He Changed His Career To Help Hers. Now, UVA Couple Sits Near Top of Golfing World

Coughlin and Pond have been making memories together on the golf course since soon after they began dating as UVA student-athletes in 2012. Pond, a member of the Cavalier football team, caddied for his then-girlfriend at a couple of state amateur events and served, as Coughlin put it, a “moral support role” highlighted by timely deliveries of “Happy Gilmore” lines during tense moments.

“Usually,” Pond said, “when she’d miss a putt, I’d say, ‘It was too good for its home.’”

Pond hasn’t lost that comedic touch as he’s continued to be by Coughlin’s side during her rise to becoming one of the top golfers in the sport.

How sweet it is!

Soak it in, @LCisHOOSgolfin 😊 pic.twitter.com/ljc7ZMgolM

— LPGA (@LPGA) July 29, 2024

This week at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in Gainesville, Coughlin, for the first time in her career, will compete in the Solheim Cup, a biennial matchup of the 12 best U.S. players and the 12 best European players. 

Coughlin, ranked No. 15 in the world, qualified for the prestigious event with her win in Scotland. It’s all been part of a remarkable season for the 31-year-old, who received a boost in February when Pond left his longstanding job in the UVA development office to become a full-time member of his wife’s team.

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Lauren Coughlin Pond (@l_coughlin)

In his new role, Pond has booked event travel and lodging, handled media requests, managed sponsor opportunities and, for seven tournaments, filled in as Coughlin’s caddy. 

“I don’t think it’s a coincidence,” Coughlin said of her 2024 success being related to her husband’s increased presence. “My routine has gotten so consistent. Having him there every week, every day, has made a huge impact on me. Being happy off the golf course is such a big thing, and he’s there with me now every week. It doesn’t get much better.”

Pond has a history of timely, impactful appearances. In 2016, after Coughlin won the individual title at the Atlantic Coast Conference Championships while powering the Cavaliers to a first-place finish, Pond proposed during the victory ceremony on the 18th green. 

Two years later, the couple married at the UVA Chapel, followed by a reception at the Colonnade Club in the Academical Village. 

The Coughlin-Pond love is rooted in Wahoo – they have a combined four degrees from the University – and goes on without regret. In a sport where weekly earnings aren’t guaranteed, they knew the risk that came with Pond quitting his job to go all in to help Coughlin.

But they also acknowledged the tremendous opportunity before them.

Pond has filled in as Coughlin’s caddy seven times this season, including when she finished fourth at the Amundi Evian Championship, one of four major tournaments on the LPGA tour. (Contributed photo)

“I was in a good spot with my work, as I had done a lot of things I wanted to accomplish,” said Pond, who played a role in helping UVA’s Honor the Future fundraising campaign reach its $5 billion goal. “And we didn’t know at the time how much longer Lauren had left to play. So, if we were going to have these experiences and an international travel schedule, we had to do it now or we’d be sitting back one day being like, ‘God, if I would have just done it, how cool would that have been?’”

Betting on themselves has paid off in a big way. Coughlin, with more than $1.9 million in earnings this season, is seventh on the LPGA’s 2024 money list. At 31, she’s won twice in a year when the average age of a tournament champion is 25. And Pond, while continuing to support his wife, has become the full-time caddy of another LPGA player, Gina Kim.

“This place prepares you to go succeed when you go out on your own,” Pond said of UVA. “When I was in development, I saw that footprint when I would be sitting across from CEOs and hedge fund managers. 

“So many of our alums have gone on to do such successful things in their lives, and we’re just kind of following their path and trying to make it. It’s worked out so far, and that’s really cool.”

As Coughlin’s unofficial publicist, Pond wants one last thing on the record about these wild last seven months in their lives: His wife should get all the credit.

“The story is she’s playing the best golf at a time when most players are on the downward trajectory of their careers,” he said. “And that doesn't happen overnight. That doesn’t happen without hard work. That doesn’t happen without being as mentally tough as she is.

“This hasn’t happened because of me hanging out and traveling along. You do that stuff on your own.”