ROCK ISLAND, Ill. – Tom Lawrence has been appointed as the Director of Golf at Augustana College, Director of Athletics Mike Zapolski announced Thursday.
 
Lawrence, who has degrees in business administration and speech communications from Augustana, will be the first-ever Director of Golf at Augustana after spending nine seasons as the head coach of the women's program. He will be responsible for the management and oversight of the Vikings' men's and women's golf programs, a similar staffing model that is currently used by fellow CCIW schools Carthage, Millikin and North Central. The effective date will be at the conclusion of the current spring season.

"Tom has done outstanding work with the Augustana women's golf program the last nine years, and I am confident this new staffing model will benefit both the men's and women's golf programs moving forward," said Zapolski. "The synergy of the student-athletes working together more frequently will be positive, and there are opportunities to expand roster sizes, improve competitiveness and enhance our collective fund-raising efforts to bolster both programs."
 
Current head men's golf coach, Paul Del Vecchio, has made note of intentions to resign at the conclusion of the current spring season due to family and work commitments.
 
Lawrence completed his eighth season at Augustana in 2020-21, leading the Vikings to a win at the Viking Invitational and a head-to-head record of 45-11 (.804). This year's team recorded the program's fifth straight third-place finish at the CCIW Championship. They boasted three All-CCIW players after they all finished in the top ten on an individual level, a first-time accomplishment for the program. The team also has earned three first-place finishes, including both of their home events in the fall.
 
"I have been blessed to guide the women's team to new heights over the past nine seasons and am excited to add the men to our golf family," said Lawrence. "Our goal is to take both programs to their next levels by utilizing state of the art technology and measurable performance data to create individualized practice plans for every player."
 
Lawrence competed in intercollegiate athletics during his time at Augie and looks forward to continue the great tradition of Augustana and its student-athletes' success.
 
"I was fortunate to have the Augustana student-athlete experience myself and am looking forward to watching the next generation of Viking men and women learn the life lessons that being a part of a golf team teaches," he added. "We are going to set high goals both individually and as a team and create action plans to achieve great things."