Plans moving along to make Colonial Life Charity Classic ‘something special’
Dates and sanctioning organization secured? Check.
Title sponsor in place? Done.
Golf course reserved? Yep.
So, Chris Baker, there’s nothing to do until the Korn Ferry Tour’s Colonial Life Charity Classic unfolds at the Woodcreek Club in May, right? Uh, no.
Baker, tournament director for the fledgling event, said preparations “are moving right along.” But the devil can be in the details, and there’s a lot on his plate before the first tee shot on May 14.
“Twenty-nine weeks,” Baker said, pondering his to-do list, “but who’s counting?”
In the five months since the PGA Tour scheduled the event, support for the tournament “has been rewarding,” said Baker, whose wife Kristen is a USC graduate. The couple made the Columbia area their home. “The initial response was overwhelming, and the public reception is going well.”
Among other things, Baker and tournament organizers have been promoting the event through speaking engagements.
The goal: “We want to make this something special,” Baker said. “We want this to be more than golf, and we want to involve Columbia area companies in providing support.”
To that end, concerts are scheduled after play on multiple days. A junior clinic is on the calendar. And to illustrate the use of area businesses, “We’re working with an area company to provide transportation” to the golf course.
There are more pieces to the puzzle, of course. Recruiting volunteers beyond Woodcreek members and Colonial Life employees will start soon. There are tickets to sell, logistics to handle and marketing to be done. The PGA Tour’s agronomy team will work with the Woodcreek staff. Club owner Harold Pickrel has extensive renovation to the clubhouse underway and is building a concert space.
“There’s been a lot going on since May,” Baker said, “and there will be some big announcements soon. Our team (Enventive Sports, headed by Irmo High graduate Gene Hallman) has done it before (operating PGA, LPGA and Champions tournaments) and will make it a great experience.”
Until now, Baker has seen high-level golf from another perspective — that of a player. After a stellar college career at Iowa State, he’s been a professional since 2008 and still has status on the Korn Ferry Tour. In fact, he played a Korn Ferry event in June after being named the Colonial Life Charity Classic tournament director.
“No doubt, the experience is different, yet it’s also very rewarding,” he said. He still feels he can be “very competitive” at a high level, but at age 39 he could not pass up the opportunity to get into tournament management.
“It’s a different challenge, but we’re ready for it,” Baker said. “The economic impact, the charitable contributions ... they will benefit the area. It’s a community event, and we’re planning something special.”
Chip shots. USC’s women’s team finished fifth in the Ruth’s Chris Tar Heel Invitational in Chapel Hill, North Carolina with Eila Galitsky and Maylis Lamoure posting top-10 finishes. Freshman Molly McLean, making her collegiate debut, tied for 21st and earned SEC freshman of the week honors. ... USC’s men struggled to a 14th-place finish in the Fallen Oak Collegiate Invitational in Mississippi. Freshman August Perersson, competing as an individual and not counting in the team score, led the Gamecocks, placing 27th individually. ... Trace Crowe (Greenville) earned a spot on the 2026 PGA Tour with his 16th-place finish on the season-long Korn Ferry Tour points list. ... Tommy Gainey (Hartsville) has wasted no time in making his presence felt on the Champions Tour. Since turning 50 in August, he has won once and jumped to 36th on the Charles Schwab Cup points list with two tournaments remaining. ... In the SCGA-WSCGA Mixed Team tourney at Fripp Island Resort, Nabila Inak (Columbia) and Spencer Skiff (West Columbia) joined forces to win the championship division. Other division winners: Pam Prescott (Piedmont)-David League (Travelers Rest) in the seniors and Lea Anne Brown (Mt. Pleasant)-Mark Hoover (Mt. Pleasant) in the super-seniors. . . . In the SCJGA’s One-Day tourney at LinRick GC, age-group winners included Nolan Palmer (Blythewood, boys’ 13-19), Jake Hames (Roebuck, boys’ 12 and under), Leafu Chiang (Greer, girls; 12 and under) and Spencer Harvey (Simpsonville, girls’ 13-19).
This story was originally published October 24, 2025 at 9:11 AM with the headline "Plans moving along to make Colonial Life Charity Classic ‘something special’."