By Arantxa Taberneiro
Social Media Coordinator & Sports Writer
Wingate men’s golf opens the season Sept. 14-15 at the Savannah Lakes Invitational at Monticello Golf Course in McCormick, South Carolina.
The Wingate Bulldogs are kicking off the season after having the best season in the program’s history, winning five tournaments and the South Atlantic Conference championship. They advanced to the NCAA Division II national championship, where they lost against Florida Southern and finished as the national runner-up.
For this new season, the team features eight returning players and two freshmen, including honorable mention All-American Mattia D’Errico. However, with the loss of players such as Lewis Beeden, who was the No. 1-ranked golfer in Division II last season, and Alfie Storer, a first-team All-South Atlantic Conference selection and honorable mention PING All-American, the team will need to work on finding suitable replacements to compete at the same level as last year.
Despite the significant loss of players like Storer and Beeden, the team still has eight players who were part of the outstanding 2025-26 season. Therefore, maintaining the same level of performance as last season should not be an impossible task.
Sophomore Mattia D’Errico of Reggio Emilia, Italy, returns to Wingate after finishing his freshman year with a 72.2 scoring average over 18 rounds and placing in the top 15 in five of his six recorded tournaments. D’Errico is one of the players to watch after delivering multiple strong performances for the Bulldogs during his freshman year.
“The team is in a rebuilding phase following several departures, a coaching change and a shift in our overall dynamic,” Wingate senior golfer Matthew Wordon said. “However, the talent and work ethic remain strong. We aren’t feeling any pressure to match last year’s performance. Instead, our young roster is hungry, underestimated and ready to compete. Our expectation is simply to work smarter and harder, knowing the results will follow.”
Another player to watch is freshman Tito von Hessen of Germany, who placed third in the 2026 Triple A Series World Final and also competed in the November 2025 Triple A European Classic with rounds of 71, 72 and 66. Von Hessen has demonstrated at events like the Triple A European Classic that he can play high-level golf, closing out the tournament with a 66 and seven birdies to secure his third consecutive victory.
Max Drott and Alex Alder are also returning to bolster the team this season.
