Men's Golf

SIUE Athletics Looks to Reinstate Men’s Golf
         EDWARDSVILLE, ILL. -- With the near-future hiring of a part-time men’s golf coach at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, announced today by Director of Athletics Brad Hewitt, the Cougars hope to reinstate the men’s golf program and compete starting next fall in the Great Lakes Valley Conference.
         Hewitt said that SIUE Athletics is adding men’s golf at the request of a “multitude of men’s golf alumni.” The funding for the team will be external in nature similar to the model currently being used by the Friends of Wrestling. The SIUE wrestling program was to be eliminated after the 2003-04 season, but with the help of several dedicated supporters and alumni, the wrestling program is being maintained on the intercollegiate level, funded primarily by private contributions.
         “I’m ecstatic about this as an opportunity. It give us another conference sport and a stronger opportunity to compete for the All-Sports Trophy,” said Hewitt.
         There actually are two positions for golf coaches open in the SIUE Athletics Department. After Larry Bennett announced his retirement as the women’s head coach earlier this fall, the SIUE Athletics Department is now looking for a part-time women’s coach and a part-time men’s coach.
         Hewitt said both positions will have similar duties and qualifications. The successful candidates should have proven successful playing and/or coaching experience at the collegiate level or professional level. The position also expects the head coach to provide evidence of a commitment to academic excellence, including student-athlete graduation, and demonstrate the ability to interact effectively with student-athletes, colleagues and the public. Fund-raising experience and tournament management is preferred.
         SIUE announced it was dropping men’s golf as an sponsored sport in January 1995 as a result of recommendations made by the Intercollegiate Athletic Committee. The first SIUE men’s golf program began during the 1968-69 season. The Cougars made 16 national championship appearances under Harry Gallatin, who was SIUE’s first Athletics Director and the team’s first coach. Gallatin oversaw a program with two first team All-Americans, two second-team All-Americans, one third-team All-American and six honorable mention All-Americans.
         Under Bennett, the SIUE women’s golf program has grown from its modest beginnings during the 1998-1999 season to national prominence. In seven years, the SIUE women’s golf team has made two NCAA Championships appearances as a team and won a Great Lakes Valley Conference title in 2003.
         Individuals wishing to apply for either or both positions should send a letter of application, resume, official transcript and three references to Theresa Kelley, Assistant to the Director of Athletics, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, Campus Box 1129, Edwardsville, IL 62026-1129, and note whether they are applying for the men’s coaching position, the women’s coaching position, or both.
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