Golf Overview

Head Coach: Shawn Durocher
Phone: 413-538-3087

The golf program at Mount Holyoke College began in 1977 and is one of the strongest programs in the region. Most team members have been playing for a minimum of three to four years. The College recruits talented, experienced players who are highly disciplined, eager to learn, and willing to work on their game outside of regular practice time. The golf team has qualified for the NCAA Division III Championships in both 2004 and 2005. Mount Holyoke also has a long tradition of sending individual qualifiers to the NCAA Championships, with ten selections since 1989.

Following the lead of head coach Shawn Durocher, the 2007-08 team competed in five tournaments during the fall. First year Zahra Hanif made an immediate impact on the program, finishing as the team’s top competitor in four of their five events. The squad also received a boost from junior Martha Elson, who was consistently amongst their leaders each week.

After a 13th place result in its season opener at the Dartmouth College Invitational, Mount Holyoke rebounded to take ninth place at its home Invitational the following weekend. Elson turned in a brilliant performance, finishing in fourth place overall with a score of 161 on the par-72 course.

The Lyons followed that with second and eight place showings at the Endicott Tri-Match and Williams College Fall Classic, respectively. They rounded out their season with fourth place finish at the Wellesley College Fall Invitational. Hanif grabbed fourth place individually with a two day score of 158.

Mount Holyoke's Orchards Golf Course, built in 1922 and designed by renowned golf architect Donald Ross, was the site of the 2004 U.S. Women's Open. The College has also hosted the National Championships, State Championships, the USGA Junior Girls Championship, and other tournaments. Mount Holyoke hosts its own invitational each fall, and hosted the NCAA Division III Women's Golf Championships in 2002.

There is both a spring and fall golf season at Mount Holyoke. The fall season starts the first week of school and lasts as long as weather permits. The spring season usually begins in March. Mount Holyoke mainly competes against Division I teams such as Harvard, Yale, Holy Cross and University of Hartford. Typically, the team practices on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, travels on Friday, and plays a tournament over the weekend. Up to ten players practice each week, and five players travel to each event (the best four of five scores are counted for each round).

As a Mount Holyoke scholar-athlete, you are driven to excel in the athletic arena as well as the classroom and laboratory. The discipline, sense of accomplishment, and competitive edge that you bring to your sport resonate through every channel of your intellectual life.

The desire to achieve -- it's all part of the mind-body connection.