24 Tri State Golf | Summer 2023 Q Is there a story behind the golf-themed names in your family? Did your Mom and Dad disagree on this? Chip: I have never heard them disagree on names and it became apparent they needed to do something with 3 boys coming along when they decided to legally name us all John. We each have different family middle names but somewhere along the way we got Wedge, Chip (Chipper) and Putt (Putter). Likely my Father’s sense of humor and it obviously went with our golf history. My favorite is perhaps our dog’s name, Divot. Perhaps if there was any disagreement it came with our sister who they named Courtney (no golf name like Sandy). Q What are your earliest memories of watching, playing golf? Chip: My early moments watching golf really revolve around the copious amounts of time we spent at the Reading CC, watching our Dad and many of the other characters playing at the club and having an opportunity to caddy and observe. I remember my brother Wedge who was exactly one year older than I, imitating some of the nuances and idiosyncrasies of the many swings and personalities around the club. I think that helped our games by observing and seeing what worked best for our games. Of course Dad was always around to give us guidance but that was limited. We knew how good he was and that set a strong example of how to do it. So watching golf on tv came later in our youth but watching Arnie, Jack and the others go at it was fuel for the fire. Q Was your Dad your primary teacher? If so, what kind of teacher was he? Do you remember specific lessons on/off the course? Chip: Yes, Dad was our primary teacher but again it was more observation on our part and guidance on his at times when he felt necessary. A great deal of experimentation was extremely helpful with a watchful eye. Later on as I progressed and grew older, Dad was often there to watch and give gentle guidance that was often more of the basic and fundamental encouragement that helped us along the way. Q Did your dad spend any time with Byron Nelson at Reading CC? IF SO, Is there a story about Nelson that sticks with you? Chip: Dad took lessons from Byron and my earliest picture of them together was in 1938 of Byron giving him instruction. Byron was the Head Pro at the Reading from 1937 - 1939. Henry Clay Poe succeeded him and also helped my father greatly with his game. Byron won the 1937 Masters right before coming to the Reading and then won the 1939 US Open at Philadelphia CC in his last year in Reading. Q You played with a bunch of future pros at Florida. Anyone you admired or about their games? Chip: Yes, I played as a walk-on my first two years at University of Florida in 1972/1973 and 1973/1974 seasons where we won the NCAA in my first year. I did not start any matches and when I realized that with Title 9 reducing scholarships and only graduating one from our championship team that my odds of breaking into the lineup were remote. We had likely the two most notable players, Gary Koch and Andy Bean as our standouts that year. The thing that I recall vividly was how far Andy hit the ball and that was truly amazing. He also had a short game that complemented that as well. Gary was just a great all round player who was also successful as a player but is more well known as a golf announcer. A number of other players did not reach national prominence as players but were successful in many other ways, like Fred Ridley and Steve Smyers. Chip Lutz Q&A GAP’s Chip Lutz Continues Carving Out Legacy
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