Class of 2027 Recruiting Checklist

5/2 CGC Staff

June 15th: it's the date that every rising high school junior golfer and college coach has circled on their calendar. It is the day when the official recruiting contact period begins, this year for the class of 2027, and coaches are finally able to contact athletes by email or by phone. For many athletes, they begin their recruiting journey more than a year earlier, sending out communications to attract coaches' attention and put themselves on their radar. They have utilized emails, personal website, social media, and word of mouth, in addition to putting up scores in tournaments to make themselves known to coaches. The golfers who are ranked in the upper echelon in their graduating class will easily attract attention of coaching staffs due to their performance and will have a busy day on June 15th. For others, communication may be quieter, but the day marks the official beginning of their college journey. No matter what rankings category a golfer falls into, it is important to be proactive with communication to coaches and put their best foot forward to be noticed. We've put together a checklist of tasks that will help make an athlete's recruiting journey easier and lead them in the right direction.

✅Research colleges during your freshman and sophomore years: It's never too early to start researching colleges that may be the right fit, both athletically and academically. If you are lucky enough to know what your future career path might be and academics is important to you, comprise a list of schools that have your intended major. The ultimate focus of a college golfer, as few have success professionally, should be their future career. There have been many athletes who have gone to a school that didn't have their intended major because they were offered a spot on the golf roster, thinking they could focus on their career in grad school. These student athletes could end up behind and be forced to take extra classes in the future, paying for more school than they should have needed. Athletically, it is important target a golf program in which you will be able to challenge for a lineup spot and set realistic expectations for where your golf game will fit. Take a look at a school's stats sheet from the current and previous year, and note the scoring averages of the team's players in the 4th and 5th spots in the lineups. Compare your current scoring average to those players' averages, but also add two strokes to your own to account for higher course difficulty and setup in college as compared to junior tournaments. If the scoring averages matchup, that college may be a good fit for you and your talent level. If immediate lineup time is important to you, and your scoring average if several strokes higher than the team's players, that team is likely a reach. That's not to say that your game won't continue to improve, but know that the road to earning a lineup spot at that school may be more difficult.

✅Email coaches: It is important to be pro-active and email coaches early in the process. For highly ranked athletes, it is recommended that to begin emailing coaches in the middle of freshman year of high school. For those who are still not at the golf level that they wish to be at, they can wait until sophomore year. Email communication should begin with a subject line that includes the golfer's name and graduating class. Coaches receive hundreds of emails and will notice an email with an appropriate subject line more easily than 'Interested in playing college golf'. Don't let your email get lost in the shuffle! When you introduce yourself, include the following: name, graduating class, current ranking, stroke average, GPA, city and state.

Include a resume of tournament results from the past year that includes scores, placement, and course rating, and note any adverse weather conditions. Attach your schedule for the upcoming season. Most importantly, let the coach know WHY you are interested in their school and golf program. Coaches can spot a generic email from miles away, and will appreciate when a golfer takes the time to learn about their program, school, and facilities. If you know that the school is one of your dream schools, let it be known. A coach wants to spend time recruiting a player that is invested in being on their team, not someone who is deciding between twenty schools. In the introductory email, also note any social media accounts that you may want the coach to follow, a personal website if applicable, and a swing video. After you have sent your first email, if before June 15th of the end of your sophomore year, don't expect any return communication other than the likes of 'I have received your email, but it not permissible for me to communicate before June 15th.' It is recommended to send a follow-up email to coaches every 2-3 months with updated tournament results and changes in your schedule, or just send a simple congratulations if their team did well in a tournament or a quick 'thank you for watching me' in a tournament. The more they see your name, the more memorable you may be, and you are showing genuine interest in their program.

✅Create a social media account: Another way to put yourself out there and create interest is by creating social media accounts, preferably instagram. Some athletes have a personal account and others create an additional account specifically for golf posts. On instagram, you can update your followers about recent tournament finishes and include swing videos. Follow the accounts of college golf programs and coaches that interest you, and hope to receive a follow back. While most coaches will communicate with you through email, texting, and phone calls, some may reach out through social media, and it doesn't hurt to have several means of communication.

✅Show good attitude on the course: Your on-course presence and demeanor is a key component to being recruited, and means just as much as the scores you post. When coaches follow you, they evaluate more than your swing, chipping, and putting skills. They watch your interactions with playing partners, respect for rules of the game, pace of play, and how you react to challenging situations. Your response to a bad swing or score is just as important as playing well.

✅Camps/showcases: While some golfers attend college run or showcase camps from an early age, other recruits never set foot in a camp. Attending a camp is a golfer's and family's preference, and is not necessary to get recruited. However, there are several positives to attending a camp in which your target schools/coaches are attending, especially a showcase where there are multiple coaches present. During a camp, a coach can freely talk to an athlete before the June 15th date, as long as the conversation does not revolve around recruiting. A camp is a good time for both coaches and athletes to learn about each others' personality, demeanor, and styles, and a coach can identify their early 'favorites' for that class. Camps can provide various things for athletes, from instruction to simulation of a college practice or round, to an introduction to team camaraderie. If the camp is on a college campus, a student can form an early opinion about the campus before committing to an official or unofficial visit.

✅Create a swing video: While not absolutely necessary, creating a swing video can be helpful for coaches to look at your skills, especially if you live in an area of the country that is not close to the schools you are targeting. Simply post the video on Youtube and send a link to coaches by email or text. If a coach has previously followed you, they already have a good idea of what your swing looks like and if they want to recruit you. College Golf Commits is happy to help you create a video HERE.

✅Golf resume: As mentioned above, it is imperative to send a golf resume in your initial communications with coaches. The resume should include your name, address, city and state, high school, and current GPA. List the tournaments you have played in the past year in the following format: date, tournament name, course rating, scores, placement and size of field, & adverse weather conditions. It is VERY important to list all tournament results, not only your good finishes. Coaches know that a junior golfer has ups and downs, and being honest about your performance shows integrity. Coaches can easily go online to look up results and know if you've left a poor tournament performance off of your list.