The Little-Known Talent Chip Gaines Had Before He Started Flipping Homes
Chip Gaines is a man of many talents. The loving husband and father, reality star, entrepreneur and, of course, master house-flipper has graced our screens alongside his wife, Joanna, for so long it's difficult to remember a time he wasn't around. After saying goodbye to Fixer Upper, and by extension, network HGTV, the Gaines proved they're multi-talented with a variety of business ventures all centered around their own highly successful Magnolia business empire.
From a boutique hotel to launching their own dedicated network, everything the power couple touches seemingly turns to gold. Although it's almost impossible to imagine them doing anything outside of the home renovation sector, as it turns out, life could've gone very differently for Chip in particular. According to his parents, the reality star was destined for greatness in an entirely different realm before HGTV came calling.
Chip Gaines had dreams of becoming a star baseball player
Gayle Gaines, Chip's mother, told Dallas News that he played baseball from the first grade on. Chip's position was second and third base in junior and senior year of high school. He continued to play ball at Northlake College in Irving, TX, for another year before transferring to Baylor, where he sadly didn't make the team. The family were hugely disappointed because they thought they were, "raising the next great superstar baseball player."
As his father, Bob Gaines, acknowledged, "Instead, I raised the next great father, husband, and businessman, and now he's famous." Gayle admitted, looking back on that time now, they realize they wasted their time, "Trying to fit [Chip] into a box he didn't fit into." Thankfully, the proud parents also instilled a strong work ethic in him. He began mowing lawns to earn extra money in fifth grade. Likewise, a young Chip learned carpentry skills at the family's flooring store, which surely set him on the path to home renovation stardom.