01 Jul 2023 A Golden Legacy

By Mary Eggart

Coaches have the unique ability to positively affect their players’ lives in ways that are often unparalleled, and Phillip Golden, head baseball coach of Wonderview Schools, is no exception. After 27 years in education and coaching, Golden brought his impressive career to a close this school year and Wonderview will forever be grateful for his contributions that transformed their baseball program and enhanced the lives of student athletes.

Golden has been with the district for seven years. Prior to that, he worked for the Greenbrier School District for 21 years. While working for Wonderview, he made a remarkable impact on the district as a whole. In 2019, Golden took the Daredevils to the state tournament for the first time in school history. Additionally, this past season, the baseball team finished with their best record in school history at 18-8. They also won the Daredevil Classic for the first time, beating the Class A state runner-up Mount Ida in the finals and won the Class A Regional Tournament.

“I’ve told every player on every team I ever coached that it’s not how you handle it when things are going good, it’s how you handle things when they’re going bad. That reveals your true character,” Golden said regarding his coaching style and philosophy. When faced with adversity from an opposing team, he always told his players, “Make them earn it. If teams were better than us, we may not win, but make them beat us; don’t give them anything.”

Golden said what he enjoyed most about coaching was the young men he had had the pleasure of getting to know over the years. He enjoys running into them years later in a store with their wife or kids and reliving a memory together. “There’s nothing like that,” he said. He places tremendous value on the relationships he formed with the men and women he met in the coaching world. “I was lucky I only coached at two schools, and in both situations I became good friends with the guys I coached with. I still hang out with the guys who were on the staff the first year I became a coach. We have been close all of our coaching lives and continue to be close to this day. We are truly a family, and I wouldn’t trade those experiences for anything.”

Coach Golden will be remembered for his vision as an innovator. “Coach Golden is a builder. He has built an impressive complex that the Daredevil Community is very proud of and is arguably the nicest complex in Class A,” said Dr. Jamie Stacks, superintendent of Wonderview Schools. “The improvements have not just been made on the field but all over the complex, and he has stamped it all with stickers, emblems and Daredevil Pride. He has built a baseball program that athletes want to be a part of and does not settle for just playing, but competing at the state level. He has built a team that pushed each other and themselves to achieve more than they thought possible and not settle for less. Simply put, Coach Golden has made Wonderview baseball a force to be reckoned with and has truly started a tradition of excellence.”

Golden’s impact can most notably be seen in the words of his players. “Coach Golden is a great coach who taught us more than just how to play baseball but also a strong work ethic and what it means to be a great man,” senior Tyler Gottsponer said. 

“He took a program known for being bad and turned it into a successful one in just a few years,” senior Sam Reynolds said. “His dedication to the game and his players is admirable and inspirational.”