Coaching spotlight: Gary Guyer

Gary Guyer, coach of the Mercer University Women’s Golf Team, is the winningest coach in the program’s history.  The program has been extremely successful since he came to the team in 2008. As of his arrival, the team has climbed national rankings and was ranked in 55th among 256 division one programs in the 2013-2014 year.

In his six seasons at Mercer, Coach Guyer believes that he brings “vision” to the program that this asset can push his players to compete to the best of their abilities.

“I envision the Mercer Women’s Golf program competing at the NCAA finals. I remember a speaker coming to Mercer and talking about how a young basketball coach at Duke, Mike Krzyzewski, told him about his vision to compete at the highest level. Duke had never been to the NCAAs at that time. It turned out well for him,” said Guyer. “It boils down to convincing top recruits of what we want to do at Mercer and that they can be a part of something special. I have worked really hard to develop and nurture our relationship with The Idle Hour Club. There are few places better than the facilities at IHC. The instructors are the best in the country, so we have everything a player needs to become extremely successful and reach our vision.”

Coach Guyer’s vision has taken the Mercer Women’s Golf Team to new heights in his six seasons here. In the fall season, Katy Harris took first place in the University of North Carolina-Greensboro Tournament and is continuing to improve her scores.

“Katy won the UNCG tournament beating 90 players. She was actually the tournament leader in four of our first five rounds of the year. Katy has all the physical qualities to compete at the highest collegiate level and compete on the LPGA tour. She has length off the tee and is a confident putter. She needs to get her approach shots closer to the flag so she can have solid chances at 8-10 birdies per round,” said Guyer. “She will continue to get better as she is maturing. She has come a long way. Marin has a lot of talent, and with some hard focused work over the next three months, she could push Katy. Keep your eye on Sarah Brown. She has a new instructor, and she will be amazing if she trusts him and believes in herself.”

In this fall season, the team has taken three top-ten finishes, but Coach Guyer believes that the team as a whole can perform better.

“The fall season could have been better, as we did not play up to our potential. We started well in our first tournament by shooting an even-par round of 288,” said Guyer. “We didn’t close like we usually do and finished third. In the other three tournaments in the fall, we just did not get a consistent effort to post four quality scores.”

Although the team has not done as well as Coach Guyer had hoped, his expectations have not lowered going into the spring season.

“We have a high-quality schedule in the spring, so we have a chance to make a run and do something special. We have three months to prepare, so we will see who works the hardest and wants it the most. We have an incoming freshman joining the team in the spring, and she has the potential to be an impact player,” said Guyer. “My only expectation is for them to give Mercer and the rest of the team their best effort. At the end of the day, all you can do is commit to be the best you can be; learn from the results and have some fun. It is a game.”

Opening their spring season, the Bears will travel to Athens, Ga., to compete in the Old Waverly Bulldog Individual Championship on Feb. 8.