Roane State Golf
Tryouts for the Roane State Community College golf team will be held Monday, June 3, at Oak Ridge Country Club, Coach Chris Griffin said.
After a decades-long hiatus, Griffin in late 2017 took on the mission of resurrecting the squad, which recently wrapped up its inaugural season, a press release said.
Graduating high school seniors and Roane State students interested in trying out for the team should contact Griffin at [email protected] or (865) 898-0043.
“What an opportunity this is for area golfers to be able to compete on a collegiate level while obtaining a two-year degree tuition-free,” Griffin said in the press release. “My primary goal is to bring young men and women together to have fun and make life-long friendships.”
“I believe the word has spread such that we will get some talented golfers from the Knoxville area and counties that serve Roane State,” he said.
Roane State’s golf team wrapped up its 2018-19 season in late April at the NJCAA District Tournament at the Chateau Elan golf course in Braselton, Georgia.
“Playing in our first NJCAA District Tournament since the 1984 season was a feeling of satisfaction for the team,” Griffin said. A Roane State alum, Griffin played for the college’s golf team during its heyday before it went on a decades-long leave of absence, the press release said. In late 2017, he volunteered to revive the team.
Roane State players Mitchell Stooksbury, Matthew Meadows, and Matthew Gaylor competed in the district tournament.
“The entire experience is one I will never forget and will always cherish,” Meadows said.
The team’s season started last fall at the Tusculum College Bob Dibble Classic at Link Hills Golf Course in Greenville, Tennessee, followed by the Walters State Community College Fall Classic at Morristown Country Club. Other fall tournaments: the Maryville College Fall Invitational at Egwani Farmers Golf Course in Rockford and the Hiwassee College Invitational, played at Oak Ridge Country Club.
Roane State students who completed in the fall season were Hunter Clark, Hunter Atwell, Jesse Smallen, Meadows, Gaylor, and Ryann Whitson, “our first-ever female golfer,” Griffin said.
“I enjoyed just being able to play college golf and make new friends that I would have never gotten the opportunity to meet,” Smallen said. “The most rewarding lesson was discovering how to overcome adversity and realize there are harder and more important things in life than making a putt.”
More information will be added as it becomes available.
This press release was submitted by Owen Driskill.
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