'It changes lives.' Three Cape Cod golf caddies awarded full ride scholarships to college
Four students from Massachusetts, three of them from Cape Cod, have been offered a rare and potentially life-changing opportunity.
Laila Baptiste, Christian Sullivan, Hayden Cusolito and Khruanha Naiyanan have received the Evans Ouimet Scholarship, which is awarded to caddies from the state of Massachusetts. The scholarship offers full tuition and housing for college.
The scholarship program was founded in 1930 by Charles “Chick” Evans, a renowned amateur golfer from Chicago, and is supported by the Western Golf Association, headquartered in Glenview, Illinois.
Initially, the Evans scholarship was awarded mainly to students from the Midwest, but in 2019, the Francis Ouimet Foundation Scholarship Fund, founded in 1949, partnered with the Evans program and have co-sponsored scholarships for students from Massachusetts.
In a press release, Duncan Gratton, president of the Ouimet Fund, said "The Ouimet Fund is proud to partner with the Evans Scholars Foundation to support young people who embrace the opportunity that caddying can offer them to change the trajectory of their life.”
What is the Evans Ouimet Scholarship?
The Evans Ouimet Scholarship is the nation’s largest scholarship program for caddies and works in conjunction with 24 major universities to provide full tuition and housing for four years.
All schools except Nebraska, from the Big 10, participate along with Notre Dame, Oregon, Washington, Colorado, Missouri, Kansas, Marquette, Miami, Howard and Illinois Chicago.
Penn State and Rutgers (Big 10) are the closest universities to Massachusetts.
Who are the three Cape Cod recipients?
Baptiste, from North Falmouth and Sullivan and Cusolito, from East Falmouth, all participated in the Sacconnesset Golf Club’s caddie program.
Baptiste will graduate from Sturgis West Charter School this June and plans to study business management at Rutgers in the fall.
Sullivan will be a Falmouth High School graduate and will follow his brother John, also an Evans Ouimet scholarship recipient, to Notre Dame and plans to study engineering.
Cusolito, also from Falmouth High School, initially chose to attend Maryland as part of the Evans Ouimet Scholarship program, but changed his mind and decided to enroll at Tufts University and attend a college that was not part of the program.
He plans to study economics, and continue to caddie at Sacconnesset during the summers.
Naiyanan is from Ludlow and will graduate from Ludlow High School this June. She had not yet decided where she will go to college, but wants to study biochemical engineering with the ultimate goal of becoming a surgeon.
How does a student qualify for the Evans Ouimet Scholarship?
To qualify for the Evans Ouimet Scholarship, students must have a strong record as caddies, exhibit excellence in academic achievement, demonstrate financial need and have outstanding character.
Ken Charpentier, caddie manager, at Sacconnesset Golf Club, who has been running a successful caddie program for 18 years, said each of the Cape Cod recipients is highly qualified.
All of them, he said, are National Honor Society students who are involved in many school and community activities.
And working with them as caddies he can reliably say they all are of the highest personal character.
All three started in the caddie program when they were 14 years old and progressed from a Class C caddie, which is the very basic level of carrying clubs and acting as a professional and gracious host to the golfers to Class A, which involves reading greens and knowing the course and, when necessary, recommending which club to use for various shots, almost like a PGA caddie.
Each caddie, to qualify for the scholarship, said Charpentier, must have caddied at least 100 rounds of golf and those rounds must be certified by him.
That’s a lot of caddying—more than 30 rounds a summer.
Christian Sullivan
Sullivan came to the caddie program with some experience.
He plays golf, so he knew the game; he also played soccer, lacrosse and hockey at Falmouth High School.
His brother, a junior now at Notre Dame, was in the caddie program, so he knew what was expected, but Charpentier said having his brother in the program before him set a higher standard than might be expected of others.
But he had a great work ethic and even worked extra hours with outside golf operations at the club.
“Caddying, and the game of golf, in general, reinforces key values, having discipline and giving 100 percent effort, hard work, how you carry yourself,” said Sullivan. “Ken really emphasized high standards and having a positive approach so that everybody gets the most out of it.”
Although choosing to attend Notre Dame has something to do with his brother’s being there, he said his top priority all his life was focused on education.
He is extremely appreciative to have been awarded the scholarship.
“It changes lives,” he said. “As an Evans Ouimet scholar. I’m inspired to ‘pay it forward’ and to give back to the community.”
Hayden Cusolito
Cusolito also has something of a head start as a caddie because he plays golf as well, but what impressed Charpentier was his initiative and willingness to work.
When the caddies first start at age 14, they have to sit in a room and wait around a lot to get an assignment, Charpentier explained.
“He (Cusolito) would show up a 6:30 in the morning with 25 other kids waiting for loops,” Charpentier said. “Hayden came up to me and asked, ‘What can I do? I’d rather help than sit in there.’”
Quickly he moved up the caddie ranks and also worked in outside operations.
“He is a very, very good student and a very respectful kid,” said Charpentier.
Laila Baptiste
Baptiste has a very different story, but equally, if not more, impressive.
Her father knew about the caddie program at Sacconnesset and brought her in at 14.
“She knew zero about golf or caddying,” said Charpentier.
But there was something about her willingness to work that impressed him.
“He hired me because he said I had potential,” said Baptiste, something she'll never forget.
Charpentier said his daughter was the first caddie from his program to receive the Evans Ouimet Scholarship and something about Baptiste made him think she could be another.
“She works hard. She worked two jobs, as a caddie and at a restaurant, and she plays sports,” said Charpentier. “I watched this 14-year-old girl become a mature woman.”
Baptiste said learning to be a caddie was a challenge, but she discovered something about herself.
“As long as I can approach challenges with a positive outlook, I can meet those challenges,” she said.
Because she started caddying with no knowledge whatsoever about golf, when it was announced that she was awarded the Evans Ouimet Scholarship, she said her friends could not believe it.
“I’m very proud of getting this scholarship. It taught me to approach any opportunity with graciousness,” Baptiste said. “As long as I take every opportunity given, I can go far and achieve anything.”
Baptiste visited Rutgers last weekend and said she loves the school and the people in the business program.
She said she also liked that the school was close to New York City.
“It’s just a one-hour train ride, which is good for internships,” Baptiste said.
Five caddies from Sacconnesset have now gotten the scholarship
Referring to the Sullivan brothers at Notre Dame, he said, “At Notre Dame, for two kids it would cost about $600,000. They get a $600,000.00 education for free.”
That kind of a “free ride” usually goes only to those top Division I athletes at the schools participating in the program.
The Evans Ouimet Scholarship gives kids with other outstanding skills and attributes a chance.
“It’s a scholarship that you don’t need to be a top Division I athlete to get,” said Charpentier.
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This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: How three Cape Cod students won full rides to college as golf caddies
