Florida A&M golfer Tyler Partee putts during a practice round of the inaugural SAS Championship HBCU Invitational on the Fairways Course at Prestonwood Country Club Friday afternoon October 14, 2022.
It was a picture-perfect weekend at the SAS Championship in Cary. But this year, with sunshine and temperatures in the 70s, golf fans at Prestonwood Country Club also got to see top golfers from historically Black institutions.
While the professional golfers competed on the Highlands Course, top student athletes from a dozen Historically Black Colleges and Universities were simultaneously competing on the Fairways Course. It is the first time the SAS Championship included a HBCU Invitational.
Craig Bowen is president of the Black College Golf Coaches Association.
“It’s almost overwhelming to see we’re eating prime rib and lobster tails on Sunday afternoon at Prestonwood Country Club,” said Bowen, who played college golf at Southern University in the 1980s, a HBCU in Louisiana.
Bowen added: “We kind of started from the bottom and now we’re here, accepted into mainstream PGA Champions tour golf, is just something that’s been unheard of."
Jonathon Gruenke
/
for WUNC
Savannah State University golfer Angela Dodson chips the ball onto a green during the inaugural SAS Championship HBCU Invitational at Prestonwood Country Club on Friday, Oct. 14, 2022.
Kendall Jackson is a sophomore at Howard University in Washington, D.C. and was part of the winning women’s golf team at the invitational. She also won top female player, shooting two-over-par in three rounds.
“It definitely feels extremely special, the fact that SAS and other companies are reaching out, reaching back, hosting events like this to make us feel special, to make us feel included,” Jackson said. “The fact that we’re playing on some of the greatest courses along with some of the greatest players is truly a week I will never forget."
E. Lee Coble is the head golf coach at Virginia Union University in Richmond. Coble said when he was growing up in Mebane, North Carolina, he could be a caddie but was not allowed to play on the courses, because of the color of his skin.
“Why you knew you couldn’t, they still didn’t take away the love you had for the game of golf," Coble said. "And I grew up with that."
Coble would eventually play golf but also worked 32 years at IBM. He says golf was very important to his customers and executives.
“I tell my players now, if you spend four hours on the golf course with somebody and you don’t get something out of that, you’ve wasted your four hours with them on the golf course,” Coble said. “It’s about relationships."
The inaugural SAS Championship HBCU Invitational also included a career fair for students. Robert Anderson is Director of Solutions Development at SAS and a graduate of North Carolina A&T State University.
“I think this year, with everything going on we wanted to find a way to plug in with our HBCUs which are really integral to our recruitment efforts and make sure we are trying to get them here,” said Anderson. “What better way to wed our interest in HBCUs than with this big annual event.”
Anderson says he and members of the Black Initiatives Group (BIG) at SAS, have been working to make sure the work culture is more welcoming and inclusive for Black employees. Several Black SAS employees talked to golfers about their work experiences and how it was common to be the “only” Black person in their division.
1 of 12 — Students prepare for SAS Championship HBCU Invitational
Virginia Union University golf coach E. Lee Coble talks with players before the start of a practice round of the inaugural SAS Championship HBCU Invitational on the Fairways Course at Prestonwood Country Club Friday afternoon October 14, 2022.
Jonathon Gruenke/ for WUNC / for WUNC
2 of 12 — Students prepare for SAS Championship HBCU Invitational
Savannah State University golfer Kaila Leonard is competing in the inaugural SAS Championship HBCU Invitational at Prestonwood Country Club.
Jonathon Gruenke/for WUNC / WUNC
3 of 12 — Students prepare for SAS Championship HBCU Invitational
Florida A&M golfer Troy Stribling hits the ball down the green during a practice round of the inaugural SAS Championship HBCU Invitational on the Fairways Course at Prestonwood Country Club Friday afternoon October 14, 2022.
Jonathon Gruenke/for WUNC / for WUNC
4 of 12 — Students prepare for SAS Championship HBCU Invitational
Livingstone College golf coach Andre Springs, left, Virginia Union University golf coach E. Lee Coble, center, and Winston-Salem State University golf coach Charles Penny II, right, talk before the start of a practice round of the inaugural SAS Championship HBCU Invitational on the Fairways Course at Prestonwood Country Club Friday afternoon October 14, 2022.
Jonathon Gruenke/for WUNC / for WUNC
5 of 12 — Students prepare for SAS Championship HBCU Invitational
Robert L. Anderson II, director of solutions optimization and support at SAS, waits to take the stage during a career day on the SAS campus for HBCU student-athletes competing in the inaugural SAS Championship HBCU Invitational. Student-athletes participated in seminars and discussions with SAS executives and HBCU alumni employees before a practice round at Prestonwood Country Club Friday afternoon October 14, 2022.
Jonathon Gruenke/for WUNC / for WUNC
6 of 12 — Students prepare for SAS Championship HBCU Invitational
Robert L. Anderson II, director of solutions optimization and support at SAS, waits to take the stage during a career day on the SAS campus for HBCU student-athletes competing in the inaugural SAS Championship HBCU Invitational. Student-athletes participated in seminars and discussions with SAS executives and HBCU alumni employees before a practice round at Prestonwood Country Club Friday afternoon October 14, 2022.
Jonathon Gruenke/for WUNC / for WUNC
7 of 12 — Students prepare for SAS Championship HBCU Invitational
Kobe Narcisse, center, and other members of the North Carolina Central University golf team listen to discussions during a career day on the SAS campus for HBCU student-athletes competing in the inaugural SAS Championship HBCU Invitational. Student-athletes participated in seminars and discussions with SAS executives and HBCU alumni employees before a practice round at Prestonwood Country Club Friday afternoon October 14, 2022.
Jonathon Gruenke/for WUNC / for WUNC
8 of 12 — Students prepare for SAS Championship HBCU Invitational
Virginia Union University golfer Ahmad Reedus and other students listen to discussions during a career day on the SAS campus for HBCU student-athletes competing in the inaugural SAS Championship HBCU Invitational. Student-athletes participated in seminars and discussions with SAS executives and HBCU alumni employees before a practice round at Prestonwood Country Club Friday afternoon October 14, 2022.
Jonathon Gruenke/for WUNC / for WUNC
9 of 12 — Students prepare for SAS Championship HBCU Invitational
Robert L. Anderson II, director of solutions optimization and support at SAS, talks to leads a discussion during a career day on the SAS campus for HBCU student-athletes competing in the inaugural SAS Championship HBCU Invitational. Student-athletes participated in seminars and discussions with SAS executives and HBCU alumni employees before a practice round at Prestonwood Country Club Friday afternoon October 14, 2022.
Jonathon Gruenke/for WUNC / for WUNC
10 of 12 — Students prepare for SAS Championship HBCU Invitational
Student-athletes from Historically Black Colleges and Universities listen to discussions during a career day on the SAS campus for HBCU student-athletes competing in the inaugural SAS Championship HBCU Invitational. Student-athletes participated in seminars and discussions with SAS executives and HBCU alumni employees before a practice round at Prestonwood Country Club Friday afternoon October 14, 2022.
Jonathon Gruenke/for WUNC / for WUNC
11 of 12 — Students prepare for SAS Championship HBCU Invitational
Chicago State University golfer Ajani Johnson hits the ball down the fairway during a practice round of the inaugural SAS Championship HBCU Invitational on the Fairways Course at Prestonwood Country Club on Friday, Oct. 14, 2022.
Jonathon Gruenke/ for WUNC / for WUNC
12 of 12 — Students prepare for SAS Championship HBCU Invitational
Florida A&M golfer Jacob Uyesato hits the ball out of a a bunker during a practice round of the inaugural SAS Championship HBCU Invitational on the Fairways Course at Prestonwood Country Club Friday afternoon October 14, 2022.
Jonathon Gruenke/for WUNC / for WUNC
Ahmad Reedus plays on the men’s golf team at Virginia Union University. He says he is grateful for the pep talk, on and off the golf course.
“You can truly see the genuineness amongst everybody. You can truly see how much everybody cares,” said Reedus. “And most importantly they seem to care about your mental space as well.”
Reedus says he is keeping his options open. He still hopes to play golf at the professional level someday.
Florida A&M won the HBCU Invitational Division I men’s competition, while Miles College captured the Division II tournament.
Meanwhile, longtime pro Fred Couples won the 2022 SAS Championship. As reported by ESPN, Couples “broke his age” by three shots, with a 12-under 60.
Leoneda Inge is the co-host of WUNC's "Due South." Leoneda has been a radio journalist for more than 30 years, spending most of her career at WUNC as the Race and Southern Culture reporter. Leoneda’s work includes stories of race, slavery, memory and monuments. She has won "Gracie" awards, an Alfred I. duPont Award and several awards from the Radio, Television, Digital News Association (RTDNA). In 2017, Leoneda was named "Journalist of Distinction" by the National Association of Black Journalists.
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