University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Tuesday, September 22
Westchester, Ill.
7:00 a.m.
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns
at
Highlands Invitational
Windy Conditions Hamper Louisiana At Highlands Invitational
9/22/2026 8:59:00 PM | Golf
Cajuns look to bounce back beginning on Sunday at Argent Financial Classic
WESTCHESTER, Ill. – UL's golf team struggled with windy conditions for the second straight day Tuesday, finishing with a 15-over-par 303 and finishing ninth of 12 teams in the final round of the Chicago Highlands Invitational.
The Ragin' Cajuns, who had finished fourth in a strong field in the same tournament one year ago, but had their second straight disappointing round. UL had opened with a two-under-par 286 in Monday's morning round but slipped back to eighth place after a 13-over 301 in the afternoon round.
The Cajuns finished at 890, 26-over in three trips around the 7,349-yard par-72 Chicago Highlands Golf Club layout. Host East Tennessee State won the event with a 21-under-par 843 score, one shot ahead of defending champion Wake Forest who had the lowest team round of the tournament, a 19-under 269, in Tuesday's final round.
"It was windier and colder today," said Cajun coach Theo Sliman, "and obviously the conditions showed. The scores were a challenge for most of the teams, but we didn't handle the challenge well.
"The greens were extremely fast, and with the wind it was tough to make even three-footers, and our guys let it get to them. I saw a lot of frustration and some very timid play. They weren't playing with aggression and belief like I know they can."
Sophomore James Holtsclaw, who opened with a pair of even-par 72's on Monday, battled back from four straight bogeys on the front nine to shoot two-under over his final 12 holes. His two-over 74 put him tied for 15th individually at two-over 218.
Fourth-year senior Carter Schmitt, who opened with a team-low 69 in Monday's morning round, had two birdies, one on the par-five 18th, to finish at 76 and with a six-over 294 and a tie for 32nd in the 12-team tournament. Freshman Jack Carter had a final-round 78 to finish at 10-over 226 and in a tie for 52nd, while fourth-year senior Ellis Bright – UL's leader and a top-four finisher in last week's season-opening Sandestin Collegiate – had the team's second lowest round of the day at 75 and finished tied for 58th at 228.
Sophomore Drew Sliman also finished tied for 58th after a final-round 79 Tuesday, while Jay Brooks finished 72nd after a final-round 78.
Two-round leader Erik Tjarnberg of East Tennessee State tied for Tuesday's low round, shooting 7-under 65 to finish with a 202 total and winning the individual title by three strokes over Wake Forest's Jorge Hao, who also shot 65 in the final round. Eastern Michigan finished third as a team behind ETSU and Wake and had the only other sub-par tournament finish, shooting three-under 861 for a 10-stroke advantage over fourth-place Toledo (+7).
"It'll be interested to see what we learn from this," Sliman said, "and see how they apply what we've learned in our next event. I still have a lot of belief in this group, but we have a lot of mistakes to work on and everyone's looking forward to getting home and fixing those mistakes."
The Cajuns return to action for their third tournament in less than three weeks Sunday, beginning play against a 13-team field in the annual Argent Financial Classic at Squire Creek Country Club in Choudrant just outside of Ruston. UL finished sixth in a 17-team field last year in the three-day event hosted by Sun Belt Conference member Louisiana Tech.
Chicago Highlands Invitational – Final Results
Sept. 21-22, 2026
Chicago Highlands Golf Club (7,349 yards, par 72), Westchester, Ill.
Team Standings: 1. East Tennessee State 277-284-282—843 (-21); 2. Wake Forest 294-281-269—844 (-20); 3. Eastern Michigan 286-281-294—861 (-3); 4. Toledo 282-302-287—871 (+7); T5. Coastal Carolina 283-301-290—874 (+10); T5. Maryland 292-292-290—874 (+10); T7. Charleston 297-288-292—877 (+13); T7. Indiana 285-299-293—877 (+13); 9. Louisiana 286-301-303—890 (+26); 10. Western Carolina 297-303-299—899 (+35); T11. Southern Illinois 304-297-302—903 (+39); T11. North Alabama 292-306-305—903 (+39).
Individual Leaders: 1. Erik Tjarnberg, East Tennessee State, 70-67-65—202 (-14); 2. Jorge Hao, Wake Forest, 71-69-65—205 (-11); T3. Arsit Areephun, Eastern Michigan, 68-70-71—209 (-7); T3. Veigar Heidersson, East Tennessee State, 70-69-70—209 (-7); T5. Sage Bradhsaw, Wake Forest, 71-71-69—211 (-5); T5. Emil Riegger, Maryland, 74-67-70—211 (-5)
UL Scores: T15. James Holtsclaw 72-72-74—218 (+2); T32. Carter Schmitt 69-77-76—222 (+6); T52. Jack Carter 74-74-78—226 (+10); T58. Ellis Bright 75-78-75—228 (+12); T58. Drew Sliman 71-78-79—228 (+12); 72. Jay Brooks (individual) 83-80-78—241 (+25).
The Ragin' Cajuns, who had finished fourth in a strong field in the same tournament one year ago, but had their second straight disappointing round. UL had opened with a two-under-par 286 in Monday's morning round but slipped back to eighth place after a 13-over 301 in the afternoon round.
The Cajuns finished at 890, 26-over in three trips around the 7,349-yard par-72 Chicago Highlands Golf Club layout. Host East Tennessee State won the event with a 21-under-par 843 score, one shot ahead of defending champion Wake Forest who had the lowest team round of the tournament, a 19-under 269, in Tuesday's final round.
"It was windier and colder today," said Cajun coach Theo Sliman, "and obviously the conditions showed. The scores were a challenge for most of the teams, but we didn't handle the challenge well.
"The greens were extremely fast, and with the wind it was tough to make even three-footers, and our guys let it get to them. I saw a lot of frustration and some very timid play. They weren't playing with aggression and belief like I know they can."
Sophomore James Holtsclaw, who opened with a pair of even-par 72's on Monday, battled back from four straight bogeys on the front nine to shoot two-under over his final 12 holes. His two-over 74 put him tied for 15th individually at two-over 218.
Fourth-year senior Carter Schmitt, who opened with a team-low 69 in Monday's morning round, had two birdies, one on the par-five 18th, to finish at 76 and with a six-over 294 and a tie for 32nd in the 12-team tournament. Freshman Jack Carter had a final-round 78 to finish at 10-over 226 and in a tie for 52nd, while fourth-year senior Ellis Bright – UL's leader and a top-four finisher in last week's season-opening Sandestin Collegiate – had the team's second lowest round of the day at 75 and finished tied for 58th at 228.
Sophomore Drew Sliman also finished tied for 58th after a final-round 79 Tuesday, while Jay Brooks finished 72nd after a final-round 78.
Two-round leader Erik Tjarnberg of East Tennessee State tied for Tuesday's low round, shooting 7-under 65 to finish with a 202 total and winning the individual title by three strokes over Wake Forest's Jorge Hao, who also shot 65 in the final round. Eastern Michigan finished third as a team behind ETSU and Wake and had the only other sub-par tournament finish, shooting three-under 861 for a 10-stroke advantage over fourth-place Toledo (+7).
"It'll be interested to see what we learn from this," Sliman said, "and see how they apply what we've learned in our next event. I still have a lot of belief in this group, but we have a lot of mistakes to work on and everyone's looking forward to getting home and fixing those mistakes."
The Cajuns return to action for their third tournament in less than three weeks Sunday, beginning play against a 13-team field in the annual Argent Financial Classic at Squire Creek Country Club in Choudrant just outside of Ruston. UL finished sixth in a 17-team field last year in the three-day event hosted by Sun Belt Conference member Louisiana Tech.
Chicago Highlands Invitational – Final Results
Sept. 21-22, 2026
Chicago Highlands Golf Club (7,349 yards, par 72), Westchester, Ill.
Team Standings: 1. East Tennessee State 277-284-282—843 (-21); 2. Wake Forest 294-281-269—844 (-20); 3. Eastern Michigan 286-281-294—861 (-3); 4. Toledo 282-302-287—871 (+7); T5. Coastal Carolina 283-301-290—874 (+10); T5. Maryland 292-292-290—874 (+10); T7. Charleston 297-288-292—877 (+13); T7. Indiana 285-299-293—877 (+13); 9. Louisiana 286-301-303—890 (+26); 10. Western Carolina 297-303-299—899 (+35); T11. Southern Illinois 304-297-302—903 (+39); T11. North Alabama 292-306-305—903 (+39).
Individual Leaders: 1. Erik Tjarnberg, East Tennessee State, 70-67-65—202 (-14); 2. Jorge Hao, Wake Forest, 71-69-65—205 (-11); T3. Arsit Areephun, Eastern Michigan, 68-70-71—209 (-7); T3. Veigar Heidersson, East Tennessee State, 70-69-70—209 (-7); T5. Sage Bradhsaw, Wake Forest, 71-71-69—211 (-5); T5. Emil Riegger, Maryland, 74-67-70—211 (-5)
UL Scores: T15. James Holtsclaw 72-72-74—218 (+2); T32. Carter Schmitt 69-77-76—222 (+6); T52. Jack Carter 74-74-78—226 (+10); T58. Ellis Bright 75-78-75—228 (+12); T58. Drew Sliman 71-78-79—228 (+12); 72. Jay Brooks (individual) 83-80-78—241 (+25).
Players Mentioned
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