University of North Georgia Athletics

Bryson Worley is entering his eighth year as the Director of Golf and head men's golf coach at the University of North Georgia. Worley's primary responsibility is serving as the head coach of the men's team, but he also provides strategic planning and is a unifying presence of both the men's and women's teams. He is responsible for the overall successful development, planning, implementation, maintenance and evaluation of both programs. 

After Worley led the Nighthawks to their best season in program history in the 2023-24 campaign, the squad followed that up with another groundbreaking year. In the 2024-25 season, UNG won four events and finished worse than third place just twice. This included a second consecutive NCAA Division South/Southeast Regional Championship in which the Nighthawks dominated the most competitive region in the country, winning the event by a whopping 24 strokes with the second-best 54 hole score (28-under-par) in program history. UNG went on to return to the NCAA DII Men’s Golf Championship for the fourth consecutive season and finish the year as a National Semifinalist. The Nighthawks also added the fourth national championship in school history at the tournament as junior Hunter Smith shot a 6-under-par score during stroke play to be crowned the 2025 NCAA DII Individual National Champion. 

One of the most impressive accomplishments in the 2024-25 year was the fact that UNG had all five golfers named to the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA) All-America Teams, joining 2025 National Champion West Florida as the only teams to accomplish such a feat. Worley went on to be named the GCAA Southeast Region Coach of the Year for the fourth consecutive season.

The 2023-24 year started with a bang as UNG won three out of five tournaments in the fall portion of the season. One of those wins came at the Cateechee Fall Invitational at Cateechee Golf Club in Hartwell, Ga. It was there that the Nighthawks combined to finish the tournament in first place at an astonishing 37 strokes below par, completely shattering the previous 54-hole program scoring record. UNG followed up three fall wins by winning its first tournament of the spring at the LMU Spring Kickoff. Upon completion of the regular season, the GCAA No. 1-ranked team then went on to win the Peach Belt Conference Championship for the first time in program history. Graduate student Jack Vajda was an individual medalist at 12-under-par while the team set the 54-hole championship scoring record at 18-under-par in total, defeating the field by 18 shots. The Nighthawks then went on to host and dominate the 2024 NCAA South/Southeast Regional Tournament, winning the event by 1- strokes at nine-under-par. The performance sent the Nighthawks to the National Championship for the third consecutive season, this time ranked as the No. 1 team in the country. In the National Championship, UNG used a last minute rally on the final day of stroke play to finish in the top-8 of the tournament and advance to the match play portion of the championship. In match play, the Nighthawks took down No. 20 Coker in the quarterfinals and outlasted West Texas A&M in thrilling fashion in the semifinals to advance to the National Championship Match for the first time ever. Against No. 5 Colorado Christian, UNG fell short, ending the year as the National Runners-Up. 

The Nighthawks had four players named as GCAA All-Americans on the season, while three players were named All-Region and PBC All-Conference. For the first time in program history they held the GCAA No. 1 ranking nationally for over 40 consecutive weeks, won the PBC Championship and were crowned National Champion Runners-Up. Worley’s efforts led him to be named the NCAA Division II Dave Williams National Coach of the Year, making him the first coach in the NCAA-era in school history to win a national coach of the year award.
 
In 2022, 2023 and 2024 Worley was named the Peach Belt Conference Coach of the Year, making him the only coach in the conference's history to earn back-to-back-to-back Coach of the Year awards. He repeated the accomplishment in 2025, tying the record for the most Coach of the Year Awards in league history. Worley was also one of five finalists for the 2022, 2023 and 2025  NCAA Division II Dave Williams National Coach of the Year award. He won the award in 2024 after the Nighthawks’ National Runner-Up season. 

In seven years at the helm of the UNG men's program, Worley has led the Nighthawks to five NCAA Regional appearances, four National Championship showings which includes National Runner-up and Semifinalist finishes in consecutive years. In Worley’s seven season in Dahlonega, he has mentored 15 individual medalist winners, 14 GCAA All-Americans, 12 All-Region selections, 14 PBC All-Conference honorees, a PBC Player of the Year, a PBC Individual Champion, a two-time South/Southeast Regional Individual Champion and a Jack Nicklaus National Player of the Year Finalist. The Nighthawks have also broken every 18, 36 and 54-hole individual and team scoring record during Worley's tenure.

Academically, the men's golf program has continued to excel with the team having a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher five consecutive years. Under Worley’s direction, the Nighthawks have had 15 student athletes named as GCAA All-American Scholars. 
 
Worley comes to North Georgia from nearby Gainesville High School where he coached the men's golf team from 2002-18. He also served the Red Elephants as the Assistant Principal and Assistant Athletic Director. During his time with the Red Elephants, he was named the 2012 and 2013 GACA State Coach of the Year as well as a 13-time GACA Region Coach of the Year and a 10-time Gainesville Times Area Coach of the Year. 

In his prep coaching career of 21 years, Worley collected a pair of GHSA state championships, 10 region championships, 67 tournament victories and 131 top five finishes. He has coached 51 All-State honorees, 97 All-Area players and 26 collegiate players, including four that have played professionally. Worley's players have played in three USGA Junior Championship four USGA Amateur Championships and the US Open. 
 
Worley currently serves on the Golf Committee at Achasta Golf Club, and has served as a member of the Chattahoochee Golf Club and City of Gainesville's Golf Course Advisory Committee. He has previously served as the chairman of the Georgia State Golf Association Junior Golf Committee, as a member of the Georgia High School Golf Coaches' Association Executive Board and the GHSA Golf Advisory Board to the Executive Director. He is currently a member of the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA). 

He has also instructed at the Chris Haack Bulldog Golf Camp at the University of Georgia since 2005 and at the Dr. Morris Pickens' Sea Island Elite Camp. 

He also created "The Herd" junior golf program in Gainesville which produced over 80 junior golfers from ages 8-14. Having played golf for over 35 years, Worley competes regularly in regional amateur events and has competed in the Georgia State Amateur Tournament. 

Worley holds a Level 1 certification at the Titleist Performance Institute.?He graduated from Wofford in 1997 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science before receiving his Master of Education from Piedmont College in 2001. Most recently, he acquired his Ed.S. from UNG in 2007 in Educational Leadership. 

Updated: June 2025