Sooner Golf Camp
Coaching Staff
Blake Smart
Assistant Coach
Hired on Aug. 10, 2009, Oklahoma assistant men's golf coach Blake Smart has been crucial to the Sooners' speedy return to the national spotlight. The 2011-12 season marks Smart's third with the program.
In 2010-11, Smart helped the Sooners to their first NCAA Championship appearance since 2006 and to a No. 28 final Golfweek/Sagarin national ranking. The Sooners, led by first-team all-region selections Abraham Ancer and Ryan Sirman, closed the year with 10 top-10 finishes, including two runner-up showings and a record-setting victory at the Desert Shootout in Goodyear, Ariz., in which they shot 48 under par to win by 22 strokes.
The Desert Shootout featured three of the lowest seven team rounds in program history. Also included were the two best individual 54-hole scores in OU annals -- Ancer's 21-under-par 195 and Will Kropp's 15-under 201.
Additionally, The 2010-11 squad set a school record with a 290.27 scoring average and tied a school best with 14 rounds of par or better.
In his first season at OU, Smart helped direct the Sooners to a team title at the season-opening Kansas Invitational and the Sooners went on to record 10 top-10 finishes. With Smart's assistance, the Sooners closed the 2009-10 season with seven straight top-10 results, including seventh-place or better in five of those outings. Individually, senior Ben Blundell qualified for the 2010 NCAA Regional in Bremerton, Wash.
Smart had been the head coach at Kennesaw State for three seasons prior to arriving at Oklahoma, quickly turning the Owls into one of the top golf programs in the Atlantic Sun Conference.
"Blake has been a great addition to our staff here at the University of Oklahoma," said OU head coach Ryan Hybl.
"He is a tremendous asset that has brought a lot of experience as a former head coach and provides everything we need to be successful on the level this program is capable of being."
"He is a well-rounded person who is very knowledgeable about the game from both a coach and player perspective," added Hybl. "He is a great complement to what we are focused on doing."
The 30-year-old Smart guided KSU to eight top-10 finishes during the 2008-09 season, including a second-place finish at the Samford Intercollegiate and a third-place showing at the Mizuno Savannah Intercollegiate. Smart coached five different players to Atlantic Sun honors in his three seasons with the Black and Gold, while one of his top recruits, Matt Nagy, qualified for the 2009 U.S. Open and became the first-ever Kennesaw State golfer to participate in a major championship.
Gerrod Chadwell
Assistant Coach
Chadwell, an Oklahoma native, was the head coach the past three years at Redlands Community College in his home town of El Reno, Okla. During that time, Chadwell led the Lady Cougars to National Junior College Athletic Association titles in 2008 and 2009, and a third-place finish in 2010 after claiming the regional title by 94 strokes. He was named national coach of the year in both 2008 and 2009.
The 32-year-old Chadwell boasts extensive experience in the game of golf, which he picked up at the age of 14. He led El Reno High School to a state runner-up finish his senior year and went on to attend East Central University in Ada, Okla. Chadwell, who earned a bachelor's degree in kinesiology, played four years on the Tigers' golf team and earned All-America honors his senior year.
Chadwell earned a master's degree in sports administration before returning to Redlands to serve as the assistant women's golf coach for the 2002-03 season. As an assistant, he helped guide the Lady Cougars to a third-place national finish.
Chadwell then joined the staff at Dave Pelz Golf, a nationally renowned golf school that has worked with numerous professionals, including Phil Mickelson, Vijay Singh and Annika Sorenstam. As an instructor at Dave Pelz Golf, Chadwell worked with all levels of players, from beginners to tour professionals.
Camp Counselors - To be determined at a later date.
