Former Huntingdon golf coach selected to GCAA Hall of Fame

MONTGOMERY, Ala. – Steve Condon set a remarkable standard for the Huntingdon golf program in the 1980s.

From 1982-89, Condon led the Hawks to four NAIA national championships, coached 27 All-Americans, 23 Academic All-Americans and four individual national champions.

Condon's coaching accomplishments were recently recognized when he was named to the Golf Coaches Association of America's Hall of Fame. Condon and five others will be honored at a Hall of Fame banquet on Dec. 8 in Las Vegas.

"Steve was one of the best coaches in the country during that era. He put the Huntingdon golf program on the map and this is a long overdue recognition," said Huntingdon Director of Golf Dave Schreyer, who played for Condon from 1986-89. "He was a phenomenal coach for the seven years he was here at Huntingdon. He molded a lot of young men's lives, myself being one of them. He changed a lot of young men's lives and gave a lot of young men opportunities to grow in the game of golf."

Condon, who has also worked in college administration for more than 30 years, is now the President of Laurel University. He said the selection to the Hall of Fame is not just an honor for himself, but for the golfers and program supporters he worked with.

"This provides further validation for those fine young men that chose to attend and compete for Huntingdon," Condon said. "It validates the faith and passion displayed by sponsors and community supporters who provided to the team as they gave of their time and energy to back a dream. It honors Jim Wilson Jr. and Allen Jackson's patience, faith and love."

In addition to the four national titles in seven seasons, Condon's other three teams each finished in the top-10 nationally, finishing second, third and ninth. The Hawks won their conference and regional/district title every season and Condon was named NAIA national coach of the year four times and regional and conference coach of the year seven times.

"What made those teams special was their character, work ethic, trust, passion, good humor, chemistry and the desire to go past common limitations that seemed so obvious to others," Condon said. "During those seven years, we beat every Division I and Division II NCAA national championship team at least twice. We won the State of Alabama Title three straight years, winning at Auburn, Alabama and UAB's home courses.

"Huntingdon was ranked No. 1 for five straight years, had a winning percentage of .866 and a graduation rate of 94 percent. These are uncommon numbers at any level for any sport. We never carried less than 18 uniformed student-athletes. Many times at our home events in the fall or spring, Huntingdon teams would finish first, second and third and have the top-five all-tournament team players."

While each of his teams hold a special memory for him, Condon said the 1987 team was considered by many to be the most talented while the 1985 team will be remembered for winning Huntingdon's first national title.

"The 1987 team was special in many ways," Condon said. "It was loaded with talent with five All-Americans. We won 16 tournaments during the year and broke most of the NAIA Records. Hall of Fame coaches O.D. Bounds, Bill Morningstar and Jack Jensen called that team the best team ever in the NAIA.

"The 1985 team was the first national champion of any kind for Huntingdon and they made the dream a reality. That team was led by a wonderful senior, Dan Penny, who deserves more credit than he ever received for helping build the program." 

But beyond the championships and accolades, Condon said the thing he is most proud of is the successful men his former golfers have grown into.

"They were such fine young men in college and were a joy to accompany in our journey through the 1980s," Condon said. "But, they have grown and developed into a special group of leaders and world class citizens since then. I was blessed to be along to drive the van and give out the golf balls."