Chris Whitten begins his second season as the head coach and his sixth overall with the University of Michigan men's golf team. Prior to taking over the program, Whitten spent five seasons (2006-11) as an assistant coach under Andrew Sapp.
In his first season at the helm of the program, Whitten helped U-M post eight top-10 finishes and guide All-Big Ten golfer Matt Thompson to an individual invitation to the NCAA Central Regional, which was held at the U-M Golf Course. In addition, Miguel Echavarria became the 11th U-M player to earn the prestigious Cleveland/Srixon All-America Scholar.
While serving as an assistant, the Wolverines made four straight NCAA Regional appearances - winning the program's first team regional title in 2011 - and two NCAA Championship appearances. In 2009, the Wolverines closed sixth to advance to team match play, closing with a semifinalist finish. In 2011, U-M closed 10th, missing match play by just three shots.
In addition to his coaching duties, Whitten has been instrumental in the creation and administration of the Friends of Michigan Golf alumni program, the development of the Wolverine Golf School, as well as the designing and fundraising for U-M's new golf practice facility.
Before joining the Wolverine staff in May 2006, Whitten was an assistant golf professional at the Inverness Club in Toledo, Ohio. While there he focused primarily on membership instructional programs, clinics, and group lessons. He also assisted with tournament operations for over 90 summer golf events, including the University of Toledo's Inverness Intercollegiate Invitational during the fall.
Prior to his work at Inverness, Whitten served as the first-ever assistant men's golf coach at Notre Dame for two years (2003-05), helping the Fighting Irish win their first Big East Conference championship in over seven years during the 2003-04 season. In addition to his general assistant duties, he also helped oversee the program's recruiting as well as establishing the formation of the Irish Golf School in 2004. He also served as the assistant tournament director for the 2003 and 2004 Big East Men's Golf Championships and the 2004 NCAA Central Regional Preview tournament.
As a graduate of Notre Dame in 2002, Whitten earned Notre Dame's Varsity Monogram Award as well as the Knute Rockne Scholar Athlete Award in 2002. He helped Notre Dame to two runner-up finishes at the Big East Championships in 1999 and 2002. He graduated with a degree in English and was named a Cleveland Golf / GCAA All-America Scholar.
A native of Rockford, Mich., Whitten has been involved in golf all of his life. He is the son of Buddy Whitten, the Director of Instruction at Pensacola Country Club in Pensacola, Fla., who played on the PGA Senior Tour in 1997 with Chris serving as his part-time caddy. Buddy was elected to the Michigan Golf Hall of Fame in 1993.
Whitten and his wife, Dr. Amy (White), who is a graduate of the University of Michigan Medical School and is Completing a Maternal Fetal Medicine fellowship at Wayne State University & Perinatology Research Branch, NICHD/NIH/DHHS, reside in Farmington Hills.
