Bulldog Bios
Whitney Wade Assistant Coach
◊
1st season at UGA
Whitney Wade, one of the most decorated players in the history of University of Georgia Golf, was At a Glance named assistant coach at her alma mater in May 2013. Personal “I’m excited to have Whitney reFull Name: Whitney Lynn Wade turn to UGA and again represent Birthdate: August 14, 1985 Georgia Golf,” Josh Brewer said. Hometown: Glasgow, Ky. “She’s extremely competitive and Education a direct link to the last great era High School: of golf here at Georgia. Her play Glasgow (’03) ing resume speaks volumes. She Bachelor’s: was a three-time All-American and Georgia (‘07) played in three U.S. Opens.” Speech Communications From Feb. 2013 until she returned to Athens, Wade was an assistant Whit’s List coach at Coastal Carolina Univer◊ 3-time NGCA All-American sity. There she helped the Chanti◊ 4-time first-team All-SEC cleers to both a Big South Confer◊ 3-time U.S. Open participant ence Championship and an NCAA ◊ Futures Tour player (2008-10) Regional appearance in 2013. “I’ve only been in college coach◊ Won the 2009 Futures Tour ing for a little over a year and to Championship already have the opportunity to ◊ 2010 LPGA card member come back to my alma mater is a Coaching Career dream come true,” Wade said. Coastal Carolina Wade was named All-America ’12-’13 Assistant Coach by the National Golf Coaches Association (NGCA) three times and University of Georgia was a four-time first-team All-SEC ’13-present Assistant Coach performer. She is one of just three Georgia golfers and seven SEC golfers to be named first-team All-SEC four times. From 2003-07, Wade helped Georgia capture 10 team tournament titles, headlined by the 2007 SEC Championship. She also was a key contributor as the Bulldogs earned a trio of top-10 finishes at the NCAA Championships – ninth in 2004, sixth in 2006 and eighth in 2007. Wade compiled the sixth-best career stroke average (74.21) in Georgia history while playing 129 rounds in 42 tournaments. She posted 32 par-or-better loops, including six rounds in the 60s. After receiving her degree in Speech Communications from UGA, Wade enjoyed a successful professional playing career. She recorded nine top-10 finishes in 47 starts on the FUTURES Tour from 2008-10. In 2009, Wade won the Duramed Tour Championship by shooting 9-under 204. That same year, she finished sixth on the FUTURES Tour money list to automatically earn her LPGA Tour card for the 2010 season. Additionally, Wade played in three U.S. Opens. She qualified for her first Open as a high schooler in 2003 and also earned spots in the fields in 2008 and 2011. Prior to competing collegiately, Wade enjoyed a standout junior career. She was a four-time AJGA Polo Golf All-American, including firstteam honors in 2002. Wade posted eight wins and eight more top-10 finishes in 23 AJGA and national level events between 1999-2003 and represented the United States on the PING Junior Solheim Cup Team in 2002. A native of Glasgow, Ky., Wade made national news by representing Glasgow High School at the 1994 Kentucky State Championships as a fourth-grader. She became the Kentucky Amateur’s youngest winner ever as a 13-year-old in 1998 and won the 1999 and 2000 titles as well.
Wade
Chris Haack Director of Golf
◊
18th season at UGA
Chris Haack, who has coached the Georgia men’s golf team to two national titles and seven Southeastern Conference crowns, was promoted to Director of Golf for the ◊ 1999, 2005 National Coach of University of Georgia in July 2012. the Year Haack was named the Georgia ◊ 1998, 2000, 2006, 2010 SEC men’s golf coach on July 18,1996. Coach of the Year He has guided the Bulldogs to NCAA Championships in 1999 and ◊ 2 National Championships 2005 (the only two in school his(1999, 2005) tory) and seven SEC titles. ◊ 7 SEC Championships (1998, As Director of Golf, Haack serves 2000, 2001, 2004, 2006, as the liaison between the Athlet2009, 2010) ic Association and the UGA Golf ◊ 51 All-Americans Course, oversees the Boyd Center ◊ 55 All-SEC Selections and the adjacent practice facilities, ◊ 1 Ben Hogan Award Winner and is available as counsel to women’s coach Josh Brewer. ◊ 1 Fred Haskins Award Winner Haack’s Bulldogs have eight top◊ 4 SEC Players of the Year 10 showings at the NCAAs in the ◊ 7 SEC Freshmen of the Year last 15 years, including the 1999 ◊ Faculty Athletic Rep. Awards and 2005 national titles and runner(highest team GPA at UGA) up efforts in 2007 and 2011. Haack ◊ 6 Team and Individual School has led Georgia to 49 team chamRecords pionships and 36 individual medalists honors and has developed 51 ◊ 2001, 2006 U.S. Palmer Cup All-Americans during his tenure, Coach including at least one in 15 of the past 16 seasons. Those golfers have made Georgia alums a common site on professional leaderboards. In April of 2012, Bubba Watson, an All-American for Haack in 2000, became the first Bulldog to win a professional major as he captured the Masters title. And in 2013, six former Bulldogs – Watson, Erik Compton, Russell Henley, Chris Kirk, Brian Harman and Harris English – advanced to the FedExCup Playoffs. Haack’s breakthrough season with the Bulldogs came in 1998-99. No Georgia team had ever ascended to the No. 1 spot in the polls, but Haack’s team did so early in the spring campaign. The Bulldogs later validated their ranking by winning the program’s first national championship. Haack was named National Coach of the Year. Before coming to Athens, Haack was a driving force for the American Junior Golf Association. He joined the AJGA in 1981 as a tournament director before becoming director of operations in 1984 and director of development in 1985. He also served a seven-year stint as captain of the Canon Cup West Team, squads that included Tiger Woods and Chris Riley. In an initiative begun as foundation director from 1988-90, he also organized and established fund-raising programs to build the AJGA’s perpetuity, bringing in more than $750,000 for the foundation and other junior programs. Haack served as assistant executive director from 1990-96, helping manage a staff of 22 and an annual budget of $2.5 million. Additionally, he helped oversee the running of 38 events and 19 qualifiers nationwide. The recipient of the AJGA Sportsmanship Award, Haack graduated from Newnan High School in 1978. He attended West Georgia College in Carrollton, Ga., where he played on the golf team, and he received his degree from Mellen. Haack and his wife, Tori, have a son, Charlie, and a daughter, Katie.
Haack’s Highlights
2013-14 Georgia Golf
9