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Arnold Palmer Cup announces coaches for 2025 competition at Congaree

The U.S. leads the Palmer Cup series 15-12-1.

LAS VEGAS — The coaches for the American and International teams at the 2025 Arnold Palmer Cup were named Tuesday during the annual coaches convention at Planet Hollywood.

Auburn’s Nick Clinard and South Carolina’s Kalen Anderson will lead Team USA as co-head coaches, while Kansas State’s Stew Burke and East Tennessee State’s Aaron O’Callaghan will guide the International team.

The 2025 Palmer Cup is set for June 6-8 at Congaree Golf Club in South Carolina. Congaree is No. 1 on Golfweek’s Best list of private courses in South Carolina and sits at T-24 in rankings of modern courses in the United States.

Anderson, hired as head coach in 2008, has helped South Carolina earn four consecutive No. 1 NCAA Regional seeds, winning five since 2010, and qualifying for the NCAA Women’s Golf Championship in 12 of the past 14 seasons. The Gamecocks have won 28 tournaments under Anderson, including the Annika Intercollegiate this fall, and have earned 48 WGCA All-America honors by 15 different players.

Clinard is in his 16th season as head coach at Auburn, and last year was his best season, guiding the Tigers to their first national championship in school history. This fall, Auburn finished inside the top three in all five tournaments this fall, including a win at the East Lake Cup.

A 2024 Arnold Palmer Cup assistant coach, Burke is in his second season as Kansas State’s head coach. The Wildcats tallied four top-five finishes this fall, including a victory in the season-opening Powercat Invitational.

Also an Arnold Palmer Cup assistant coach in 2024, O’Callaghan was named head coach at East Tennessee State on June 10, 2024. He led the Buccaneers to top-15 finishes in all five tournaments this fall. O’Callaghan spent the last six seasons as the associate head coach at Wake Forest.

The Palmer Cup is an annual competition between the top collegiate players from the United States going against their International counterparts. The U.S. leads the Palmer Cup series 15-12-1.

Matt Thurmond, Ryan Hybl highlight Golf Coaches Association of America’s 2024 Hall of Fame class

The coaches will be inducted Dec. 10 in Las Vegas.

The Golf Coaches Association of America announced Tuesday its 2024 Hall of Fame Class.

Arizona State coach Matt Thurmond and Oklahoma coach Ryan Hybl will officially be inducted during the GCAA Hall of Fame Reception and Awards Dinner on Tuesday, Dec. 10 at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas.

Thurmond’s coaching career started as an assistant at his alma mater, BYU, in 1999. He then joined 2014 GCAA Hall of Famer O.D. Vincent’s staff at Washington the next season before being named head coach in June 2001. The Huskies made the NCAA Championship in each of Thurmond’s first five years, including a program-best third-place finish in 2005. That same year James Lepp won the individual NCAA title. Washington went on to make NCAAs seven times in his final 10 season in Seattle, making match play three times.

Thurmond was hired at Arizona State’s head coach on July 25, 2016. He has led the Sun Devils to 24 tournament wins, including the 2024 Pac-12 Championship and consecutive NCAA Regional titles in 2022 and 2023. Arizona State made match play at the NCAA Championship three times in six appearances since Thurmond arrived, including a runner-up finish in 2022. Thurmond has led 11 different Sun Devils to 18 All-America honors.

Matt Thurmond Chun An Yu — Arizona State men’s golf coach Matt Thurmond (left) with Chun An Yu. (Photo: Arizona State University)

After finishing his playing career at Georgia, Hybl joined 2012 GCAA Hall of Famer Chris Haack as an assistant coach in 2005. In his four seasons on staff (2005-09), the Bulldogs captured 18 team wins, featuring the 2006 and 2009 SEC Championship and 2008 NCAA East Regional, and made the NCAA Championship each year.

Hybl was hired as head coach at Oklahoma on June 22, 2009, turning the program back into a national powerhouse. The Sooners have recorded the top 14 single-season scoring averages in program history and made 13 straight NCAA Championship appearances, culminating in a national championship in 2017. Hybl has coached a program-record 46 tournament wins, including three Big 12 Championships (2018, 2022, 2023) and four NCAA Regional titles (2015, 2018, 2022, 2024).

In 1980, the GCAA began inducting men’s college golf coaches into the Golf Coaches Association of America Hall of Fame. Since then, the hall has grown to include more than 160 members. To be selected to the Hall of Fame, a coach must be nominated by their peers and selected by the GCAA Hall of Fame Committee.

Auburn’s Jackson Koivun wins 2024 Phil Mickelson Award, given to nation’s top freshman

Jackson Koivun has too many trophies to keep track of.

As if there was any doubt.

The Golf Coaches Association of America named Jackson Koivun the 2024 Phil Mickelson Award winner on Thursday, the award given to the top freshman in the nation. And it’s well deserved, considering Koivun is the national player of the year and may sweep all of the major awards.

Last week, he was awarded the Ben Hogan Award. On Tuesday, he earned the Heisman Trophy of college golf, the Fred Haskins Award. Next week, there’s a good chance he could win the Nicklaus Award.

Oh, and who could forget what he did Wednesday, helping guide Auburn to its first national championship in school history, going 3-0 in match play after a T-2 finish during stroke play at Omni La Costa’s North Course in Carlsbad, California.

His performance in match play, which included a 21-hole semifinal victory to send the Tigers to the championship match, earned him MVP honors on Golfweek‘s All-NCAA Golf Championship match play teams.

This year, Koivun had two victories, including the SEC Championship. He finished in the top 10 in 12 of his 13 stroke-play starts and had the lowest adjusted scoring average (67.3) in Division I. He was also 7-0 in match play this year, helping guide Auburn to 10 tournament victories.

This summer, he’ll represent the United States on the Arnold Palmer Cup team and will be one of the favorites at the 2024 U.S. Amateur at Hazeltine in Chaska, Minnesota.

As for his first college season? It was stellar.

Golf Coaches Association of America accepting applications for 2024 Ron Balicki scholarship

The recipient must be a current high school senior or current college undergraduate or graduate student.

The Golf Coaches Association of America is accepting applications for the 2024 Ron Balicki Scholarship until March 1. The recipient, a current high school senior or current college undergraduate or graduate student, will receive two $2,500 scholarships, one per 2023 semester.

The Ron Balicki Scholarship for aspiring golf journalists is dedicated to the memory of Ron Balicki for his lifelong commitment to covering the game of golf.

Few individuals have done more to bring exposure to college golf than Balicki. Since practically inventing the college golf beat while at Golfweek in 1983, Balicki became part of the fabric of the college and amateur game. He covered his first golf tournament in 1980 while with the Northwest Florida Daily News. He won first and third in GCAA writing contests and won four firsts and numerous honorable mention awards with the International Network of Golf. Balicki also won three first-place awards from the Texas Golf Writers Association. He was a winner of the Golf Writer’s Association of America Jimmy D’Angelo Award and the Northwest Florida Sports Association Al Byrne Award, both of which are presented to a person for contributions, devotion and service to the organization and the community.

A 2010 inductee into the GCAA Hall of Fame, Balicki covered every NCAA Championship dating to 1985 and every GCAA National Convention since its inception until 2013, when the cancer that claimed his life prevented him from traveling. Dubbed “Wrong Ron” for his propensity to incorrectly pick the winner of the NCAA Championships and playfully teased for his uncanny ability to bring the rain with him to events he covered, Balicki was truly fond of the sport and people he covered and was loved back by the players, coaches and everyone involved with college golf.

Past winners of the Ron Balicki Scholarship include Luke Hendry (University of Texas), Tracy Peyton (Palm Beach Atlantic University), Brayden Conover (University of Oklahoma), Cade Tjomsland (Palm Beach Atlantic University), Alex Gelman (Arizona State University), and Carson Racich (Florida Gulf Coast University).

Gregg Grost out as CEO/Executive Director of Golf Coaches Association of America, Dustin Roberts to take over

The GCAA will officially celebrate Grost’s tenure and contributions to college golf at its December national convention.

There’s a big change at the Golf Coaches Association of America.

Gregg Grost is out as CEO and executive director of the association, it was announced Thursday. Dustin Roberts, who has served in numerous positions for the GCAA since November 2002 and most recently COO, will assume the CEO and executive director position, effective immediately.

Grost has moved to the role of CEO Emeritus before transitioning to pursue other passions in golf, per the release.

“We are certainly grateful for Gregg Grost and his numerous contributions to the GCAA,” GCAA President Ryan Cabbage said in a release. “Our profession as college golf coaches and the Golf Coaches Association of America as a whole are both in a wonderful position due to his many years of hard work and dedication on our behalf. We now look forward to continuing to build on what Gregg has put in place with Dustin as our CEO.”

Grost was named executive director in September 2000 before being named CEO. He has a long association with college golf, beginning his playing career at McLennan Community College before graduating from TCU. Grost joined the coaching ranks as an assistant under Hall of Famer Dan Rogas at Lamar in 1981. Before moving to the University of Oklahoma in the spring of 1986, Grost guided Lamar to three Southland Conference Championships and earned the first of his two Dave Williams National Coach of the Year Award honors. He led the Sooners to the NCAA title in 1989, claiming his second National Coach of the Year award honors. He was inducted into the GCAA Hall of Fame in 2005.

During Grost’s tenure, the GCAA membership doubled, now numbering more than 850. The association also went from debt to solid financial footing under his stewardship. Along with the WGCA (Women’s Golf Coaches Association), the GCAA has grown its national convention attendance from fewer than 150 attendees to more than 340. Additionally, with partners the Arnold & Winnie Palmer Foundation, Rolex and Nike, the Arnold Palmer Cup has grown from a competition between eight U.S. men’s college golfers versus their counterparts from GB&I to an event that includes men’s and women’s college golfers from around the globe.

“I am excited about the new stage of my life with my family while pursuing opportunities in the game which I have wanted to focus on since retiring from coaching,” Grost said. “I am equally excited that the GCAA National Advisory Board has chosen Dustin Roberts to step into the CEO position at this time. Since the day he was hired over 20 years ago, he has exceeded all expectations with tireless effort on behalf of our member coaches. He is simply the right person at the right time.”

The GCAA will officially celebrate Grost’s tenure and contributions to college golf at its December national convention.

Rankings, new scoring website and more takeaways from the annual college golf coaches convention

Rankings were the big topic of the week.

LAS VEGAS — College golf coaches from across the country were in Las Vegas this week for the Golf Coaches Association of America and Women’s Golf Coaches Association annual convention at Planet Hollywood.

And there was no shortage of discussion points. The main topic? The new ranking system in college golf, which has caused drama, chaos and discombobulation throughout the fall.

Mark Broadie, who is in charge of the rankings, was in attendance and held two sessions to discuss the new rankings and take questions from coaches to clarify how they work. In addition, there were other breakout sessions and news announced.

Here are the big takeaways from the 2023 college golf coaches convention in Las Vegas.

Golf Coaches Association of America announces 2023 Hall of Fame inductees

To be selected to the Hall of Fame, a coach must be nominated by their peers and then selected by the GCAA Hall of Fame Committee.

The Golf Coaches Association of America announced Thursday its 2023 Hall of Fame class.

Steve Card, Josh Gregory, Grier Jones, and Marlin “Cricket” Musch will be inducted Dec. 4 at the GCAA Hall of Fame Reception and Awards Dinner in Las Vegas.

Card spent more than 33 years in Western Washington’s athletic department in various leadership roles. He served as men’s golf coach from 1993 to 2013. Western Washington won 45 tournaments, including 10 conference and four regional championships, and made 12 NCAA Championship appearances (eight team and four individual) in 15 years as well as four NAIA Championship appearances (Western Washington competed in the NAIA until becoming an official member of NCAA Division II in 1998).

Gregory served as the men’s golf coach and director of golf at Augusta State (now Augusta), where he led the Jaguars to a program-record 18 tournament wins, including becoming the first program since Houston (1984-1985) to win back-to-back NCAA Division I National Championships in 2010 and 2011. Gregory produced 12 All-Americans, 14 PING All-South Region selections, five GCAA All-America Scholars, six Arnold Palmer Cup and two Walker Cup participants while winning the NCAA Division I Dave Williams National Coach of the Year Award twice (2010-2011). He then went to SMU, where he coached Bryson DeChambeau, and has also spent time on Will Zalatoris’ bag on the PGA Tour.

Jones was the coach at Wichita State from 1995 until his retirement in 2019. In his tenure, the Shockers won 49 tournaments, including 15 Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) championships, and 45 medalist honors, including 11 individual conference championships. The 13-time MVC Coach of the Year and MVC All-Centennial Team coach (2007) also led Wichita State to 13 NCAA Division I regional appearances, and his players received eight MVC Golfer of the Year awards, 60 All-MVC, and five All-America selections, including two from current head coach Judd Easterling. He played collegiately at Oklahoma State.

Musch started the UTEP varsity program, which had previously been a club sport, and was the head coach from 1981 to 1990. In 1988, the Miners shared national runner-up honors with Oklahoma and Oklahoma State after the conclusion of the 1988 NCAA Division I National Championship, finishing only three shots behind champion UCLA and GCAA Hall of Fame coach Eddie Merrins. Musch received the NCAA Division I Dave Williams National Coach of the Year Award that year, and UTEP made it back to the national championship in 1989 before Musch earned Regional Coach of the Year honors. In all, Musch, a three-time Western Athletic Conference (WAC) Coach of the Year, led the Miners to the 1985 WAC Championship, six national championship appearances, and 10 All-American honors. After coaching, he had a 30-year career in golf agency.

In 1980, the GCAA began inducting outstanding men’s college golf coaches into the Golf Coaches Association of America Hall of Fame. Since then, the hall has grown to include more than 160 members. To be selected to the Hall of Fame, a coach must be nominated by their peers and then selected by the GCAA Hall of Fame Committee. Selection criteria not only include a coach’s record on the golf course, but also their contributions to the game, student-athletes, and school.

‘Change is hard’: What to know about Clippd, Spikemark’s failures and future of college golf scoring and rankings

“We’re super excited about this partnership… and we know they’ll get it done.”

The start of the 2023-24 college golf season has been tumultuous, to say the least.

On Monday, Oct. 16, the NCAA announced Clippd, a technology business founded and staffed by passionate golfers, would take over as the official scoring and rankings provider for college golf. This comes on the heels of numerous failures from Spikemark Golf, which replaced Golfstat in July and was supposed to provide tournament scoring, real-time leaderboards, detailed statistics, in-depth analytics and media, allowing fans to keep track of their favorite teams and players.

However, from day one, Spikemark’s website encountered numerous issues, there have been no official college golf rankings with the fall season nearing completion and plenty of questions remain from coaches and those involved with the inter-workings of the sport about the future.

Here’s what you need to know about Clippd, Spikemark’s failures and the future of college golf scoring and rankings.

Golf Coaches Association of America seeking nominees for 2023 Ron Balicki scholarship

The recipient, a current high school senior or current college undergraduate or graduate student, will receive two $2,500 scholarships, one per 2023 semester.

The Golf Coaches Association of America is accepting applications for the 2023 Ron Balicki Scholarship until Feb. 28. The recipient, a current high school senior or current college undergraduate or graduate student, will receive two $2,500 scholarships, one per 2023 semester.

The Ron Balicki Scholarship for aspiring golf journalists is dedicated to the memory of Ron Balicki for his lifelong commitment to covering the game of golf.

Few individuals have done more to bring exposure to college golf than Balicki. Since practically inventing the college golf beat while at Golfweek in 1983, Balicki became part of the fabric of the college and amateur game. He covered his first golf tournament in 1980 while with the Florida Daily News. He won first and third in GCAA writing contests and won four firsts and numerous honorable mention awards with the International Network of Golf. Balicki also won three first-place awards from the Texas Golf Writers Association. He was a winner of the Golf Writer’s Association of America Jimmy D’Angelo Award and the Northwest Florida Sports Association Al Byrne Award, both of which are presented to a person for contributions, devotion and service to the organization and the community.

“This past year has changed my life,” Alex Gelman, the 2022 Balicki Scholarship recipient, said. “I used to only cover basketball and football games, and although I am very passionate about these two sports, I never felt like I fit in. With golf, I’m home. I now know that I want to cover the sport of golf as a professional, and it is an honor to represent Ron Balicki’s name.”

Past winners of the Ron Balicki Scholarship include Gelman, Cade Tjomsland (Palm Beach Atlantic University), current Golfweek writer Brayden Conover (University of Oklahoma), Golf on CBS social media personality Tracy Peyton (Palm Beach Atlantic University) and Valero Alamo Bowl business developer Luke Hendry (University of Texas).

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Patriot All-America will expand to include top female amateurs in 2021

Organizers of the Patriot All-America have announced the tournament will now include a women’s division.

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Amateur golf is steeped in tradition, and the calendar normally repeats itself from year to year. One of the final stops for the nation’s best college players is the Patriot All-America Invitational at the Wigwam Golf Resort in Litchfield Park, Arizona.

Beginning in 2021, the “best” college players will mean all college players. Organizers of the Patriot All-America have announced that, in partnership with the Women’s Golf Coaches Association of America, the tournament will feature a women’s division for the first time. A field of 42 of college golf’s best women will join the field of 84 men on Dec. 28-31 to end the year.

“The WGCA is excited to partner with The Patriot,” said Angie Ravaioli-Larkin, WGCA President. “This is so special to our organization especially with our involvement and commitment to The Folds of Honor. What a tremendous opportunity to recognize some of the finest players in women’s college golf while honoring those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice.”

The Patriot All-America Invitational features PING All-Americans from the previous season in NCAA Divisions I, II and III, NAIA and NJCAA; as well as 2021 First Team All-America seniors from the AJGA. The tournament is unique in the way it allows players to honor fallen or severely wounded soldiers in partnership with the Folds of Honor Foundation. Each player receives a golf bag donated by PING Corporation at the event’s opening ceremony that carries the name and branch of service of a fallen or injured military member. Participants also receive a card with the soldier’s story so they can be familiar with that soldier. The golf bags are then sold with proceeds donated to Folds of Honor to support the families affected.

“I’m grateful and excited about the return of the Patriot All-America Invitational in 2021,” said Lt Col Dan Rooney, founder and CEO of Folds of Honor. “This outstanding golf tournament honors those who have given so much for our country. I’m especially enthusiastic about the addition of women collegiate golfers in this year’s field. These are some of the best players in America. Women play an integral role in the military and have sacrificed so much.”

The Patriot All-America is the latest tournament to expand its field to include top women’s golfers or to offer a separate women’s division. This week marks the inaugural Sea Island Women’s Amateur. Sea Island, Georgia, has long been an important stop in men’s amateur golf, having hosted the Jones Cup tournaments (together with Ocean Forest Golf Club) since the early 2000s. Now, women get the chance to compete there annually, too.

The Southwestern Amateur added a women’s division recently and the Palmer Cup, a Presidents Cup-style match pitting the best American college players against their International counterparts, became a co-ed match in 2018.

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