McKenzie's Weatherford Signs with Bethel Golf

McKENZIE (January 9) — McKenzie High School senior golf standout Charli Weatherford will continue her athletic career at Bethel University following a signing ceremony Friday in the MHS Theatre. She was joined by family, coaches, teammates, classmates and other longtime supporters.

Last fall, Weatherford crowned an illustrious prep career with an eighth-place finish among 46 competitors at the 2025 TSSAA Class A Girls Golf Championship after earning the state berth by claiming individual titles in both the District 14A and Region 7A tournaments.

The future Lady Wildcat spoke to The Banner about her career and her decision.

She said, "My entire family plays golf. I hadn't really been interested in the game of golf up until my eighth grade year. My dad got me an old set of clubs to go and try out, and then I decided that I actually wanted to learn how to play golf and get good at it. So I started taking lessons, started going to Clarksville and getting professional lessons. And I just grew to love the game."

Weatherford said, "Bethel is five minutes away from my house. My original plan was to go as far away as I could, but I ended up deciding to stay here at home, closer to my friends and family."

She explained one big factor in her decision was Bethel Head Coach and former McKenzie coach Larry Joe Smith. "I cannot be more excited to play for Larry Joe. I love him. I've known him for the longest time. He's always really energetic around me, and ever since I started pursuing the game of golf, he's gotten really close with me and is always making little hints about how he's always wanted me to go to Bethel. We've just always been really good friends."

Her hopes for college golf are "to have fun and meet a lot of good people and shoot some good scores, win a couple of tournaments."

Asked about her favorite golf memory, she replied, "Probably going to state. I'd never been to state, and I was just very happy that I was able to have that opportunity. And I had a lot of fun. I met a lot of new people that I still talk to today. A bunch of good friendships."

She also spoke about the good friendships she's made at home. "My teammates have been really good to me. They've always helped me out. I've heard a bunch of other teams, they're not really close, but this team at McKenzie High school, we're pretty close.

"To be a Rebel, this community, they're all joined together as a community, and I'm glad to be a part of it. They're very uplifting and very supportive. And they've always helped me out with my game. They always just look to help. They're really good to me."

Coach Smith also spoke to The Banner about the signing. "I compare this to sort of like Christmas time, when you never expect to get that gift under the tree that you want. Then all of a sudden, you open it up and Mom and Dad or Santa Claus got it for you. That's the way I feel. What Charli doesn't realize is what an influence she is gonna have on people locally, female golfers locally. I've been around this program for 30 years, and she is one of the tops to ever come through the school. And for us at Bethel University to get her and the influence she's going to have on other kids. It's going to be immeasurable, and she doesn't realize that yet. And that's ok, but she's gonna make me look a lot smarter as well. I can't wait to get her on campus and involved."

He spoke about her biggest strengths. "Number one, she has the distance off the tee to play collegiate golf. I coached high school golf for 26 years, and the biggest thing to go from high school to college is the distance of the courses. You know, there's no red tees at the collegiate level. You're playing courses 6,000 yards and longer. The great thing is she has the length off the tee to play these courses.

"The other thing that is insurmountable is her work ethic. She loves to practice. She loves to play. Once we can get this golf facility on campus finished, she's going to be able to have access to that year-round, and she'll put the time in that it takes to get better. And that's all that you can ask for as a coach. Those that are willing to work and improve their game."

MHS Head Coach Tyler Holt told The Banner, "I'm super proud of her and just the amount of work that she's put in. It's definitely shown. She deserves every bit of this media day for her. I'm super excited for her moving forward. She helped the Lady Rebel Golf program tremendously, and I can't wait to see what she does next."

Holt also complimented her work ethic. "She's never satisfied. Even if she plays a good round, she's not going to take a couple days off. She's going to continue to work. She's going to figure out something to get better at."

Weatherford will major in health science and plans to get the prerequisites to pursue a degree in dental hygiene.