Olivencia Adds Jim Garren to Golf Staff
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – University of Miami head golf coach Janice Olivencia announced the addition of assistant coach Jim Garren to the golf coaching staff Monday afternoon.
A 14-year coaching veteran, Garren joins the Miami staff after most recently serving as the Coastal Carolina head men’s golf coach from 2017-22.
“I’m very excited to welcome Jim Garren to the U family,” Olivencia said. “Coach Garren not only brings a wealth of experience in coaching at a national level, but also the ability to recruit the best players in the world. His drive, attention to detail and passion towards helping develop student-athletes is fundamental for our program moving forward. I am excited to get started as we share a vision to build this program back to prominence.”
Garren made an immediate impact upon arriving at Coastal Carolina, coaching the Chanticleers to the 2018 Sun Belt title and the program’s first NCAA Regional appearance since 2013. Three Chanticleers earned All-Sun Belt honors and Garren was named the 2018 Sun Belt Coach of the Year, following one of the most successful seasons in program history.
In his five years at Coastal Carolina, Garren led his teams to five team tournament titles, 15 top-five team finishes and three NCAA Regionals (one team, two individual).
“I would like to thank Janice for the opportunity to be a Cane,” Garren said. “Her passion for the sport, the student-athletes and the University of Miami made it clear early on that she is someone I want to work with. She is an extremely talented coach and her desire to make Miami great is leading to a very bright future in Coral Gables.”
Under Garren’s tutelage, the Chanticleers have had two Sun Belt Newcomers of the Year in Morgan Deneen (2018) and Zack Taylor (2019), a Sun Belt individual tournament champion in Deneen (2018), and eight All-Sun Belt selections.
Prior to his time at Coastal Carolina, Garren spent three seasons as an assistant coach at Oklahoma, helping the Sooners to three-straight NCAA Championship appearances and the 2017 NCAA Division I Men’s Golf Championship title. He coached seven Sooners to All-America recognition, including four in his final season in 2016-17.
Garren joined the Oklahoma staff after a one-year stint as the assistant coach at the University of New Mexico. In that one year, Garren helped New Mexico to four tournament wins, including a Mountain West Conference championship and an NCAA Regional appearance. New Mexico’s Gavin Green was named a second-team All-American while being the Mountain West Conference Player of the Year and individual champion.
Prior to his time at New Mexico, Garren spent five seasons as the assistant men’s golf coach and director of recruiting at Southern Mississippi. During his tenure, the Golden Eagles established five team records and produced four academic All-America scholars after having just two prior to Garren’s arrival. The program also shaped two academic all-conference selections, one first-team All-Conference USA selection in Paul Apyan (2010) and one second-team All-CUSA selection in Derek Plucienksi (2011).
Garren began his collegiate golfing career as a member of the Wallace State Junior College team in 2003. While at Wallace State, he helped lead the team to a No. 3 national ranking in NJCAA Division I. Garren then transferred to Kennesaw State, where he earned his degree in sports management in 2008.
The Cartersville, Ga., native was a three-time Georgia High School State Champion at Cartersville High School. He was a two-time qualifier for the Atlanta Open and earned alternate status through qualifying for the 2005 U.S. Open.
“I would also like to thank Dan Radakovich, Matt Smale and the entire administration,” Garren said. “I was very impressed with the department throughout this process. It’s truly an honor to get to work with so many talented people and be a part of The U. The ACC is on the mountaintop right now in our sport and anyone who is a competitor, whether it be player or coach, wants to compete against the best of the best. The exciting part is we have a big group of new student-athletes coming in next year and it’s going to fun developing the players, building the program and eventually competing for championships.”
