of the team to get better with each practice.”
Chase is also aware and ap- preciative of the time he puts into the sport he loves.
“I like the competitive nature of the game,” Chase said. “More specifically, I like seeing results, and with golf your practice defi- nitely pays off. The drive to excel is there for me.”
That attitude makes for a bright future for Chase. Howell said his success lies not only in his physical ability, but also in his ability to see and think through a round, knowing how to play each part. And his well-practiced skill and focused attention is paying off. Chase won All-Conference honors as a freshman and strives to be an Academic All-American.
It’s often said that golf is not about the competition between players but between the player and the course. This classic golf principle is another that is not lost on Chase.
“When I’m out there playing I’m not even thinking about what I’m scoring,” he said. “I’m just hitting one shot at a time, trying to have fun.”
