More than Just a Coach

By Julia Pine
Web Content Manager, SCGA

Most athletic directors aren’t looking for golf coaches with zero organized golf experience, but maybe they should consider it. Servite High School in Orange County has grown into one of the top men’s golf programs in the state of California, finishing second at last year’s state championship. The five-team, 60 athlete program is led by Head Coach Dane Jako, who prior to coaching at Servite had no formal golf experience, playing or coaching.

“I had been around [the game], but any experience in a formal capacity or any experience coaching in any way, none,” said Jako, who is currently in his 15th year at Servite. “I was working as the PE teacher for about two or three years when the athletics director at the time called me in and said ‘you’re the new golf coach.’”

Jako inherited a program with moderate success, some good players, and solid seasons on its resume, which began teeing it up all the way back in the 1950s when the school was established. But it was by no means an elite program.

According to Jako, the biggest changes that needed to be made were in the school’s mindset toward golf. The team was a typical high school program at the time, consisting of a two-month season, which, when it was over, wasn’t discussed until the following year. That changed when Jako took the helm.

“I think I brought a football mentality, a year-round type of attitude,” said Jako, who also spent a number of his years at Servite coaching the football team. “Other sports are year-round, and I tried to bring that to the golf program in terms of fitness, preparation and constant contact between coaches and players. That’s the key.”

Now in his 13th season as head golf coach, Jako’s attitude about year-round commitment to both the program and his players hasn’t changed a bit. Ten years ago he began caddying for his players during the summer, hoping to learn the way each of them thinks out on the golf course. Having played golf only casually himself, Jako knows he’s not going to help any of these kids with their golf swing. What he can help them with is golf course management.

“My background in education has a little bit of sports psychology in it, so I brought that into the program,” said Jako.

One of the most important things he’s taught the kids who have come through his program? “Par’s not a bad thing. In fact, it’s usually a good thing,” said Jako. “If these kids can stay away from the double and triple bogeys, we’re going to win the majority of our matches.”

Jako finds the best way to help his players stay away from high numbers on their scorecards is to gain their trust and help them with their thought process. In addition to caddying for his players, he has also been known to travel with them and often watches them play their non-school-related events. That way, he can ask them “what was your thought process on that shot” or “why did you do that on the course” before they even begin their next season on his team.

Once the season is under way, Servite plays an impressive schedule, playing often, traveling far, spending the night on the road and competing against tough schools on above-average courses. The school’s JV schedule is comparable to other school’s varsity schedule, so all 60-men on the roster get valuable experience once the season has started, experience that bodes well for them when they move on to collegiate golf.

“Servite prepared me so well for my time at UCLA,” said Preston Valder, who made a name for himself while playing for Jako and is now in his freshman season at UCLA. “We played so many matches and tournaments, which really helped me fine-tune my game. It also helped me learn how to communicate well with my teachers, letting them know when I was going to be gone and how I would make up the work.”

The 53-year-old coach often gets calls from other high school coaches who ask him how he gets his players, like Valder, to buy into the program like he does. It isn’t typical for high school golfers to give up AJGA events to play high school golf, but because Jako’s players see his dedication to them, he gets that time and dedication back. Jako is proud to be able to say that he has never had a player miss a golf match.

In the past few years, Servite High School has seen some of the finest young golfers in the Southland come through its program, including California Amateur Champion Jordan Nasser, SCGA Amateur Champion Nico Bollini and most notably the current world No. 1 ranked amateur Patrick Cantlay.

Jako’s relationship with rising star Cantlay was rocky at first, but has developed into an unusually close friendship. When Servite came into the picture for Cantlay as he was selecting his high school, the then eighth-grader and his parents sat down with Jako to talk golf and Servite. Jako didn’t exactly win the future 2011 SCGA Amateur Champion over.

“Pat asked me, ‘where do you see me on varsity?’ I said, ‘what do you mean varsity?’” said Jako. “I told him that all of my players go through freshman tryouts, and the look on that kid’s face was like, are you kidding me. He got in the car with his parents and said ‘I will never play for that guy.’”

Jako did one thing right during that meeting, however. He won over Patrick’s parents.

“For whatever reason, I had mom and dad in my corner,” said Jako. “Patrick has a strong personality and he was used to getting his way and his parents saw that and maybe respected me a little more because I didn’t back down to him.”

Jako quickly won Cantlay over too, and the bright-eyed, eager freshman was a frequent visitor to the coach’s office the fall of his first year at Servite, stopping by weekly to ask when golf would finally get started. The communication and bonding between the two never stopped.

“Pat once said to me, ‘you know Coach, it seems kind of funny that you’re 53 years old and you’re like one of my best friends,’” remarked Jako.  “He trusts me and knows nothing is going to change for me because of his fame. He’s just Pat to me.”

When flying back from the Walker Cup in September, Cantlay’s parents were called to a family emergency. Needing a ride from the airport, Cantlay’s first call was to Jako.

“Coach and I have always been close, but I think we became really good friends starting my senior year of high school,” said Cantlay. “He caddies for me every once in a while in some amateur tournaments, including the last two U.S. Amateurs and this year’s Western Amateur. We talk on the phone often and get together at least once a month. He really is one of my best friends."

With 13 years now in the golf world, Jako has tremendous respect for the game. Having been immersed in many other sports in the past, Jako sees something different in the game of golf and the players who play it.

“The thing I have really come to respect in the game of golf is the way the players conduct themselves on and off the field,” Jako said. “I’m talking about when I go to the U.S. Open or the U.S. Amateur and these kids are competing for huge titles but they are still so willing to help each other with their swing and learning the course. You just don’t see that in other sports.”

With a background playing football, and having had a cutthroat kind of mentality of his own when he was a player, Jako will never get used to the difference on the golf course.

“I watched Patrick at the U.S. Amateur beat a guy, and then go have lunch with him. The mentality of ‘I’m playing you today, I want to beat you, yet I can have a conversation and be normal with you right after’ is just so unique.”

It’s that kind of thing that has Jako hoping his two sons, 7 and 9 years old, will give up football and baseball and play golf.

“I can only hope that my sons grow up to be the type of gentlemen some of these young men are,” said Jako. “Football is all they dream about right now, but they do some summer golf. I don’t want to force it. They’re still young, it’ll come.”

The biggest problem Jako has with the program now can barely be looked at as a problem; he has too many young men who want to be on the team. With the reputation of the school’s golf team so solid, it seems like everyone wants to be a part of it. Jako’s toughest task each season is telling a kid he’s just not ever going to be able to play on the varsity team. Those types of problems probably seem like a dream to other coaches.

“Hands down, the Servite program is successful because of Coach Jako,” said Valder. “He runs a tight ship but we also had so much fun. He’s good at adapting to whatever coaching style each individual on the team needs, and in the end he just understands the game so well, despite having never played it.”

Cantlay agrees with his Bruin teammate. “Jako also knows a lot about the mental side of golf and makes sure that the team is prepared for every event. He is a fantastic coach and easily the best high school coach in Southern California. If not the best in the country.”