Video of the Week: Stewart Cink on faith and Bible study with others on PGA tour

By Sports Spectrum Jul 16, 2015

Colorado Christian men’s golf competes ‘for Christ’s glory’ in becoming D-II powerhouse

By Jon Ackerman May 28, 2025

Colorado Christian men's golf team, May 23, 2025. (Photo courtesy of CCU)

As the defending NCAA Division II men’s golf national champions, the Colorado Christian University Cougars weren’t sneaking up on anybody this year. They entered last week’s tournament as the No. 1 team in the nation, boasted the top-ranked golfer in D-II (Adam Duncan), and then won stroke play for the first time in program history, which advanced them to the match play final rounds.

After taking out Oklahoma Christian 3.5-1.5 in the quarterfinals, then North Georgia 4-1 in the semifinals, CCU found itself right back in the national championship match, facing West Florida. And after each team’s five players finished their round on Friday, there was still no winner.

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But after one playoff hole, West Florida pulled out a one-stroke victory for the program’s third national title.

The tough defeat for CCU, however, will not be how the Cougars remember the 2025 season. A year after claiming the first national championship in CCU athletics history, this year’s squad established itself as one of the country’s elite. The team collected 10 straight tournament victories, won its first NCAA Regional title, and featured the four top-ranked D-II golfers at one point.

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“Despite the tough result to close the year, this team will go down in history as one of the best to ever play at CCU as their humble and Christ-glorifying mentality led them to incredible success throughout the memorable season,” said the team’s season-ending press release.

That “Christ-glorifying mentality” stems from a team Bible study every Friday at 9 a.m., when a Denver-area representative from College Golf Fellowship — the same organization that helps organize Bible studies on the PGA Tour — meets with the CCU team in Lakewood, Colorado. Together they’ve been studying different sections of the Bible though a CGF study guide tailored for college golfers.

“It’s been really awesome for our team,” senior Xavier Bighaus told Sports Spectrum. “Every single person is in a different place in their faith and so it’s really important for us to maybe start with something that’s really basic, the foundations, and then go from there.”

CCU’s Adam Duncan (Photo by Will G MacNeil/CCU)

By developing their personal relationships with Christ, the CCU golfers know their identity and worth isn’t tied to anything that happens on the golf course.

“We’re competing for Christ’s glory and I think that’s the most important thing,” Duncan told Sports Spectrum. “It’s like we get to play a different game than other teams get to play. They’re all about, ‘Did we win or lose? We have to do this.’ … It doesn’t have to be that way for us. This can be an amazing accomplishment that we give our everything to, that we work really hard to accomplish, because that’s what we’re called to do. But it doesn’t have to be the end-all, be-all of us as people, of us as a team and of us as a school.”

A senior from Bakersfield, California, Duncan made attending a Christian college one of his top priorities. He began his walk with the Lord when he was invited to a Christian summer camp and found himself asking a lot of questions to a camp counselor. That counselor ended up inviting Duncan to attend church with him, and soon thereafter he committed his life to Christ. Duncan now says he tries to live by 2 Timothy 2:13, which reads, “If we are faithless, he remains faithful, for he cannot disown himself.”

“In the Christian walk, there are lots of times where we’re unfaithful to the message we’re proclaiming and we believe, just in the way we live our lives,” Duncan told Sports Spectrum. “We don’t live perfectly, so having a God that is faithful when we’re unfaithful — because that’s His character and that’s His nature — is encouraging and something I’ve definitely clung to.”

CCU’s Xavier Bighaus (Photo by Will G MacNeil/CCU)

For Bighaus, who’s from Melissa, Texas, he began his journey with the Lord around the age of 9, when his parents started an orphanage in Kenya.

“It was a really eye-opening experience for me,” Bighaus said. “… I never really understood how grateful I should be for the things that I have, just here in America in general.”

He later attended church champs in high school that helped him become “really interested in the Lord and the things that He’s doing in my life.” What God’s doing now, in Bighaus’ final year of college, is teaching him to be strong and courageous.

“There’s a lot of things that are happening to myself and other people on our team where at times it could maybe be overwhelming,” Bighaus said. “So just understanding that the Lord is with me and that He can guide me through the hard times and through the great times too.”

The Cougars certainly experienced great times in 2025, but ended with a hard result. Back-to-back championship match appearances, though, have established them among the elite Division II programs. CCU will seek to run it back in 2026, but will try to do so without three of the five players who competed at the national championships.

>> Do you know Christ personally? Learn how you can commit your life to Him. <<

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Golf What's Up Podcast

WHAT’S UP PODCAST: David Ford – North Carolina Tar Heels Golfer

By Sports Spectrum May 26, 2025

(Photo courtesy of David Ford/Instagram)

THIS IS SPORTS SPECTRUM’S WHAT’S UP PODCAST
WITH ANNABELLE HASSELBECK

On today’s episode of Sports Spectrum’s “What’s Up” podcast, we have University of North Carolina golfer David Ford.

David shares about his pre-shot routine, being teammates with his brother Maxwell, life at UNC, and his reliance on the Lord.

“What’s Up” is part of the Sports Spectrum Podcast Network.

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David Ford joins FSU's Luke Clanton and Auburn's Jackson Koivun as finalists for the 2025 Ben Hogan National Player of the Year Award. https://t.co/vQ3SIcaEKj #GoHeels pic.twitter.com/SDWzQueU39

— UNC Men's Golf (@UNCmensGolf) May 6, 2025

PLEASE CONSIDER FOLLOWING, SUBSCRIBING AND LEAVING A REVIEW

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Golf

Golfer Scottie Scheffler tries ‘to live like Jesus’ as he celebrates 3rd major title, 1st as a father

By Kevin Mercer May 19, 2025

Scottie Scheffler stands behind his PGA Championship trophy with his wife, Meredith, and son, Bennett, May 18, 2025. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Scottie Scheffler further secured his spot as the best golfer in the world on Sunday, as he closed out a five-stroke victory in the PGA Championship at Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, North Carolina.

After shooting a blistering 6-under 65 on Saturday to propel him to the lead, Scheffler’s even-par 71 on Sunday was enough to keep his opponents at bay and capture his third career major tournament win (to go with the 2022 and 2024 Masters). Harris English, Bryson DeChambeau and Davis Riley all tied for second at 6-under.

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A third major since 2022!

Scottie Scheffler wins the PGA Championship by FIVE at Quail Hollow. pic.twitter.com/zwCEyE6UgY

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) May 18, 2025

The 28-year-old Scheffler admitted in his post-round press conference that it was a long and challenging week, but also that the opportunity to play golf at the highest level is one of the great joys of his life.

“I’ve prepared my entire life to become decent at this game, and to have a chance to win a tournament that I dream about as a kid is a pretty cool feeling,” he said. “When you step out on the 1st tee, it’s pretty dang cool. There’s definitely stress. It’s definitely challenging, but at the same time, I mean, it’s a lot of fun.”

Last year’s PGA Championship experience for Scheffler was memorable for a different reason. In what became national news, Scheffler was detained near Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Kentucky, as he attempted to enter. The charges were later dropped and police said “Scheffler’s actions and the evidence surrounding their exchange during this misunderstanding do not satisfy the elements of any criminal offenses.”

After this year’s tournament win, Scheffler’s celebration prominently featured his wife, Meredith, and his son, Bennett, born just before last year’s PGA Championship. The victory marked his first major win as a dad.

Congratulations to Scottie Scheffler on his superb PGA Championship victory at Quail Hollow and first major championship as a father! What an incredibly special moment to share with your wife and son. Keep doing the right things on all fronts and the sky is the limit for you, my… pic.twitter.com/0675AxO45Y

— GARY PLAYER (@garyplayer) May 19, 2025

Scheffler said later in his press conference that life as the No. 1 player in the world actually doesn’t look much different than it would otherwise.

“I’ve got a great family, a great wife and a wonderful son,” he said. “I feel like off the golf course, my life is wonderful. We live what I would feel like is a pretty simple life at home.

“Life on the golf course has been great as well. I’ve been able to win some tournaments. When we go home, sometimes I think Meredith and I still feel like we’re in high school (when they met). We have great friends, and we’re looking forward to getting home this week and doing normal stuff with our friends, celebrating a nice win.”

Part of that “simple life” for Scheffler includes walking faithfully as a follower of Christ. In an interview that aired during the broadcast on Thursday, Scheffler offered some perspective.

“I feel like I’ve been given a gift to play golf, but at the end of the day, the golf tournament is over,” Scheffler said. “You take your hat off, shake hands, and you move on. And so, my faith is such an important part of my golf game because it’s not only an important part of my life but it’s what helps me kind of realize that it’s not that big of a deal. I’m called to compete; I’m not called to go win every single golf tournament. Do I want to win every single golf tournament? Of course. But at the end of the day, that’s not what’s gonna satisfy my soul.”

pic.twitter.com/5GfJwO27Sm

— By The Flagstick (@ByTheFlagstick) May 15, 2025

The morning after capturing his Masters title last year, Scheffler appeared on the “Bible Caddie Podcast,” where he discussed how he lives out his faith in light of a busy PGA Tour schedule.

“It’s a battle every day not to view yourself as your golf score, not to get too caught up in what we’re doing out there, and focus on things that are true and what is good,” he said. “I think community is also really, really important. I’ve found some great community out there on the road that is really nice to have. … Walking with the Lord can be really tough sometimes if you’re out there doing it all by yourself. We were designed to live in community with other believers, and I’ve been fortunate to be able to find that on tour.”

He continued later: “When I started really prioritizing quiet time in the morning — reading Scripture — and setting my mind each morning to things that are true and things that are good, that was really when I could see significant change in my life. And that’s why I talk about [the Christian life] being a daily battle, because if I go a couple days where I’m walking around trying to do things on my own, I can feel a difference and my wife can definitely see a difference. … Getting the Word in first thing in the morning, reading God’s Word and just trying to live like Jesus did the best way we can.”

The next opportunity for Scheffler to win a major will come in less than a month’s time, at the U.S. Open from Oakmont Country Club in Oakmont, Pennsylvania, June 12-15. He wants to win it as badly as anyone, but he can have peace, knowing that whether he walks away a winner or not, his victory is secure. It’s a message he delivered on the podcast for golf fans who don’t yet believe in Christ.

“We have a Creator. God created the earth, and He sent His Son to save us,” Scheffler said. “The Lord covered our sins on the cross and victory was secured over death. We will live forever with Christ when we eventually pass on from this earth, and Jesus died and saved us from our sins. It’s really just as simple as that.”

>> Do you know Christ personally? Learn how you can commit your life to Him. <<

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Golf

‘Christ-follower’ Scottie Scheffler cards record-tying low score, remains world No. 1

By Jon Ackerman May 5, 2025

Scottie Scheffler holds his son, Bennett, after winning the CJ Cup Byron Nelson golf tournament, May 4, 2025. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

Scottie Scheffler has won a lot of golf tournaments in his career, especially the past few years — the Masters (twice), the Players Championship (twice), the Tour Championship, the Olympics, just to name a few. Though it’s maybe not at the same level of prestige as those other victories, his win on Sunday will be one he’ll remember for the rest of his life — and not just because he matched the PGA Tour scoring record.

Scheffler cruised past the field for a 31-under par, eight-shot victory at THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson in his hometown of McKinney, Texas, the first title of the year for the world’s No. 1 golfer. He posted a 72-hole score of 253, which tied for the lowest score recorded on the PGA Tour, set by Justin Thomas in 2017 and also matched by Ludvig Åberg in 2023.

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Scheffler had a chance to break the record, but he made bogey on the 17th hole and an 8-foot putt for birdie just slid by the left side of the hole on No. 18.

The first wire-to-wire winner @CJByronNelson since 1980!

Scottie Scheffler gets his first victory of the 2025 season in dominant fashion. pic.twitter.com/k6YoBerUrj

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) May 5, 2025

It’s the 14th career win for Scheffler, the three-time reigning PGA Tour Player of the Year. He’s now been ranked No. 1 for 103 consecutive weeks (since May 21, 2023) and a total of 138 weeks. Only Tiger Woods (683) and Greg Norman (331) have spent more time atop the Official World Golf Ranking.

But winning for the first time on this course — TPC Craig Ranch — in this tournament is special for Scheffler because of all the childhood memories that come with it.

“I grew up coming to watch it. This was my first start on the PGA Tour when I was in high school,” Scheffler said in his post-round press conference. “The girl I was dating at the time is now my wife. We have one son. My sister was caddieing for me at the time. She was here today; she has two kids. My family was all able to be here, and it was just really, really special memories, and I think at times it all comes crashing down to me at once. We have a lot of great memories as kids coming to watch this tournament. I just dreamed to be able to play in it, and it’s more of a dream to be able to win it.”

The Byron Nelson tournament comes at a point on the PGA Tour schedule when many of the top players are preparing for the season’s second major, the PGA Championship from May 15-18. But it was important for Scheffler to play this year not only because it’s in his hometown and he can sleep in his own bed, but also because he aims to honor the legacy of Nelson, whom Scheffler got a chance to meet when he was a kid. Nelson, who passed away in 2006, was a five-time major winner and a 1974 inductee into the World Golf Hall of Fame.

“When I think about this tournament, I think about Mr. Nelson. I think about what he did for the game of golf. He was a man of faith, and he was a great person as well off the golf course. He was a person that I’ve read a lot about. I’ve had the opportunity to meet him a few times when I was a kid, and I know a lot about him. He was a tremendous player and a tremendous person,” Scheffler said in the press conference.

Being a man of faith is important to the 28-year-old Scheffler as well. He describes himself on Instagram as a “Christ Follower” and has shared numerous times about how his faith guides him in golf and life.

“The reason why I play golf is I’m trying to glorify God and all that He’s done in my life,” he said after his Masters win in 2022. “So for me, my identity isn’t a golf score. … All I’m trying to do is glorify God and that’s why I’m here and that’s why I’m in this position.”

He reiterated that sentiment after earning his second green jacket in April 2024.

“My buddies told me this morning, ‘My victory was secure on the cross,’” he said. “And that’s a pretty special feeling to know that I’m secure for forever and it doesn’t matter if I win this tournament or lose this tournament. My identity is secure for forever.”

“My buddy’s told me this morning … my victory’s secure on the cross.”

Powerful words from 2024 #Masters champion Scottie Scheffler after his win on Sunday. pic.twitter.com/woRSd519r2

— Sports Spectrum (@Sports_Spectrum) April 15, 2024

Scheffler’s first public testimony to the golf media came after his victory in the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March 2022, his second career win, which followed his initial victory at the WM Phoenix Open the month prior. He was asked how he could win again so quickly after his first PGA Tour win.

“You’ve really got to look at the motivation for why I play. For me, I have a relationship with Jesus Christ,” Scheffler said. “That’s why I play golf. I’m out here to compete because that’s where He wants me. He’s in control of what happens in the end. So just really staying the course and staying faithful and letting Him be the guidance for me versus anything that I do.”

While starring at the University of Texas, Scheffler got connected with College Golf Fellowship, and even amid his rise to No. 1 in the world, he’s stayed in touch with the ministry as a way to pour into young golfers, which he once was.

“College Golf Fellowship was important to me,” he told Sports Spectrum in May 2022 for a story in the Summer 2022 edition of Sports Spectrum Magazine. “It’s had a pretty significant impact on my life, and so, to be able to give back to that foundation and share some of my experiences with younger guys is really important.”

Soon after his first Masters win, Scheffler made sure to keep his commitment to speak to about 40 College Golf Fellowship supporters during an event at the Vaquero Golf Club in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

“My identity is not as being a Masters champion, is not what I shot, and that frees me up a lot,” Scheffler told the audience. “God has given us a skill we feel we’re using for His glory.”

>> Do you know Christ personally? Learn how you can commit your life to Him. <<