The men's golf team propelled themselves to a second-place finish at the Gopher Invitational this past weekend with the help of two influential players — Dan Woltman and Danny Zimmerman. The spotlight, however, was nothing new for this dynamic duo. Woltman and Zimmerman also garnered attention after the season opener at the St. Mary's College Invitational where they led the team with the same score of 2 over par.
Zimmerman, a junior transfer student from Illinois, made his presence known in Minnesota last weekend when he tied for first place with a score of 1 under par. Coach Jim Schuman applauded Zimmerman's play.
"He has been pretty solid so far this season, and shooting a 66 and a 70 is incredible at Spring Hill, which is an extremely tough course," Schuman said.
After a fast start, Zimmerman concluded the tournament with a 79 Sunday, causing him to slip from winning outright to settle for a first place tie.
"On Sunday, I made some mistakes I can definitely learn from," Zimmerman said. "I made good, conservative decisions, but I put tentative swings on those shots and made some mistakes that were quite costly."
Not prepared to settle for anything less than excellence, Zimmerman is determined and focused. Continuous improvement is a crucial element in the game of golf, and Zimmerman strives to evolve as an athlete.
"As the season progresses, I’m going to focus on keeping the ball in the fairway from the tee, having a sharp shortgame, and staying patient," Zimmerman said.
Junior captain Woltman also played an active role in determining the first two tournament outcomes. At Spring Hill he was able to secure a spot on the leader board, shooting just 2 over par for the weekend to finish sixth overall in the tournament. The exceptional play by Woltman came as no surprise to Schuman.
"History will tell you that Dan Woltman is typically a consistent player," he said.
Two players, unfortunately, are not enough to secure a team victory in a sport that relies on five players' scores. Coach Schuman is thankful for the contribution the two juniors have made, but realizes how detrimental it is to have overall instability.
"[The play of Woltman and Zimmerman has been] huge thus far since we have not had as much production out of all five guys," Schuman said. "But the reality is we need all five guys to win a tournament."
The team is currently on a two-week break until its next tournament on Oct. 1. Despite the extensive break between tournaments, the UW golfers were all business at practice this week, working diligently on every aspect of their games.
A second-place finish at the Gopher Invitational was a step in the right direction, but the team was "not happy to lose." The Badgers’ main weakness to begin the season has been keeping their play consistent for an entire tournament.
"Last day scoring has not been the best," Schuman said. "We need to focus on doing a better job of finishing back-to-back good days in each tournament."
By having each team member play the course "according to their personal strengths," the team consistency would consequently stabilize, Schuman said.
With an entire season ahead of them, the men's golf team is eager to improve. The fervor is evident in its work ethic. The high expectations are evident in its sole ambition.
"Each week it is our goal to win the golf tournament," Schuman said. "There is no question about that."
Schuman is not the only proponent of victory.
"[A goal of mine] is to put our team in the position to win golf tournaments and to win a Big Ten title," Zimmerman said.