High school championship girls golf coach Hughes passes

Vicki Jo Hughes, one of the most successful high school golf coaches in Oklahoma, passed away March 6 after a battle with cancer.

Hughes, a 2024 inductee into the Oklahoma High School Golf Coaches Hall of Fame, won six state championships during a career that included stints at Muskogee (1996-2008), Jenks (2008-2011), Union (20110-13) and then back to Jenks 2014 to 2023. She won state titles at Jenks in 2009 and 2010, Union in 2012 and 2013 and Jenks in 2022 and 2023. She also led her teams to two state runnerup finishes and 16 regional titles.

You can read her obituary here.

Hughes was a talented basketball player growing up and played for the NJCAA national champion Connors State team in 1985. She was inducted into the Connors State Hall of Fame as part of that team in 2012 and individually in 2024.

Hughes was named the OSSAA Coach of the Year in 2022-23.

Her long-time friend Janet Miller, one of the most accomplished amateur golfers in the state, said the golf world would miss Hughes.

“She was a great coach and this is a big loss for the golf community,” said Miller. “She did a lot of wonderful things for her players off the course as well as on.”

Despite battling illness, Hughes was able to attend and accept her award at the Oklahoma High School Golf Coaches Hall of Fame Jan. 17 at Elks Country Club in Shawnee.