Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36I n 21 years of coaching golf I have experi- enced many amazing places, met wonderful people, and our teams at UCLA have been privileged to compete at some of the best clubs in the world. But no place has touched my heart like East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, where the Bruins competed in the East Lake Cup. The home course of Bobby Jones is everything a golf fan would expect. Its clubhouse is filled with memorabilia: trophies, photographs, even a bronze bust of the great Mr. Jones. The club, also host of the TOUR Championship and FedEx Cup finals, is accustomed to nation- al exposure. But as the week went on, it wasn’t Rory McIlroy (2016 TOUR Championship and FedEx Cup winner) garnering attention. It was TomCousins,amanwhosevisionnotonlytrans- formed a dilapidated old golf club into an abso- lutegem,butalsochangedthefutureofadeeply impoverished and distressed urban community. Long-time members of East Lake spoke to our team about how, for years, the area surround- ing the club was one of the worst in Atlanta. Police didn’t want to go into the neighborhood because it was so dangerous. The sound of gunfire was heard every day in the streets sur- rounding the course. Mr. Cousins and those vested in the East Lake Foundation revitalized the entire area, building Drew School – a top rated educational facility for gradesK-12.Hebuiltmixed-usehousing,re-built Charlie Yates golf course for the residents, spon- sored The First Tee of Atlanta at Charlie Yates and, of course, revitalized East Lake Golf Club. Every day of the tournament, students from Drew School and The First Tee came out to watch and mingle with the teams. Our players had the opportunity to meet and shake hands with these young collegiate hopefuls. They saw firsthand the difference one person can make in a community. It was an honor to meet these children and their parents, and inspiring to hear their stories. Asfortheactualcompetition,itwasanamazing experience. From the caddies, to the restaurant staff, the club personnel and everyone in the media, we were treated like honored guests. It is every young golfer’s dream to compete at the highest level and play their sport on television. Thiswas a taste ofthe LPGAtourforourgolfers, and they loved it. East Lake is tough. It demands quality tee shots, both in length and direction. A ball hit into the Bermuda rough nestles in deep. The greens are speedy, dramatically sloped and completely true…as long as you can read break and grain. It was one of the finest clubs we have ever competed on, and although we didn’t win, there were shining moments for all of us. Most notably, Bronte Law, the most decorated player in UCLA women’s golf history, completed her masterpiece of an amateur match play career by winning her 8th and 9th consecutive individ- ual matches. And though we lost both of our team matches, we left as better players and, I would like to think, as better people because East Lake is more than just another golf club. It is a community, a game-changer, a real-life example of how golf and the people that love the game can change the world. Carrie Forsyth is the women’s head golf coach at UCLA and a member of the NGCA Coaches Hall of Fame. National Coverage Grows for College Golf BYJOHNT.FIELDS C ollege golf is in another exciting growth cycle, with opportunities for men and women in all divi- sions of NCAA, NAIA and NJCAA. TV’s Golf Channel is making a com- mitment to college golf that is expos- ing our compelling sport to a whole new generation. Last year, the NCAA Division 1 Men’s Final between Texas and Oregon was viewed by more than 2 million households, up 129% from the year before. This year’s East Lake Cup, a made- for-TV event involving last year’s Final 4 teams for men and women, received multiple hours of great cov- erage on the Golf Channel. The event created a wonderful competitive en- vironment for our student athletes. A format that included a day of medal play and two match play rounds of- fered our golfers a real taste of the postseason. No question, it was one of the finest events ever run for col- legiate golf. Our first match was against Illinois, a familiar foe for our Texas squad. From the very beginning, it was a spirited competition against a very accomplished group of players. We came out on the wrong side, los- ing 3&2 in a match that could have swung the other way. Our consolation match pitted the Longhorns against arguably the #1 team in the country – a very well- coached Vanderbilt squad. Fortu- nately, the Horns finished the day on the right side, winning 4&1. All in all, it was a fabulous event to conclude the Division 1 fall golf season! For Texas golf, our 90-year history in- cludes some of the great names in the game – five major champions in Ben Crenshaw, Tom Kite, Justin Leonard, Mark Brooks and now Jordan Spieth. Multiple National Championships and countless tournament victories create great motivation for our future. This year’s group returns four mem- bers of last year’s NCAA runner-up team. Three are All-Americans and ranked in the Top 50 in the World (WAGR). They are all fired up about earning another opportunity to win. Hook’em Horns. RememberingaPlaceLikeNoOtherBYCARRIEFORSYTH COLLEGE COACHES’ CORNER John Fields has been the men’s head golf coach for the University of Texas since 1997. He is the current NCAA Men’s Golf Coach of the Year. 8 | January 2017 #juniorgolfmag Visit us at juniorgolfmag.net TV’s Golf Channel is making a commitment to college golf that is exposing our compelling sport to a whole new generation.