Golf is an interesting sport. It gets overlooked by the eyes of the young individual as just a game for the more mature. It doesn’t have the same taste as some of the other sports. It consists of less action and limited media attention. However, it is a known fact that even in golf; a story can be told. One of those stories happened at Timber Creek.
Blake Arnold, Timber Creek Golf Assistant, grew up playing baseball as a middle schooler in Laredo, Texas. It was his first passion growing up, but after getting surgery to repair some knee injuries after a baseball tournament; Arnold had to look for another passion.
“I said what am I going to do now? And he says well I’d pick up golf or join the chess team, and golf sounded like more fun,” said Arnold.
From there, Arnold fell in love with the game and played all throughout high school with flashes of potential. Arnold also fell in love with the marketing side of the game, and went into college majoring in Professional Golf Management. After college Arnold worked as a club professional at the Old American Golf Club, and he taught the game to the people that joined. However, Arnold wanted to do more than just teach the game; he wanted to play.
“One of my [first] goals was to become a PGA member. That took me a few years,” said Arnold.
Arnold got his chance in 2008 after becoming a Class-A PGA member. In 2009, Arnold made appearances in the MCP series, Callaway golf Championships, and finished in the top 15 at the Northern Texas PGA Professional Championship. Arnold had a lot of success and played for the next few years, but it wasn’t heartbreaking when he didn’t reach all his goals. He enjoyed it as a hobby rather than a way of living.
“I had the best of both worlds. I got to play for a little money while [having that] competitive feeling, and if i didn’t win it wasn’t a big deal because I was still getting a paycheck from the golf club that I worked,” explained Arnold. “We had club members that cheered us on so it was really cool, because we had fan support.
In 2016, Arnold decided to retire from the game; both as a player and from the business. Traveling and game preparations took a toll on him, and he decided it was time to step away. Golf had always been a part of him, but he was missing out on what was most important, his family.
“My daughter was 7 at the time [and] I was starting to miss out on some of the things she was doing,” said Arnold. “I just realized that that there were other things out there that I wanted to do rather than just teach people how to play golf.”
Although he was walking away from the joy of teaching the game, he wasn’t walking away from teaching. Arnold wanted the chance to mentor students in his second passion which was marketing. Arnold took a job as a marketing teacher here at Timber Creek to teach students about the business side of things, and for a chance to spend more time with his family. Not only was Arnold a teacher, but a month after being hired he was offered another job to be the Timber Creek Golf Assistant.
“I got a call from the Head Golf Coach, Coach Fuqua, and he asked me ‘hey I’ve got a assistant position open and I heard you a have a little experience,” Arnold said.
These days Arnold still plays the game of golf when he can. He still goes through everyday with injuries from his professional career, but still remembers the times he enjoyed a player. Arnold has been a part of the game since high school, and never lets his love for golf falter.
“From the time I was 14/15 years old it’s all I’ve done and all I’ve been around”, said Arnold. “Now it’s fun! I get to go out and there’s no expectation, [but] I’ll always play it’s just a part of who I am.”