1. COACHING COLLEGE GOLF
Danny Guise

2. Career Goal: To coach college golf at the Div. I level
After graduating from Wake Forest, my dream is to play golf professionally on the PGA Tour. However, I can’t put all my balls in one basket. If that doesn’t work out, I could see myself coaching college golf at the Div. I level. I love sharing my love of the game with others, and I really enjoy the atmosphere of college campuses.

3. Average Salaries for College Golf Coaches
This information is not available in any of the resources suggested for this assignment. However, in 2007, Golfweek magazine published a comprehensive list of college golf coaches’ salaries from the season. Golfweek requested information from the top 100 men’s programs in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings and heard back from 73 schools.

4. In order to update the salary information of college coaches published in Golfweek in 2007, I have added 22 percent to the salary of each coach because that is the percentage change in the median salary of golf coaches between 2006 and The next five slides contain the salaries of men’s college golf coaches in each of the five major golf conferences with the adjusted salaries in parentheses.

5. Atlantic Coast Conference Men’s Golf
School Coach’s Salary
Georgia Tech $164,000 ($200,080)
Clemson $112,500 ($137,250)
N.C. State $80,570 ($98,300)
Duke $78,000 ($95,160)
North Carolina $74,000 ($90,280)
Florida State $69,201 ($84,425)
Wake Forest $68,000 ($82,960)
Virginia $59,800 ($72,956)
Virginia Tech $53,000 ($64,660)
Note: The figures above are base salaries only. Most coaches receive bonuses based on performance incentives and make additional money from equipment manufacturers and summer camps.

6. Big Ten Conference Men’s Golf
School Coach’s Salary Purdue $101,000 ($123,220) Ohio State $94,725 ($115,565) Indiana $89,886 ($109,661) Iowa $83,000 ($101,260) Minnesota $71,703 ($87,478) Maryland $71,150 ($86,803) Michigan $69,104 ($84,307) Illinois $67,330 ($82,143) Wisconsin $62,865 ($76,695) Michigan State $56,700 ($69,174)
Note: The figures above are base salaries only. Most coaches receive bonuses based on performance incentives and make additional money from equipment manufacturers and summer camps.

7. Pac-12 Conference Men’s Golf
School Coach’s Salary
Arizona State $93,768 ($114,397)
Washington $83,088 ($101,367)
Arizona $80,000 ($97,600)
California $78,000 ($95,160)
UCLA $75,000 ($91,500)
Oregon $70,000 ($85,400)
Oregon State $62,865 ($76,695)
Washington State $53,586 ($65,375)
Note: The figures above are base salaries only. Most coaches receive bonuses based on performance incentives and make additional money from equipment manufacturers and summer camps

8. Southeastern Conference Men’s Golf
School Coach’s Salary Georgia $110,000 ($134,200) Florida $105,000 ($128,100) Arkansas $105,000 ($128,100) Auburn $99,750 ($121,695) Alabama $95,000 ($115,900) Tennessee $84,000 ($102,480) Louisiana State $84,000 ($102,480) South Carolina $75,000 ($91,500) Mississippi $73,500 ($89,670) Mississippi State $70,500 ($86,010)
Note: The figures above are base salaries only. Most coaches receive bonuses based on performance incentives and make additional money from equipment manufacturers and summer camps.

9. Big 12 Conference Men’s Golf
School Coach’s Salary
Texas $120,000 ($146,400)
Texas A&M $90,331 ($110,204)
Oklahoma $85,300 ($104,066)
Texas Tech $80,000 ($97,600)
Oklahoma State $75,000 ($91,500)
Colorado $73,500 ($89,670)
Kansas $65,057 ($79,370)
Missouri $61,200 ($74,664)
Kansas State $58,148 ($70,940)
Nebraska $55,000 ($67,100)
Iowa State $47,847 ($58,373)
Note: The figures above are base salaries only. Most coaches receive bonuses based on performance incentives and make additional money from equipment manufacturers and summer camps.

10. College Golf Coaches’ Salaries Summary
Conference Average Salary Top Salary (School)
ACC $102,897 $200,080 (Georgia Tech)
Big Ten $93,631 $123,220 (Purdue)
Pac-12 $90,937 $114,397 (Arizona State)
SEC $110, ,200 (Georgia)
Big $89,990 $146,400 (Texas)

11. SEC-Big 12 Challenge
Comparison of two schools from two different conferences - Georgia (SEC) vs. Texas (Big 12)
School Coach’s Salary Location
Georgia $134,200 Athens, Georgia
Texas $146,400 Austin, Texas

12. ATHENS, GEORGIA Avg. Rent 1 BR Apt.: $766.67
Avg. Monthly Grocery Bill (One person): $320.12
Avg. Car Insurance Annual Premium: $1,555 ($129.58/month)
Avg. Electric Bill for Nov.: $120.17
Avg. Health Insurance Monthly Premium: $398.83
State Income Tax: 6%
Salary: $7, (after tax)
Cost of Living: $1,735.37
Disposable Income: $5,645.63

13. AUSTIN, TEXAS Avg. Rent 1 BR Apt.: $1,329.17
Avg. Monthly Grocery Bill (One person): $347.92
Avg. Car Insurance Annual Premium: $1,921 ($160.08/month)
Avg. Electric Bill for Nov.: $66.78
Avg. Health Insurance Monthly Premium: $412.58
State Income Tax: None
Salary: $8, (after tax)
Cost of Living: $2,316.53
Disposable Income: $6,467.47

14. Austin vs. Athens
Even though the disposable incomes would not be as high for either city with total cost of living calculated, the comparison is valid. While it costs more to live in Austin, the higher salary and absence of state income tax results in more disposable income in Austin than in Athens. From a financial standpoint, coaching at the University of Texas would be the way to go.

15. Conclusion
This was an interesting assignment because it really teaches you how to break down a salary offer and compare it to a financial situation in another city. In this case, Austin came out on top in the analytical factors used for this assignment. However, choosing to coach at a school like Texas or Georgia doesn’t always come down to the financial aspect. Austin is a larger city, while Athens is a college town. That’s a personal preference decision. Also, you would have to weigh the success of the golf programs in recent years and determine which school would give you more resources to win. Overall, I think the most important thing I learned while doing the research for this assignment is that the average salaries for college golf coaches at the Div. I level is much lower than I expected. I know first-hand the amount of time and effort golf coaches put into their jobs, so I was surprised at the salary figures.

16. Impact of Graduate Degree
There was no research available on the number of college golf coaches who have advanced degrees beyond a B.S. or B.A. I did find a study by the PGA of America that said slightly less than 5 percent of all golf teaching professionals at public and private courses have more than a four-year college degree. I would assume that the number is similar for college golf coaches. While my information is anecdotal at best, my guess is that a graduate degree has little or no impact on the earning potential of a college golf coach.