Madison College’s golf team recently finished a successful fall season winning 5 of 7 tournaments, including a win at the Highland 36 tournament.
This team is coached by Glenn Eichstedt and Adam Eichstedt. The father and son duo have recruited and coached their players to one of the most successful fall seasons in program history.
Assistant coach Adam Eichstedt spoke about how the program has grown in the six years that he and his father have been working with the team. In the beginning, recruitment was a challenge.
“We started with only two to three guys in the beginning,” Adam Eichstedt said. Head coach Glenn Eichstedt took an active role in recruiting players for the team. They recruited talented golfers from area high schools. Since they couldn’t offer scholarships because of their Division III status, a hands-on method was needed to find talented players for the team. This saw coaches dedicating much time to coaching talented golfers into ones who could win on the course.
Recently the golf team made the move to competing in Division II, which made scholarship a possibility but increased the level of competition. From the results, it’s obvious the team was ready for the challenge.
“We accepted the challenge that comes with moving to a higher division,” Adam Eichstedt said, adding that “there are challenges every year.”
He elaborated that some challenges come from recruiting players who are living away from home for the first time. Practicing strict time management to balance school and sport is something that is taught to players.
While speaking on the level of competition that he was looking forward to in Division II, he mentioned Black Hawk College, Highland College and Bryant & Stratton College.
The golf team plays both a fall and spring season, with the national tournament happening in the spring semester.
Adam Eichstedt said his goal for this team is to reach the national tournament.
The spring season starts in March and includes tournaments in Eau Claire, Edgewood and Janesville.