Around The Commonwealth
Kelly Chinn won four matches at this
summer's U.S. Junior Amateur before
falling in a hard-fought semifinal.
always outside playing some basketball or
doing something that keeps me moving.
I love being outside and love to be active.
me to the range. I started hitting balls and
really enjoyed it right away. Once I came
back from the trip, I started doing group les-
sons and just continued to play ever since.
VG: You’ve committed to play at Duke
once you graduate Langley in 2021. Why
was Duke a great fit for you both academ-
ically and athletically?
KC: Duke is a perfect fit for me. When I
was looking at colleges, the main keys
that I wanted in a school was for it
to have good academics, be a smaller
school, have a great practice facility that
was close to the campus, and a coach that
I would really enjoy being with for four
years. Duke had all of that which is why
I made my decision to go there.
VG: What’s one key practice tip that has
VG: What are some of your interests out-
side of golf?
KC: I’m a huge sports fan. I always enjoy
watching sports and playing for fun. I
think whenever I have some free time, I’m
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really helped you achieve success?
KC: One of the keys things that I do is not
really a practice tip, but it's planning my
practices really well. I started this planning
system about a year and a half ago where, at
the start of each week, I would write down
drills that I would do each day of that week.
My goal was to make sure that I write down
a balanced practice schedule where I can
practice all aspects of my game. And based
off what my next tournament is and what
type of course it is, I would plan to practice
more of one thing over another due to the
course setup that I would be playing. This
system that I have worked on really allows
me to touch up on everything about the
game so that when I am out on the course, I
am fully prepared for every shot that I need
to hit.
vsga.org
VG: You had a chance to meet PGA Tour
pro Billy Hurley III a few years ago at his
charity event in Annapolis. How did that
experience help you grow as a player?
KC: I think I learned a lot about how tough
it is to be a pro and how hard you have to
work. Especially since he had to serve in
the Navy and stopped playing golf for a
while, I think it is impressive to see him
still competing even after that long break
away from golf. I remember he talked
about the amount of hours put in to prac-
ticing each day and I think it really makes
sense that in order to be successful, the
work needs to be put in.
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