Former Two-Time Golf Award Winner Finds Academic Home

As a two-time winner of the Florida Dairy Farmers Girls’ Golfer-of-the-Year award, Ann Pohira went on to a solid four-year playing career at the University of Florida and epitomized the term “student-athlete.”

While she still enjoys the game of golf, it is no surprise that almost 15 years after her collegiate career ended, Dr. Ann Pohira Vieth finds herself extolling the virtues of education and providing guidance to instructors and students alike at the Strayer University campus in Miramar, Fla.

“I never really realized what a GPA was until my freshman year of high school,” said Vieth, now married to Charles Vieth. “I got a couple of Cs that year and I was really annoyed. I said, ‘This is silly; I’m going to make straight As.’

“It took me a couple of semesters, but by my junior and senior year, I was making straight As. So when I went to college, I didn’t think college was so hard because I had worked so hard to get As in honor roll classes in high school. I had all this extra time in college because you aren’t in school all day, so I was like, ‘Hey, this is nice.’”

As a freshman, Ann was part of UF’s 1995 Southeastern Conference championship team, and as a senior, was a member of a Gator squad that finished as NCAA runnerup. But she was also a three-time (1996-98) Academic All-SEC selection who realized her future was not on the links.

“I started on my first master’s degree right after graduation,” Vieth said. “My major was telecommunications, and I knew that I wasn’t going to work in television or radio. I really didn’t like doing reporting, but I liked the writing part. I thought about sports management because I thought I wanted to coach on the college level. But I found a home in academics, so I just kept going to school. Now I’ve got two master’s degrees and a PhD and am working on another master’s in health services administration.”

Instead of a leaderboard, Vieth has been working her way up the academic ladder.

“My title right now is assistant campus dean, but by mid-October, I anticipate being campus dean,” Vieth said. “There is no campus dean right now at my campus, so it’s just a matter of time.

“I’ve been at the Strayer University Miramar campus since March. I talk to new students and continuing students. I advise students. I have a small staff of only three people, but I have 17 adjunct professors who I oversee and manage directly. We also have about 220 students on this campus.”

She and Charles both enjoy playing golf when they get the chance and live near the same Don Shula golf course where Ann once competed in tournaments as a collegiate golfer. While she does not play nearly as much as she once did, she remembers her competitive playing days with great fondness.

“By the time I was walking, my Dad (John Pohira) had a golf club in my hands,” Vieth said. “My dad has been a member of the PGA now for more than 50 years. He worked every day at his club from dusk to dawn, so I didn’t get to see him that much. A lot of times I was in bed by the time he got home.

“My mom finally decided I should go to the course and hang out with him some, so that’s what I did. One day he said, ‘If you’re going to be here, you might as well hit some balls,’ and that’s how I got started. I won my first tournament when I was five.”

By the time she got to Lake Howell High School, she was one of the top young amateurs in the state. She would go on to earn Girls’ Golfer-of-the-Year honors from the Florida Dairy Farmers as a junior (1992-93) and senior (1993-94), eventually earning a scholarship to Florida.

“I remember the first year really meant a lot because I shot a 65 the second round of the state high school tournament,” Vieth said. “Cristie Kerr had shot a 66 the day before and I ended up tying her. That 65 was the best score I ever shot on a par 72 course, so that was just amazing.”

Kerr eventually went on to a lucrative professional career. She has 14 LPGA wins including the 2010 LPGA title, capping a year in which she became the first U.S. women’s golfer to be ranked No. 1 in the Rolex World Rankings. She is currently ranked No. 2.

Vieth, on the other hand, plays for fun.

“I do still play, but not very often,” she said. “This job has kept me really busy, and I’ve been married about three years now. My priorities with golf have changed.”

This is the second of 12 monthly “Where Are They Now?” features in celebration of the 2011-12 year marking the 20th anniversary of the Florida Dairy Farmers Sports Awards program.

This unique program exemplifies Florida Dairy Farmers’ commitment to the state’s youth and this year will honor the state’s top athletes and coaches in an all-time high 30 FHSAA sanctioned and recognized sports categories. The program also emphasizes to young people the importance of keeping dairy products a primary part of their diet in their overall nutrition plan.