James Island Charter High School Senior and Kiawah Island Golf Club caddie John Wohlscheid wins prestigious Evans Scholarship
A student who caddied at Kiawah Island Golf Club has been awarded the Evans Scholarship, a prestigious full housing and tuition college grant offered to golf caddies, following an online selection interview held Dec. 21.
Each caddie has a unique story that reflects the scholarship’s four selection criteria: a strong caddie record, excellent academics, demonstrated financial need and outstanding character. The Evans Scholarship is valued at an estimated $120,000 over four years.
John Wohlscheid of Charleston, South Carolina, is the first caddie from Kiawah Island Golf Club to receive this award. He will begin college this fall as an Evans Scholar at a partner university. He hopes to attend the University of Michigan and plans to study mechanical engineering. He currently is a senior at James Island Charter High School.
“Becoming a part of the tradition of the game of golf is an honor and a privilege,” Wohlscheid said. “The relationships that I have formed through caddying will stick with me for the rest of my life and will become extremely valuable in the professional world.”
“John joins an exceptional incoming class of New Scholar caddies from around the nation,” said WGA Chairman and Kiawah Island Golf Club member Joe Desch. “It has been fun to watch John caddie and grow from his experiences on the course. The Kiawah Island Club is excited to see what the future holds for John and looks forward to creating more youth caddying opportunities at the Club.”
The Evans Scholars selection interviews will continue to be held with applicants nationwide through spring. When the 2021-22 selection meeting process is complete, an estimated 315 caddies are expected to be awarded the Evans Scholarship.
The Western Golf Association, headquartered in Glenview, Illinois, has supported the Chick Evans Scholarship Program through the Evans Scholars Foundation since 1930. Known as one of golf’s favorite charities, it is the nation’s largest scholarship program for caddies.
Currently, a record 1,070 caddies are enrolled at 21 universities across the nation as Evans Scholars, and more than 11,500 caddies have graduated as Evans Scholars since the program was founded by famed Chicago amateur golfer Charles “Chick” Evans Jr.
“These young students have each shown excellence in the classroom, in their communities and on the golf course,” said WGA President and CEO John Kaczkowski. “We are proud to welcome them to the Evans Scholars family.”
Scholarship funds come mostly from contributions by nearly 35,000 supporters across the country, who are members of the Evans Scholars Par Club program. Evans Scholars Alumni donate more than $17 million annually, and all proceeds from the BMW Championship, the penultimate PGA TOUR Playoff event in the PGA TOUR’s FedExCup competition, are donated to the Evans Scholars Foundation. In 2022, the BMW Championship will be held at Wilmington Country Club in Wilmington, Delaware, from Aug. 16-21.
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Absolutely love keeping in touch with my roots through this column. My families are the
Coker of James Island.
No one there anymore except headstones in the old James Island Presbyterian Church. One of the older cemeteries there..in the past it was segregated into black and white sections.