Kalamazoo College Athletics

Mitch Wilson was introduced as Kalamazoo College’s head men’s golf coach on April 27, 2012.

The men's golf program has improved continually under Wilson's direction, highlighted by a third-place finish in the MIAA in 2016, the team's best finish since 1993. The team also finished third in the MIAA Spring Qualifying Tournament that season. After finishing fourth in the MIAA in the fall of 2019, the Hornets finished second at the MIAA Spring Qualifying Tournament, just four strokes out of first place. 

Coach Wilson has coached three players to All-Region honors and three players to All-America Scholar honors through the Golf Coaches Association of America.

Wilson has had a successful golf career and is an active member of the Kalamazoo golf community. He has qualified for several national and state tournaments, including the USGA Mid-Amateur and British Amateur. Wilson has won multiple Greater Kalamazoo Golf Association championships as well as winning several club championships at The Moors Golf Club in Portage. He was named Golf Association of Michigan Senior Men's Player of the Year in 2018.

Wilson was head coach of the Portage Central High School girls golf team from 1999-2003. The Mustangs qualified for the state championships each year and finished second in the state in 2002, earning Wilson Regional Coach of the Year honors.

In addition to his coaching and playing experience, Wilson served on boards for several golf organizations around Kalamazoo and was the member's chairman for the 2007 Michigan Amateur as well as the 2005 Michigan Junior Amateur Championship held at The Moors.

"I am thrilled to have the opportunity to be part of the great tradition of Kalamazoo College Athletics, and thankful for the opportunity to help develop the young men that are part of the golf program," Wilson said at the time of his hire. "My goal is to continue Kalamazoo College's long-standing tradition of producing outstanding scholar-athletes, and to build a program that will be competitive both within the MIAA and the Midwest."

Wilson is a graduate of Kalamazoo Central High School, where he played both baseball and golf. Wilson earned a bachelor’s degree in computer science at Central Michigan University in 1979 where he also was a member of the Chippewa's golf team. He earned his M.B.A. in finance at Western Michigan University in 1985.

After a successful career in the information technology field, Wilson retired as executive director of Pretty Lake Camp in Mattawan, Mich., just west of Kalamazoo in 2014. Mitch is a life-long resident of the Kalamazoo area and currently resides in Portage with his wife, Sarah, a retired middle school mathematics teacher. Mitch and Sarah have two daughters, Amanda and Lindsay. Amanda works for the First Tee and resides in Oxford, Ohio. She is married to Zac Zedrick, the head golf coach at Miami University, and they are proud parents of Millie and Norah. Lindsay is married to Spence Fogarty, and they reside in Turner, Oregon where Spence is the GM at Willamette Valley Vineyards and Lindsay is a preschool teacher at Mentor Graphics.

Getting to know Coach Wilson

Hobbies/Interests:  Biking, scuba diving, sprint triathalons, and being a grandparent!

Favorite Part of Coaching:  Developing relationships with student-athletes and helping them grow and mature. Sharing in their success and opportunities both on the course and in the classroom. Having fun with the team.

Hero:  My parents and my wife. They all give so much of their time and energy. Sarah was a fantastic teacher and I envied her relationships with her students.

Favorite Sports Team:  Detroit Tigers

Favorite Song:  My Girl by The Temptations

Favorite Music Artist:  The Eagles and about any Motown

Favorite Movie:  Hard to pick one -- The Sting; Field of Dreams; The Greatest Game Ever Played

Did you know?  
1) I went to Central Michigan to play baseball, got cut as a sophomore, and ended up playing golf there. 
2) I was in a recent Dick's Sporting Goods commercial for Father's Day.