On December 30, 2013, Callaway Golf Company announced the signing of Thomas Pieters, James Erkenbeck and Chase Seiffert to its talented pro staff. Callaway’s star-studded pro staff is headlined by Phil Mickelson, Ernie Els, Jim Furyk, Morgan Pressel and Sandra Gal. In 2013, Callaway Golf continued to diversify its pro staff with the signing of Brooke Pancake a member of the 2012 National NCAA Champion University of Alabama team and Patrick Reed a member of the 2010 and 2011 NCAA National Champion Augusta State teams.
Thomas Pieters is from Nijlen, Belgium and is a recent graduate of the University of Illinois, where he was the 2012 NCAA individual champion. During his 2012-2013 senior season, Pieters had a 71.38 stroke average, improving substantially over his 3 years as a collegiate player at Illinois. Further, Peiters helped his Illinois team finish 2nd in the nation in 2013 (losing to Alabama in the NCAA championship) that was the best finish for Illinois since its 4th place finish in 1941. The most memorable moment in Pieters’ collegiate career occurred in the most high-pressure situation—upending the 2013 individual NCAA champion, Max Homa, on the second playoff hole to defeat California in the semifinal match of the NCAA championship. Additionally, Pieters was also an honorable mention All-American by PING and Golfweek.
James Erkenbeck is a recent University of New Mexico graduate and hails from San Diego, California. Erkenbeck had a notable 71.21 stroke average in New Mexico’s 2012-2013 season. In his senior season, Erkenbeck won the NCAA Men’s Regionals in Columbus, OH, as well as finished in 2nd place at both the Mountain West Championship and Southern Highlands Collegiate Masters. Erkenbeck finished his decorated collegiate career at New Mexico as the Mountain West Player of the Year and an ALL-MW selection. Additionally, Erkenbeck was named a member of the 2013 All-Nicklaus Team that is voted by the Golf Coaches Association of America.
Chase Seiffert is a native of Panama City, Florida and attended Florida State University. In 2011, Sieffert transferred from Central Alabama Community College and has thrived as a leader for the Seminole’s golf team. Seiffert was named an All-ACC selection in 2012 after winning the individual title at both the Florida State Amateur Championship and Florida Open Championship. Seiffert boasted an impressive 71.03 stroke average during the 2012-2013 season. Sieffert’s top FSU performances include second place finishes at the Seminole Intercollegiate (2012, 2013), ACC Championships (2013) and NCAA Tallahassee Regional (2013). During Seiffert’s tenure at FSU, he helped lead the Seminoles to both an 11th place (2013) and 9th place (2012) finish at the NCAA Championship. Additionally, Seiffert was an honorable mention by Golfweek All-American and named to the 2013 PING All-Region Team.