The University of Wisconsin women’s golf opened up the year in Ann Arbor, Michigan at the Wolverine Invitational, hosted by the University of Michigan from Sept. 7-8. This historically difficult golf course beat up all teams in attendance, including the Badgers, who posted a team score of 53-over par. Their score led to a ninth place finish, out of 15 teams, while the winners, Kent State, posted a team score of 17-over par.
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Day one, the Badgers were led by Maryland transfer, junior Tammy Wu, who posted the best individual scores in round one and two, shooting two-and four-over par, respectively.
Senior Alexia Siehl and sophomore Lauren Sammon got off to solid starts in round one, shooting three-and four-over par. They finished day one, and their second rounds, with scores of seven-over and five-over par.
Junior Kate Brody, who finished last season with the highest Big Ten Championship finish in Wisconsin women’s golf history, got off to a rough start. She shot an 83, 12-over par. But, she rebounded strong, turning in a four over second round.
True freshman Grace Slocum made the line up for her first collegiate tournament start, and played well, steadily improving each round. She started a little shaky in the first round, shooting 10 over, but followed it up with a five over second round.
After day one, the Badgers found themselves in 11th, while Wu was the lone Badger inside the top 25, in a tie for 21st. Sammon and Siehl worked themselves into the top 50, at 36th and 41st respectively. Slocum was in 66th, while Brody was in 69th.
The Badgers fought hard on day two, which was exciting to see. Wu struggled in round three, falling 12 spots after shooting six over, finishing the tournament 12-over par, in a tie for 33rd. Sammon also struggled, dropping 21 spots after a round of nine over, finishing in a tie for 57th.
Siehl had a great final round behind a one-under second nine, holing two birdies on her way to a 12-spot climb inside the top 30, finishing in a tie 29th. Slocum climbed six spots into a tie for 60th after a four over final round, while Brody climbed four spots into a tie for 65th after a final round of five over.
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As a team, the Badgers clawed their way into a share of ninth on the team leaderboard to finish their first tournament of the season. In as tough a setup as the University of Michigan Golf Course, this was not a bad result at all.
If anything, it was a great chance for young, new and old players to get some experience and break in the new season.
The Badgers now journey back to Madison to host the annual Badger Invitational at University Ridge, from Sept. 14-16. Admission is completely free and open to all Badger fans. It should be a fun week for Badger golf, as it is year after year, while also serving as a great opportunity for the Badgers to go out and compete for an outright win.
Following the Wolverine Invitational, on Sept. 9, the Big Ten named three Wisconsin women’s golfers to the Women’s Golfers to Watch list: Siehl, Brody and sophomore Izzi Stricker. All three Badgers will be playing at the Badger Invitational.