Heading into the 2009-10 season, the UW men’s golf team is trying to improve upon last year’s 10th place finish in the Big Ten.

A major question mark surrounding this year’s team is whether or not the Badgers can be successful having lost four seniors, most notably Dan Woltman, who set a school record for season scoring average of 72.68.

According to head coach Jim Schuman, replacing the Badgers’ top performer will have to be a team effort.

“I think all of them [have to contribute],” Schuman said. “You’re not going to replace a guy with a scoring average like that with one player.”

One of the players looking to fill in for Woltman, at least from a leadership standpoint, is Jordan Elsen. The senior from Kenosha feels he has to be a role model for the younger players on the team.

“I’m the one who sets the examples,” Elsen said. “I see myself as the leader and the motivator to push the young guys to better their games and get to the next level.

“I haven’t gotten to the level where I wanted to be these last three years and this summer I’ve taken some steps in the right direction in my game,” he continued.

The team enters the season with four true freshmen, one redshirt freshman and only two seniors. Nevertheless, despite the team’s youth, Schuman isn’t worried about the team’s ability to perform.

“The team is young but I would not say inexperienced,” Schuman said. “I mean it’s all golf. I’ve seen these guys play and they are very good players.”

One of the team’s top recruits this year, freshman Michael Sorenson, agreed with his coach’s notion.

“I’m not concerned with the inexperience, myself,” Sorenson said. “I just treat it as another round of golf.”

With the lack of experience and the fact the team has not yet played in its first tournament, it’s unclear who will step up and fill the void left by the departed seniors. Despite this reality, Schuman expects big things from all his players.

“Our younger players are not only nationally ranked, but also have a lot of national experience so we look for those guys to come in and contribute right away,” Schuman said. “There’s going to be some growing pains and anytime that you’re young I think that happens in any sport. It’s golf and it’s nothing new to these young guys who are coming in to play, so we expect big things out of them right away.”

The Badgers start the season with the Gopher Invitational, where they placed sixth last year .]

“It’s a difficult golf course,” Schuman said. “For our young guys we have to figure out how they are going to get around this course the best way possible.”

Elsen, who finished 26th in last year’s Gopher invitational, feels comfortable on the course and knows what to expect come tournament time.

“It’s a ball-striker’s golf course which works out well for me,” Elsen said. “It’s really all about being patient out there and not trying to force anything.”

Coming off a 10th place finish last season and losing four seniors, the lack of experience is a valid concern for the team. Regardless, Schuman and the Badgers have high expectations and are looking for improvements throughout the tournament.

“We go into every tournament expecting to win,” Schuman said. “If we’re making steady improvements each year, that’s what we’re looking for. We can’t afford to go week after week and make the same mistakes.”