Men’s Golf At the University of Georgia

Men’s golf at the University of Georgia is representative of the school’s colorful and storied history. The Bulldogs field excellent teams in all sports, but the men’s golf team is of special note because of the sheer number of golfers who have emerged from its ranks to become well respected, great athletes. Looking back through the annals of its history, the men’s golf team has celebrated august wins and has created some of the most legendary players in golf’s amateur and professional circuits.

The story of the men’s golf team at UGA began shortly before the Great Depression. Several students came together during the early part of their second semester in 1924 to form the men’s golf team (Men’s). They did not have a coach, but, instead, they had a captain who made all of the decisions concerning the team (Men’s). “Some of the first captains for the Bulldogs were Harris Jones, John Grant, Billy Oliver and Hugh Nunnally” (Men’s). In fact, the Bulldogs played together for six years until their first coach was hired in 1930. Murray Soule was the first coach of the UGA men’s golf team before handing over his coaching position to J.M. McFadden in 1933 (Men’s). McFadden was at the helm for just two years before being replaced by R.L. Keener (Men’s). In 1941, the Bulldogs, led by Coach Keener, won their first Southeastern Conference title (Men’s). With the outbreak of World War II, the men’s golf team disbanded for the following five years and came together again in 1946 under the leadership of Howell Hollis (Men’s). Hollis spent the next twenty-four years creating a formidable golf team that swept titles and produced some of the most well known players in golf history (Men’s). He was able to attract talent like David Boyd, Jimmy Gabrielsen, Vinny Giles and Danny Yates (Men’s). By the time he retired in 1976, Hollis’ teams had won thirteen SEC championships and ten individual conference champions (Men’s). He even had one player, George Hamer in 1946, who went on to win the national championship (Men’s). Nicknamed “The Georgia Pine” because he was so tall, Hamer is still the only golfer in UGA history to have won the national championship (Men’s). Dick Copas, who was an academic counselor and dorm director at UGA was tapped to take over the coaching reins in 1971 (Men’s). He continued building what Coach Hollis had created the foundation for: success (Men’s). During his tenure from 1971 to 1996, Coach Copas led the Bulldogs “to 17 NCAAs, including 10 top-10s, and seven SEC titles. Sixty-one of his protégés won All-SEC honors, while 31 were tabbed as All-Americans” (Men’s). Copas was awarded the National Coach of the Year award in 1978, and he was awarded as SEC Coach of the Year seven times (Men’s). He coached some of the most revered players in Bulldog history including: Peter Persons, Chip Beck, Griff Moody, Matt Peterson, Paul Claxton and Franklin Langham (Men’s). In 1996, yet another coach took over. Chris Haack, who had been with the American Junior Golf Association, took the reins and led the team to its first national championship in 1999 (Men’s). It was a banner year for him as he also won the National Coach of the Year award (Men’s). History repeated itself in 2005 as the team won another national championship and Haack was chosen, again, as the National Coach of the Year (Men’s). “To date, Haack also has guided the Bulldogs to five more SEC titles - giving Georgia a league-high 26 crowns. Under Haack, Georgia has set school marks for lowest team total in a tournament and a round as well as lowest mark by an individual. Thirty-two of his players have been tabbed as All-Americans, while 36 have been chosen All-SEC, including 1998 Player of the Year Jeremy Parrott, 2001 Player of the Year Nick Cassini, 2006 Player of the Year Chris Kirk, 2003 Freshman of the Year Kevin Kisner, 2004 Freshman of the Year Brendon Todd and 2006 Freshman of the Year Brian Harman” (Men’s). Coach Haack honored two previous coaches by creating awards for team members who demonstrate prowess as athletes as well in the academic realm. The Copas Award is given to the player who leads the team in scoring average, and the Hollis Award is given to the golfer with the highest grade point average (2012).

Bulldogs continue to lead the way for other professional and amateur golfers. The 2013-14 PGA Tour has been deemed the “season of the Bulldog” (Gray). Brian Harmon, 2009 graduate, tied for sixth at the Frys.com Open and tied for tenth at the McGladrey Classic (Gray). Chris Kirk, from the 2007 class, won first place at Sea Island, and shortly afterwards, he was runner up at the Sony Open (Gray). As luck would have it, Kirk’s former roommate from UGA, Brendan Todd, came in second in the Humana Challenge (Gray). Hudson Swafford, a 2011 graduate, tied for eighth in Hawaii while 2006 alum, Kevin Kisner, tied for twentieth at the McGladrey Classic (Gray). Patrick Reed, winner of two NCAA titles at Augusta State as well as last year’s Wyndham Championship, actually began his career at UGA before transferring (Gray). Of course, who can forget the Master’s win by UGA alum Bubba Watson? Why is there a sudden increase in the number of excellent golfers emerging from UGA? According to Brendan Todd, “I think we play one of the toughest schedules in the country, so we're always competing on good, tough golf courses like the PGA Tour plays. There's definitely a fraternity. We all get along really well ... As we've graduated and traveled the Tour, we're really gelling” (Gray).

The men’s golf team at the University of Georgia continues to improve on an already excellent program. From its founding ninety years ago to today, the team continues to work together and individually to improve its play. It is no wonder that as we continue to follow professional and amateur golf, we will continue to see more UGA golfers at the top of the leader board.

Author: Rukket Founder Ryan Dickerson

Works Cited

"2012-13 Georgia Men's Golf Media Guide." Issuu. University of Georgia, n.d. Web. 7 June

2014. <http://issuu.com/georgiadogs/docs/12-13mgo-media-guide/28>.

Gray, Will. "Univ. of Georgia Golfers Continue Success in '13-'14 | Golf Channel." Golf

Channel. NBC Sports, 17 Jan. 2014. Web. 7 June 2014.

<http://www.golfchannel.com/news/golftalkcentral/univ-georgia-golfers-continue-

success-13-14/>.

"Men's Golf." Georgia Official Athletic Site -. University of Georgia, n.d. Web. 1 June 2014.

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