By Perry Smith

This season, the girls’ varsity golf team welcomes a fresh yet familiar face to the team: Mark Palyo, the Upper School Dean of Students. A longtime member of the school’s athletics department, Palyo brings with him not only experience but a passionate commitment to student athletes’ growth as he takes on his newest coaching position. Although golf is a new realm in his coaching career, his passion for helping young athletes remains a constant.

Palyo’s process to becoming the girls varsity golf coach was both genuine and thoughtful. “Over the past couple of years, I had gone out to watch a few of the girls’ matches at Hermitage Country Club,” he explained. “I just thought it was fun. I saw how supportive the girls were of one another and that competitive environment, and I really enjoyed watching the matches.” When former Head of School Administrative Assistant Amy Verdi stepped down as coach, Palyo found himself seriously considering the possibility of becoming the new coach. “I came back to school in the fall and casually mentioned to Andrew Stanley, the Athletic Director, that if the girls varsity golf position was still open, if at some point you want to talk to me about it, I’d be glad to have a conversation,” he said. Palyo didn’t immediately say that he would take the position but wanted to talk to Stanley and learn more about the opportunity.

What followed was a series of conversations with Stanley and Shepard Lewis, Upper School history teacher and head of the school’s golf program. By December, Palyo, Stanley, and Lewis had fully considered the details of the open position of golf coach, and Palyo officially became the new coach. “Once I found out more about the position, I just really wanted to do it,” he said. While Palyo acknowledges that he is still developing his own golf skills, he has learned a great deal in the process of taking on this new role, and his love for coaching keeps him excited for this opportunity. 

His return to coaching after stepping away from his many previous coaching roles, primarily in football but also track and wrestling, has been fulfilling for Palyo. “I am really glad to be back,” he shared. “Coaching is a different realm of helping young people, and seeing them grow in a completely different area, in a competitive environment, that is very enjoyable to me.”

Photo credit: Perry Smith.

Each sport requires its own techniques and challenges, and the transition from coaching football to golf requires a hefty change in Palyo’s coaching strategies. Compared to football, golf is a more individualized, mentally focused experience. “The game planning for football is very different. You’re spending hours watching film and evaluating the other team. With golf, the focus is really on the girls and building them up, so they can go out and score well.”

Palyo acknowledged this new and different approach to coaching golf early on and swiftly acclimated to a strategy for leading practice. “We started off with five days of qualifying, so initially, we just needed to get out on the course, but there were certain parts of practice where I’m thinking, ‘We need to be teaching and coaching and helping,’” he said. At the very beginning of the season, there was not much time for technical coaching during practice, as the team needed to get as much time playing on the course as possible, but Palyo recognized immediately that utilizing individual coaching for each player would be a key focus for the golf season this year. “Once we established the team, I felt like we still approached practice with a ‘play as many holes as possible’ mindset,” he said. “But over the past few weeks, we have intentionally gotten specific range time, as well as rotating putting and chipping groups, trying to help and coach the team more.”

The girls golf team was created two years ago in 2023, but this 2025 season is the first official season of the team qualifying as varsity. I am a current player on the team, and this year’s golf team has ten players, down one from last year’s 11. The location of practice during the week can change occasionally, but the usual schedule for the golf team practices is Hermitage Country Club on Mondays and Thursdays, Richmond Country Club on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, and the Collegiate campus for the weight room on Fridays. Match days can vary depending on the week, but mostly take place on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. The team has a full schedule this season, with 16 matches, as well as the VISAA Championship taking place at the Williamsburg National Golf Course’s Yorktown Course on May 13.

When asked how Palyo balances individual improvement with team goals, he further explained the importance of individual improvement and mental strength. “Every player needs to know their own game. Help them to recognize what their strength is, and then figure out how they can use that and apply that so they can score best in their individual match,” he said. “Because, ultimately, it’s that individual score that then comes together for the team score.” Although it can be hard to find and understand the strengths and weaknesses of every individual on the team, Palyo continues to take the time to speak and learn with each player to get more familiar with their golf game. “This morning, before school, I asked Bridgette Schutt (‘25) to stop by my office, because I want to have individual conversations ahead of time to try to understand each of you better so that I can best support you in those moments.”

Another aspect of the mental game that Palyo emphasizes is the ability of players to be consistently confident in their shots. “For each girl on the team, I have seen really great hits. And now it’s about helping them become consistent with that and believing that they can consistently do that,” he said. Helping players stay confident throughout practice and matches is a significant part of golf, and Palyo makes sure to focus on this with all the players. “And I think this is where [assistant] Coach Mike Peters has helped as well, because he knows a lot of you from past years, so he has a different understanding of where you are as players in matches and when you get into those low-confidence moments.”