In his three-plus seasons as head coach, Mark Guhne (pronounced JUNE) has led his alma mater to unprecedented heights in men’s golf.  Guhne has spearheaded a consistent march up the national rankings.

The march to the top culminated in a No. 1 ranking early in the Fall of 2008 after opening with wins at the Aldila Scenic City Invitational and at the prestigious Carpet Capital Collegiate.  It is a start the Mocs hope to replicate as they set their sights on the Spring semester and in making a run to Toledo for the NCAA Finals at Inverness.

The 2007-08 season saw the Mocs finish in the top 15 of the three major rankings with a high of No. 12 in the Golfweek/Sagarin Ratings Index.  Chattanooga ranked No. 14 in the Golf World/Nike Golf Coaches’ Poll as well as in the Golfstat rankings.  The team set a school record with five team titles, breaking the previous season mark of four.

Individually, the Mocs placed three players in the top 100 rankings (Golfweek/Sagarin) in Jonathan Hodge (26), Derek Rende (74) and Fredrik Qvicker (88), as well as in the Golfstat Cup with Hodge at 18, Rende at 66 and Qvicker at 99.  Hodge set the single-season record with three titles in 2007-08 repeating as SoCon Golfer of the Year.

In Guhne’s three-plus seasons at the helm, the Mocs have won 12 team titles and five medalist honors.  Guhne has three SoCon Coach of the Year honors in those seasons, and his players have won two Player of the Year awards, one Freshman of the Year and had nine all-conference selections under his tutelage to go with second-team All-America honors for Hodge in 2008 as well as All-Region mention for Hodge and Rende.

His first season (2006), Chattanooga posted its best conference finish (tie 3rd) in 20 years and Coach of the Year honors.  He followed that by leading the Mocs to their first Southern Conference title since 1987 in 2007, with Jonathan Hodge earning SoCon Player of the Year honors, Derek Rende, Freshman of the Year, and Guhne, Coach of the Year once again.  The Mocs finished 2006-07 ranked 47th in the nation.

As part of the growth of the student-athlete, Guhne encourages aggressive summer tournament schedules.  In recent years, the Mocs had three players qualify for the 2007 U.S. Amateur in Jonathan Hodge, Derek Rende and Bryce Ledford.  Fredrik Qvicker finished as low amateur at the 2007 Scandanavian Masters, while Ben Rickett qualified for the 2007 English Amateur, finishing in the final 16, and the 2008 British and English Ams.

Rende won the 2007 Tennessee State Open and then followed in 2008 with a win at the Tennessee State Amateur.  Hodge qualified for the Western Refining All-American in 2008 and played a phenomenal summer schedule which included a third round finish at the North/South Amateur.

Guhne was elevated to the head coaching position on March 1, 2005, after three seasons serving as assistant coach to Reed Sanderlin.  A PGA professional, Guhne has earned Class A status and was the 2007 Horton Smith Award winner.  He was elected president of the Chattanooga chapter of the PGA in 2008. 

Among his recent playing accomplishments, Guhne was selected to the 2007 Tennessee Challenge Cup team.  In 2003 and 2004, he represented Tennessee in the Tennessee vs. Georgia PGA Cup Matches.

Mark and his wife Kelly are both Chattanooga graduates with each earning degrees in 1984.  The couple resides in Hixson, Tenn.

GUHNE AT A GLANCE

Alma Mater:  Chattanooga ‘84

COACHING RECORD

2005-06......... 105-56-1

2006-07......... 149-50-2

2007-08......... 158-42-4

Fall 2008.......... 36-20-0

Totals........... 448-168-7

HONORS

2006 SoCon Coach of the Year

2007 SoCon Coach of the Year

2008 SoCon Coach of the Year

TEAM TITLES

2005 Re/Max UTC Fall Classic

2007 Rio Pinar Intercollegiate

2007 Wexford Intercollegiate

2007 USA Spring Classic

2007 SoCon Championship

2007 Coca-Cola Duke Golf Classic

2008 Cleveland Palmetto Intercollegiate

2008 Furman Intercollegiate

2008 Bank of America Intercollegiate

2008 SoCon Championship

2008 Aldila Scenic City Invitational

2008 Carpet Capital Collegiate

INDIVIDUAL MEDALISTS

2005-06

Bryce Ledford, Re/Max UTC Fall Classic

2006-07

Derek Rende, USA Spring Classic

2007-08

Jonathan Hodge, Coca-Cola Duke Golf Classic

Jonathan Hodge, Cleveland Palmetto Intercollegiate

Jonathan Hodge, Furman Intercollegiate

ALL-AMERICA

2008:  Jonathan Hodge, 2nd Team

PING ALL-REGION

2008:  Jonathan Hodge, Derek Rende

SoCON PLAYER of the YEAR

2007:  Jonathan Hodge

2008:  Jonathan Hodge

SoCON FRESHMAN of the YEAR

2007:  Derek Rende

ALL-CONFERENCE PLAYERS

2006:  Bryce Ledford, Jonathan Hodge

2007:  Jonathan Hodge, Bryce Ledford, Derek Rende

2008:  Jonathan Hodge, Fredrik Qvicker, Derek Rende, Ben Rickett

AS A PLAYER

2003:  Tenn. vs. Ga. PGA Cup Matches

2004:  Tenn. vs. Ga. PGA Cup Matches

2007:  Tenn. Challenge Cup

President of the Chattanooga Chapter of the PGA