Oscar nominee Taraji P. Henson stars in From The Rough as Tennessee State’s men’s golf coach Catana Starks.
From the Rough is a fitting title to capture the essence of Starks’ story. Taking place at HBCU Tennessee State University in the late 1980s, Starks faces a number of battles in her quest to build a viable program from scratch. Under Starks’ guidance, the Tigers improve, evolve and eventually win a national championship. But the road that the coach and her team travel to reach college golf’s mountaintop is far from easy.
Directed by veteran filmmaker Pierre Bagley, From the Rough could end up being a landmark movie. The fact that Starks coached a men’s team in a sport that historically hasn’t been the most welcoming to women and minorities makes the movie’s story line all the more remarkable. It was about nine years ago when Michael J. Critelli, the executive producer, first heard of Starks’ trailblazing legacy. The more he learned about the legendary coach, the more determined he became to put her story on film.
Starks was a stand-out in the track and field events shotput and discus as a prep athlete in Mobile, Ala. She was also the only female saxophonist in her high school band. As a youngster, she became an expert swimmer who worked as a lifeguard. After teaching and coaching swimming, basketball and golf at Saginaw High School (Mich.) for several years, Starks got an opportunity to teach at Tennessee State, where she also coached the men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams.
The film features Oscar nominee Taraji P. Henson in the lead role as the iconic coach. The cast also includes the late Oscar nominee Michael Clarke Duncan (The Green Mile), Tom Felton (Harry Potter film series), Henry Simmons (NYPD Blue TV series) and LeToya Luckett (Preacher’s Kid, Single Ladies TV series).
Henson’s portrayal of Starks reveals the soul of a woman whose tough-love, no-nonsense approach eventually wins the hearts of her players. In the beginning, though, the players have problems fully accepting Starks as an authority figure that can actually help them. Much of their perception is based on the fact that Starks coached TSU’s swimming and diving teams, but had never coached golf at the college level.
The players soon discover that not only is the new coach determined to build a winning program, but she’s also a feisty quick-study who convincingly gets her points across. While they recognize that Starks is a work-in-progress as far as coaching golf, they come to admire and appreciate her grit, tenacity and passion for the game.
