After the second round of the Southern Highlands Collegiate Masters in Las Vegas all but eliminated the Gators from contention, Florida rallied to finish in the top 10 in the championship round.
But UF’s comeback was not enough.
California took control of the tourney after the second round.
The Golden Bears were the only team to finish with a score under par, accomplishing the feat by eight strokes (856).
“We played a little better today,” coach Buddy Alexander said in a release.
“We were able to move up the leaderboard.”
Florida failed to play up to its No. 10 ranking against fellow Top-25 squads.
Every team that finished ahead of the Gators during the three-day tourney is currently ranked among the top 13 squads in the nation, according to GolfWeek.com.
Although Florida has yet to earn an individual or team championship in the spring, there were some bright spots at the Southern Highlands Collegiate Masters.
Especially encouraging for UF was the play of freshman A.J. Crouch.
Crouch earned the best result of any Gator, narrowly missing out on a top-10 finish.
He shot a 73 (+1), 73 (+1) and 72 (E) to finish tied for 11th.
Crouch started in the fifth spot after playing sparingly this year.
In addition to Crouch, Eric Banks’ performance was a pleasant surprise for Florida.
Banks, who continues to improve coming off open-heart surgery, shot a team-low 71 (-1) in the first round and a 72 (E) in the final round.
He finished tied for 25th and could have achieved an even better finish had he carded a score better than his 79 (+7) during the second round.
Tyler McCumber, the Gators’ team captain, earned Florida’s second-best finish, ending the tournament in 24th.
McCumber played solid golf after shooting just five over for the tournament following his final round score of 74 (+2).
Beyond Crouch, Banks and McCumber, Florida finished with disappointing results in the rain-soaked tournament.
T.J. Vogel could not get anything going after shooting a 78 (+6) in the second round and a 79 (+7) in the final round to finish tied for 62nd.
J.D. Tomlinson failed to get any type of rhythm after shooting a 79 (+7) in both the second and final rounds.
Tomlinson finished tied for 71st.
“Golf is a strange game,” Alexander said. “Last year, Tomlinson and Vogel were our low scorers, and they (have) struggled this year. This year, our four and five guys (Banks and Crouch) did well. We still have a lot of work to do.”
Florida’s next competition will be the Chris Schenkel Invitational beginning on March 15 in Statesboro, Ga.
Senior Tyler McCumber putts during the SunTrust Gator Invitational on Feb. 10 at Mark Bostick Golf Course.
