Chris Branon, a golf pro at Ridgemark, set to bring his
expertise to Haybaler girls’ program
New San Benito High gorls’ golf coach Chris Branon has a simple approach to teaching the already difficult game of golf.
No two swings are alike, that’s about all you can count on.
Branon, a Ridgemark golf professional with more than three and a half years on the job, is looking forward to beginning his first season with a Haybaler program that has been on its way up over the course of the last several seasons.
Branon hopes that he can bring the team to the next level and set it up for sustained success in the years to come.
“I want to see them make it to CCS as a whole team,” Branon said. “If they don’t do it this year, I think we should be able to get there next year.”
While the ‘Baler girls have seen a lot of improvement on the course in recent seasons as the program grew stronger and stronger under former coach Mark Tinder, Branon knows that for the team to be one of the section’s elite, it is going to have to take on an almost football-like attitude when it comes to player dedication.
That means getting athletes interested in girls’ golf to practice the sport year round. Gone are the days of the team being comprised mostly of girls who didn’t make the volleyball squad or the tennis team. Branon is looking for athletes who are willing to commit to the game of golf, to give it their all and push themselves to reach their potential.
“It all starts with recruiting young players,” Branon said. “We lose a lot of kids from age eight to 12 to basketball, soccer and other sports. And then, some of them get to high school, realize they might not make the team, and then go out for golf. When that happens, they’ve lost a lot of the years they need to become a better player. You take a look at Michelle Wie or Tiger Woods, they started playing golf at five and it stayed with them.”
That’s precisely where Branon’s position at Ridgemark comes heavily into play.
Not only does the new ‘Baler coach have the golf background as one of the club’s pros, he’s also very much involved with the youth program that Ridgemark sponsors.
“In my opinion, that’s the key to growing the sport.”
Branon isn’t expecting the world in his first season at the helm of the Haybaler program. He’s well aware of the fact that golf is a difficlut game, one that takes years to master. But, he’s confident that with the right approach, the ‘Balers will be in the CCS hunt in the very near future.
“My goal is to build the program up, to give it a name,” Branon said. “Build it up so that kids will want to get into the game early on, rather than wait, so that it’s a year-round process. Our players need to take the game seriously, just like football players, volleyball players or any other athlete.”
