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Sixth year head coach Brandon Goethals enters the 2010-11 season with a veteran team in place that will be contenders for the Big West title come championship weekend in May. Coming off their second straight second place finish at the Big West Championships, the Tigers are in primed to improve their position and advance to their first NCAA tournament under Goethals In 2009-10, the Tigers continued their ascent to the top of the Big West as Pacific finished second at the Big West Championships. Throughout the year the Tigers showed glimpsed of brilliance, none more so then at the Bill Cullum Invitational in October where Pacific picked up its first tournament win of the year. Additionally, Goethals helped guide Alex Johnson to his first-ever individual championship at the tournament. Four seasons into his tenure at Pacific, Goethals firmly placed his stamp on the University of the Pacific Golf program. With his fourth recruiting class in place the Tigers jumped up to the upper echelon of the Big West, finishing second at the Big West Championships for the first time in Goethals career. In addition to their impressive finish at the end of the year tournament, the Tigers took home the Rice Intercollegiate championship for the first team tournament win under Goethals guidance. Brandon's meticulous and demanding system has allowed for the Tigers to gain more than 50 ranking spots a year for the last three years since he took over in 2005. The GolfWeek/Golf World rankings have seen the Tigers move from 200th in the country to 150 two years ago to 95th at the conclusion of the 2008 season. With five sophomores and three freshman all looking to make a contribution Goethals has instilled a young group of student-athletes that should make serious noise in the Big West and the nation for years to come. In addition to back-to-back stellar recruiting classes, Goethals has been the driving force behind golf in Stockton. The Tigers' collegiate tournament, the Pacific Invitational brings together 12 teams from around the country for four days of golf at Pacific's home course, Brookside Country Club. In addition to revamping the Pacific Invitational Goethals has breathed new life into the Tiger Hunt; the annual celebration of Pacific Golf with players, alumni, boosters and friends of athletics. The junior golf program in Stockton has certainly not been overlooked under Goethals. The two coaches created the Pacific Golf Academy this past summer, attended by thirty junior golfers from the across the state. The new Academy, along with the Tiger Hunt and Pacific Invitational are just a small focal point of Goethals' influence at Pacific and in the Stockton community. In 2007-08, Brandon guided the Tigers to a nationally competitive schedule with stops in Rhode Island, Texas and Hawaii. The Tigers finished runner-up at the Del Walker Intercollegiate for their closest look at a victory in nearly a decade and then freshman TJ Bordeaux responded with an individual win in Oregon under Goethals' guidance. Pacific closed out their season with a disappointing fourth place finish at the Big West but saw Bordeaux named to the All-Big West First Team. In 2006-07, Goethals' second season as head coach, the Tigers categorically improved in every aspect of the game. Led by perennial Academic All-American and First Team All-Big West selection Thomas Petersson the Tigers blazed their way to a record tournament at the Pacific Coast Intercollegiate. The Tigers took fourth place at the Rice Intercollegiate in February and stormed their way to a third place finish at the Big West Championships to end their season. Coach led Petersson to eight top-20 finishes during the course of the year while junior Chris Rosenau cracked the top-20 three times. Before arriving at Pacific Goethals had just completed his fourth year as an assistant coach at Georgia Tech under head coach Bruce Heppler. He helped lead the Yellow Jackets to a runner-up finish at the 2005 NCAA Golf Championships in Owings Mills, Maryland. Goethals was the assistant on Yellow Jacket teams that finished fifth (2004), 11th (2003), and second (2002 and 2005). He played a large part in recruiting the last three years, and successfully recruited four players over the course of two years that were ranked in the top 30 nationally. Prior to his position at Georgia Tech, Brandon worked in the high-tech and e-business areas from 1997-2001. Before moving into the business world, Goethals was a member of the South African PGA Tour and played in a number of professional events in the United States following his graduation from UNLV in 1992. While with the Rebels, he played under Heppler, who was an assistant coach with the team. A solid player and outstanding student at UNLV, Goethals was an All-Big West Conference Honorable Mention selection in 1990 as he helped the Rebels to the NCAA West Regional Championships and a second-place conference finish. In his career, he played in three NCAA Championships with UNLV, helping the team to a fourth-place finish in 1992 as a senior. His score of 292 at the Championship Golf Course in Albuquerque, N.M., was among the best 72-hole performances in school history. Goethals finished his career as a four-time letterwinner at UNLV and was the 1992 recipient of the team's Bruce Parker Award, recognizing the team member with the highest grade point average. Goethals graduated from UNLV with a degree in communications in 1992. A native of Northern California, Goethals grew up in Redding. |
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