Looking 'fore'ward: Local golfers continue success after college

Jul. 18—If you asked high school athletes if they'd like to be working in their sport of choice after college, most would answer with a quick yes.

For a pair of athletes who once competed in this area, it has become a reality.

Evan Cox and Mckinzie Walters-Perry both had extensive high-school golf careers here at home and now each finds themselves working in the golf world and furthering their accomplishments in the sport by helping others find success on the course.

For Cox, his career unfolded at Ashland, where he excelled both on the baseball diamond and the golf course.

"I loved my time at Ashland," Cox said. "Having Bob Blankenship as my coach and then Mitch Hall was great. I still keep in contact with the majority of the guys that I played golf with there. I just played golf two days ago with [former Ashland teammate] Jeff Meade, so we all stay in touch. The people in Ashland that I've been able to grow close with will be part of a lifelong friendship."

After graduating from Ashland in 2014, Cox chose to attend Virginia Wesleyan University to play golf at the Division III level.

"Virginia Wesleyan was sort of a last-second decision for me," Cox said with a laugh. "I think to this day it's one of the best decisions I ever made because of what came out of it. When I got there, I had a good freshman year playing and was lucky enough my sophomore year to win a conference (title) and a national championship and be named a first-team All-American."

In addition to winning that 2016 NCAA Division III National Championship and becoming an All-American, Cox was named an Arnold Palmer award winner and a Jack Nicklaus award semifinalist in the same year.

Going into his junior year, Cox took advantage of the opportunities afforded to him by those achievements at Virginia Wesleyan to play the sport he loves at the next level.

"I had the opportunity to transfer," Cox said. "Thankfully coach [Brian] Craig thought I was good enough to play for them in the SEC. It meant a lot too because I was able to get closer to home and reconnect with high school friends who were in Lexington. Ashland prepared me for that because kids from eastern Kentucky tend to have to work a little harder to get recognized for what they do. It was extra motivation for me."

After graduating from Kentucky in 2018, Cox earned a tour card with the PGA Tour Canada during the 2018-2019 season.

Cox would eventually land a coaching job at Transylvania University where, in his second year, he was promoted to the associate head coach role for the Transylvania women's golf team. Cox looked back at the coaches he'd had when entering the role himself.

"I've always been around great coaches," Cox said. "It started when I was little with my dad. Then Larry Bailey was another great coaching figure for me. Bob Blankenship and Jeff Wilcox were amazing too. Bryan Hearn at Virginia Wesleyan and Brian Craig at UK, they're all role models for me. Coaching is more than just being there, it's about getting to know the kids and connecting with them on a personal level."

During this time, Cox also worked as an assistant golf professional at Keene Trace Golf Club in Lexington.

"With this new position, I'll have to call it quits at Keene unfortunately, but it's been a true pleasure to work there," Cox said. "I've met some of my closest friends, who will be friends for the rest of my life, here at Keene. I got to learn about the business side of golf and I'll always miss Keene, but I'll never lose touch with the people I met there."

Cox's latest accomplishment is being named the new assistant coach for the Eastern Kentucky University women's golf team.

"I really enjoyed what I was doing [at Transylvania], but I thought moving up the ladder a little bit, taking that step from the DIII level to the DI level at EKU was really appealing to me," Cox said. "It was something I had a hard time passing up. Coach [Mandy] Moore heard my name get thrown around a little bit and after meeting her and checking out campus and the facilities, it was almost a no-brainer for me to go ahead and take the job."

The same EKU women's golf team is where Walters-Perry competed in college but the former Boyd County and Russell golfer already found success even before high school started.

As an eighth-grader in 2013, Walters-Perry won the 11th Region championship for Boyd County, the first girls' high school regional golf champion in the school's history.

"My first year in the region tournament as a seventh grader actually stands out to me," Walters-Perry said with a laugh. "We had a vacation planned during the week of State, and I basically accidentally made State. I was third or fourth in the Region and they told me I had to miss my vacation to go to State. Everyone was so excited for me, but I was kind of bummed out to miss my vacation. But State was a lot of fun, and I was grateful to go and play with so many great players."

She would do it again the very next year and was named to The Daily Independent All-Area Golf team five times.

"Going to region and State was always great and it was a lot of fun competing in high school," Walters-Perry said. "I got to meet and play with a lot of super-talented girls. Looking back on it, I remember those bigger tournaments the most.

After finishing up her high school career at Russell and graduating in 2018, Walters-Perry was playing for the Colonels of EKU.

She claimed the 2018, 2019, and 2021 Women's Club championships during her tenure in Richmond.

"That experience in college is what I want to help my students achieve," Walters-Perry said. "I have a lot that wants to play more competitive golf and try to be on the PGA or LPGA tour. It's a lot of work getting them to that step. They want to be good enough to play in college and play at the next level, and I think of it as a competition for myself to get them where they want to go and have those experiences that I had. It's fun watching them grow up."

Golf also allowed her to work in the world of golf in various places, including stints at Old Edwards Country Club in Highlands, North Carolina, and Columbine Country Club in Littleton, Colorado.

"I got to meet a lot of great people who are also golf professionals," Walters-Perry said. "As I got to travel around, it was cool experiencing the different areas and seeing how each atmosphere and environment was different. I met a lot of great tour professionals at those places too. It's great just being involved in every aspect of the operations. You learn the basics all the way to the elite stuff."

This year has brought new achievements and new experiences for Walters-Perry, as she received her PGA Class A Qualification and began working at Kenwood Country Club in Cincinnati as an assistant golf professional.

"It feels really good to get that," Walters-Perry said. "It was a lot of hard work. I spent four years in college trying to get my PGA license and I'm so happy to achieve this. There aren't a whole lot of ladies right now in the golf industry. That's something being revamped right now, trying to get more females to be professionals, so it's cool to be part of that first wave as it starts to get bigger. It's been challenging at times, but also really good. A lot of clubs want female professionals, so I feel like it's a great time to get to this step. I'm happy to have a spot somewhere."

Both Cox and Walters-Perry have their sights set on the future and what they can accomplish in their current roles in the golf world.

"(When) I think of some of the goals I have moving forward, I'm thinking about things that are attainable in the next three to five years," Cox said. "I want to focus on continuing to improve the (EKU) team as a whole. I think we have a great group of girls that mesh really well. We recently made the jump to the Atlantic Sun Conference so it's a lot tougher. I'm looking forward to what we do because I think we can surprise a lot of people."

"Now I've worked my way up to where I have my own lesson book and lesson schedule," Walters-Perry added. "I'm planning a lot of the PGA events and I plan on playing in the new LPGA we're going to host here at Kenwood in September. I love leading the tournament operations. I love teaching, and I'm looking forward to doing more of that. I'd love to work my way up to being a head professional or teaching professional position in the future. I've found that teaching is my niche in the golf profession."