Five Indiana golfers recently qualified for the Web.com Tour
after successfully advancing from qualifying school. Those players include: Chris Baker, Justin
Hueber, Brian Maurer, James Sacheck, and Chase Wright.
Chris Baker of Seymour grew up playing on the Indiana Junior
Golf Tour and won the ISHAA State Finals in ’03. He went on to play college golf at Iowa State
University before turning professional.
As a professional, Baker participated on the NGA Hooters Tour, the eGolf
Professional Tour, the Challenge Tour, and the Nationwide Tour. He has had two professional victories
including his win at the NGA Hooters Tour Classic in ’09 and a win at the River
Hills Classic in ’10.
“It’s been a lot of hard work getting here,” said Baker when
asked about qualifying for the Web.com Tour.
“It’s nice to have the opportunity to hopefully move forward to the
ultimate goal of the PGA Tour. There’s
still a lot of hard work still to come and I’m looking forward to this
opportunity and to see what I can make of it.”
Justin Hueber of Fort Wayne also participated on the Indiana
Junior Golf Tour and went on to play college golf at The University of
Indianapolis. While at The University of
Indianapolis, Hueber was named a first-team All American. Before his recent qualification for the
Web.com Tour, Hueber participated on the NGA Hooters Tour.
“This is what I have worked for my whole life,” Hueber said. “It’s not the ultimate goal but a step in the
right direction. Out of every guy that
tries to qualify each year, only one hundred end up making it. It’s a very rewarding experience and a great
opportunity to hopefully make it on the PGA Tour in a year or two.”
Brian Maurer of Richmond also grew up playing on the Indiana
Junior Golf Tour. He was the Indiana
Junior PGA Champion in ’04 and runner-up in the Junior PGA National Championship. Maurer went on to play golf at Ball State
University and had a lot of success. In 2011,
Maurer won the Indiana Open Championship and that same year qualified to play
in the PGA John Deere Classic.
“It’s a wonderful
feeling to make it through q school,” Maurer said. “I’ve worked so hard for a lot of years now
and I’m very proud to now be a member the Web.com Tour. Hopefully the final destination is the PGA Tour
and this will be a great stepping stone for me.
I’m looking forward to this great opportunity in 2014.”
This is James Sacheck’s fourth time qualifying for the
Web.com Tour. Sacheck of South Bend grew up playing on the Indiana Junior Golf Tour
and had a lot of success at an early age.
He was the Age Group Champion in ’99, the Indiana Junior Golf Player of
the Year in 2000, the Indiana Junior PGA Champion in ’02, and the Junior PGA
National Championship runner-up in ’03.
Sacheck also had success in Indiana Golf Association events. He was the Indiana Amateur Champinoship
runner-up in ’01 at just fifteen years old, and runner-up again at the State Am
in ’05. Also in ’05 Sacheck participated
in the US Amateur Championship at Merion GC.
“The Web.com Tour is an amazing tour to play on,” Sacheck
said. “I have been fortunate enough to
be a part of it for four years. If you
have one good week it can totally change the outcome of your golf career and you
can end up achieving the ultimate goal of playing on the PGA Tour. I look forward to the opportunity.”
Chase Wright of Bloomington had a lot of success in both
state and national golf events growing up.
He was the ISHAA state runner-up in ’06 and ’07. In ’09, Wright joined the Indiana University
Men’s Golf Team. That same year, he earned
a first alternate spot in the US Public Links Championship. In 2010, Wright won the Indiana Open and
finished in a tie for third at the IGA Public Links Championship. In 2011, Wright qualified for the US Amateur
Championship and advanced to Match Play.
Wright has spent the last year playing golf on the Asian Tour and looks
forward to participating on the Web.com Tour.
“Obviously it’s a very exciting and I have put a lot of hard
work into my game,” Wright said. “This
is a step in the right direction and I’m excited to play on an American Tour. I
hope to take what I learned in worldwide tournaments and use those skills on
the Web.com Tour.”
Congratulations to all Web.com Tour qualifiers. Best of luck in 2014!