J.R. Joy loved golf; he began playing when he was 8 or 9 years old.
He also had the pedigree as his grandfather was former Wilmington High School golf coach Dick Kroll.
But Joy wanted to be an elementary school teacher, not a golf coach, when he was attending Ohio Valley College following his days at East Clinton.
Now Joy can’t imagine doing anything other than coaching golf.
A 1996 graduate of ECHS, Joy helped coach the Hurricane Redskins boys golf team to a state runnerup finish in the West Virginia Secondary School Activities Commission (WVSSAC) HS Golf State Championship Oct. 8-9 on the Jones Course at Oglebay Park in Wheeling, W.Va.
Led by tournament medalist Jack Michael, Cabell Midland won the state title by 20 shots over Hurricane. Kellen Pauley of Hurricane tied for third while Josh Gooden finished seventh.
“We beat them (Cabell Midland) three times (during the season) in nine-hole matches, so we knew we were capable of (winning it),” said Joy, who helps local orthodontist Sam O’Dell coach the Hurricane squad. “Hats off to (Cabell Midland). They played outstanding.”
Joy is the assistant pro at the Sleepy Hollow Golf Course, located just off the Ohio border in Hurricane, W.Va. At East Clinton, Joy played golf and basketball. He then went to Southern State Community College and played golf for Dave Hilliard and the Patriots. He attended Ohio Valley College and majored in elementary education before taking a job at Golf Galaxy in Cincinnati.
In 2016, Loveland High School boys golf coach David Allan asked Joy if he’d be interested in coaching the Tigers.
“I told him I’d give him a season … he knew I played golf and liked golf,” said Joy.
After just one season, Joy was hooked.
“I had an absolute blast doing it,” he said.
After seven seasons at Loveland, the job at Sleepy Hollow came open and Joy made the tough decision to leave Loveland and coaching to be the assistant pro. After one year out of coaching, the local high school had an opening and Joy was more than happy to get back into coaching.
“I love giving back to these kids, building relationships,” said Joy. “It’s rewarding in that sense.”
Joy said he and O’Dell believed the golf team at Hurricane could do very well in 2024. In West Virginia, the state is divided into four regions. Teams in each region play an 18-hole state qualifier with the top two teams and top two individuals not on a qualifying team advancing to the state tournament. The format has four players for each school playing in the regional with the top three scores counting toward the team score.
“We were pretty confident but Sam and myself had to make them (the players) believe they were capable (of going to state),” said Joy, noting the team’s regional was the toughest in the state among all large schools. “Definitely we felt were one of the two best teams in the region.”
And Hurricane finished second behind Cabell Midland in the regional as well.
“Extremely proud to represent our high school,” Joy said.
