COACHING COLLEGE GOLF

Danny Guise

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.

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 2006-07 season. Golfweek requested information from the top 100 men’s programs in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings and heard back from 73 schools.

• 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 2012. The next five slides contain the 2006-07 salaries of men’s college golf coaches in each of the five major golf conferences with the adjusted salaries in parentheses.

Atlantic Coast Conference Men’s GolfSchool Coach’s SalaryGeorgia 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.

Big Ten Conference Men’s GolfSchool Coach’s SalaryPurdue $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.

Pac-12 Conference Men’s GolfSchool Coach’s SalaryArizona 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

Southeastern Conference Men’s GolfSchool Coach’s SalaryGeorgia $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.

Big 12 Conference Men’s GolfSchool Coach’s SalaryTexas $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.

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 $110,013 134,200 (Georgia)Big 12 $89,990 $146,400 (Texas)

SEC-Big 12 ChallengeComparison of two schools from two different conferences - Georgia (SEC) vs. Texas (Big 12)

School Coach’s Salary LocationGeorgia $134,200 Athens, GeorgiaTexas $146,400 Austin, Texas

ATHENS, GEORGIAAvg. Rent 1 BR Apt.: $766.67Avg. Monthly Grocery Bill (One person): $320.12Avg. Car Insurance Annual Premium: $1,555 ($129.58/month)Avg. Electric Bill for Nov.: $120.17 Avg. Health Insurance Monthly Premium: $398.83State Income Tax: 6%

Salary: $7,381.00 (after tax)Cost of Living: $1,735.37Disposable Income: $5,645.63

AUSTIN, TEXASAvg. Rent 1 BR Apt.: $1,329.17Avg. Monthly Grocery Bill (One person): $347.92Avg. Car Insurance Annual Premium: $1,921 ($160.08/month)Avg. Electric Bill for Nov.: $66.78 Avg. Health Insurance Monthly Premium: $412.58State Income Tax: None

Salary: $8,784.00 (after tax)Cost of Living: $2,316.53Disposable Income: $6,467.47

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.

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.

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.