Twelve and a half years ago, then-Athletic Director Vince Dooley named Chris Haack the head coach of the men’s golf program, despite Haack’s lack of prior collegiate coaching experience.

Prior to his arrival at Georgia, Haack served as assistant executive director for the American Junior Golf Association, which he believed proved valuable in convincing Dooley he was worth the risk.

“I didn’t have any collegiate coaching experience, but I had captained seven Canon Cup teams,” Haack said. “It’s not like college, but with that, you have a team and you are competing. I had Tiger [Woods] on four of those teams, so I had been around a lot of good players and a team atmosphere, and I felt like I had a pretty good grasp of keeping guys loose and motivated on the course.

“I think that really helped convince Coach Dooley to take a chance on me. I know he had to stick his neck out there for me a little bit, which I’m really glad he did, and I think it’s turned out great for both of us.”

Dooley’s gamble paid off in a big way, as Haack led the Bulldogs to two national championships, five Southeastern Conference championships, and 36 team titles in his first 12 seasons after taking over for long-time former coach Dick Copas in 1996.

One of the reasons the team has enjoyed continued success is due to upgraded facilities, something Haack said was the first thing he did and “helped a bunch.”

“We also focused a lot on recruiting to make sure we got players that complemented each other and create great camaraderie on our team, and we upgraded our schedule,” Haack added. “We play a very hard schedule, so that by the time we get to the postseason, we aren’t intimidated by the top teams, because we have faced them before.”

Haack’s first national championship in 1999, which was also the first in school history, came just three years after he took over the program, and resulted in him being named National Coach of the Year. His second title was in 2005, and also garnered the Coach of the Year award.

“I think obviously both national championships were great moments for me,” Haack said. “The first one was great, but I never thought I would feel like I did for the first one, but the second one felt the same.

It’s a great feeling because you are so proud of the guys and so those two moments were very special to me. But anytime the team wins, I feel very proud of them.”

The Bulldogs’ great team success also has brought tremendous individual achievements for Haack’s players, as he has coached three SEC Champions and 40 All-Americans.

“My first two years with Coach Haack have been awesome,” said sophomore Harris English. “I knew he was a great guy coming in, and that the players liked him in high school. But I never could have imagined how much I really would get along with him, and how great a relationship we would have.

“He’s done the world for this team and for me the last two years that I’ve been here … and we just love being around him…”

In addition to their successes on the course, the Bulldogs have been outstanding in the classroom under Haack’s watch. For the last four years, the Bulldogs have won the Faculty Athletics Representative Award, which is given to the men’s athletic team with the highest GPA. Twenty-seven different players made the SEC Academic Honor Roll, and six were selected as Cleveland Golf Scholar All-Americans.

English believes the team’s performance in the classroom has to be attributed to the emphasis Haack puts on their studies.

“He is always very concerned with our academics, and he understands if we need to get stuff done in the classroom,” said English. “He just really understands the demands placed on us as student-athletes. He knows that school is tough because we are gone so much, but he always lets us get in our study time before we play.”

The 2008-2009 edition of the men’s golf team offers Haack a chance to win his third national championship, as his Dogs head into the spring season ranked No. 1 by Golf Week – but Haack knows anything can happen.

“We have gone into the Finals ranked No. 1 four years and not won, so I know how hard it is,” he said. “We know we have the talent to win it, but we just have to hope that four of the five guys are playing consistently well that week. You know everyone thinks Tiger is going to win the Masters every year, but he doesn’t, so everything is going to have to be working for us [to win].”