Five things to know: Badgers head out west for Big Ten Championships

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Five things to know: Badgers head out west for Big Ten Championships

April 30, 2026 | Men's Golf

UW seeks fourth Big Ten title in program history

By: Charlie Parent

MADISON, Wis. — The Wisconsin men's golf team tees off the 2026 Big Ten Championships on Friday at the Pumpkin Ridge Golf Course in North Plains, Oregon.

Redshirt freshman Drew Sacia will lead UW out at 1:10 p.m. CT, while Jason Shwartz, Charles Erlandson, Jacob Beckman and Spencer Turtz will follow in 10-minute intervals. Sophomore William Harned travelled as the alternate.

Fans can follow the action on @BadgerMens golf on Instagram and @BadgerMGolf on X, or find live results on Scoreboard. Live coverage of Sunday's final round will be on Big Ten Network, starting at 4:30 p.m. CT on May 3. Rick Pizzo and Eric Ciotti have the call, accompanied by Emma Carpenter on the course.

1. BIG TEN BALL: The Badgers seek their fourth Big Ten title this weekend and first since a back-to-back run across the 1992-94 seasons. UW has finished top-10 at Big Tens in all four seasons under head coach Mike Wilson, including taking third in 2022-23. Wisconsin finished sixth last season, led by Jacob Beckman's 12th-place performance. William Harned and Charles Erlandson also competed in last year's tournament, finishing 23rd and 72nd, respectively, in their freshman campaigns.

2. FROM U-RIDGE TO PUMPKIN RIDGE: UW packed up their bags from University Ridge and made the 2,000 mile trip out west to Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club. This Ridge is a two-time U.S. Women's Open host, and has a storied history on the LPGA tour. It's UW's first trip to the Pacific Northwest since the 2015-16 season, where they played the Willamette Valley Golf Club in Oregon. Pumpkin Ridge's style traditionally suits Wisconsin's game as it puts a premium on hitting fairways, while distance can be punished.

3. SHWARTZ LEADING THE LINE: Redshirt freshman Jason Shwartz comes in as UW's highest-rated golfer, earning two top-15 finishes this spring. He came in 14th at the season-opening Puerto Rico Classic, shooting nine-under against a loaded field. The Floridian then earned a career-best fifth-place at the Pay it Forward Collegiate in Arizona, going -5 on the card. After taking the fall and last spring off due to injury, Shwartz's immediate impact did not come unexpectedly. A former top-30 recruit in his high school class, he began his collegiate career with a bang at the Badger Invitational, finishing fifth at -4.

4. EXPERIENCE IN PAIRS: Senior Spencer Turtz and grad student Jacob Beckman will tee off their final postseason on Friday. Beckman will make his 32nd career start, while Turtz has featured in the lineup 23 times. Beckman has finished in the top-15 at the Big Ten Championships in consecutive seasons. He highlighted the 2025-26 campaign with a top-20 at the Gopher Invitational, and a pair of 27th-place finishes at the Schenkel Invitational and Fallen Oak Invitational. Turtz had his best showing of the year at the Schenkel Invitational, coming in 19th at two-under. He also came in 29th at the Bryson and Badger Invitationals, 33rd at the Pay it Forward Collegiate and 34th at the Marquette Intercollegiate.

5. PROVIDING A SPARK: Redshirt sophomore Charles Erlandson makes his second-straight start at Big Tens after starting in eight events for the Badgers this year. He tied with Turtz at the Schenkel, coming in 19th-place at -2 for a season-high finish. Redshirt freshman Drew Sacia rounds out the Badger lineup making his first career start at the Big Ten Championships. He's made one start this season, coming at the Schenkel, but has competed three times individually, including a 24th-place finish at the Minnesota Golf Classic.