The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
Kim, Will Wilcox To Be Featured On Golf Channel
2/2/2012 12:00:00 AM | Women's Golf
Feb. 2, 2012
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- UAB women's golf coach Kim Wilcox and her son, former UAB men's golfer Will Wilcox, are the subjects of a Golf Channel feature that is likely to air late this summer.
A Golf Channel crew was in town this week to tape interviews and shoot footage for the piece that will be part of its "Golf in America" series.
The piece, likely to run in August, centers around the fact that Will -- now a Nationwide Tour pro -- learned to play golf from his mother. That's something unique in a game known for its father-son bonds.
"Most kids who grow up playing golf use it as a great bond with their fathers," said Jason Sobel, senior writer for GolfChannel.com, who conducted interviews for the story. "Will had a great bond with his mother, and that's a neat story that we don't see that often in the golf world.
"It's unique and yet it's no different from so many other kids' relationships to one of their parents who taught them the game and showed them a love for the game."
Sobel spent Monday following Will and Kim around Pine Harbor Golf Club in Pell City, Ala., where Kim was the golf pro when Will was growing up. The day also included hours of interviews with Will, Kim and Bill Wilcox -- Kim's husband and Will's father -- at the Wilcox house.
The crew was then on campus Tuesday morning to wrap up filming and interview UAB men's golf coach Alan Kaufman, who coached Will as a freshman at UAB.
"I think it's going to do a lot for Will's career on the Nationwide Tour," Kim said of the experience. "It's been an awesome couple of days. The story is all about how great he's doing and also the fact that I taught him how to play."
Despite just a partial season last year, Will finished 36th on the Nationwide Tour money list. He has full status this year on the tour, which is just one step away from the PGA Tour. The top 25 on the tour's money list each year earn their PGA Tour card for the following season.
Will has done various interviews as a professional golfer and even been featured on Golf Channel's "Quest for the Card," but he said this week's production was more in depth than any he's previously experienced.
"It was surprising when I heard what was happening," Will said. "I was excited. Mom was excited, too. We went up to Pell City and did the whole blue-collar country boy upbringing. It was awesome. It was a new experience for sure."
Wilcox played one season at UAB before transferring to Clayton State, where he was a three-time Division II All-American. He began his professional career in 2009 and competed on the Hooters and Canadian tours before working his way up to the Nationwide Tour.
