Over the weekend, I traveled to DC to be the guest speaker during the Mid-Atlantic College Golf Day at Congressional CC. I was honored and excited to join a group of great coaches that included the Virginia Tech men’s head coach, Marshall women’s head coach, Towson men’s and women’s head coach, Naval Academy men’s head coach, Bridgewater College coach, McDaniel College coach, Shenandoah University coach and several others.
After presenting my talk, I was fortunate to have the chance to sit in on the breakout sessions that were led by the college coaches and I wanted to take a few minutes to share some of the highlights of those sessions that I feel would be valuable information for you.
- When comparing your scores as a junior golfer to a collegiate player’s scores you should add 4-5 shots more to make it a fair comparison. Courses aren’t just longer but they are also set up much more difficult and typically played in tougher conditions during the fall, late winter, and early spring. If the majority of your scores are shorter tees during the summer months then the 5-6 shot difference really comes into play, if you are playing longer tees during the fall and spring the comparison may only be 2-3 stroke difference. Keep in mind, in college golf, the stakes are higher as you have a team and coach counting on your score. You also have to juggle studying while you travel.
- You will have required study hall times at most all universities, especially as a freshman athlete
- “Smart kids aren’t afraid to ask” – Jay Hardwick – VT men’s coach. He has a player with a 3.8 GPA in engineering, who has tutors in 3 classes. Don’t be afraid to ask for help!
- School, Golf, and Social life… You can do two of three pretty well but you can’t do all three well, one will suffer
- “Playing college golf is like having a part-time job in college” – Naval Academy Men’s Coach
- “Opportunity to play college golf is a privilege, not a right” – VT Men’s Head Coach
- “We recruit families” – VT Men’s Head Coach
- Coaches are always recruiting better than what they currently have on the team. They aren’t trying to replace their 5th player, they are trying to replace their best player. Don’t go somewhere that you feel you can just beat the 5th player, go somewhere that realistically you can, at least, be the 3rd best player on the team because the coach will continue to recruit better players each year.
- Ratio of total scholarships across all division levels: 24 female high school golfers: 1 scholarship and 51 male high school golfers:1 scholarship – McDaniel Head Coach
RecruitPKB College Consultant Brandi Jackson can be reached at bjackson@pkbgt.org
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