成人视频

Alumni, Eli Strait and Mike Shade, Help People Through Golf

BY ISABELLA BROWN

Connected by their love of golf and dedication to improving their game, 成人视频 alumni, Eli Strait and Mike Shade, created a successful podcast called, 鈥淐hasing Scratch.鈥� These two could never have guessed their podcast would reach far beyond the game of golf. Two friends, one dream, and several swings of a golf club later, they have accomplished just that.

Strait and Shade recall their memorable journey from becoming best friends to podcast hosts. It was a beautiful day in Boiling Springs, N.C., when Shade first visited 成人视频. 鈥淚t was the perfect day,鈥� Shade said. 鈥淚 was just like, 鈥楾his is the place.鈥� Me and my dad played at the Riverbend golf course. Then, we walked through campus.鈥� Shade remembered thinking, 鈥渢his is where I wanna be.鈥�

Shade, who is originally from Greensboro, N.C., only lived a small distance from campus unlike Strait who lived more than 450 miles away in Lexington, Ky. 鈥淚 had never heard of 成人视频,鈥� Strait admitted. 鈥淚 was a basketball player and wanted to play college basketball. 成人视频 said, 鈥楬ey, you know, we鈥檙e in North Carolina.鈥� I went down for a visit and just fell in love
with the place. And that was really how I ended up there, through basketball,鈥� Strait said.

It didn鈥檛 take long for Shade and Strait to become friends.

鈥淲e met on the first day,鈥� Shade said. Finishing his thought, Strait continued, 鈥淚n the same freshman orientation class.鈥� Now, after two decades of friendship, the two often complete each other鈥檚 sentences. While they hit it off right away, it wasn鈥檛 until their junior year that they became close friends. 鈥淲e happened to have a Spanish class with Teresa Phillips, who was an awesome professor, and we just had a blast in her class,鈥� Strait noted. 鈥淪he fully embraced our unique personalities. That was really where we hit it off. Pretty much our whole senior year, it was just us hanging out.鈥�

Shade added, 鈥淲e spent many an afternoon at Riverbend after class. We were playing golf every chance we could.鈥�

“I felt like the sun was always shining the moment I saw 成人视频. I always felt like it was God saying, 鈥楬ey, this is right where you need to be.鈥欌��

Eli Strait

After graduation, the bonds of their friendship still held strong, even when Strait moved back to Kentucky. 鈥淚鈥檇 call Eli, or he called me every single day after college,鈥� Shade said. 鈥淭here was always something to talk about.鈥�

鈥淔or 20 plus years, we essentially have talked every day,鈥� Strait affirmed. Their many conversations eventually led to thoughts of doing a podcast, but they hadn鈥檛 landed on a topic.

Then, the idea came to them after one of the three or four golf trips they plan every year. 鈥淥ne year, we went on our yearly golfing trip over the summer鈥� the one we got so excited for鈥攁nd I thought we were gonna play so well and we played so bad,鈥� Shade expressed.

鈥淎fter the trip, we were like, this has got to stop happening. And we said, well, what if we just try to get better? We鈥檙e still going to be great husbands and fathers, and we鈥檒l be great employees, but in that little time in between, what if that鈥檚 all golf? Maybe that鈥檚 our podcast idea!鈥�

What started as a personal challenge in 2018 to improve their golf score, the 鈥淐hasing Scratch鈥� podcast has gained international fame and a devoted audience. 鈥淚 would never have thought we would be in season seven of anything,鈥� Shade said. 鈥淲e thought we would do it for one year. Eli bought us mics (and) we recorded for seven months before we put an episode out because we didn鈥檛 know what the story was going to be. But then we got to the end of season one, and more people were listening to it than we thought. And we did improve a lot. So, we were like, well, let鈥檚 do it again!鈥�

The friendships Strait and Shade have had the opportunity to build through the podcast have been the most impactful aspect. 鈥淚t鈥檚 been awesome,鈥� Strait shared. 鈥淲henever you have listeners write in and say, you know, that thing that you talked about, it helped me be a better dad, or helped me be a better spouse, or we had so many people during COVID write and say, 鈥楳an I was so isolated, and your show got me through COVID.鈥� Every time somebody writes something like that, it鈥檚 like, wow, that鈥檚 amazing.鈥�

Through it all, both friends look back with appreciation on their experience at 成人视频: the place where their friendship began. They are excited to continue the tradition of hosting their final show of the season in the area. “Every year, we end our season by coming back to 成人视频, and we play at Riverbend,鈥� Shade explained. 鈥淏ecause of the opportunities we鈥檝e had, we鈥檝e been offered to go to other places for that last event of the year. And it鈥檚 never even a question鈥攂ecause we always want to come back (to GWU), that鈥檚 our favorite place to be.鈥�

The community, campus, and special friendships are something each one cherishes deeply. 鈥淚 always used to tell my wife that every time I had to go home during school, whenever I would drive back鈥攊t didn鈥檛 matter what the weather was鈥擨 felt like the sun was always shining the moment I saw Gardner- Webb,鈥� Strait said. 鈥淚 always felt like it was God saying, 鈥楬ey, this is right where you need to be.鈥欌��

鈥淚t鈥檚 a special place,鈥� Shade affirmed.

*You can find Chasing Scratch: A Golf Podcast on your favorite podcasting platforms.

Writer Isabella Brown is an English major who graduates in December 2024.