Contact Information - b.montigel@tcu.edu | (817) 257-7646
Bill Montigel begins his 21st season as head men's golf coach at TCU.
Montigel has elevated the TCU men's golf program into a position of national prominence in his two decades at the helm of the Horned Frogs. A six-time conference coach of the year and seven-time conference champion, Montigel has guided the Purple and White to five consecutive league titles from 2001-05 - setting an all-sport record at TCU.
The Frogs' rise in the collegiate golf ranks during his tenure has been well-chronicled, but what hasn't been so clear-cut is how Montigel - a coach who started out with limited exposure to this particular collegiate sport - has become so success in accomplishing this feat. While Montigel's coaching approach has proven to be solid, it was his arrival upon the collegiate golf coaching scene that perhaps raised a smattering of eyebrows.
Prior to the 1987 campaign, the energetic coach's career took a dramatically-altered path as he served eight seasons as an assistant basketball coach and top recruiter at TCU under legendary coach Jim Killingsworth. Several of Montigel's recruiting gems were key performers on TCU's back-to-back Southwest Conference championship squads in 1986 and 1987. When Killingsworth retired - the TCU administration had to look no further than the men's basketball office to find its next men's golf coach.
As a graduate student at Oklahoma State - it was Montigel's friendship with legendary Cowboys' golf coach and current OSU Athletics Director - Mike Holder - that truly kindled his interest in golf. Knowing that he could recruit, organize and motivate, the TCU head men's golf coach added some of the valuable lessons he learned in basketball and effectively applied them towards building and maintaining a top-ranked golf program with the Frogs.
Through the year, Montigel has carefully recruiting top student-athletes to the TCU program, and in addition, he has improved the playing schedule for the Purple and White so that it ranks among the most difficult in the country. As a result of his committed efforts, the Frogs have been a mainstay among the nation's top-25 in the national polls for more than a decade.
It took Montigel just three seasons to turn a mediocre program into a contender at the conference, regional and national levels as the Frogs have qualified for the NCAA Regional Championships every season since 1990 and advanced to the NCAA Championships on 10 occasions.
The TCU men's golf coach has taken top-rated juniors and up-and-comers alike and given them the tools to become standout collegiate golfers. Since he took over the program, Montigel has had eight golfers take home a total of 13 All-American honors with five of them transferring to TCU in search of a more positive collegiate golf experience - Chad Magee (1990, 1991), Charlie Stevens (1992), Bret Guetz (2002), David Schultz (2003) and Adam Meyer (2004).
In addition - Montigel spotted the talent in a Connecticut prep star named J.J. Henry - a player who was under the radar among the college golf recruiters and became the schools' lone three-time All-American. The 1998 Golfweek/Taylor Made Co-College Player of the Year is currently a standout on the PGA Tour and was a member of the 2006 United States Ryder Cup Team.
During his tenure as head men's golf coach at TCU, Montigel has guided 23 student-athletes to all-conference honors a total of 38 times with five of those golfers earning Conference Player of the Year accolades in Alberto Ochoa (1997), J.J. Henry (1998), Adam Rubinson (2003), Adam Meyer (2004) and J.J. Killeen (2005).
The TCU head men's golf coach has also seen a plethora of awards bestowed upon him as he earned six Conference Coach of the Year laurels in three separate leagues - including four in four seasons when the Frogs were a member of Conference USA.
In his first 14 campaigns, the Frogs captured nine tournaments - which was an impressive feat considering the lofty competition. However - in the new millennium, the Purple and White has been even more dominant under Montigel's watchful eye as the Frogs have captured 12 team titles in just eight seasons. In addition - the individual victories have increased as 12 Frogs have claimed tournament titles since the 2001 season.
The Frogs have finished with a top-35 national ranking despite fielding some of the youngest squads in the country over the past two seasons. The Purple and White helped keep the program's streak of NCAA Regional Championship appearances intact as the Frogs are one of fewer than 20 programs in the nation to advance to the regional championships in each of the past 18 seasons.
Montigel's 2004-05 program kicked into high gear in the spring semester with two tournament victories, and the Frogs put an exclamation point on their school-record fifth consecutive league title by pummeling the competition en route to a 26-stroke victory at the Conference USA Championships.
During the 2003-04 season, the Frogs spent the entire season rated among the country's top-10 and finished the campaign ranked 10th - according to the Golfweek/Sagarin ratings system. After a fifth -place finish at the NCAA Central Regional Championships, the Frogs tied for 20th overall at the NCAA Championships. Following the season, Meyer was selected as the Conference USA Player of the Year and was tabbed as a third-team All-American.
The Frogs matched a school record with three tournament team victories during the 2002-03 campaign - including the Conference USA crown en route to finishing the fall season listed fourth in the Golfweek rankings.
In 2002, the NCAA selection committee chose TCU as the number-one seed in the Central Regional Championships - which was the school's first-ever top billing in a regional tournament. The Frogs landed in a tie for 11th at the NCAA Championships that season, and Rubinson matched the best-ever showing by a Frog' golfer at the national tournament with a second-place finish.
The Frogs produced a pair of victories during the 2000-01 campaign - including the program's third Western Athletic Conference crown in five seasons. In the previous season, Montigel's program once again proved to be a national power as the Purple and White finished 11th overall at the 2000 NCAA Championships.
In the Spring of 1998, the Frogs registered their second consecutive Western Athletic Conference crown - which was earned when the Purple and White stormed back from a five-shot deficit on the final day to defeat top-ranked UNLV. The Frogs advanced to the NCAA Championships for a TCU record fifth-straight season and the seventh time in eight seasons.
In addition, Henry earned the gold medal at the conference tournament en route to being selected as the WAC Golfer of the Year. Henry also became the second golfer in TCU history to earn first team All-American laurels after he finished second overall after falling by a single stroke at the NCAA Championships.
During the 1997 campaign, the Frogs captured the Western Athletic Conference title while Montigel earned WAC Coach of the Year laurels for the first time in his career. The Frogs went on to earn a seventh-place showing at the NCAA Championships - which was the program's best national placement under Montigel and the second-best showing in school history.
The Frogs were ranked fourth in the final Golfweek polls following the season, and Ochoa became the first-ever TCU golfer to earn first team All-American status.
There are those who might experience difficulty dealing with such success - but Montigel remains a quiet, unassuming and modest man. In fact - he is quick to credit his success to the University, the community, the players and his family.
The longest-tenured coach at the University, Montigel is a member of the United States Golf Association (USGA) and Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA).
Montigel has served as the Chairman of the District VI Selection Committee as well as served on the NCAA Men's Golf Committee and TCU Head Coaches Committee. In 2002, Montigel was voted into the Horned Frogs Classic Hall of Fame and was named TCU Coach of the Year by the Dallas All-Sports Association.
Montigel and his wife - Margaret - have two children- Kelli (21) and Thomas (16). Kelli is a junior at TCU and a member of the women's golf program while Thomas is a sophomore at Paschal High School where he plays on the golf and basketball teams.
