Joe Hatch is set to embark on his fourth season as the Davenport men's golf head coach in 2022-23.
Hatch's third campaign at the helm of the Panthers saw the program reach new heights with the most successful season of their Division II era. Davenport claimed the first GLIAC Championship in program history winning the stroke play tournament by 21 shots before defeating Northwood in the match play semifinals, 4-1, and defending champ, Ferris State, 3-2 in the finals. In that stroke play portion, Hatch's sophomore, Bradley Mogire, garnered medalist honors with a one-stroke victory (-4) and two-day score of 138 (71-67). Thanks to all of that success, Hatch was named the 2022 GLIAC Coach of the Year. The history didn't stop there for the Panthers, though, as they appeared in the NCAA Tournament for the first time ever as part of the Midwest/Central Super Regional in Noblesville, Ind. at Purgatory Golf Club.
In the regular season alone for the 2021-22 season, Davenport finished among the top five teams for four of the nine tournaments they competed in. That includes second at the Dan Salisbury Memorial (Illinois-Springfield), third at the Davenport Invite, fifth at the Kentucky Wesleyan Invite, and fifth at the Bill Blazer Memorial (Ohio Dominican). The team finished with a scoring average of 299.1, good for second in program history, placed five on the All-GLIAC Teams (including Hatch's Coach of the Year honor) and seven on the GLIAC All-Academic Teams.
In his second season with the program, Hatch led the Panthers to a pair of top-five finishes including second place out of 12 teams at the Panther Invitational (April 2-3) and third out of 12 programs at the Mister Bee Invitational (April 10-11) the very next weekend. Hatch and Davenport also placed sixth out of 10 squads at the GLIAC Championship (April 16-18) to round out the season, the second-straight campaign in which the Panthers improved their finish at the league tournament. Individually, Ryan Kauppila finished in fifth at the GLIAC Championship while setting a program record for 36 holes with a 137. The second-place finish at KWC's tournament marked Davenport's best finish amongst a field of at least 10 teams since the Hanover Spring Invite on April 9-10, 2016 (2nd/10). Academically, five of his student-athletes make it onto the GLIAC All-Academic list (3.0 GPA or above).
In 2019-20, his first full season, the Panthers were able to compete in six tournaments during the fall before the spring was canceled due to COVID-19. DU placed as high as fourth in two different tournaments (Wayne State HawksHead Invitational / Wayne State Motor City Invitational) and carried a team stroke average of 307.85. He had four of his student-athletes make it onto the GLIAC All-Academic list (3.0 GPA or above).
A native of Ida, Michigan, Hatch was appointed as head men's golf coach on July 10, 2019 after taking over for Dan Moulton during the 2018-19 season on an interim basis.
Hatch was a three-sport athlete in high school and post graduation, attended Ferris State University located in Big Rapids. Joe graduated tops in his class with a major in professional golf management. Joe was a member of FSU’s Division II golf team during his time at Ferris. He has been a PGA class A professional member since December 2010.
Joe was a PGA member in the Wisconsin section for seven years. During his time in Wisconsin, Joe worked at Chenequa Country Club in Hartland, Wis. and was most recently the head golf professional at Stevens Point Country Club in Wisconsin. Joe successfully owned and managed the merchandising concession as his own business while at Stevens Point.
Joe is a passionate golf professional who is committed to excellence in all aspects of a golf operation. Joe believes organizing and conducting popular club programs is a keystone to having a successful golf operation. His experience includes organizing and executing programs including junior golf, men’s and women’s organizations, creative instructional clinics, and all types of member tournaments.
Joe has been mentored by a number of top 100 teachers. As a result, his teaching is centered on an effective individualized golf swing for each student-athlete. He believes that like a fingerprint we all have our own unique golf swing that defines us.
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