Santa Rosa golf coach tees off against Newman's P.E. golf class

Howie Walker clearly got his knickers in a twist on Septembers 3, 8, 10 and 11. Walker’s, Santa Rosa’s golf coach, saw Cardinal Newman’s golf coach, Matt Vukicevich, on those dates either playing or instructing some members of his school’s golf team.

High school golf doesn’t start until February. According to NCS rules, a coach isn’t supposed to instruct his team in the off-season during the school year. Walker wanted to know how Vukicevich could do that. He fired off a letter that eventually made its way to the principals of the two high schools, NBL commissioner Marie Sugiyama and officials at North Coast Section.

“For a coach to work with his varsity players in the off-season,” Walker said, “clearly that’s a competitive advantage. Ray Charles could see it as an advantage.”

Ironically Vukicevich doesn’t disagree.

“It’s a chance to work with some of my younger players,” he said, “and get to know them better.”

As the situation is explored, however, the two coaches do not remain in agreement.

Vukicevich was teaching an one-credit golf physical education class at Newman. In the Santa Rosa City School system, a golf coach can teach a golf P.E. class as long as he is a teacher at the school and is a certified physical education instructor. Any school can offer a specialty P.E. class, like golf, as long as the class is open to all students on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Newman, who also has a fencing P.E. class, offered P.E. golf to all students. Vukicevich, a guidance counselor at Newman, is also a licensed physical education instructor. Of the 12 students in this year’s class, five will either compete for or make Newman’s varsity golf team.

“Last year we made it to state,” Vukicevich said, “and we didn’t have a single member of our varsity team in golf P.E.”

Vukicevich appears to be the only person in the area who is the head golf coach at a high school, a member of the school faculty, a licensed P.E. teacher and a certified golf instructor. In this regard even Vukicevich admits he has an unique resume.

Many head golf coaches are not certified P.E. teachers, rather certified teachers with an academic specialty. For example, Rancho’s John Vogt is an economics teacher as is Piner’s Richard Gregus. Elsie Allen’s Al Woicicki is a math teacher as is Montgomery’s Marcelo Bautista. The rest are head coaches who offer the same job profile as Walker — non-teachers hired for a small stipend to coach high school golf. Walker, a Santa Rosa resident, owns a exterior building maintenance service.

“I wouldn’t mind at all,” Walker said, “if all I saw out there were kids who couldn’t get the ball in the air, who were really being taught golf. But the golf class is for intermediates. Why does Alex Reno need to be out there? This is when the coach should step in, take the lead and say, ‘Alex, go home, you don’t need to be here’. It’s like a 12th-grader with a 4.5 GPA taking bonehead freshman English.”

Reno was the NBL Player Of The Year in 2007-08. Vukicevich said initially Reno wasn’t even enrolled in golf P.E.

“We only had 10 kids,” Vukicevich said, “and Alex found out and said he would like to join my class.”

Vukicevich said he typically likes to discourage his golfers from attending a golf P.E. class.

“Fundamentally I want things to be fair,” Walker said. “This isn’t fair. There is a saying in golf: ‘Protecting the field’. That’s what I am trying to do here, protect the field. Meaning, I want a level playing field.”

On September 11th Walker saw Vukicevich with some players at the private members-only Fountaingrove course. Fountaingrove, one of the better golf courses in the area, is Newman’s home course for matches.

“Our course for the class usually is at Windsor,” said Vukicevich, a Fountaingrove member, “but that day I found the four kids I was teaching were all members of Fountaingrove. So we decided not to drive up to Windsor but to go to Fountaingrove. It was a one-time deal. We haven’t been back since.”

After Sugiyama received a letter from Santa Rosa principal Jim Goddard, she kicked the issue up to North Coast Section. NCS ruled Cardinal Newman was within the rules to hold a golf P.E. class.

“By the letter of the law,” Goddard said, “there was not a violation. But in the spirit of competition they took advantage. The Cardinal Newman coach happens to be a member of Fountaingrove. Fountaingrove happens to be the home course for Cardinal Newman. And it just so happens that one day all four members of the P.E. class could play at Fountaingrove because they are members, too. And they were there because Fountaingrove is closer than Windsor. On that one day. That’s a distinct advantage.”

Newman principal Graham Rutherford takes issue with any intimation his school is cheating.

“There’s nothing nefarious going on,” he said. “I am disappointed in his (Walker’s) tone. I wouldn’t have any problem if Walker coached a golf P.E. class (as an non-teacher). The rules were not of our making. We’re not cheaters. He should be willing to apologize to our school. Why is he (Walker) blaming us for that? We are not cheaters? I haven’t heard anything yet (from Walker) remotely referring to his kids’ grades. I wonder if he can recite their golf scores better than their GPAs.

“How about the flip side of all this? Paul Cronin (head football coach) has to teach four classes every day at school. Might he be at a disadvantage going against a coach from another school who is retired or not a member of the faculty, who can work on game plans all day because he is not a teacher?”

Of course Walker knows he’ll be accused of jealousy.

“They have a great golf program there,” Walker said. “I admire their coaching, their players. My son may end up going there. But jealousy? I get jealous of a lot of things but not at Cardinal Newman. It’s like me getting jealous of Donald Trump. I’m not in that league.”

In the end this becomes that Rorschach ink blot test. People will see what they want to see.

Newman did nothing wrong. It broke no rules. If a competitive edge is achieved and is achieved legitimately, isn’t that the nature of the truly motivated athlete? People are just jealous of Newman. Get a life, Howie Walker.

Or. . .

Newman is bending the rules like a fork bends spaghetti. They find every little loophole, wiggle through it, hands clean but soul dirty. The rich get richer and the public schools, well, ain’t a lot of public school kids who are members of a private country club. It may not have resulted in much but thanks anyway, Howie, for tilting at the windmill.

Myself? I never thought high school golf could be this interesting.

For more on North Bay high school sports go to Bob Padecky’s blog at padecky@pressdemocrat.com. You can reach Staff Columnist Bob Padecky at 521-5490 or bob.padecky@press

democrat.com.