When the position of Triton head golf coach became available prior to the 2006 season, all Rich Dube knew was that he loved playing the sport with his buddies down at Ould Newbury.
“By no means was I a swing coach,” joked Dube. “I just loved to play.”
That’s why, even today, when people ask him how he got the job all those years ago, he still can’t give a straight answer. He had started teaching business and math at the school a few years prior, and when the position opened, he thought he might as well throw his name into the mix.
Well, he got the job.
And now, 16 years later, Dube is retiring from both coaching golf and teaching after what can only be described as one of the most successful runs in program history. The overall record of 218-63 speaks for itself, but what can’t be measured with wins and losses is the countless lives of Triton golfers that Dube impacted for the better over his legendary tenure.
“It was a great ride,” said Dube. “I really enjoyed all of the relationships that I had with all of the players and all of the coaches I got to work with over the years. It’s been such a blast.
“Like I said, I never thought I’d actually be a golf coach, but I’m very thankful for how great these last 16 years have been.”
Dube loved Triton golf, and Triton golf loved Dube right back.
At the team’s end-of-season banquet a couple of months ago, tons of former players returned for a surprise ceremony, and many more helped to organize a video tribute to verbalize their thanks for Dube’s mentorship and guidance.
“I was shocked quite frankly,” said Dube. “You know, it almost brought me to tears, in fact I think it probably did. It was just a really, really touching moment. To be able to have some impact on the kids over the years is pretty humbling. All of those years I was doing it because it was fun and I enjoyed being with the team.”
Dube and his wife, Debbie, will be retiring down to Plymouth, where you can bet he’ll be picking up the clubs a lot more.
But he’ll also bring with him a career-full of cherished memories.
Besides his sparkling win-loss record, Triton won seven CAL titles and seven River Rival tournaments under Dube. There was also the 32-match CAL winning streak spanning from 2006-09, the Division 3 North championship in 2012 and, of course, the 2007 season when former Triton great Cam Kneeland — who played for three seasons in the Baltimore Orioles minor league system — won the Division 2 individual state championship. Most recently, the Vikings went a program-best 18-0 in 2019 with current Bryant golfer and three-time Daily News MVP Cael Kohan leading the way.
No memory ranks above the rest for Dube, but a few stand out.
“Back in 2012 when we won the D3 North title, we actually beat Weston, who was the gold standard for golf in Mass. at the time,” recalled Dube. “And it was a shock really because we did it with a bunch of underclassmen, and we beat them by like 15 strokes at Hillview (GC).
“I think we had three of the top five scorers that day. Our No. 1 player was John Seward, and we also had Kyle Hillick and Ryan Perelli who were outstanding.
“And yeah early on when we started, Cam Kneeland winning the state individual title in 2007 was huge for us. He’s the only player from Triton to ever do that, and he beat kids that were on D1 college scholarships. That team also had Andrew Fecteau, and he actually plays for the Armed Services golf team.”
Triton hasn’t named a new golf coach yet, but Dube made sure he wasn’t “leave the cupboard dry,” on the way out.
The Vikings are coming off a successful 13-3 season, and are primed to do big things in 2022. Daily News MVP Ricky Gardella will be a senior, as will fellow All-Stars Connor Houlihan, Braeden McDonald and Griffin Houlihan.
But whoever takes over will certainly have big shoes to fill.
Dube has been a staple at Triton for over a decade-and-a-half, and he leaves behind both a legacy of winning golf, and compasionate leadership.
“It’s been a fun ride,” said Dube. “I loved every minute of it.”
Dube By The Numbers
Year Record Avg. Points
2006 12-4 134.7
2007 16-2 156.0
2008 16-0 158.0
2009 10-6 144.1
2010 12-5 135.6
2011 10-10 129.8
2012 15-5 145.6
2013 17-3 156.2
2014 16-4 154.6
2015 15-5 132.4
2016 12-8 118.4
2017 15-3 111.9
2018 14-4 127.0
2019 18-0 137.8
2020 7-1 135.4
2021 13-3 127.8