WS Chronicle

Since childhood, the game of golf has been a way of life for Cam Witherspoon. As he matured, his love for the game continued to grow and that love has earned him a scholarship to play golf at the next level.

The Reagan High School senior has accepted a scholarship to play golf at Virginia Union University this fall. Witherspoon’s game has continued to evolve over the last four years, and he feels he is ready to step right in and compete.

“I have gotten better from my freshman year to my senior year and now I have really started putting myself out there with the lower scoring kids. I really started to define my golf game and really showing people what I can do, so going into the college season I am going to be ready for it,” Witherspoon said about the maturation of his game.

“I went out and watched the tournament for Virginia Union when they played in the CIAA. I am just like right with those kids, if not better than them, so I think I have the confidence and the mental strength to get through the college season to do well and succeed.”

To help improve his game, Witherspoon worked tirelessly with his swing coach, watched videos of different swings of professionals and recorded his own swing to make any necessary adjustments. He has continually worked on aspects of his game because he feels consistency is the only way to get better at his craft.

“It takes every day. You can’t just miss a day or two, you have to keep going at it every day,” he said about his commitment to the game. “I think golf is like the number one time-consuming sport because you can always go on a football field and run routes and catch a ball but with golf it’s always something different that you have to work on. You have to go out there every single day for hours, working at it to get better. You can’t just hope to get better; you actually have to work on it.”

Witherspoon enjoyed his time at Reagan. He feels the coaches and players assisted with his growth in the game. He played on the varsity team all four years and that helped with his maturity and making better decisions on the course.

“When I was younger, I used to try and go for everything,” he said about his shot selection. “If I had a shot that I think I could do, I would try and hit that shot instead of taking the smarter route. The coaches told me to play the smarter shot. I forgot who told me this, but they told me to shoot for par and maybe a birdie will come.”

Playing in the tournaments in high school was another way Witherspoon was able to sharpen his game. With several players in those tournaments committed to high level Division I schools, it was a great way for Witherspoon to gauge where his game was and what he needed to work on. 

When it came down to choosing a college, Witherspoon chose Virginia Union University because of the coaching staff. He felt they were committed to him and he decided that was where he wanted to go.

The support from his mother and father has been big for Witherspoon throughout his career. His parents have been in his corner since day one and he is grateful for that.

“They are like my number one fans to be honest, especially this man right here,” Witherspoon said about his parents. “I probably get like 30 calls a day from him asking me if I need anything. I know I don’t acknowledge it to them, but I actually am really grateful because they put in a lot of money and time for me and if I didn’t have that, I wouldn’t be close to where I am today.”

Cam’s father, Ubet Witherspoon, says once Cam became more serious about golf, that was when he really took off in the sport. Mr. Witherspoon always felt Cam had the talent to excel in the sport, but there is more potential to be unlocked in his son.

“It’s about what he wants at this point,” said Mr. Witherspoon. “So, I have seen him grow from just being there, to really being there. Going forward, he knows it’s about what he does and the moves he makes.

“Since he was younger, it was holding his hand, now it’s to the point where it’s about him. I tell Cam that a kid with half your talent but double your work ethic will beat you every time. Cam can go far, he just had to believe and put the work in to go far. I have seen that growth from freshman year until now.”

Mr. Witherspoon is excited for Cam to have the opportunity to play at Virginia Union because he was sold on the coaching staff and their commitment to his son. Mr. Witherspoon says the job is not done yet because he feels Cam has the ability to go as far as he wants to in the game of golf.