Saint John's golf starts its 2026-27 season this Sunday-Monday, Sept. 13-14, at Wisconsin-Eau Claire's Frank Wrigglesworth Blugold Invitational. – Live Scoring

TEE TIMES
-1:30 p.m. Sunday at Eau Claire Golf & Country Club (par 71)
-9 a.m. Monday at Wild Ridge G.C. (par 72)

NEW ERA: Former Saint John's All-American Casey Vangsness '14 was announced as the Johnnies' new head golf coach June 30. He has served as the lead instructor at Swedberg Golf Academy in his hometown of Alexandria, Minn., since December 2024 and was the head golf professional at Minnewaska Golf Club in Glenwood, Minn., from 2020 to 2024. 

Prior to those positions, Vangsness was the assistant golf professional at Minneapolis Golf Club (2018) and at Minnewaska G.C. (2017). He also served as an assistant coach at SJU during the 2016-17 season.

During his own career with the Johnnies, Vangsness was a two-time Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA) All-American, the 2011 GCAA Region Freshman of the Year and a GCAA All-Region selection all four years. He was the 2011 MIAC Freshman of the Year and the MIAC Player of the Year as a senior in 2014. 

Vangsness is one of only three Johnnies (Sammy Schmitz '03 and Sam Berger '24) to finish in the top 10 at the MIAC Championship all four of their years in the program.

He is second in program history with seven tournament wins, third with 94 career rounds played and seventh with an .837 winning percentage (a 2,860-555 head-to-head record). Vangsness ended his career sixth in program history with a 74.71 scoring average (and is now still 11th).

Vangsness was a member of two MIAC championship teams (2010, 2013) and three NCAA tournament teams: 2011 (third place), 2013 (sixth place) and 2014 (15th). Individually, he finished 36th (+13) over four rounds at nationals in 2011, 22nd (+13) in 2013 and 25th (+12) in 2014. Vangsness became the seventh Johnnie golfer to earn first-team All-American honors in 2013 and was All-American honorable mention in 2014.

He has eight professional wins within the Minnesota PGA Section.

THE 2026-27 JOHNNIES: Junior Gavin Grahek (Maple Grove, Minn.) returns after earning Golf Coaches' Association of America (GCAA) All-Region honors last season. He finished with All-MIAC honorable mention laurels despite posting a better national ranking (No. 105) than four of the five MIAC at-large selections. He led SJU in scoring average (74.4 in 25 rounds), rounds at par or better (5), top-five finishes (2) and top-10 finishes (4) in 2025-26. Grahek's scoring average was good for 12th in the MIAC. He is currently 12th in program history with a 74.7 average in 49 career rounds.

Senior Nate Appelhof (Blaine, Minn./Totino-Grace) looks to add on to a solid 2025-26 campaign where he finished with a 75.8 average through 25 rounds. Sophomore Austin Roloff (Minneapolis, Minn./Spring Lake Park) teed off his freshman season earning first with a 69 and 74 (-1) at the Augsburg Invitational to go along with his trio of top-10 finishes. Roloff compiled a 76.0 average in 27 rounds. Sophomore Braxton Berlin (Lake City, Minn.) recorded a 77.3 average in 18 rounds last season. Berlin shot his best, a 73 (+1) and 70 (-1), at the SJU Spring Invitational in April.  

THIS WEEKEND'S LINEUPS
SJU Red
1. Grahek
2. Appelhof
3. Roloff
4. Andrus
5. Berlin

SJU Blue
1. Fogarty
2. Ehmke
3. O'Hara
4. Timmons
5. Walther

WHO WILL BE THERE: The Johnnies and host Blugolds are scheduled to be joined this weekend by Augsburg, Bethel, Carleton, Central (Iowa), Dubuque (Iowa), Grinnell (Iowa), No. 23 Gustavus Adolphus, No. 4 Illinois Wesleyan, Lake Forest (Ill.), St. Olaf, Wisconsin-Stevens Point, Wisconsin-Stout and Wisconsin-Superior.

LAST YEAR'S TOURNEY: Grahek earned his first medalist honor as the Johnnies finished third out of 22 teams at last year's Frank Wrigglesworth Blugold Invitational on Sept. 14-15 (2025).

Then-No. 4 Illinois Wesleyan recorded the final round's best score – a 4-over par 288 – to take first place with a two-round score of 585 (+17). The Titans' second team aptly claimed second place with a 593 (+25), followed by SJU (+28, 596), Wisconsin-Stout (+30, 598) and the host Blugolds (+32, 600). St. Olaf was the MIAC's next-best team in sixth at 601 (+33).

The Johnnies' varsity finished second in the tournament on the par-5 holes (-6) and total birdies (24).

Grahek went -2 in his final 11 holes to finish with a 1-over par 72 and a two-day total of 141 (-1) to claim medalist honors out of 120 golfers by one shot. For the tournament, Grahek was -4 on the par-5 holes, +1 on the par-4's and tied for second with seven birdies.

Tim Fultz '26 posted the Johnnies' next-best score in the final round – a 3-over par 74 – to tie for 37th at 153 (+11) and Appelhof tied for 27th (+9, 151).

Roloff tied for 49th (+13, 155) and Gus Briguet '26 posted a 4-over par 75 in the final round to boost him into a tie for 58th (+14, 156).

Berlin and junior Charlie Willette (Eden Prairie, Minn.) led SJU Blue, which finished 20th at 633 (+65), with a 77 (+6) each. Sophomore Lukas Ehmke (Woodbury, Minn./East Ridge) was Blue's top placer in a tie for 49th (+13, 155).

THE REST OF THE SCHEDULE: SJU follows this weekend's season-opening tournament with the Minnesota Gold Classic, hosted by Bethel, Sept. 20-21, at Pioner Creek G.C. in Maple Plain before hosting its annual Fall Invitational, Sept. 26-27, at St. Cloud C.C. in St. Cloud and Blackberry Ridge G.C. in Sartell. The Johnnies tee off at the Twin Cities Classic, hosted by Gustavus Adolphus, Oct. 3-5, at Elk River C.C., Le Sueur C.C. and Minnesota Valley C.C. (Bloomington). SJU competes for the 2026 MIAC championship Oct. 10-12 at Edinburgh G.C. in Brooklyn Park before wrapping the fall schedule Oct. 18-20 at the Golfweek October Classic in Destin, Fla.  

SJU'S COURSE RECORDS
Eau Claire C.C.; Eau Claire, Wis. (par 71) 
-2 - Joe Schoolmeesters, UW-Eau Claire Invitational (Sept. 21, 2008) 
-1 - Gavin Grahek, UW-Eau Claire Invitational (Sept. 13, 2025) 
-1 - Nathan Proshek, UW-Eau Claire Invitational (Sept. 22, 2003) 
-1 - Josh Sherlin, UW-Eau Claire Invitational (Sept. 22, 2003) 
E - Ben Vangsness, UW-Eau Claire Invitational (Sept. 27, 2009) 
E - Joe Schoolmeesters, UW-Eau Claire Invitational (Sept. 23, 2006) 
E - Andrew Longbella, UW-Eau Claire Invitational (Sept. 26, 2004) 
E - Kyle Fredrickson, UW-Eau Claire Invitational (Sept. 22, 2002)