Texas Tech University Athletics
Hole-in-One: Tech Golf Gets Major Addition
July 28, 2011 | Men's Golf
May 9, 2011
LUBBOCK, Texas - For Texas Tech golfers like Kim Kaufman or Tyler Weworski, locker rooms, meeting areas, and coaches offices haven't been available since they stepped foot on campus.
That all changed Monday, though, as Texas Tech unveiled plans to build a new 3.7 million clubhouse and team facility at The Rawls Course, adding to already one of the premier college golf facilities in the nation.
"I'm so excited about everything," Kaufman said. "Having our own locker room and the coaches will be out there, I think it is just going to be great."
The Rawls Course was recently named the fifth best public golf course in the state of Texas and the fourth-ranked university course in the nation by Golfweek Magazine.
The one thing it has lacked is that final piece, a clubhouse.
Instead of leaving their clubs in their car on a day-by-day basis like teams in the past, both the men's and women's programs will have their own area designated only for the two teams.
"Everyone on the team is really excited to have a common area to leave clubs and hangout," Finley Ewing IV said. "If the weather gets bad, we have a place to go inside. The clubhouse will give us a chance to hangout at the golf course for a long time and almost never leave. We can study out there and then go out and hit a few balls."
Currently, both programs share an indoor and outdoor driving range along with a short game area that will be adjacent to the new clubhouse.
Head coaches Greg Sands and JoJo Robertson are both housed in the south endzone offices at Jones AT&T Stadium, making it a back-and-forth drive to the course, which is located on the northernmost part of campus.
"It's just going to make the whole day-to-day process simpler for us," Ewing said. "I feel like it is going to keep everyone a lot closer together since we can spend so much more time at the course. Another thing is we'll be a lot closer to the coaches at all times. We will have more chances to go to them and work on a few things, and I think it's really going to be great for all of us."
With two teams that are regularly in the postseason, both Sands and Robertson will also have an additional recruiting tool to present potential student-athletes. The clubhouse will feature several panoramic views of the award-winning course to go along with a full-service Pro Shop and the ever popular Jerry's Grill.
Both Kaufman and teammate Gabby Dominguez believe members, guests, and potential recruits will enjoy the new clubhouse just as much as each team will.
"I think it will help a lot with recruiting," Dominguez said. "That was a big thing for me personally. I think the new clubhouse will help with recruiting and help promote our team and help us even more."
With so much excitement from both programs, the newest addition to the Rawls Course will without a doubt enhance what is already one of the top collegiate golf courses in the nation.
While Dominguez, Kaufman, and Ewing may be excited as anyone about the project, all three players agree on one thing - the clubhouse will be a great addition for the entire Texas Tech community.
"I hope everyone is just as excited as we are," said Kaufman. "It's going to be really nice."
Players Mentioned
