The Carleton Ravens golf team has announced the hiringof newprogram head David McBain, who will be taking over from former head coach Andrew Donaldson.
McBain was a varsity golfer himself with the Ravens team back in the 1970s.
He was also one of the first two players ever to be awarded an athletic scholarship for golf in Canada.
He spent the last five years as the golf team’s mental coach.
“I feel the transition [from mental coach to head coach] is natural,” McBain said.
McBain identified the short length of the U Sports golf season as a major challenge, because he said coaches and players are only able to spend a couple of months with one another.
“Tryouts for the golf team start in September and the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) championships are in mid-October, so we do have a limited season length,” McBain said.
The short season consists of a very busy tournament schedule that includes five to six OUA in-season tournaments, a tournament in the United States.
In addition, the season’s wraps up with the OUA championships.
“Many of the players have swing coaches in the off-season, so we don’t work too much on technical skills, but more focus on the mental aspects of the game,” he said.
These mental aspects are what McBain sais he has experience with as the team’s former mental coach, as well as a former athlete who knows the struggles that go along with being a student athlete at Carleton.
McBain and the entire coaching staff at Carleton are helping to build an off-season plan with their athletes and alongside the Titleist Performance Institute.
An expert will come and work with the student athletes and coaches to build an off-season plan that can address specific weaknesses and keep the players in shape, according to McBain.
The plan is called the “Front-Nine” and uses nine different exercises that are customized to the athletes’ needs and wants.
McBain will also look to implement other cutting-edge technology such as the BodiTrak golf system into the team’s training sessions.
The BodiTrak system will provide the team with analytics, as well as other feedback to help them improve their swing.
Heading into the upcoming season, the Carleton golf team will be working on building financial support through donations, and are holding a Ravens golf bag sale this summer.
Having worked the past five years with former head coach Donaldson, McBain said he wishes to continue to grow the golfing program at Carleton.
“This year will be a building stage for the women’s team, as last year we were not able to field one,” McBain said.
“Recruiting players from high school and bringing in women at Carleton who may not have put their name forward before will be important for the program.”
Renée McCutcheon was listed as the only female member on the Ravens golf team last season.
The Ravens golf team has been part of Carleton’s athletic program since 1951, and hosted a roster of nine golfers last season
Next season’s OUA golf championships will be held in Ottawa and will be hosted by the University of Ottawa Gee-Gees.
The Ravens will also host the Carleton men’s and women’s invitational.
Last year, the men’s team placed second in the tournament.
McBain said he will look to continue recruiting new players for next season.
He added that he hopes that eventually the program will be able to compete at U Sports Nationals.
The Ravens will be holding open tryouts during the first week of September.
