Ohio Golf Journal June 2020

Colleges Forced to Cut Budgets Drop Sports Programs With the COVID-19 pandemic Athletic Directors at colleges, both large and small, are under fire to cut spending. Every aspect of a university’s sports programs is being considered and many schools are finding it necessary to drop many of their programs. Football and Basketball are still the main money makers for colleges, but if the NCAA football season is curtailed, or limited to the number of fans that can attend each game, revenues will be hurt even more. The cuts hit a former Toledo-area junior golfer especially hard. Pinya Pipatjarasgit was a standout golfer in high school, as well as, Toledo Junior Golf Association events. She was continuing to compete at the collegiate level as a member of the Brown University Women’s Golf Team, but that came to a sudden end at the end of May. The Ivy League School announced that it was dropping Women’s Golf, as well as, ten other sports programs, effective immediately. Pinya told us, “I chose to attend Brown because the school offered me the opportunity to pursue a very unique academic curriculum while simultaneously competingon anNCAADivision I golf team. Golf has always been a large part of my life and identity; I began playing golf at the age of three and began competing at the age of nine. From then on, it became my dream to play collegiate golf at an Ivy League institution. To be given that opportunity was a dream come true, and to have it taken away over the span of a 5-minute Zoom call (without much explanation) was heartbreaking and shocking, especially coming from a university that has always prided itself in valuing its students over its image. Moreover, to frame this decision as an ‘excellence initiative to reshape athletics at Brown’was a slap in the face tome and the other 150+ athletes who lost varsity status; by doing so, the university implied that our teams do not embody ‘excellence.’ Because this decision was made and presented in a very problematic way that is seemingly against the values that Brown upholds, there is currently an effort to appeal the decision and reinstate women’s golf and the other 10 teams affected as well. With two years of collegiate eligibility remaining, I am not sure at this point whether I will continue at Brown or look for opportunities at another school, as there are many logistical factors that are involved in making that decision.” If you would like to help the Brown Women’s Golf Team visit their website here. Ohio Golf Journal