Tom Arison took the reins of the McKendree University men's golf program in November 2015. Arison will serve as the Bearcats' interim coach for the Spring 2016 season.
Arison has held a variety of roles since coming to McKendree in the fall of 2014. Arison originally served as a graduate assistant for game management for the 2014-15 academic year before moving into the role of graduate assistant coach for the Bearcats' golf programs in June 2015. He worked closely with both the McKendree men's and women's teams during the Fall 2015 season.
Before arriving at McKendree, Arison excelled as a student-athlete at Wagner College in New York. A team captain as a junior and senior for the Seahawks, Arison garnered first-team All-Conference honors in the New England Intercollegiate Golf Association. He registered numerous top-10 tournament finishes during his playing days at Wagner, including the Colgate Invitational, Mount St. Mary's Invitational and the Jasper Shootout hosted by Manhattan College. Arison graduated from Wagner with a bachelor's degree in May 2014.
The Akron, Ohio, native was also a standout performer at Archbishop Hoban High School, where he was a two-time first-team All-Conference honoree. Arison collected Most Valuable Player honors from the North Coast League in 2010 and also helped lead the Knights to a state sectional championship. Individually, Arison won three Northern Ohio Junior PGA events and a pair of Spitale Tour titles. He was also a Touchdown Club finalist, which is presented to the top student-athlete in the area.
In addition, Arison had a four-year stint at the First Tee of Akron, which is a top golf organization that teaches underprivileged youth the values and life skills that are gained through the sport of golf. He also served as an assistant caddie master and club house attendant at Portage Country Club, one of the oldest country clubs in Ohio.
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