Golf Powerhouse

Five team wins. Back-to-back Southern Conference Championships. One NCAA Regional Championship. Consecutive trips to the NCAA Championships.

For some golf programs that would be quite the résumé for a multiple decade run, but for head coach Jake Amos and the Buccaneers, those successes were celebrated over the last two years.

It may have looked easy, but it was anything other than a Sunday stroll on the course.

“The last time we previously played in a national championship was in 2008, and looking back on it, I played in that one as a player, which is really crazy. I didn’t realize it’s been that long,” said Amos. “It just shows it’s not easy to get there. I think we’ve taken it a little for granted now of just how tough it is to make it. There a lot of good teams that miss out, but I am really proud of it because historically in the 1970s and ’80s we have had nice runs, and it’s really hard to maintain for a long time at this level. There are not many teams in the country that can sustain it for a long, long time, but with the facilities, the support, and history we have, we should be at least making regionals and trying to make the national championship most years.

“When I took over the program, it was a goal to be nationally recognized every single year. I feel like we’ve done that. I don’t really think about it until people ask, but it’s kind of amazing what we’ve done the last two years.”

The run started in spring 2021 with the Bucs’ first SoCon Championship since 2017 and first in the Coach Amos era when the Blue and Gold led wire-to-wire at The Oconee Course in Greensboro, Georgia. ETSU, the only team to post a team score below par over the threeday tournament at 5-under-par 859, saw Archie Davies win his first collegiate tournament by recording a 54-hole score of 9-under-par 207. Overall, that marked ETSU’s 21st SoCon Championship crown and 26th conference title in program history, but the best was yet to come.

Being guaranteed the program’s first team regional appearance since 2017, the Bucs had to wait two weeks to learn their destination and nearly a month to return to action in the NCAA Regional.

The long layoff and flight across the country had little effect on the Blue and Gold. If anything, it rejuvenated the group.

The Bucs were sent out to Cle Elum, Washington – over 2,500 miles away from ETSU’s campus – but the trip out west felt like a home away from home.

“I remember watching the regional selection show in the Culp Center with our team and supporters, and I had a feeling we were going to get shipped off somewhere far,” said Amos. “Going to Washington was as far away as we could get. But when we got there and saw our surroundings, it was pretty cold, mountainous and hilly, and it felt like home a little bit. We didn’t really have any expectations that week. The regional was incredibly strong – statistically it was the hardest regional – and we came out and were lights out.

The guys were coming off a win, weren’t scared, and were really mature, and we dominated the whole time. On top of that, Shiso Go won the individual title.”

With the top five teams from each regional advancing to the NCAA Championship, the Bucs left little doubt. After sitting in fourth place following day one, ETSU put the 13-team field on notice after firing a 14-under-par 270 and leading the tournament by 11 strokes thanks to posting the lowest score during the entirety of the 2021 NCAA Regional tournament. Davies made history in round two as he set the course record with an 8-under 63, besting the previous mark of 7-under 64.

On the final day of the regional, ETSU posted an even-par 288, but cruised to both the team and individual titles as senior Go caught fire to earn medalist honors. Go, who won his third collegiate tournament, fired a 4-under 67 in the final round to jump up the leaderboard with a tournament total of 8-under-par 205, becoming the first Buccaneer to win a regional since 2010 when Rhys Enoch accomplished the feat.

Following its second team regional championship win in program history, the Bucs traveled back west for the NCAA Championship.

However, the scenery was much different as they were playing desert golf – the Raptor Course at the Grayhawk Golf Club – in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Playing in their first NCAA Championship since 2008, the Bucs finished 28th in the 30-team field. Despite the challenging conditions, ETSU was putting its name back on the national radar.

“When we went to the National Championship in 2021, it was a bit of deer in headlights,” said Amos. “For some of those guys it was their last year, and they never experienced a regional as a team before. The desert golf and experience were a challenge, but it was a great experience for everyone. That run teed us up for the next season and gave us the mindset that we need to come back.”

The momentum from the 2020-21 season carried over to 2021-22, as the Bucs earned three tournament wins, which included victories at their home tournament, The Bank of Tennessee Intercollegiate, as well as at The Hootie at Bulls Bay and a repeat at the SoCon Championship. With the SoCon Championship title, the Bucs secured another bid to the NCAA Regional.

Our schedule entering the 2022-23 season was ranked No. 7 in the country, recruits are starting to come to us, and I think we have been able to build the brand back up to where we were in the 1990s and early 2000s.  Jake Amos, ETSU Golf

Head Coach

This trip wasn’t as far, but the field was loaded as the Blue and Gold geared up for their 24th regional appearance in program history.

Traveling to Columbus, Ohio, ETSU was penciled in as the No. 5 seed with the field featuring eight teams in the top 50 and four in the top 25. In addition, tournament host Ohio State was the No. 6 seed in the region. Again, with only five teams advancing to the NCAA Championship, the Bucs sat right on the cut line entering the final round. During the third and final round, ETSU bounced back and forth between that final mark but did just enough to secure the fifth spot in the region en route to securing one of the 30 spots to the NCAA Championship for the second straight year.

“We scheduled a little bit harder that year, got off to a great start, and were ranked really high,” said Amos. “We hovered around No. 15-30 in the rankings the entire year, and people starting talking about us and expected us to play well. Losing the three seniors from the year prior, we had a completely new team, but we picked up guys like Mats Ege, Algot Kleen, and local product Jack Tickle, and then Archie had his All-American season. We won conference again and won multiple tournaments during the season, but it was almost like the expectation was building and building and building, and then we got sent to Ohio, where Ohio State was a No. 6 seed and it was incredibly intense.

“I remember we were playing with Arkansas and Clemson in the final round, and we were all on the edge. One of us was going to miss out on going to the National Championship. Our guys were focused and just wanted it more. We finished so strong, and it was the most nerve-racking time I have had being a coach. Regionals are incredibly hard to get through, but I think the experience from Archie and Remi Chartier being there last year really helped. They played well and the other guys stepped up too.”

Again, the trip out to the desert was another difficult test for the Blue and Gold, but it was another rewarding and valuable experience for Coach Amos’ team.

“We were expecting more from the second trip to the National Championship, but what we found was the year prior we were old and inexperienced, and this time around, we were young and inexperienced,” added Amos. “Three of the guys playing have never been before, and we didn’t do well again. It was frustrating, but what it’s done for our program is monumental. The preseason rankings came out, and we were the highest mid-major team in the country. We are getting into really strong events. Our schedule entering the 2022-23 season was ranked No. 7 in the country, recruits are starting to come to us, and I think we have been able to build the brand back up to where we were in the 1990s and early 2000s.

“It’s really hard to do. When you look at the landscape of college sports, there are not many non-Power-5 teams competing in the top 50. The gap is getting bigger and bigger and bigger, and it’s never been bigger. I am proud of that as we are staying competitive, we’re getting into these events we shouldn’t get into, and it’s a credit to the players we have and the ranking we’ve built over the last two years.”

Kevin Brown is Assistant Athletic Director for Communications in ETSU Athletics. | Photo by Alika Jenner