Article from the St. Augustine Record
ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. − Flagler College lost a close member of its athletic family Friday (July 9) morning when former men’s golf coach
Jay Jennison, 62, passed away after fighting cancer for the past 10 months.
“Jay was a true gentleman and did an outstanding job in elevating our men’s golf program to a very competitive level,” said former Flagler athletic director and current head baseball coach Dave Barnett. “We were fortunate to have him at Flagler College.”
Jennison served as head coach for the 2007-08 seasons and the 2008 fall season. He was hired Apr. 25, 2007 to replace Don Robbins who decided to stay on as assistant professor of mathematics at Flagler. Jennison inherited a team that had just finished its first season playing as a provisional member of NCAA Division II after competing as an NAIA member.
In his first season as head coach, Jennison took the team up to Connecticut to play in the prestigious McDonald Cup, held at Yale University. Flagler was one of only three non-Division I schools in the field and the team finished a respectable 13th out of 25 teams.
In the fall of 2008, the Saints returned to The McDonald Cup and finished a remarkable sixth out of 15 schools. Erik Downs of Flagler finished fourth overall. It was later in the fall semester when Jennison stepped down and handed over the reigns to the women’s coach Santiago Cavanagh.
“For those who knew (Jay) he was an inspiration,” said Flagler College director of golf, Santiago Cavanaugh. “For those who didn’t know him he left a legacy with the St. Augustine amateur, great things done with the First Tee. Jay left his mark on the Flagler golf program. He will be greatly missed.”
On Apr. 3, Jennison was honored as the 17th recipient of the J. Edward “Red” Cox Award before the Flagler-USC Aiken baseball game. The award is given annually to a person who has made an impact on the St. Augustine area.
An ambassador to the game of golf here in St. Augustine, Jennison helped start the St. Augustine Amateur which has become widely regarded as one of the best amateur tournaments in the country. The First Tee of St. Johns County program, for which Jennison served as its Executive Director, is an organization which promotes golf to children for ages six-17.
Jennison is survived by his wife, Martha, of 35 years. The couple raised two daughters and a son.
There will be a service to celebrate his life at Trinity Episcopal Parrish on Wed., July 15 at 3 p.m. The Jennison family requests that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to either Trinity Episcopal Parrish Endowment Fund or The First Tee of St. John's County.