Story by Megan Venable
Scott Stallings is a recently returned native of the area, a golf professional since 2007 and a three-time winner on the PGA Tour. Ever a modest man, however, he laughs about meeting the contractor who would ultimately build his family home and explaining that he would be hitting lots of golf balls in the backyard. Confused, the contractor pointed out that the house would certainly be an obstacle in the way. Laughing, Stallings replied, “well, if the house is in the way I shouldn’t be doing what I’m doing.”
Currently, Stallings is excited to work with a new initiative to develop the options for the youth in the area to have access to free golf courses and lessons. Through the Scott Stallings Kids Play Free Junior Golf Program, more than 60,000 rounds of free golf have been provided for Knoxville area youths in partnership with the Tennessee Golf Foundation and Visit Knoxville. Junior golfers under 18 years old are admitted to unlimited rounds of play at Beverly Park Par 3 Golf Course and Concord Park Par 3 Golf Course in Knoxville.
Additionally, Stallings is actively involved with the Knoxville Open, serving as a tournament ambassador. The 2026 Visit Knoxville Open will mark the 36th year that Knoxville has hosted a stop on the Korn Ferry Tour. This prestigious tournament is scheduled to take place at the historic Holston Hills Country Club. Stallings takes great pride in showcasing his hometown on a national stage and helping to bring professional golf to the Knoxville community and goes out of his way to credit East Tennessee as making him into the man he is today. “Knoxville supported me so much in my career. I want the opportunity to support something near and dear to my heart,” Stallings says. “It is exciting to be part of the process and have some skin in the game.”
In the meantime, Stallings is enjoying being a Knoxvillian again and playing golf around town. “To have amazing courses like Cherokee and Holston Hills in Knoxville, when this town is not a golf destination, is a great opportunity for a city this size.” He adds that public golf options in town are also incredibly accessible throughout the city, and he’s very excited to see what the future of golf looks like in East Tennessee. “To have a little bit of stake in what the future looks like to enhance playing opportunities is very exciting,” Stallings says.
Despite a couple of recent surgeries, Stallings has been cleared for light golf practice and progressing into more practice and work on the golf course in the near future. “I’m looking forward to getting back to the PGA in the late fall,” he says, but managed to heal well enough to play a few rounds of golf with his father at a recent family vacation to Kiawah. “You can be the best golfer in the world or a total amateur, and we can all find a way to play and enjoy golf,” he says about longevity as a golfer. “It’s the unique ultimate common ground sport, even in terms of safety. Golf is very accessible and you can do it a long time. It’s pretty cool to experience even though skills change over time. It keeps me young I guess!”