Over the last year, Cameron Payseno gained an added appreciation for the Evans Scholarship for caddies.
Payseno, a caddie at Lakewood Country Club, didn’t receive an Evans Scholarship when he first applied for it a little more than a year ago. So he and his family paid his way to the University of Colorado for his freshman year as he reapplied for the scholarship.
“Paying for the first year of college was eye-opening,” Payseno said recently. “It showed me the value of this scholarship. After paying for it, this is BIG.”
Payseno will soon find out just how big as he and 10 other Colorado caddies were recently awarded full tuition and housing Evans Scholarships to the University of Colorado, starting with the fall semester. The scholarship is estimated to be worth more than $80,000 if renewed for four years.
The Illinois-based Western Golf Association partners with the CGA and CWGA in supporting the Evans Scholarship at CU. The Evans Scholarship is a flagship program for both the CGA and CWGA. Through CGA and CWGA bag-tag sales and Par Club contributions, Colorado donors fully fund the year-to-year scholarship costs at the CU Evans Scholars house.
Three of this year’s Evans Scholarship recipients caddied at Cherry Hills Country Club, which hosted last September’s BMW Championship, a PGA Tour playoff event that generated a record $3.5 million for the Evans Scholars Foundation. Two of the new Evans Scholars received their starts as caddies through the Solich Caddie & Leadership Academy at CommonGround Golf Course before “graduating” to other clubs. And one is the first prospective Evans Scholar who caddied at Colorado Golf Club.
All 11 recipients recently went through in-person interviews at Denver Country Club, where more than 100 people (left) served as the selection committee.
To qualify for an Evans Scholarship, applicants must have excellent caddie records and academic results, show strong character and leadership, and demonstrate financial need.
Here are the 11 Coloradans who have been awarded Evans Scholarships at CU:
— Joshua Aguilar-Wynn of Aurora, caddied at Cherry Hills CC and the Solich Caddie & Leadership Academy at CommonGround GC, attended Cherry Creek High School.
— William Butler of Centennial, caddied at Cherry Hills CC, attends Arapahoe HS.
— Geovani Castillo of Denver, caddied at Green Valley Ranch GC, attends Denver School of Science & Technology at Green Valley Ranch HS.
— Kade Hiller (left) of Haxtun, caddied at Ballyneal Golf & Hunt Club, Haxtun HS.
— Rachel Knobbs (pictured at top) of Colorado Springs, caddied at Broadmoor GC, attends Cheyenne Mountain HS.
— Keane McClintock of Centennial, caddied at Cherry Hills CC, attends Cherry Creek HS.
— Michael O’Hearne of Boulder, caddied at Boulder CC, attends Boulder HS.
— Cameron Payseno of Lakewood, caddied at Lakewood CC, 2014 graduate of D’Evelyn HS, attends CU.
— Dominic Perea of Denver, caddied at Denver CC and Solich Caddie & Leadership Academy at CommonGround GC, attends Denver Center for International Studies HS.
— Rene Rosa of Silt, caddied at Roaring Fork Club, attends Glenwood Springs HS.
— Arthur Zabronsky of Parker, caddied at Colorado GC, attends Douglas County HS.
The group includes athletes who have won state high school titles (Aguilar-Wynn in football and Knobbs in golf), and one (Hiller) who has a brother, Kent, who is currently an Evans Scholar at CU.
The new Scholars cover virtually all parts of the state, from Roaring Fork in Basalt in the west, to Ballyneal in Holyoke in the north and east, to Broadmoor in Colorado Springs in the south. Eight come from the greater Denver/Boulder metro area.
“These young men and women are the embodiment of dedication, sacrifice and perseverance,” said Bob Webster, the WGA state chairman for Colorado and a CU Evans Scholar alum. “They have all worked tremendously hard to put themselves in this position, and are more than deserving of this life-changing gift.”
The addition of the 2015 recipients will likely bring the overall number of caddies at the CU Evans Scholars house to more than 50, with roughly one-quarter being young women.
The incoming CU Evans Scholars are among the top students in their high school classes, with an unweighted grade-point average norm of 3.72 and an average ACT entrance exam score of 27.5. One of the Evans Scholar recipients, Zabronsky (left), earned the best possible score on the ACT (36). Six have been members of the National Honor Society.
As for caddying, the average number of rounds recorded by the new Scholars is 113. Hiller racked up 190 loops at Ballyneal.
The Evans Scholarship, one of the nation’s largest privately funded scholarship programs, was established in 1930 by Charles “Chick” Evans, winner of a U.S. Open and two U.S. Amateurs.
Nationwide, there are Evans Scholars at 19 universities, 14 at which there are occupied E.S. houses, mostly in the Midwest. The scholarship has produced 10,009 graduates, including 434 from CU. Approximately 870 Evans Scholars are currently enrolled across the country, and about 250 scholarships are expected to be awarded for the incoming class of 2015-16.
Over the last 85 years, the Evans Scholarship has provided more than $319 million worth of tuition and housing to caddies.
Evans Scholars typically excel academically, with a cumulative GPA of 3.2, and a 95 percent graduation rate.
For those interested in donating to the Evans Scholars Foundation, CLICK HERE.
