Chris Rigdon wants young players to focus on integrity
By Gary Lloyd
TRUSSVILLE — Chris Rigdon was so proud to be wearing that shirt in 1975.
The shirt included a Birmingham Country Club logo on the left side, and wearing it provided him a little more pep in his step.
Rigdon was allowed to wear that shirt because Jon Gustin, the head golf professional at Birmingham Country Club, hired him that year. A year later, Rigdon was caddying for Gustin at the 1976 U.S. Open at Atlanta Athletic Club, toting a bag of 14 clubs at one of the Professional Golf Association’s four major tournaments.
Gustin competed on the PGA Tour 12 years, and settled into the role of head golf pro at Birmingham Country Club in 1965, a position he kept until 1987. Rigdon surely has tons of memories with Gustin, but the greatest was caddying for him in 1976.
From that tournament forward, Rigdon only wanted to play in a U.S. Open. He got his chance 32 years later when he had the opportunity to play in the 2008 U.S. Senior Open.
Rigdon, the head golf professional at Trussville Country Club since 1990, was inducted into the Dixie Section PGA Hall of Fame on Feb. 9, along with Gustin, who died in 1994 at the age of 61. Rigdon is a member of the Modern Division, which includes four others. Gustin is a member of the Legends Division, which also includes four others.
“What an honor it was,” Rigdon said. “I was honored to be inducted with the guy who trusted me enough to hire me.”
Criteria for election into the Dixie Section PGA Hall of Fame includes excelling in at least three of these categories: playing ability, business development at the club level, teaching ability, professional and educational development at the club level, professional development at the Section or national level, service to the Dixie Section and local community service.
“I’m certainly humbled and honored,” Rigdon said.
In 2013, Rigdon, now 62, received the Dixie Section PGA’s Junior Golf Leader award for his passion for helping develop young golfers. Rigdon said more than 70 student-athletes have received golf scholarships in his time at Trussville Country Club, 29 of which are from Hewitt-Trussville.
Rigdon, who sports a scoring average of 70 at Trussville Country Club and shot a career-best 8-under 63 there two years ago, hosts junior golf clinics every Saturday at 2 p.m. They’re called “The Road to College.”
Nine years ago he started an event called Husky Mania, which introduces Trussville students in the third through fifth grades to golf. A hallway between the pro shop and grill at the club features large, framed photos from each year’s event.
“My award now more than anything is watching these kids grow up, and try to experience college and life learning more than golf,” Rigdon said. “It’s just a game. We try to emphasize character in our kids, honesty, honor authority.”
Rigdon thinks about character and integrity a lot. Those are his favorite things about the game. Can you play well when things in life aren’t going well? Are you going to quit? Are you going to cheat? The game tests your integrity and teaches you about character, he said.
“My goal is to continue to educate and teach here as long as I’m here,” he said.
Rigdon tries to instill in young players good work habits on the driving range and on the course. He hopes those traits carry over into their schoolwork, jobs and families. Golf is more than splitting fairways and reading greens. It transcends the final number on the scorecard.
“It’s a great game,” he said.
Contact Gary Lloyd at news@trussvilletribune.com and follow him on Twitter @GaryALloyd.