An above-par coach

SOUTH JORDAN — Brad Bevan's dedication to his job as Bingham High School golf coach, his unorthodox program he initiated and the community service he and his team have done have paid off in more ways than one.

BHS won its third state golf championship this season, and Bevan was named the National Golf Coach of the Year by the National Federation of State High School Associations.

"He's the most respected golf coach in the state and he's the most hard-working," BHS principal Tom Hicks said. "We're pretty proud of him."

Bevan was one of 21,000 golf coaches across the country that were up for the award, but he downplays his role in his team's success.

"Coaches tend to get too much credit," he said. "A coach wins awards because of his players."

Bevan loves his players. In fact, he loves them so much that he keeps nearly twice as many players on his team than most other high school golf teams.

Bingham keeps 20-24 golfers on its team — six of them freshmen — while most other teams will carry only up to 12, with only one or two freshmen, Bevan said.

"Freshmen usually shoot in the mid-40s," Bevan said. "Our freshmen usually improve four to five shots in one year. We had three sophomores average under 40 this season."

The toughest part about coaching high school golf, Bevan said, is that most players get a later start playing golf than they would playing other sports.

"The top three players on our team all started at a young age," Bevan said. "Kids get a later start in golf, so we have to find kids that are especially athletic and competitive."

But considering the setbacks, Bevan says golf in Utah is surprisingly good.

"There is a large number of kids playing golf in Utah for a cold state," he said. "But the quality of play is still outstanding."

Bevan works his players hard, too, and not just in competition. He has his players volunteer at the River Oaks Golf Course driving range so they can get free time on the range and the course.

"They make our job simpler," ROGC range manager Bob Weaver said. "I'd have to pay people if they didn't help out."

The players drive the ball-collecting tractor on the range and on Tuesdays, they have to walk over the whole range and make sure every ball is picked up so they don't lose any to the lawn mowers the next day.