Baltusrol Caddie Is Third Njsga-evans Scholarship Recipient

Tyler Citrin of Springfield, N.J., a caddie at Baltusrol Golf Club, has been named the third NJSGA joint recipient of a full-tuition scholarship from the Evans Scholarship Foundation of the Western Golf Association.

Citrin, a freshman at Indiana University, joins Thomas Marcus of Tenafly and the Knickerbocker Country Club, a sophomore at the University of Michigan, and Sean Thornton of Green Brook Country Club, who graduated from Michigan in June of 2012, as the only New Jersey recipients of the prestigious scholarship, which pays for full tuition and housing.

The prestigious Evans Scholarship is awarded to caddies who are chosen based on demonstrating a strong caddie record, excellent academics, financial need and outstanding character and leadership.

Evans Scholars are usually accepted prior to entering college. Citrin, a New Jersey State Golf Association Caddie Scholar, was initially denied by the committee but reapplied after the fall semester at Indiana.

“The fact that he had an outstanding academic fall semester and that he reapplied says a lot about his character. He is a very driven young man,” said Johanna Gavin, Director of the NJSGA Caddie Scholarship Foundation.

Citrin is a graduate of Jonathan Dayton High School where he served as student body president and was team captain of the varsity soccer team.

At Indiana, he is a student in the renowned Kelley School of Business and is planning to major in Supply Chain Management with a focus on international business (Spanish). He is also a participant in the IU men’s club soccer program.

In February, he was named an IU Founders Scholar for earning a grade point average of 3.8 or above (3.87).

He said he discovered he could reapply from an Evans Scholar at Indiana who had followed that path.

“I didn’t realize I could reapply, but I was assured I could. The process was the same, but I needed to improve my GPA and my essay organization. I felt I hadn’t taken the right approach the first time,” said Citrin, who caddied every day last summer to help defray the tuition costs of college.

Citrin, along with four other caddies from the tri-state area, were awarded the scholarship following a selection meeting held by the Western Golf Association in New York City on Feb. 24. They were selected from more than 750 applicants this year.

“I asked my mother to open the envelope at home. We were video-chatting on Facetime and my mother, father and sister gathered round to open the letter from the WGA. When my mother read aloud that I was accepted, I was without words,” Citrin said.

“It is a definitely a remarkable experience I’ll remember the rest of my life. I am spreading the word about the Evans Scholarship and the NJSGA Caddie Scholarship. My overall message is that if there is one thing in life you are passionate about, put 100 percent effort into pursuing it, and you can use it to shape your future.

“I encourage the caddies I come across. I want them to realize they have the power to change their lives and their families’ lives.”

Citrin’s selection as an Evans Scholar was made possible by the Annual NJSGA East-Coast Evans Scholars Classic, now in its 13th year, which has generated over $360,000 in funding towards this scholarship.

Once a dream and now a reality, these scholarships were made possible by the tenacity of Balutsrol’s Tom Paluck, a former NJSGA President and Evans Scholar himself at Michigan State University. The oldest and largest caddie scholarship program in the U.S., the Evans Foundation has generated over $100 million in scholarship awards to over 10,000 recipients since its inception in 1930. The NJSGA is extremely proud to be able to participate with the Western Golf Association to benefit our New Jersey caddie scholars.

The other tri-state award recipients include: Tyler Bernier of Monroe , Conn., who caddied at Brooklawn Country Club in Fairfield, Conn.,; Madeleine Giannini , who caddied at Greenwich Country Club in Greenwich, Conn.; Quinn Pollard of Fairfield, Conn.,, who caddied at Brooklawn Country Club in Fairfield, Conn.,; and Olivia Rhein of Glen Cove, N.Y., who caddied at North Shore Country Club in Glen Head, N.Y.

The Western Golf Association has held more than a dozen selection meetings across the country to interview finalists for the Evans Scholarship, awarding 250 scholarships in the process. The WGA, headquartered in Golf, Illinois, has supported the Chick Evans Scholarship Program through the Evans Scholars Foundation since 1930. One of golf’s favorite charities, it is among the nation’s largest privately funded, full tuition and housing scholarship programs.

“Based on their excellence in the classroom and their service to their school and community, there is little doubt that these recipients have earned this life-changing opportunity,” said John Kaczkowski, President and CEO of the WGA. “Each caddie has his or her own incredible story of hard work and strength in the face of adversity, and this group is no exception. They are more than deserving of this scholarship.”

The Evans Scholars Program is growing from coast to coast, with leaders working toward a goal of sending 1,000 caddies to college annually by 2020, at a time when college costs are spiraling upward and a record number of caddies are applying for the Scholarship. Currently, there are 870 caddies enrolled at 18 universities across the nation as Evans Scholars.

Since 1930 when the Program began, more than 10,000 caddies have graduated as Evans Scholars since the program was founded by famed Chicago amateur golfer Charles “Chick” Evans Jr.

Scholarship funds come mostly from contributions by more than 27,600 golfers across the country, who are members of the WGA Par Club. Evans Scholars Alumni donate more than $8 million annually, and all proceeds from the BMW Championship, the third of four PGA TOUR Playoff events in the PGA TOUR’s FedExCup competition, are donated to the Evans Scholars Foundation. Visit www.wgaesf.org for more information.