Peter Coughlin enters his first full season as head coach of the California University of Pennsylvania men’s golf team in the 2008-09 season. He accepted the head coaching position prior to the start of the Spring 2008 season.
In his first semester with the program, Coughlin inherited a progam that posted a sixth-place finish at the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Championships and a ninth-place finish in the East region. Last season, the Vulcans qualified both Jon Lodovico and Brian Batko for the NCAA East Regional.
A graduate of the University of Maryland, Coughlin came to Cal U after leading nearby Washington & Jefferson College, a Division III program, to its most success in program history. While with the Presidents, he served as both the head men’s & women’s golf coach for four-plus years.
During both the 2006 and 2007 season, Coughlin guided W&J to a combined four Presidents’ Athletic Conference (PAC) championships behind four medalist golfers and seven all-conference golfers. In 2006, he was selected as the Eaton Golf Pride Division III Mid-Atlantic Men’s Coach of the Year after leading the Presidents to their first-ever appearance in the NCAA Division III National Championships.
Among the PAC medalists was Michael Grasso, who became the first golfer in W&J history to be named to the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA) PING Division III All-American Team. Coughlin also coached Grasso to two-straight NCAA Division III Tournaments.
Prior to his tenure at W&J, the Berwick, Pa., native served as the golf services assistant at the Heron Creek Golf Club in North Port, Fla. During his time at Heron Creek, he represented the club in various PGA professional tour events, including the 2003 Canadian Tour Winter Qualifying School.
A 1999 graduate of Maryland with a degree in marketing, Coughlin became the assistant golf professional at the University of Maryland Golf Course for two years. Among his duties at the course were planning and organizing tournament for the Terps, instructing students on techniques to improve their game and scheduling and marketing the course’s junior program, which included summer camps.
