By: Brandon Collins, Athletics Communications
BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Texas A&M Director of Athletics Ross Bjork announced the hiring of three-time American Athletic Conference Coach of the Year Gerrod Chadwell to lead the Aggies’ women’s golf program on Tuesday.
“We are incredibly excited to have Coach Chadwell, Stacy, and Chesnee Lynn join us here in Aggieland,” Bjork said. “Throughout the search, his name was always at the top of our list. The more we researched him, the more we learned that his recruiting acumen and his commitment to providing a great atmosphere for his players are what really stands out. His leadership style, character and energy set him apart, and to have a person of his caliber leading our program is a great honor. We are extremely confident that Coach Chadwell is going to elevate our culture and turn Aggie women’s golf into a national championship contender and winner.”
Chadwell is the fifth head coach in program history, and is coming to Aggieland after spending the previous eight seasons as the leader of the University of Houston women’s golf team. He took the Cougars to six-consecutive NCAA Regionals, and saw three individuals compete at the NCAA Championships.
“My wife Stacy and I are so excited to have the opportunity to raise our family in Aggieland,” Chadwell said. “I want to thank Ross Bjork and Jeff Toole for believing in me and giving me the chance to lead this program. Here at A&M, we have an incredible foundation to build something great and with the support we have from the top down, I know we can do just that. I have admired the 12th Man from afar for a long time, and to now be a part of it is a humbling experience. I can’t wait to get to campus to begin preparing for the fall. Gig ‘Em!”
The El Reno, Oklahoma, native built the Cougars’ program from the ground up after being appointed as the first head coach in program history in May of 2013. He guided Houston to three AAC Championships (2016, 2018, 2019), and was voted as the conference’s coach of the year on three occasions (2016, 2018, 2019).
Chadwell coached three AAC Players of the Year, and last season saw Karen Fredgaard become the first first-team All-American in program history. During his time at Houston, 19 Cougars earned all-conference honors and he won eight team tournaments.
He is married to two-time LPGA Player of the Year and two-time LPGA major championship winner Stacy Lewis. The couple had a daughter, Chesnee Lynn, in October of 2018.
Chadwell went to Houston after spending the previous three seasons at Oklahoma as an assistant coach. There, he helped lead the Sooners to three-straight appearances in the NCAA Regionals from 2011 to 2013, two straight NCAA Championships berths and a No. 2 national ranking from Golf World/Women’s Golf Coaches Association in 2012-13.
In three years at Oklahoma, he helped lead the Sooners to top-five team finishes in more than half of their tournaments, including nine of 10 in 2012-13 alone.
During his time with the Sooners, he was a part of teams that advanced to three consecutive NCAA Regionals in 2011, 2012 and 2013, won the 2012 Big 12 Championship and finished sixth at the 2012 NCAA Championships, tying for the best showing in school history.
In 2012, he mentored Oklahoma’s first NCAA national champion in Chirapat Jao-Javanil, who won the title by four strokes with a 6-under-par effort in Franklin, Tennessee.
Before joining the Sooners, Chadwell served as head coach at Redlands Community College in his hometown of El Reno, from 2008 to 2010.
In addition to their on-course accomplishments, Chadwell’s student-athletes at Oklahoma and Redlands CC found great success in the classroom. His Sooner teams posted a cumulative grade-point average of 3.5 or higher each year with a 3.7 mark in 2011-12. During his career, he mentored a combined 11 NCAA and NJCAA Academic All-Americans.
As women’s head coach at Redlands Community College, Chadwell led the Lady Cougars to the NJCAA National Championships in 2008 and 2009 and a third-place showing in 2010 after winning the regional crown by an astounding 94 strokes.
He also guided Nicola Race, who captured the NJCAA individual national championships in 2008 and 2009. For his and his team’s impressive efforts each season, he was named the NJCAA National Coach of the Year in both 2008 and 2009.
Golf has been a part of Chadwell’s life since the age of 14. As a student-athlete at El Reno High School, he led his team to a state runner-up finish as a senior and competed from 1997 to 2001 at East Central University in Ada, Oklahoma.
As a collegian, he was honored as an All-American in 2001 and earned his bachelor’s degree in exercise science in 2002. After receiving his master’s degree in sports administration from East Central in 2003, he joined the staff at Redlands CC as assistant coach for the 2002-03 season. That year, he led the Lady Cougars to a third-place national finish.
From 2005 to 2007, Chadwell worked on the staff at Dave Pelz Golf, a nationally renowned school that has worked with numerous professionals, including Phil Mickelson, Vijay Singh and Annika Sorenstam. As an instructor there, he worked with all levels of players, from beginners to tour professionals.