Sitting Down With New Head Coach Chris Whitten
8/1/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
Aug. 1, 2011
After being named the head coach of the men's golf program just more than a month ago, Chris Whitten has continued to stay busy recruiting, hiring former Wolverine Nick Pumford as his assistant, moving offices and prepping for the opening of the Wolverines' new practice facility.
While he sat down for his MGoBlue.com Summer Session Q&A, he stuck around for a few additional questions in this expanded Q&A, taking time to discuss in-depth about the program, former U-M head coach Andrew Sapp, and what he looks forward to in his first season with the Wolverines.
On being named the head coach at Michigan ... "It's really, really exciting, and I feel like I'm ready for it. I feel like I have a good plan of where I want the team to go. A lot of that plan has just been developed over the past several years with Coach Sapp and talking with other coaches around the country and other people in the golf business who I have a lot of respect for. It's an amazing opportunity, and I'm trying to look at it in the short term for right now for what needs to get done in the next few weeks to make sure that I'm on task, but I'm looking at it in the long term as well."
On learning from coach Andrew Sapp ... "You never really understand how big of a contribution somebody makes until they're gone. Trying to cover my work and the work that Coach Sapp was doing in the short term transition time is tough, but I'm trying to prioritize and keep things moving. The thing that I'll take away from Coach Sapp above everything else is his communication style. He was always very even and steady and consistent, even in some tricky situations he always kept a level head and did a full evaluation of a situation before he made a decision. I'll try to take that and do the best I can with it."
On maintaining and improving Michigan's golf reputation ... "We have such a great university to represent and to sell that the more we can educate recruited student-athletes on Michigan and tell them about our academic reputation, our facilities, the tradition here, and then paint a picture for how they specifically fit into that, I think that Michigan becomes a really attractive place to a lot of people. As long as we're telling the story correctly, then the good players will be there, and then if we can continue to take advantage of our facilities and our resources on campus with our nice schedule and all the other things that Michigan allows us, we'll continue that for sure."
On importance of new golf facility ... "It's important for two reasons. Number one, in recruiting. We obviously attract nice players from the Midwest, but sometimes we recruit from the South or the West Coast and everyone's first question is, 'How do you deal with the weather?' Our answer to that question just became a lot clearer. Once they arrive on campus, player development is something that goes on 12 months out of the year. There really is no offseason in golf anymore, so having that facility is going to allow us to work with each kid more closely and it's going to allow the kids to manage their time better so they're not driving to other facilities to take care of their practice for the day. It is becoming more popular in college golf, but to me, it's not really a comparison of what we have versus any other school, but making the best out of what we have to offer at Michigan. I think that we're able to offer something really special now."
On Midwest golf standing out among other golf regions ... "There have always been talented players coming out of the Midwest, and I think now the college golf programs are making themselves attractive enough to make those players want to stay home. I think when the Big Ten finished with four teams in the top 10 at the national championship this year; it was an eyebrow-raiser for some people. The last few years our team at Michigan has made some nice steps, but I think the entire conference has made those steps right along with us. It's a challenge to not just improve ourselves, but to keep up with our region. Competing at home allows us to compete on a national level."
On describing yourself to others ... "I try to communicate clearly and openly and honestly with everyone, but beneath all of that is a really fierce sense of competitiveness. And I wouldn't be in coaching if I wasn't competitive. I look for that in our players and try to bring that out in them, but at the same time, we want to be good representatives and act with professionalism all the time."
On message to alumni about Michigan's golf program ... "We're so lucky to have them and to have so many people who want to be involved in our program. We're going to try to do an even better job of including all of those former players and fans of the program and make ourselves more available to them. It shows the special type of person that graduates from the University of Michigan, and I think it means a lot to our current players to see the people who have come before them and gives them more to aspire to because they see what's possible for them down the road. We're going to continue to grow the program in that way and make ourselves available to all of those people who want to be involved with Michigan golf."
On the first event next season ... "Our first event will be our home tournament so I'll probably be most worried that all the other players have their scorecards and that everyone is shuttled out to their holes. But once the balls are in the air I think it will be business as usual, and we'll let the guys go out and play and do what they do best and we'll be ready for sure. There's more pressure (personally), but it is good pressure, and I wouldn't be in coaching if I didn't want to feel that. We're excited to get going."
• MGoBlue.com Summer Sessions: Head Coach Chris Whitten (July 18, 2011)
Contact: Tom Wywrot (734) 763-4423
