Chadwell chats about meeting Alberts, heading to Clemson Invitational

Head coach of the No. 17 Texas A&M women's golf team, Gerrod Chadwell joined TexAgs Radio on Tuesday to reflect on A&M's hiring of Trev Alberts and provide an update on the Aggies' season ahead of the Clemson Invitational this week and SEC Championships in April.

Key notes from Gerrod Chadwell interview

• We just had a head coaches meeting with Trev Alberts this morning at 8 a.m., and I was very impressed. We're in store for a lot of things in a very difficult time in college athletics. He's straight-up. The vibe that we got is that he's going to be in the trenches with us. The way he does things is what we were looking for. He listens to the things we would like to see for Texas A&M University and ideas that we've had. I think everyone left the room encouraged and excited.
   
• I shared this with some people who were involved: I think we're very close, and if we nailed the Director of Athletics hire, there are going to be a lot of things happening because the arrows are pointing in the right direction. President Mark A. Welsh III's leadership from the first day we met with him has been impressive as well.
   
• Mountain View was good. It's one of my favorite trips because we get to spend Spring Break with the team. We talk a lot about life, and my life is crazy. I really value my time with the girls. It's normally an extended trip. We went early. We did some testing and fitting at PING. We stayed in host housing, and it's like a home away from home with home-cooked meals every night. Our play was good, and we got off to a good start in the final round. We didn't play well in the back nine and got caught.
   
• It was just another week from Adela Cernousek. It's impressive to see these things from her when she's in that position despite not playing her A-game. I'm coming to expect it from her. You just have to appreciate that she gives us a chance every week.
   
• There was a great conversation had about a month ago, and I think that freed Cayetana Fernández García-Poggio up. It's better. She still wasn't at her best. You're starting to see how your bad round being a 70 instead of a 76 or a 74 helps move the team forward. She's still a freshman. Her spirit and her presence is bigger than a freshman's. She was struggling with that. We've helped her with that and hopefully freed her up. It's quick to see how fast they go from a freshman to a sophomore to a junior. I'm very excited for her.
   
• I'm trying to get to the point where I view finishing second as not a terrible thing because I have to be encouraging. I hate losing. If my wife and I are driving home in two separate cars, I hate getting there second. The hard thing is when you get that close. When you finish fourth or fifth, you didn't have a chance to win. Maybe it's easier to accept. When you're close and finish in second and feel like you should have won with the team you have, that's what I'm trying to do a better job of handling. I'm quiet. I internalize. I keep to myself. I hate losing. I truly hate losing. I don't want that to be a detriment to my relationship with them. I'm trying to get better at encouraging and praising because it was a good week, and we beat a lot of good teams.
   
• We were off yesterday, and a lot of young ladies showed up to the facility. That's a great sign. We're going through the airport, and it's laughing and cutting up and having a good time. I'm still pissed about losing. Neither reaction is right or wrong. I want them to understand that I'm not disappointed in them. It's just how I process it. I'm not pissed off at them. I just hate losing. For a while after that, I don't want to talk about anything. I hope I don't have to ever apologize about that.
   
• I have a five-year-old daughter at the house, and she's very competitive because her parents are very competitive. We will change the rules for her to win. I don't want to have to change the rules for the team to feel better about ourselves in that situation. I want us to learn something from Mountain View. I think we are getting better. With who we are and the ability and talent on that team, we should not have lost the last two. That's OK. I hope they want that expectation from me as my players. I still have to love them and encourage them through that so hopefully we're better next time.
   
• This trip to Clemson is our last regular-season event. We leave Wednesday. It's a quick turnaround. It's very similar to Mountain View because we get to stay in host housing. We're staying with an Aggie on the lake. That will be a good time. This tournament has a great field, and I think our team is ready. I told them when we got back from that airport that we're starting to stack up a lot of good things. I'm excited about the quick turnaround and that we'll be able to get the taste out of our mouths from Mountain View.