The Justice

Media Credit: David Sheppard-Brick Golfer Aaron Hattenbach '09 discusses the future of the golf team at a press conference last month.

Aaron Hattenbach '09 showed some promise on the golf course during his first two years at Brandeis. In 11 events he had two top-20 finishes and had posted the two best average scores of his four-year career. While Hattenbach's scores have declined in the last two seasons, he has certainly had more to focus on, particularly this past year.

"I've been all over the place. I'm not thrilled about my performance these past two years, but the experience trumps any individual achievements I could have had," he said. "It was great to play great golf during my first two years, but it's tough to manage your golf game when you have a lot of other responsibilities on the side. As I started to look more at the bigger picture, it became more difficult to score well."

This season, after the University suspended the varsity golf program for the 2009 to 2010 season to fill a projected $10 million gap in the fiscal 2009 operating budget, the bigger picture became saving the varsity golf team for one more year.

Hattenbach led the golf team's fundraising effort, which produced $22,000 from the time members of the team learned of the University's intention to cut the golf program in February to early April, an amount just enough to keep the team at the varsity level next year.

The rest of golf team rallied behind Hattenbach's positive attitude and relentless effort as they reached out to prospective donors ranging from friends and family to former team members and other alumni.

In the University's initial plan, Director of Athletics Sheryl Sousa '90 said, the golf program, which consisted of only nine members, would be terminated as a varsity sport and changed into a club sport because of the minimal damage such a transition would do to athletic staffing compared to the suspension of another varsity sport.

Coach Bill Shipman, who also coaches the fencing team, said that members of the golf team did not want to be demoted to a lower status.

"This group of players has seen the team improve a lot. We've gone from one of the weaker teams in New England to a competitive team at the upper-middle level of New England golf," Shipman said. "While the team can still play some golf as a club team, it's just not same level of competition or the same goals. It would be a poor substitute for the players who are on the team now."

Continued...

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