[media-credit name=’GREGORY DIXON/Herald Photo’ align=’alignnone’ width=’648′][/media-credit]The Badgers men's golf team will be taking a ride on cloud nine all the way to Ann Arbor as it competes in the Wolverine Invitational this weekend. The men will tee off just a few days after winning their first tournament of the year and the program's first since 2004.

The golfers, led by senior Garrett Jones, junior Jeff Kaiser and sophomore Dan Woltman, won the Mid Pines Intercollegiate at Pinehurst Golf Course in Pinehurst, N.C., on Tuesday.

"It's good to get back in the winner's circle," said Kaiser, who hasn't seen a victory since his freshman year. "It's nice to start off the year with a win."

Kaiser, who was tied for eighth place after the first 36 holes, came from behind to finish in first. He shot a career-best seven under par, hitting 209 over 54 holes.

Jones and Woltman also finished in the top 10, placing eighth and ninth respectively.

"To see three guys finish in the top 10 is obviously pretty exciting for our program," UW head coach Jim Schuman said.

Kaiser's first-place finish was the result of the amount of hard work and dedication he has been putting in, according to his coach.

"There's more to that performance than him just playing well," Schuman said. "He's been really committed on and off the golf course for the last year. It's just great to see somebody work that hard on his game, in the weight room, on his academics and to see it finally pay off for him."

Woltman is a new addition to the team this year. A native of Beaver Dam, he played in all 12 tournaments for the University of Kentucky last year before transferring to Wisconsin. Woltman also won the 2006 Wisconsin State Amateur Tournament and is a great addition to Schuman's team.

"Dan is a great fit here at Wisconsin," said Schuman. "He's very comfortable on our team. He's really proud to be here."

Jones, who played in all 36 rounds for the Badgers last year and led the team in scoring with an average of 73.08, will continue to serve as a team leader.

"He led us through a few years where we weren't as deep, and he's going to continue to do that," Schuman said. "Garrett's a great player, a very intelligent player and just continues to add that depth for us."

The men's team will tee off at the Wolverine Invitational this Saturday, playing 36 holes. Play will conclude on Sunday with the final 18 holes.

The field at the Invitational will include 14 teams, including Big Ten foes Iowa, Penn State and defending champions and host school Michigan.

With a victory already under their belts to start the season off on the right foot, the Badgers look to continue their strong play.

"We certainly want to build upon that," said Kaiser of the team's win.

Schuman hopes the team can add another victory this weekend in Ann Arbor.

"We're looking forward to it," he said. "It should be a great event. We can't lose this idea of just getting better each week."

The team had only a few days after their first tournament to prepare for the Wolverine Invitational, but they feel ready.

"We had to work pretty hard mentally to win," Kaiser said, "but I think we'll be ready for Michigan."

Kaiser, Jones, Woltman, and sophomores Tyler Obermueller and Patrick Duffy will be the five golfers competing for the Badgers this weekend. Schuman feels that these five have the ability to help Wisconsin nail down its second tournament victory in a row.

"We're looking to win all our golf tournaments," Schuman said. "That's our No. 1 priority is to go out there and win. We feel like we've got the players able to do that."