Newly-minted head coach John Conrad had to get into the swing of things rather quickly.

After new head coach John Szerencsits stepped down right before the start of the 2013 Zephyr golf season, Conrad was tapped to lead the program.

Szerencsits had replaced Curt Beer who guided the program the last two years, Conrad said that since he was a member of the coaching staff, Whitehall Athletic Director Robert Hartman asked him to lead the program.

Conrad is no stranger to the athletic field. He said he's been coaching for 13 years at Whitehall which includes varsity baseball and middle school basketball.

This is his first time coaching golf, but said the game has always been a large part of his life.

"If I had the time and money, I would do it every day," said Conrad.

Now he's trying to impart his passion for golf onto the broader Whitehall athletic community so he can bolster the numbers.

Currently the Zephs have only four student-athletes playing varsity golf this year so Conrad said he needs to do some heavy recruiting. It's part of building a foundation so they can compete on a more level playing field within the Lehigh Valley Conference.

"That's my challenge, and that's to build a program and get kids interested in golf," said Conrad.

Conrad said the key is going to be utilizing the physical education departments throughout the school district to introduce the game of golf. He believes that if you expose them to the game, they'll learn to love it.

"It's really a great game," he said. "As soon as they do play, they'll realize what they're missing."