January is a very important month for former caddies at golf clubs around Ohio. Every year the Evans Scholarship Foundation awards full housing and tuition college grants to deserving young men and women, who caddied at golf clubs that support the Evans Scholars Foundation.
Each caddie must undergo a stringent application process including an oral interview in front of a selection committee. These interviews are normally held in person, but due to COVID they have been held virtually for the past two years.
Every caddie has a unique story that reflects the scholarship’s four selection criteria: 
-strong caddie record
-excellent academics
-financial need
-outstanding character
These exceptional students will enter college in the fall of 2022, with all but one attending either Ohio State, or Miami University. Owen Roark from Cleveland has been accepted and chosen to attend Northwestern, the original home for the Evans Scholarship. The scholarship is valued at more than $120,000 over the four years of college and it is life changing for many of these worthy caddies.
“These young men and women are part of an exceptional incoming class of new scholars from around the nation,” said WGA Chairman Joe Desch. “They represent what the Evans Scholars Program has been about since 1930.”
The following is a list of the recipient, city, golf club where they caddied, their high school and the university they plan to attend:
| Name | City | Club | High School | University |
| Jack Smith | Akron | Portage CC | Revere HS | Miami |
| Casey Higgins | Amelia | Coldstream CC | McNicholas HS | Ohio State |
| William Pollack | Chagrin Falls | Canterbury Golf Club | Kenston HS | Ohio State |
| Anthony Holmes | Cincinnati | Losantiville CC | La Salle HS | Ohio State |
| Henry Hoskins | Cincinnati | Hyde Park CC | Walnut Hills HS | Ohio State |
| Josiah Jackson | Cincinnati | Maketewah CC | Colerain HS | Miami |
| Jacqueline Martini | Cincinnati | Clovernook CC | Mercy McAuley HS | Miami |
| Ciara Perry | Cincinnati | Maketewah CC | Clark Montessori | Ohio State |
| Charles Ricke | Cincinnati | Clovernook CC | St. Xavier HS | Ohio State |
| Owen Roark | Cleveland Heights | Canterbury Golf Club | Saint Ignatius HS | Northwestern |
| Ryan Sommer | Columbus | Scioto CC | Upper Arlington HS | Ohio State |
| Michael Duckro | Dayton | Moraine CC | Carroll HS | Ohio State |
| Nicole Kemer | Elyria | Elyria CC | Midview HS | Ohio State |
| Julia Reitz | Elyria | Elyria CC | Elyria HS | Miami |
| Emma Beegle | Hudson | Canterbury Golf Club | Hudson HS | Miami |
| Anas Musaimi* | Kettering | Moraine CC | Kettering Fairmont HS | Ohio State |
| Ethan Patchett | Luckey | Inverness Club | Eastwood HS | Ohio State |
| Adrian Gonzalez Brana | Maumee | Inverness Club | Saint John’s Jesuit HS | Ohio State |
| Logan McGuire | Miamisburg | Moraine CC | Miamisburg HS | Miami |
| Martine Hue | Park Hills, KY | Kenwood CC | Notre Dame Academy | Miami |
| Chelsea Fall | Sylvania | Inverness Club | Notre Dame Academy | Miami |
| Tamara Salameh | Sylvania | Sylvania CC | Notre Dame Academy | Ohio State |
| Lauren Boyd | Toledo | Inverness Club | Notre Dame Academy | Ohio State |
| Parker Boyd | Toledo | Inverness Club | Notre Dame Academy | Ohio State |
| Caylee Bunker | Toledo | Inverness Club | Notre Dame Academy | Miami |
| Bella Luna Carl | Toledo | Inverness Club | Sylvania Northview HS | Ohio State |
| Troy Holt | Winchester | Terrace Park CC | North Adams HS | Ohio State |
*Awarded the Evans Scholarship for three years as they are currently a freshman in college.
An estimated 315 caddies nationwide will receive the Evans Scholarship for 2022. Currently 1,070 former caddies are enrolled at 21 universities and more than 11,500 have successfully graduated via the Evans Scholars program founded by Charles “Chick” Evans Jr, who won the U.S. Open as an amateur in 1916.
“These young students have each shown excellence in the classroom, in their communities and on the golf course,” said WGA President and CEO John Kaczkowski. “We are proud to welcome them to the Evans Scholars family.”
Scholarship funds come mostly from the gernerous contributions from nearly 35,000 supporters, plus Evans Scholars Alumni donate more than $17 million annually. In addition, all proceeds from the BMW Championship are donated to the Evans Scholars Foundation.
To learn more about the Western Golf Association and Evans Scholars Foundation, visit: www.wgaesf.org.
