Mike Small had big plans for this week. He flew to Myrtle Beach, S.C., on Saturday and hoped to play, practice and train for seven hours a day in advance of next week’s first stage of Champions Tour Q-School.
Then the weather turned miserable. Then his back went out.
A cruel reminder that his road to the senior circuit is more difficult than most.
Small, who turns 50 in March, is the highly successful head coach at Illinois, which finished the fall season Nov. 3 with a victory (its third of the season) at the East Lake Cup.