For most high school golfers, the process of finding a place to play college golf is a process that takes months, if not years, from start-to-finish.
And then there is Josh Koszarek.
The Waterford senior waited until after Christmas to start his search. It ended two months later when Koszarek, a three-time WIAA Division 1 sectional qualifier who tied for 32nd at the 2019 state tournament, announced he will attend Madison College this fall and golf for WolfPack coach Glenn Eichstedt.
"The process was very short-lived," Koszarek wrote in an email interview with Wisconsin.Golf. "In fact, it happened over the course of a few months with the first call being made in the middle of January of this year. From that call, Coach Eichstedt continued to reach out to (me) ... explaining the opportunities of playing golf at Madison College."
With the prospect of losing his senior season of boys golf at Waterford due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Koszarek saw this as an opportunity to extend his golf career and take advantage of Madison College's guaranteed transfer program with the University of Wisconsin in Madison after two years. UW was one of two schools Koszarek was exploring — UW-Milwaukee was the other — before entertaining the idea of packaging golf with a two-year degree.
Koszarek said he is leaning toward a degree in business, but admits his academic goals are "still in flux." He is intrigued by classes he is taking in computer programming and finance and thinks Madison College will give him the flexibility to sample different courses of study before his transfer to UW.
"Madison College is a great place to try things out and feel free to fail at (one) venture because I will not be paying an arm and a leg to change paths," Koszarek wrote. "I have a lot in flux right now, but (I) feel Madison College is a good decision for my current needs."
In the meantime, Koszarek figures to be a welcome addition to a WolfPack program that only had one second-year student on its six-player roster during the 2019-20 season. The team averaged 328.1 in nine events last fall, led by freshman A.J. Gray of Milton, who averaged 79.3 over 15 rounds.
Koszarek, who finished third to current Bucknell University freshman Blake Wisdom of Lake Geneva Badger at last year's Southern Lakes Conference Championship, ranks 34th among the Class of 2020 boys in the Wisconsin.Golf junior rankings. He tied for 44th last summer at the WSGA Junior Championship after finishing tied for 21st in 2018.
"When Coach Eichstedt initially reached out to me, he proclaimed his ambitions of continually going to nationals and possibly winning," Koszarek said. "My goals for being part of the team are to become a leader and help the team accomplish those goals. While visiting, I noticed the coaches were invested into their team and very knowledgable about the game.
"I plan on working hard, being a positive energy and contributing to the team's goals."
