Sport(s) Women's golf Name Karen Bahnsen Team LSU Role Coach | 1980–1983 LSU Titles Head coach 1985–Present LSU | |
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Born October 11, 1960 (age 63)
Mobile, Alabama ( 1960-10-11 ) Education Louisiana State University | ||
Conference Southeastern Conference | ||
LSU Women's Golf - Coach Karen Bahnsen
Karen Mayson Bahnsen (born October 11, 1960) is an American college golf coach and former player. She is currently the head coach of the LSU Tigers women's golf team at Louisiana State University (LSU).
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Early years
Bahnsen was born in Mobile, Alabama. She attended McGill-Toolen Catholic High School in Mobile.
College career
Bahnsen was the first women's golfer to receive an athletic scholarship to attend LSU in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where she played for the Lady Tigers golf team from 1980 to 1983. As a Tiger, she participated in two Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) and one National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) nation championship tournaments.
Coaching career
Bahnsen has been the head coach of the Lady Tigers since 1985. Her teams have recorded twenty-eight team titles and twenty-eight individual titles. Her 1992 Lady Tigers won the 1992 SEC championship, and have qualified for the NCAA Championship Tournament eleven times, including 1986, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011.
Bahnsen's 2011 team finished third in the NCAA national championship tournament, and golfer Austin Ernst won the NCAA individual championship. The Lady Tigers placed third of twelve teams in the SEC Tournament, and Ernst placed ninth in the individual standings.
The National Golf Coaches Association (NGCA) inducted Bahnsen into its Coaches Hall of Fame in 2009.
Personal
She is married to David "Bo" Bahnsen, a senior associate athletic director at LSU. They have a son and a daughter.