UW Athletic Hall of Fame: Malinda Johnson

BY ANDY BAGGOT
UWBadgers.com Insider

MADISON, Wis. — Malinda Johnson, one of the most accomplished performers in Wisconsin women’s golf history, got a kick out of the unexpected blast from the past.

When she competed for the Badgers from 2000 to ’04, she filled out a media questionnaire that attempted to isolate her likes, dislikes and personal preferences. More than two decades later, some of the questions and her answers made her laugh aloud.

“Friends” or “ER?” Johnson picked “Friends.”

Hobbies? Johnson offered “drawing and sleeping.”

Favorite cartoon character? Johnson went with Bart Simpson.

“Pretty funny. Pretty old,” Johnson said in retrospect.

A more enlightening question for Johnson was this one: What motivates you?

“The desire to be the best,” she said.

You could make a compelling case that Johnson is the best women’s golfer in UW history. She helped lead the Badgers to their first-ever team berth in the NCAA tournament in 2003, was an All-Big Ten Conference first-team pick in 2004 and — at one point — owned the program record for best single-season scoring average (74.20) and the career scoring average (76.20).

“One of the top couple players to play in our program,” Wisconsin coach Todd Oehrlien said of Johnson. “Just unbelievably talented.”

Johnson, a left-hander, had a host of scholarship offers — Indiana, Minnesota, Michigan and Ohio State among them — but tabbed Wisconsin in large part because the legendary Dennis Tiziani was the coach and Johnson’s close friend, Katie Connelly, was there.

“I thought about going somewhere warm,” said Johnson, who won a state team title as a freshman and the state individual crown as a senior at Eau Claire North High School (Wis.). “Ultimately it came down to home state pride.

“I worked very hard for that university. I worked really hard. I wanted to be successful. I took pride in how hard I worked and the tournaments I won and finished high.”

Tiziani stepped down as UW coach after Johnson’s junior year and Todd Oehrlein took over. Oehrlein said taking the reins of a program with someone like Johnson in the mix was a gift. He was especially grateful for her influence and maturity while trying to manage a young team under unfamiliar circumstances.

“That year…