Two Atlanta-area students have earned golf scholarships, not with a club in their hands but with a bag strapped to their back. They are caddies.
Namuhaha Mapenzi and Seyoum Gebrehiwot, both seniors at Cristo Rey Atlanta Jesuit High School, earned a prestigious Chick Evans Scholarship from the Western Golf Association, which come with a full four-year housing and tuition. The scholarships are valued at an estimated $125,000 over four years.
Not bad for a couple of guys who can’t come close to breaking par.
“I don’t think (my parents) have any idea about what I do,” Mapenzi said with a laugh. “They just know golf is involved.”
Credit: Western Golf Association
Credit: Western Golf Association
Mapenzi is a first-generation immigrant who arrived with his parents from the Congo in 2018. He was recommended for the program by a ninth-grade teacher who encouraged him to attend the seven-week WGA Caddie Academy in suburban Chicago.
“I knew golf existed but I did not know what caddying was,” Mapenzi admitted. “I told my parents about it and they were skeptical because I had to go to Chicago for seven weeks. But they knew paying for college was going to be expensive and the program would be good for my future.”
Gebrehiwot grew up on the southside of Atlanta and had relatives who played recreational golf, but he gravitated to baseball. He was recommended by the program by a teacher, who saw Gebrehiwot’s work ethic and his academic record that placed him in the top 10 percent of his class.
The seven-week WGA Caddie Academy was an eye-opening experience for both. The 30-plus boys in the program live on the campus at Northwestern University and work at one of five courses in the area. The Atlanta guys looped at Sunset Ridge Country Club, which opened in 1923.
“The Academy manager put us together so we can learn from (the instructors), see what they’re doing and answer questions,” Mapenzi said. “They encourage you to ask questions. I learned that on my first loop just by asking, ‘Am I doing this right?’”
There is a lot to learn, from understanding the least painful way to carry a bag to how to read greens. They realize the importance of having the right technological tools, which Mapenzi discovered in one of his first rounds when he didn’t have a range finder with him.
And there’s a lot of stock placed in following the flight of your player’s golf ball.
“I’m an outfielder and I’ve got a pretty good eye,” Gebrehiwot said. “I promise, I’m never losing the ball. Not going to happen.”
Both young men enjoy building the bond of trust that is created with a golfer and their caddie. That part came easier for Mapenzi and has become more comfortable for Gebrehiwot, who had to focus on the art of socialization.
“I love talking to people, hearing their stories,” Mapenzi said. “And I love walking while caddying. By the time I finish my 18 holes, I check my steps and I’ve got like 15,000. It’s like working out but you’re not actually working out.”
Both will return to Chicago this summer to attend the Caddie Academy as instructors.
Gebrehiwot will attend Ohio State University. Mapenzi is awaiting word about being accepted at the University of Michigan, but has already been accepted at Howard, South Carolina, Maryland and Delaware. Neither plans on making a career as a caddie.
There will be 380 Chick Evans Scholarships awarded this year. There are currently 1,260 scholars at 27 universities, with more than 12,575 graduates since the program began in 1930.
About the Author
Keep Reading
The Latest
Featured
