Long-time PG resident inducted into UBC Thunderbirds Hall of Fame

“We were the first Canadian team in the NAIA, period,” explained Ann Holmes, head coach of the UBC Thunderbirds women’s golf team back in 2000.

“We went down to Kentucky and played in the national championships. We led for three rounds and then lost by seven shots on the last day. We were devastated, I was devastated as a coach. You get all that way and you can’t get it over the finish line. So I thought about that the next summer and really redesigned the program for those athletes to be successful.”

Looking for more, Coach Ann Holmes implemented innovative strength training, as well as introduced mental performance to their program. The team’s dedication and focus on winning the title paid off and the T-Birds won the 2001 NAIA National Golf Championship by 34 strokes and earned a place in the record books as the first Canadian golf team to win a NAIA golf title and Ann was recognized as the first Canadian program coach to win Coach of the Year honours.

“After I had finished and we won, I decided that was it. I was burnt out and tired of golf, and tired of coaching, so I took the next year off and that’s how I ended up in Prince George. I’ve been here for almost 20 years. I took a job at the college just looking for something to do,” said Holmes. “It was a year leave position and I just never left. But the coach that took my job, he recognized our championship kicked off, I think they’ve won four or five more championships since then, so he wanted to recognize that.”

And Holmes is right, as UBC has won national titles in 2001, 2004, 2010, 2012, and most recently in 2019, making the program the 2nd most decorated team in NAIA history.

“I was ready for a change. I was very burnt out. When we won the championship I was done. But I took a few years off of golf altogether where I didn’t even touch my clubs. I then eased back into it because I was a PGA of Canada professional so I started coaching at Alder Hills and then over at the Prince George Golf and Curling Club. But it took me a long time to get over that burnout, a really long time.”

Decades removed from that national championship, Holmes confirms she still remains in touch with many of her former athletes and will be celebrating via Zoom with many of them ahead of the induction ceremony.

The Hall of Fame induction ceremony took place Thursday (April 15) evening.

by Ethan Ready

Long-time PG resident inducted into UBC Thunderbirds Hall of Fame

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