NORMAN, Okla. – NCAA Division I finalists for the 2024 Dave Williams Award presented by Golf Pride Grips have been announced by the GCAA. The Williams Award honors the national coach of the year in NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III, NAIA, NJCAA Division I, and NJCAA Division II men’s golf.
The five finalists are Jake Amos of East Tennessee State, Nick Clinard of Auburn, Sean Covich of West Virginia, Andrew DiBitetto of North Carolina, and Scott Limbaugh of Vanderbilt.
Amos led the Buccaneers to three wins, including their fourth straight Southern Conference (SoCon) Championship, and seven top-three finishes this season. Making their fourth NCAA Championship appearance in a row, East Tennessee State and their SoCon Coach of the Year were led on the course by All-SoCon golfers Matthew Dodd-Berry, Algot Kleen, and Mats Ege, the back-to-back Player of the Year and Individual Champion.
Clinard, the Southeastern Conference (SEC) Coach of the Year, guided top-ranked Auburn to nine wins and three other top-three finishes in 12 2023-24 tournaments. With wins in each of their last six events, including the NCAA Baton Rouge Regional and the program’s fifth SEC Championship, the Tigers were led on the course by First-Team All-SEC honorees Jackson Koivun and Brendan Valdes, who were both selected to compete for Team USA in this July’s Arnold Palmer Cup at Lahinch Golf Club in Lahinch, Ireland.
Making their first NCAA Championship appearance since 1947 after finishing fourth in their third NCAA Regional berth in school history, Covich and the Mountaineers recorded wins at the Red Bandanna Invitational and Mountaineer Invitational this season while carding nine top-10 finishes. West Virginia, which reintroduced men’s golf as a varsity sport in 2013 after dropping it 31 years earlier, was led on the course by March Big 12 Conference Golfer of the Month and NCAA Rancho Santa Fe Regional sixth-place finisher Max Green.
The Tar Heels collected six wins under DiBitetto, the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Coach of the Year, this season and finished inside the top three in 10 of their 12 tournaments. Ranked fourth in Scoreboard powered by Clippd’s National Rankings, North Carolina was led on the course by four All-ACC recipients, including NCAA Chapel Hill Regional medalist Austin Greaser and David Ford, who was selected to his second consecutive Arnold Palmer Cup for Team USA.
Ranked second in the Scoreboard powered by Clippd National Rankings, Vanderbilt recorded seven wins, including the NCAA West Lafayette Regional and a handful of other high-profile fields, and top-four finishes in all 11 tournaments this season. Limbaugh’s Commodores were led on the course by four All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) golfers, including 2024 Arnold Palmer Cup Team USA selections Gordon Sargent and Jackson Van Paris.
All five finalists are coaching at the 2024 NCAA Division I Men’s Golf Championship at Omni La Costa Resort & Spa in Carlsbad, Calif., beginning today.
About Golf Pride Grips
For over seven decades, we’ve been the global leader in golf grip innovation and technology, from the invention of the slip-on grip to groundbreaking advancements in cord with our new Brushed Cotton Technology (BCT®) to the introduction of the hybrid category of grips. Today, Golf Pride® has laid claim to more major wins than any other grip company. More than 80% of Tour professionals choose to play our grips and not one is paid to do so. And in this age of multi-million dollar endorsement deals, that’s the strongest endorsement of all. So, whether you’re a Tour pro playing a major, a rising amateur, or an everyday golfer, you can rest assured knowing you’re playing the #1 Grip in Golf. To learn more about Golf Pride®, go to golfpride.com.
The five finalists are Jake Amos of East Tennessee State, Nick Clinard of Auburn, Sean Covich of West Virginia, Andrew DiBitetto of North Carolina, and Scott Limbaugh of Vanderbilt.
Amos led the Buccaneers to three wins, including their fourth straight Southern Conference (SoCon) Championship, and seven top-three finishes this season. Making their fourth NCAA Championship appearance in a row, East Tennessee State and their SoCon Coach of the Year were led on the course by All-SoCon golfers Matthew Dodd-Berry, Algot Kleen, and Mats Ege, the back-to-back Player of the Year and Individual Champion.
Clinard, the Southeastern Conference (SEC) Coach of the Year, guided top-ranked Auburn to nine wins and three other top-three finishes in 12 2023-24 tournaments. With wins in each of their last six events, including the NCAA Baton Rouge Regional and the program’s fifth SEC Championship, the Tigers were led on the course by First-Team All-SEC honorees Jackson Koivun and Brendan Valdes, who were both selected to compete for Team USA in this July’s Arnold Palmer Cup at Lahinch Golf Club in Lahinch, Ireland.
Making their first NCAA Championship appearance since 1947 after finishing fourth in their third NCAA Regional berth in school history, Covich and the Mountaineers recorded wins at the Red Bandanna Invitational and Mountaineer Invitational this season while carding nine top-10 finishes. West Virginia, which reintroduced men’s golf as a varsity sport in 2013 after dropping it 31 years earlier, was led on the course by March Big 12 Conference Golfer of the Month and NCAA Rancho Santa Fe Regional sixth-place finisher Max Green.
The Tar Heels collected six wins under DiBitetto, the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Coach of the Year, this season and finished inside the top three in 10 of their 12 tournaments. Ranked fourth in Scoreboard powered by Clippd’s National Rankings, North Carolina was led on the course by four All-ACC recipients, including NCAA Chapel Hill Regional medalist Austin Greaser and David Ford, who was selected to his second consecutive Arnold Palmer Cup for Team USA.
Ranked second in the Scoreboard powered by Clippd National Rankings, Vanderbilt recorded seven wins, including the NCAA West Lafayette Regional and a handful of other high-profile fields, and top-four finishes in all 11 tournaments this season. Limbaugh’s Commodores were led on the course by four All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) golfers, including 2024 Arnold Palmer Cup Team USA selections Gordon Sargent and Jackson Van Paris.
All five finalists are coaching at the 2024 NCAA Division I Men’s Golf Championship at Omni La Costa Resort & Spa in Carlsbad, Calif., beginning today.
About Golf Pride Grips
For over seven decades, we’ve been the global leader in golf grip innovation and technology, from the invention of the slip-on grip to groundbreaking advancements in cord with our new Brushed Cotton Technology (BCT®) to the introduction of the hybrid category of grips. Today, Golf Pride® has laid claim to more major wins than any other grip company. More than 80% of Tour professionals choose to play our grips and not one is paid to do so. And in this age of multi-million dollar endorsement deals, that’s the strongest endorsement of all. So, whether you’re a Tour pro playing a major, a rising amateur, or an everyday golfer, you can rest assured knowing you’re playing the #1 Grip in Golf. To learn more about Golf Pride®, go to golfpride.com.
