New Evans Scholar will begin school this fall
GLENVIEW, Ill. – A student caddie from Memphis Country Club in Memphis, Tennessee, has been awarded the Evans Scholarship — a full housing and tuition college grant offered to golf caddies — following a selection meeting interview on Tuesday, Dec. 19.
Cortney Green Jr. of Memphis will begin college this fall as an Evans Scholar. He’ll attend one of the Program’s 24 partner universities nationwide, with a decision on his awarded school to be finalized by March 15. The Evans Scholarship is valued at more than $125,000 over four years.
The Western Golf Association (WGA), headquartered in Glenview, Illinois, has supported the Chick Evans Scholarship Program through the Evans Scholars Foundation since 1930. Known as one of golf’s favorite charities, it is the nation’s largest scholarship program for caddies.
To qualify for the Evans Scholarship, each student must meet the Program’s four selection criteria and show a strong caddie record, excellent academics, demonstrated financial need and outstanding character.
Currently, a record 1,130 caddies are enrolled at 24 universities as Evans Scholars, and more than 12,040 caddies have graduated as Evans Scholars since the Program was founded by famed Chicago amateur golfer Charles “Chick” Evans Jr. in 1930.
Green, a senior at the Collegiate School of Memphis, is the first youth caddie in recent history from Memphis Country Club to earn an Evans Scholarship – and the third overall from the state of Tennessee. In late 2021, the club re-established its youth caddie program, thanks to the efforts of WGA Director Marshall Clark and head golf pro Drew Cain. Prior to that, a Memphis Country Club caddie had been awarded an Evans Scholarship in the 1950s.
As the Evans Scholars Program continues to grow nationwide, more students from newer areas, including Memphis and Nashville, are being introduced to the opportunity to caddie and potentially earn a full college scholarship.
“Our golfers embraced the caddie initiative from day one, and for all the right reasons – to give back to the game and to invest in youth by providing a unique, lifelong opportunity,” Clark said. “Cortney is humble and grateful and already making a difference in his community. Imagine his impact after college. He represents the best in all that motivates golfers to give generously. We hope other local cubs can provide similar opportunities.”
Green, who plans to study psychology, hopes to one day open his own practice. “It is through a college education that I hope to eradicate the deeply rooted generational curses of homelessness and living paycheck to paycheck within my family,” he says. “My education is not only for me. It is also for those who will come after me.”
Selection meeting interviews for Evans Scholar finalists will continue nationwide through spring. When the 2023-24 selection meeting process is complete, an estimated 340 caddies from across the country are expected to be awarded the Evans Scholarship.
“We are thrilled to welcome Cortney to the Evans Scholars family,” said WGA Chairman Steve Colnitis. “His dedication in the classroom, on the golf course and in his community represents the best of what our Program has been about since 1930.”
Funds for the Scholarship come mostly from contributions by more than 36,000 golfers across the country, who belong to the Evans Scholars Par Club program. Evans Scholars Alumni donate more than $15 million annually, and all proceeds from the BMW Championship, the penultimate PGA TOUR Playoff event in the PGA TOUR’s FedExCup competition, benefit the Program. In 2024, the BMW Championship will be held from Aug. 20-25 at Castle Pines Golf Club in the Denver area.