Former Badger Named To Staff
August 28, 2007 | Men's Golf
Brian Brodell, a former Wisconsin golfer, has been named assistant men's golf coach, head coach Jim Schuman announced today.
'We are very excited to have Brian as the new assistant golf coach and a member of our Badger family,' said Coach Schuman. 'Having played at Wisconsin, he understands what we are trying to accomplish with our golf program. Brian's talents as a player and a teacher will be tremendous assets in the development of our student athletes. '
'This will be my first year coaching at UW,' said Brodell. 'I 'm excited to work with Jim (Schuman) and help the men's golf team continue to improve. He's an accomplished player and a great teacher and I am looking forward to this opportunity.'
After Brodell graduated from high school in 2001, he went on to compete for the Badgers in 2001-05, and graduated in December 2005 with a degree in political science.
He won the Wisconsin State Amateur Tournament in 2003 and was named the 1999 High School Player of the Year and the 2000 PGA Junior Player of the Year.
After his four years of eligibility, the Hortonville, Wis. native turned professional and has amassed numerous top five finishes in various tournaments.
He finished 11th at the 2007 Wisconsin State Open a few weeks ago and has qualified for the National Assistants Tournament the past two years.
Prior to coming back to coach at Wisconsin, Brodell worked at Butte Des Morts Country Club in Appleton, Wis. where his father is also a teaching professional.
'It is different teaching amateur players who just want to improve their game, ' explained Brodell. 'They don't have time to thoroughly correct their game; they just want the quick-fix, compared to college players who have goals of playing at the next level.'
His love for the golf program is what ultimately brought him to Wisconsin first as a player, and now as a coach. 'We have a great program, a great school for academics, and the Big Ten atmosphere in Madison can't be beat.'
Brodell's goals for the Badger golf program are to help grow the program to one of powerhouse status. 'Look at the strong programs at schools in the south. They don't have to do much recruiting because players want to go to those universities. That's what we need to happen here.'
'I really want to work on bringing the top player from the state of Wisconsin here to play for us (UW),' said Brodell. 'We finished last season at #35 in the nation, and I see our program getting better. Getting to regionals last year was a big step for the program. The guys have played some great golf this summer, and I think we 're going to be solid this year.'
