The UC Santa Barbara Athletics Department is excited to announce the addition of Chris Massoletti as the new head men’s golf coach, Kelly Barsky, Interim Director of Athletics, announced today.

“It is with great excitement that we welcome Chris to UC Santa Barbara,” Barsky said. “He is a student-athlete-focused, service-oriented coach and leader with exceptional experience and demonstration of success on and off the green at a variety of levels including his most recent stop at UC Berkeley. We are beyond thrilled that Chris has accepted our offer to become a Gaucho. Please join me in welcoming Chris to Santa Barbara and Gaucho Golf!”

Massoletti comes to Santa Barbara from UC Berkeley, serving as an assistant men’s golf coach with the team for the last three seasons. During his time with the Golden Bears, he coached six Academic All-Americans, three All-PAC-12 selections, and one individual who secured a tournament victory. He also assisted the team to seven top-10 finishes across 12 tournaments.  Not only did Massoletti make an impact on the green, but he pushed the program to new heights through his recruiting efforts as the team’s primary recruiting coordinator.

“I am extremely honored and humbled to have been given this opportunity to lead the Gauchos. I want to thank Kelly, Sandra Featherson and Matt English for their belief in me and my vision for the future of this program,” Massoletti said. “UCSB is an outstanding university with a proud and honored past in academics and athletics. I look forward to continuing that tradition in recruiting and mentoring high-quality young men who will not only succeed on the course but as well as the classroom. I can’t thank Coach Walter Chun and the Cal Golf Committee enough for the past three years. I have learned so much from him and the Cal family and I am ready to bring that knowledge to UCSB and the Santa Barbara community. I am ready to hit the ground running.”

Prior to his time at Cal, Massoletti served as the assistant men’s golf coach at the University of New Mexico, where he assisted in coaching the Mountain West Conference Champions in 2019. Along with this accolade, Massoletti coached an individual Mountain West Conference Champion while developing one All-American, six All-Mountain West selections, one Mountain West Freshman of the Year, and six Academic All-Americans.

During his three seasons with the Lobos, the team made it to NCAA Regionals twice. They did not just excel on the green, but the Lobos were phenomenal in the classroom. Massoletti helped the team have the highest GPA in Division I men’s golf, earning them the Academic National Championship by the Golf Coaches Association of America.

Before coaching at New Mexico, Massoletti was the head men’s and women’s golf coach at Saint Mary’s University in Texas. During his tenure, he led his teams to multiple NCAA appearances, with the men’s team making it all three years and the women’s team making it for the first time since 2007. Along with the team’s accolades, Massoletti coached one Heartland Conference Freshman of the Year, seven All-Heartland Conference selections and two All-Region athletes.

Massoletti began his career as the Director of Instruction at Teravista Golf Club in Round Rock, Texas, before becoming a volunteer assistant coach with the St. Edward’s University’s golf team. He also played golf on multiple professional tours prior to his coaching career.

As a student-athlete, Massoletti began his career at California State University Chico, where he received All-America honors as a sophomore. He was also named Male Athlete of the Year at Chico. For his final two seasons, he transferred to Texas A&M, where he lettered in golf for two seasons. He also earned the Bob Ellis Team Leader Award and received Scholar-Athlete recognition in three of his four semesters. He graduated from Texas A&M in 2008 with his bachelor’s in agricultural leadership.

Massoletti will officially begin in his new role on August 1.