"In South America, on clay, it is already much more difficult for us to attract players," says Chile Open boss Catalina Fillol.

When the red clay hardens, it forms a film that may help ... or over-stripping the skin of its natural oils, says the expert.

He eventually returned to his family’s ancestral hometown, a place he hadn’t visited since childhood, to interview residents and reconnect with Alabama’s iconic red clay. Fancher details ...