CARLSBAD, Calif. — Theo Sliman has a deal with his players who card bogey-free rounds. The men’s golf coach at Louisiana will cook steaks for players who complete a round without any blemishes on the scorecard while the rest of the team gets hot dogs.
Sliman owes senior Malan Potgieter a lot of steaks after his recent stretch of historic play.
Potgieter carded his fifth straight bogey-free round Saturday during the second round of the 2026 NCAA Men’s Golf Championship, signing for his straight 4-under 68 at Omni La Costa. Dating to the final hole of the Sun Belt Championship last month, Potgieter has played 91 straight holes without a score of bogey or worse, a stretch that includes 54 holes at the NCAA Athens Regional and now 36 at the national championship.
“I think I’m going to have to get half a cow,” Sliman said. “I’m not going to the local grocery store. I’m going to the butcher.”
College golf’s record books are far from perfect, but the 91 consecutive holes without a bogey are believed to be the best mark ever by a collegiate golfer. Add in that Potgieter accomplished the feat in postseason play, it makes it even more remarkable.
Back in 2019, LPGA star Jin Young Ko played 114 straight holes without a blemish on the scorecard, a mark that is recognized as the all-time record. She broke Tiger Woods’ mark of 110 straight holes without a bogey from his stellar 2000 season.
In college golf, Alabama’s Bobby Wyatt went 76 straight holes without a bogey in 2014. That mark was believed to be the best in college history.
It now belongs to Potgieter, who sits two shots off the individual lead at the national championship.
“Most of it’s probably my ball striking,” Potgieter said. “I kind of had a rough ball striking week at conference, and something clicked to where now I’m hitting it on my start line. I’m hitting it really good, and I’m picking good spots and hitting my spots. I’m hitting so many greens that it’s like, as long as my lag putting is good, it’s easy to make a lot of pars, and every now and then have a birdie putt drop.”
Dating to the start of NCAA Regionals, Potgieter has hit 83 of 90 greens, a remarkable number that is a big reason why he has reached 91 holes without a bogey.
Potgieter, who is from South Africa but has no relation to PGA Tour pro Aldrich Potgieter — “I want to win a major so people can know who I am to ask him if he’s related to me,” Malan joked — had a few schools interested during his recruitment, but he never wavered from Louisiana. Even as he became one of the country’s best players (he’s ranked 37th in the NCAA golf rankings and on the verge of jumping into the top 25 of the PGA Tour Class of 2026) his commitment was always to the Ragin’ Cajuns.
While being recruited, Potgieter told Sliman he wanted to get half a shot better every semester. It’s something he has strived to do throughout his college career and a big reason he’s put himself in contention to win an individual national championship.
“He came in as a freshman with a mindset that very few have,” Sliman said. “I tell him every week, your golf IQ is the highest in this field, and I don’t just say that to pump him up.”
Potgieter trails Arizona’s Filip Jakubcik by two shots heading into Sunday’s third round. He knows to continue playing bogey-free golf, he’ll have to continue being precise hitting approach shots because at Omni La Costa, missing the greens can result in plenty of big numbers.
In a field full of blue bloods and most of the best amateurs in the world, it’s the South African from the mid-major who’s making golf history.
“I grew up being an underdog,” Potgieter said. “I come from a small town, and I wanted to take this program as far as I can. I like being an underdog.”
At the national championship, Potgieter is far from it.
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Malan Potgieter reaches 91 holes without bogey at NCAA Championship