Whitten Leaving U-M at End of Season to Become GAM Executive Director
4/5/2019 4:30:00 PM | Men's Golf
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- University of Michigan men's golf coach Chris Whitten will be stepping away from his head coach duties at the conclusion of the 2018-19 season and will leave the university to become the executive director of the Golf Association of Michigan starting in May.
"Coaching at the University of Michigan the past 13 years has been a complete honor," said Whitten. "I'm so thankful for the special student-athletes who represented our program, and I'll keep those relationships forever. I've interacted with extraordinary people every single day who helped create a fantastic environment for our team as well -- administrators, staff, parents, alumni, team supporters and other coaches. I can't thank them enough.
"I am ready for the next step in my career, and my family and I are excited for this new opportunity at the Golf Association of Michigan. Although I will miss our team and coaching, I will look forward to watching all of the success this program will have in the near future.
"I'm also as motivated as ever for this team to have an incredible finish to the season. We'll make every shot count the rest of the way."
This season, Whitten will complete his eighth season as the head coach of the Maize and Blue and the 13th overall with the program.
Whitten has guided U-M to three team NCAA postseason appearances and had three individuals earn NCAA berths, with team bids in 2015 (7th, Washington), 2016 (10th, Franklin) and 2017 (tie-8th, Washington) and individual invitations for Matt Thompson (2012), Chris O'Neill (2014) and Kyle Mueller (2018). Whitten has had an individual advance to the NCAA Finals twice -- Mueller in 2015 and then again in 2018.
In addition to the postseason successes, the Maize and Blue have collected 31 top-five team finishes with 23 top-three showings in the regular season, highlighted by four team titles: 2017 Desert Mountain Intercollegiate (March 4-5), 2016 Dayton Flyer Invitational (Oct. 17-18), 2014 Wolverine Intercollegiate (Sept. 6-7), 2014 Big Ten Match Play Championship (Feb. 14-15) and 2013 Detroit Golf Club Invitational (April 12). Additionally, U-M has captured 14 individual medalist honors with six coming from Mueller.
During Whitten's five years as an assistant coach under Andrew Sapp, the Wolverines made four straight NCAA Regional appearances -- winning the program's first team regional title in 2011 -- and two NCAA Championship appearances. Michigan was an NCAA semifinalist in 2009 after finishing sixth during stroke-play qualifying, and U-M placed 10th at nationals in 2011, missing match play by just three shots.
Whitten was an assistant PGA golf professional at Inverness Club in Toledo, Ohio, prior to starting his coaching career in 2003 as the assistant men's golf coach at the University of Notre Dame, his alma mater.
Whitten is the son of PGA golf professional Buddy Whitten, a former PGA Tour Champions player and member of the Michigan Golf Hall of Fame.
Players Mentioned
