Troy University Athletics
Hall of Fame
Mobley, Ronny
Ronny Mobley
- Induction:
- 2015
Four-time All-American. Two-time National Champion. Alabama State Amateur Champion. There are plenty of labels you can place on the career of Ronny Mobley; however for his coach and fellow Troy University Sports Hall of Fame member Mike Griffin, leader is the word that was used the most when talking about his former pupil.
“He was the most complete player that I had the good fortune to coach at Troy, and that includes an awful lot of really, really talented players,” Griffin said. “Everybody knew that when Ronny teed off he was going to take care of business that day. Most of his leadership would occur off the course, whether it be in practice or just goofing around. No matter the circumstance – at the breakfast table, at the dinner table, in the van – other players seemed to migrate towards him, they leaned towards him for some solid direction.”
Mobley was the perfect place to look for direction. The first scholarship golfer in Troy history, Mobley won a remarkable 18 tournaments during his Troy career, including seven during his freshman season.
“Both of our first years at Troy were at the same time and the thing that really stood out to me was that he was able to make All-American as a freshman despite the fact that we were not the best golf team,” Griffin said. “That gave us some good momentum and we were able to have solid back-to-back recruiting classes.”
Those recruiting classes, plus Mobley, led to a pair of NCAA Division II National Championships in 1976 and 1977.
“By the time we got into our third year, we had matured as a team, and with Ronny’s strong leadership plus the quality players he had surrounding him, they became one of the strongest programs in the history of Division II golf,” Griffin said. “It was truly remarkable to watch that.”
His leadership skills carried over later in life as Mobley returned to Troy to coach the team that he once led as a player. He coached the men’s team for two seasons (1985-86) and earned Gulf South Coach of the Year honors both years. A three-time All-Gulf South selection, Mobley held five Troy school records when he took over as head coach, including for single-season stroke average (71.5).
“He had no weaknesses,” Griffin said. “He had a great short game, he had good touch around the greens, his iron play was excellent and he could putt like a demon. When you put that all together, plus his mental approach to the game, you had a complete player.”
Mobley went on to win the Alabama State Amateur Championship following his senior year at Troy before spending two years on the PGA Tour. He played in 16 tournaments on the PGA Tour and made the cut in the majority of them.
Reflecting on Mobley’s career at Troy, one story stuck out more than the rest for Griffin when it came to assessing the impact and leadership that Mobley had on the program.
“Back in those days we had to raise money any way we could to go to certain tournaments and compete against good teams,” Griffin said. “After one of the hurricanes came through, a friend of Ronny had all his corn knocked down and needed to have it picked by hand. We volunteered our services to pick the corn for a nominal fee.
“One of Ronny’s best friends in the whole world and a true freshman got into a little tussling match out there in the corn field and tempers flared. I’m sitting in the pickup truck, and as I’m about to put my hand on the doorknob a blonde-haired flash comes running by me. He grabs one guy in one hand and the other guy in his other hand. He holds them at arm’s length and looks them both in the face and eliminates the problem right there. I took my hand off the doorknob and sat back down in the pickup truck.”
Mobley was inducted in to the Wiregrass Hall of Fame in 2007.
“He was the most complete player that I had the good fortune to coach at Troy, and that includes an awful lot of really, really talented players,” Griffin said. “Everybody knew that when Ronny teed off he was going to take care of business that day. Most of his leadership would occur off the course, whether it be in practice or just goofing around. No matter the circumstance – at the breakfast table, at the dinner table, in the van – other players seemed to migrate towards him, they leaned towards him for some solid direction.”
Mobley was the perfect place to look for direction. The first scholarship golfer in Troy history, Mobley won a remarkable 18 tournaments during his Troy career, including seven during his freshman season.
“Both of our first years at Troy were at the same time and the thing that really stood out to me was that he was able to make All-American as a freshman despite the fact that we were not the best golf team,” Griffin said. “That gave us some good momentum and we were able to have solid back-to-back recruiting classes.”
Those recruiting classes, plus Mobley, led to a pair of NCAA Division II National Championships in 1976 and 1977.
“By the time we got into our third year, we had matured as a team, and with Ronny’s strong leadership plus the quality players he had surrounding him, they became one of the strongest programs in the history of Division II golf,” Griffin said. “It was truly remarkable to watch that.”
His leadership skills carried over later in life as Mobley returned to Troy to coach the team that he once led as a player. He coached the men’s team for two seasons (1985-86) and earned Gulf South Coach of the Year honors both years. A three-time All-Gulf South selection, Mobley held five Troy school records when he took over as head coach, including for single-season stroke average (71.5).
“He had no weaknesses,” Griffin said. “He had a great short game, he had good touch around the greens, his iron play was excellent and he could putt like a demon. When you put that all together, plus his mental approach to the game, you had a complete player.”
Mobley went on to win the Alabama State Amateur Championship following his senior year at Troy before spending two years on the PGA Tour. He played in 16 tournaments on the PGA Tour and made the cut in the majority of them.
Reflecting on Mobley’s career at Troy, one story stuck out more than the rest for Griffin when it came to assessing the impact and leadership that Mobley had on the program.
“Back in those days we had to raise money any way we could to go to certain tournaments and compete against good teams,” Griffin said. “After one of the hurricanes came through, a friend of Ronny had all his corn knocked down and needed to have it picked by hand. We volunteered our services to pick the corn for a nominal fee.
“One of Ronny’s best friends in the whole world and a true freshman got into a little tussling match out there in the corn field and tempers flared. I’m sitting in the pickup truck, and as I’m about to put my hand on the doorknob a blonde-haired flash comes running by me. He grabs one guy in one hand and the other guy in his other hand. He holds them at arm’s length and looks them both in the face and eliminates the problem right there. I took my hand off the doorknob and sat back down in the pickup truck.”
Mobley was inducted in to the Wiregrass Hall of Fame in 2007.
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