Men's Golf
- TITLE:
- Director of Golf/Head Coach
- EMAIL:
- vandenbornj@umkc.edu
- PHONE:
- 816-235-5989
- Hometown:
- Henryetta, Okla.
- Alma Mater:
- UMKC
- Graduating Year:
- 2002
The J.W. VanDenBorn File |
| Alma Mater: UMKC, 2002 |
| Hometown: Henryetta, Okla. |
|
Experience: 24th year (heading into 2025-26 season) |
College Coaching Career |
| 2007 - current: Director of Golf, Kansas City |
|
2003 - current: Head Coach, Kansas City |
|
2002: Assistant Coach, Kansas City |
Career Accomplishments |
| 2024 Summit League Coach of the Year |
| 2024Â Summit League Tournament Champions |
| 2023 Summit League Coach of the Year |
| 2023 Summit League Tournament Champions |
| 2019 WAC Coach of the Year |
| 2019 WAC Conference Tournament Champions |
| 2018 WAC Coach of the Year |
| 2018 WAC Conference Tournament Champions |
| 2016 WAC Coach of the Year |
| 2016 WAC Conference Tournament Champions |
| 7-time runner-up at the WAC Conference Championships (2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2015, 2017) |
| 2013 Summit League Conference Tournament Champions |
| 2013 Summit League Coach of the Year |
| 2011 Summit League Conference Tournament Champions |
| 2011 Summit League Coach of the Year |
In 2011, his squad won the first tournament title in school history. Then, in 2013 the squad won its second title and added its third in the 2015 season. The Roos won back-to-back WAC conference championships in 2018 and 2019, going back-to-back once again as members of the Summit League in 2023 and 2024. Overall, VanDenBorn has led the program to seven conference titles.
In 2024-25, Kansas City was led by freshman Mason Haley, who was named Summit League Newcomer of the Year, also earning nods on the First Team All-League and All-Freshman team. Haley ranked third in the Summit League on the season with a 72.5 regular season scoring average.
Repeat was on the Roos mind in 2023-24, taking the Summit League title for the second-straight year. Sophomore Mesa Falleur ran away with the Summit League individual title, winning by three strokes, while Lucas Dutartre and Max Cooper also nabbed Summit League All-Tournament Team honors. The Roos went on to compete at the NCAA Austin Regionals, with Falleur taking an eighth place (-3) result. VanDenBorn brought home his seventh-career Coach of the Year honor, becoming the first Summit League coach to do so in back-to-back years since 2016-17. Falleur and Dutartre each posted top-10 single season scoring averages in program history, with Falleur earning Summit Golfer of the Year and First Team All-League honors and Dutartre nabbing a Second Team All-League nod. Cooper was named Honorable Mention All-Summit, marking the second-straight season that KC had three golfers named to the All-League teams.
In 2022-23, Kansas City returned to its winning ways, earning the sixth conference title in program history and the first since returning to the Summit League. Sophomore Joshuaa Robards led the team to the championship, winning the individual title after leading at the end of all three rounds. The Roos then took 12th at the NCAA Las Vegas Regional, posting the seventh-best team score in the final round. Maxence Catherine was named Second Team All-League, while Robards and Lucas Dutartre were Honorable Mention selections. In addition, Dutartre was named Newcomer of the Year and VanDenBorn earned his sixth-career conference Coach of the Year accolade.
The 2021-22 season saw VanDenBorn coach George Clarke to a individual championship at the Wildcat Invitational, the Roos' first individual winner since 2018-19. Clarke notched three top-ten finishes and the second-best scoring average in the league to claim First Team All-Summit recognition, and the Roos finished the season with a fifth-place finish at the Summit League Championships.
In the Roos' return to the Summit in 2020-21, the VanDenBorn-led Roos took a fourth-place finish. Graduate Student Corey Teaford earned All-Summit Tournament team with a fourth place finish, while Paul Foulquie and McCain Schellhardt earned First Team All-Summit honors.
VanDenBorn led the program to a WAC Conference tournament championship in the fall of 2019. He also led the Roos to its highest-ever school finish in 2019 in the NCAA Regional Round, finishing 10th. During the season, the team placed first in the Grand Canyon Invitational. VanDenBorn won 2019 Coach of the Year, he coached four 2019 All-WAC selections, and coached Player of the Year McCain Schellhardt. The majority of the spring season was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Vanderborn added another WAC title for the program in the 2018 season behind solid play from McCain Schellhardt, who won the individual title. Two other Roos claimed a top-10 finish.Â
In 2017, the Roos finished second in the WAC tournament. VanDenBorn led the team to be recognized by the GCAA for excelling in the classroom with a 3.51 GPA.Â
In 2016, VanDenBorn led to the Roos to another WAC Championship title behind the performance of senior Antoine Rozner, who was crowned individual champion. Rozner became the second Roo to ever appear in the NCAA Championship and finished T-8th. VanDenBorn also led the team to be one of only 24 NCAA Division I programs to receive the President's Special Recognition academically, recording a 3.54 GPA.Â
In 2015, VanDenBorn led the Roos to a runner-up finish at the WAC Championship with Antoine Rozner garnering WAC Player of the Year and First Team All-WAC honors with Mitch Tucker joining him on the First Team. During the year, Rozner and Tucker notched the first and second lowest averages in Kansas City history, placing them first and third on the career list. As a team, the Roos carded four of the eight lowest rounds in school history and three of the eight lowest tournament scores in school history, including the lowest in both.
In 2014, he guided the Roos to a fourth-place finish in their first ever appearance in the WAC Championship, while helping Nathan Hughes and Rozner to Second Team All-WAC Recognition, with Hughes capturing the individual title at the Desert Shootout to highlight the season. Academically, Hughes, Cole Chelle and Jack Fiscus were each honored as Academic All-WAC selections, as well as GCAA All-American Scholars.
During the 2012-13 season, VanDenBorn was named Summit League Coach of the Year after guiding the Roos to their second trip to the NCAA Tournament in school history. Under his guidance, Korbin Kuehn, Hughes and Rozner were named to the First Team All-Summit League and Chelle and Fiscus were named to the Second Team All-Summit League, while Kuehn was named Summit League Golfer of the Year and Golfer of the Tournament after claiming his second individual Summit League title and Antoine Rozner was named Newcomer for the Championship.
Academically, Hughes was named to the Summit League Academic All-League Team, while six individuals were named to the Commissioner's List of Academic Excellence and seven were named to the 2012-13 Summit League Winter/Spring Academic Honor Roll, including three as Distinguished Scholars.
In the 2010-11 season, he led KC to its first ever NCAA Regional team appearance, and earned Summit League Coach of the Year honors after leading the Roos to the Summit League title. He coached two second-team All-Summit League picks in Korbin Kuehn and Viktor Mikaelsson as well. The Roos won two tournaments during the season, and placed third or better in seven tournaments.
During the 2009-10 season, VanDenBorn coached three student-athletes to individual tournament titles, which were the most individual victories since the 2000-01 season. Senior Brett Iliff won the ReBath Snowman Getaway for his first career victory, Alex Hogben was crowned champion at the Hawkeye-TaylorMade/adidas Invitational in April, where he fired a final round 64, which tied the school record, and Korbin Kuehn claimed the medalist honor at the 2010 Summit League Men's Golf Championship on the first hole of a sudden victory playoff.
Following the win, Kuehn was named The Summit League Championship MVP and Co-Newcomer of the Championship, as well as being named to the all-Tournament team. Kuehn also advanced to participate in the NCAA Regional Championship in Atlanta, becoming just the second Roo golfer to compete in the NCAA Championship.
Kuehn was the second KC student-athlete to win the individual league tournament title under VanDenBorn's tutelage. Stephen Clark was the first student-athlete to win the Mid-Con Championship in 2006, as he earned medalist honors with a two-under par 214. Subsequently, Clark also was the first KC men's golfer to earn Mid-Con Player of the Year honor.
VanDenBorn has also coached the team to the top single round performances in school history. His squad posted single round records of 280 in a pair of rounds as the 2004 SEMO/Harris Invitational, where they finished with a 54-hole tournament record of 848. During that same event, he led Alan Johnson to a school record 54-hole total of 203 and the top single round performance (64) in school history.
Off the course and on the recruiting trail, VanDenBorn has enjoyed a tremendous amount of success as well. Two of his recruiting classes were ranked among the top-25 in the country according to GolfStat. VanDenBorn's recruiting efforts have produced some of the top players in KC men's golf history, as Alex Hogben, Stephen Clark, Michael Schnegelberger and Brett Iliff all closed out their careers among the top-six in career scoring averages.
In the classroom, VanDenBorn has had 26 players named to the Academic All-League team and 18 to the Commissioner's List of Academic Excellence. He also coached Michael Schnegelberger to Cleveland Golf/Srixon All-America Scholar honors in both 2008 and 2009.
Prior to becoming the head coach, VanDenBorn spent two seasons as a player and another campaign as an assistant coach for the Roos under former coach Bill Ross. He was officially introduced as the head coach for the program on July 1, 2003.
As a student-athlete, VanDenBorn was a two-year letter winner for the Roos. As a senior co-captain in 2001-02, VanDenBorn recorded a 75.4 stroke average in 25.5 rounds and was twice named Mid-Continent Conference Golfer of the Week. He captured individual medalist honors by winning the Southeast Missouri State Invitational, where he matched the then school record with a five-under par 66 in the opening round of the event.
As a junior in 2000-01, VanDenBorn quickly established himself as one of KC's top players. He led the Roos in four tournaments and was named Mid-Con Golfer of the Week (11-1-01) after finishing sixth with a two-over par score of 218 at the SMS Pepsi Challenge.
Before transferring to UMKC, VanDenBorn was the NJCAA Region III champion in 2000, while playing for Kansas City Kansas Community College (KCKCC). He captured the Jayhawk Conference individual championship and was an all-conference pick in 2000, which led to him being named the KCKCC Male Athlete of the Year.
Academically, VanDenBorn earned Verizon Academic All-District honors and Cleveland Golf All-America Scholar accolades. He also was the recipient of UMKC's Stan Durwood Award, which is given annually to the Kansas City student-athlete with the highest grade point average with a minimum of 100 hours passed.
As a prep, VanDenBorn was a four-year football, golf and basketball letter winner at Henryetta (Okla.) High School.
VanDenBorn earned his bachelor's degree in business administration from UMKC in 2002.  He then received his master's degree in business administration with an emphasis in marketing and management from UMKC in May 2009.
