Emmett Turner enjoyed everything connected to his collegiate experience at Augusta University.

He excelled on the golf course under “two great coaches” while playing with teammates who turned into lifelong friends. In the classroom, he said he was fortunate to have talented and knowledgeable professors at the James M. Hull College of Business. He never had a problem with any of his professors when he missed class.

“College golf competes both in the fall and spring, and it is not unusual to miss more than 15 days of class per semester,” said Turner, who graduated from Augusta State University in 2005 with a Bachelor of Business Administration with an emphasis in accounting. “My professors would take the time to explain material I missed when I was away competing and were typically accommodating of our hectic schedules.”

Turner remains connected to the golf program today as president of the Augusta University Birdie Club, which was established in the early 2000s to garner donations for the men’s and women’s programs in support of Division I level competition.

He was a multi-sport athlete growing up in Greenwood, South Carolina, and learned golf from his father. As he entered Greenwood High School, his focus shifted primarily to golf.

Turner had success as a junior golfer and knew during his first year of high school that he wanted to play in college. Turner became the state’s No. 1 junior golfer, winning the Jay Haas Award in 2000.

“I was blessed to grow up in such a golf-rich state, from a talent perspective,” Turner said. “The South Carolina Golf Association did a fantastic job running events, and I think the number of golfers that played for Division I colleges and went on to PGA Tour stardom speaks to the competitive atmosphere of our junior golf days. Kevin Kisner, Bill Haas and Dustin Johnson are just a few of the names of golfers you were competing against every week as a child.”

Turner credits then-coach Jay Seawell as the reason he selected the Jaguars’ program.

“It was 100% Jay. His father, Jackie Seawell, worked with me on my golf swing during my junior golf days and during some of my high school years as well,” he said. “I was comfortable with Jay. He knew my game, and he had already established a great team at Augusta. I wanted to come into a top-25 program and be able to play right away without having to redshirt, and that opportunity presented itself by coming to ASU.”

Seawell said he got to see the fundamentals and the physical part of his game early on. He knew Turner was going to play at a high level and would make “somebody in college golf a very happy golf coach.”