By Max Theodorakis
Athletic Communications Student Assistant
 
Matt Moot is from Johnstown, Pa. and is the Campbell Men's Golf Assistant Coach. He began his coaching tenure at Campbell in January 2017. Moot is a 2011 graduate of Campbell University and played on the golf team. On top of recording 11 top-10 finishes in his collegiate golf career, he was honored as a member of the Atlantic Sun Conference all-academic team all 4 years.
 
Question: What was your first memory of being a part of the Campbell Golf Team?
Moot: "I remember coming down to play in the Keith Hills Amateur, which is now called The Carolinian. I played with an upperclassman on the team from England (Mark Coppell) and one of my friends from Pennsylvania who turned into one of my best friends later on (Zak Drescher). I remember seeing his bag, thinking how cool they looked, and I couldn't wait to get one. Also the teammates were really good to me from the beginning."
 
Q: What's the story behind how you ended up at Campbell to play golf?
Moot: "The assistant coach at the time Tim Crooks (no relation to head coach John Crooks), is from around where I'm from in Pennsylvania. Tim was someone who I watched play a lot when I was growing up and someone who I always respected. So my connection here to Campbell was through him. I also wanted to come somewhere where the climate was a little warmer and where I could play year round so it was a perfect fit."
 
Q: How about coaching?
Moot: "I think the timing was just perfect. I wasn't playing competitively anymore and I always had an interest in coaching. I really had an interest in being around top-level talent too and it was a place that I knew and was familiar with. It was awesome to see the upward trajectory the athletic department and golf program had made since I left and it's nice to be a part of it now."
 
Q: Coming from up in western Pennsylvania, what was the biggest adjustment you had to make when you came here as a freshman?
Moot: "The biggest adjustment (golfing wise) was definitely the grass. I didn't have a lot of exposure to Bermuda grass and it changes throughout the year too. In the summer, it's really nice and lush but in the wintertime, it goes dormant and I had never dealt with that before. Socially, you know you're just away from home. You have to stand on your own two feet. You certainly have way more responsibilities and a lot more on your plate but I was prepared for it and excited
for it."
 
Q: How often do you make it back home?
Moot: "I certainly like to get home for the holidays. I miss my family and friends for sure. But to be quite honest with you, I call this home now too and I've been back for long enough that I have some of my roots here. I always enjoy being back in Western PA but I like it here just as much."
 
Q: Do you have any siblings? If so, are any of them golfers?
Moot: "Yeah I have one younger brother who is a couple years younger than I am and I was close to him growing up. But he didn't play much golf, he kind of play all the other sports. He actually played Division III football at Westminster College just north of Pittsburgh and he still lives up there and has a family now. We still have a great relationship but it never revolved around golf."
 
Q: You had a successful college career on the golf course and in the classroom. How were you able to balance the two and find success in both?
Moot: "That's a good question and that's something I talk to my recruits about a lot. I think leadership is a big part of that. I'm a big believer that the dynamic of a golf team is a trickle-down effect. I was so fortunate because I walked into a situation where when I was playing, I had some great seniors and some great leaders on my team. And being around players that worked hard in the classroom and on the golf course made it easy to follow their example. They made it easy for me to realize what the right things to do were and that helped me forge my own path. So that certainly helped a lot no doubt."
 
Q: What's been the biggest difference you see about Campbell now than when you were here as a student?
Moot: "There's a bunch of tangibles and intangibles. I think the resources that the athletic department has given their student athletes among all sports has been great. I mean, I remember watching (Campbell) basketball games in Carter Gym. While that was a cool environment, it wasn't the Convocation Center and we weren't hosting Big South Championships. From the academic buildings to the new student union and all the amenities the student athletes have now is pretty cool. It definitely still has the same 'Campbell feel' to it but it's great to see it evolving and growing up."
 
Q: How about the biggest difference with the golf team?
Moot: "As far as the golf team goes and as far as the intangibles, when I was playing, if we made NCAA's (Regionals) as a team that was kind of the icing on the cake that was the bonus and a great way to end the season. Now, I got guys on the team who have those as their normal expectations. We definitely still like winning conference championships but now we have lofty goals of NCAA championships and it wasn't always like that. So to see the program evolve and have expectations of competing and beating the top teams in the country is really cool to see."
 
Q: And you made NCAA Regionals as an individual your senior year correct?
Moot: "Yeah we won our conference championship when I was a sophomore, so we made it as a team then. And then my senior year I was ranked high enough in the individual rankings to qualify."
 
Q: You coached high school golf before you came to coach here at Campbell?
Moot: "It was a good experience and it was a great introduction to coaching golf. I had a great group of kids that loved to learn. It was funny because I didn't run it like a Division I golf program but I used a lot of what I learned here as a student and what Coach Crooks and Tim (Crooks) had done and I implemented that into the high school environment. That was what sort of sparked the fire of finding what I loved to do and we had some success. I enjoyed working
with the kids too that was gratifying for sure."
 
Q: After you graduated in 2011, you played professional golf for a few years. What was your experience with that?
Moot: "I don't regret it at all. I tell people it's the greatest job in the world. I miss the grind and trying to get better everyday and it being my main priority. I had some great experiences, sometimes you feel like you're the best player in the world, and then other times you feel like you're a chop that has no business being out there. I learned after a couple years that you can have some success at the minor league level but in reality, nobody really wants to be there. You always want to move up and advance and get status at the top level. Only 125 guys get to keep their card every year on the PGA Tour so you have to be one of the best 125 players in the world and I learned that I wasn't one of those guys."
 
Q: Between when you ended playing professionally and got into coaching, what other jobs did you have?
Moot: "So after I was done playing I was living down in Florida. And when you're a young adult looking for work you get some crazy experiences. I worked in new home development, I was in new home building and sales so I learned a lot about real estate, construction, contracting, marketing, among others and how to run a business. But it wasn't nearly close to what I loved to do, so after that I found a passion to get back into the golf business and I went back up to
Pennsylvania close to home and got a management job at a country club. Again, I gained a lot of experience from that job, worked hard, and discovered that I really like to be around great players and the instruction side of it all, as well as the playing part. When you're in a management job you don't really get to do a lot of that stuff."
 
Q: Are you still in contact with some of your teammates from when you played?
Moot: "I have a lot of great friendships that are from my time as a student here. That's the best thing I took away from my college experience, they're my best friends for life. I tell people if I had a dream foursome, I'd pick 3 of my teammates. It's nice that we're in a part of our lives where we're going through life events but we still share some awesome memories of our years here."
 
Q: What's been your favorite moment coaching the men's team?
Moot: "I don't know if I could pinpoint one. I love winning, I love competing and it's the closest thing that I've gotten to, adrenaline wise and feeling wise, to when I was playing. So now coaching, when we're coming down the stretch and we have a chance to win and we close it out and see the team's hard work paying off it's really gratifying. I think winning and competing is the best part about what I do."
 
Q: Coming off of last year with some good players moving on and graduating, what are your goals for the team this year?
Moot: "Make no mistake, the players who were here that have recently graduated certainly set a foundation for the success of the future of this program. They were a huge part of its evolution and going from postseason play being a bonus and it being an expectation and they're irreplaceable. Having said that, I love the talent and the leadership this year and its similar to the seniors when I was in school and the seniors I was talking about earlier. I'm definitely excited
about what we have this year, certainly a lot of new faces but that's part of the future and growing and getting better."
 
Q: What has it been like not only playing for Coach Crooks but also working as his assistant?
Moot: "I think Coach is one of the best in the business. There's a reason he's a hall of famer and there's a reason he has so many tournament titles. I really think his knowledge and his experience are so valuable to any young player coming up. One of his best attributes is if he's on your side he'll fight for you over anything. It's when you don't buy into what he's saying then his competitiveness comes out but he's your biggest advocate if you're one of his players. I'll take a lot of things I've learned from him throughout my time here and from him that I'll apply to the rest of my coaching career."
 
Rapid Fire Questions:
Q: Favorite Golfer of all time?
Moot: "Arnold Palmer"
Q: Favorite Golf Course?
Moot: "Keith Hills"
Q: Hardest Golf Course you've played?
Moot: "Oakmont"
Q: Tiger or Jack?
Moot: "I think that's too close. I think a better question who's the 3rd best player of all time."
Q: Favorite Sports Team?
Moot: "Pittsburgh Steelers"
Q: Playing or coaching?
Moot: "Playing, but coaching is a close second."
Q: Favorite place to eat within a 30 mile radius?
Moot: "Mason Jar"