Despite finishing 14th, the Gators have some positives to take out of their penultimate regular-season tournament, and their names are J.D. Tomlinson and Richard Donegan.
Florida retained its 14th place spot from Monday, finishing the two-day Valspar Invitational in Palm City with a total score of 868 (+16). The Gators shot 281, 290 and 297 over three rounds.
No. 4 Georgia Tech took the team tournament title on Tuesday after shooting 837 total (-15). A Yellow Jacket, Ollie Schniederjans, also won the individual honor, shooting straight 67s in all three rounds. He ended with a total score of 201 (-12).
“Unfortunately, another poor finish,” coach Buddy Alexander said in a release. “Overall, we were a little more competitive as this was clearly the best field we have played against this year.”
Tomlinson, who ended Monday’s play tied for fourth place, stayed in the top 10 out of 75 golfers competing. He dropped into a four-way tie for sixth place after shooting a third-round score of 74 (+3).
But Tomlinson’s total score of 209 (-4) sealed the deal for his second under-par tournament of the spring and his fourth top-10 placing of the season as a whole.
The more unlikely — but equally bright — star of the show for the Gators was Donegan. The sophomore transfer ended the three rounds with a final score of 210 (-3), eclipsing his previous best by 11 strokes.
Donegan also kept his top-10 placement from Monday, finishing in a four-way tie for 10th place. This was his first top-10 finish of the season.
“I can’t remember the last time we had two guys in the top 10,” Alexander said.
The last time two Florida golfers finished in the top 10 in a tournament was in May 2013. Seniors Tyler McCumber and T.J. Vogel tied one another for third place in the NCAA South Regional in Baton Rouge, La., en route to a 13th-consecutive trip to the national championship tournament.
Alexander referred to Tomlinson’s and Donegan’s finishes as “a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel.” But the other three golfers in the Florida lineup did not enjoy successful performances.
Eric Banks, Ryan Orr and Conor Richardson all finished outside the top 40. Banks’ tie for 47th place being the best finish of the three.
Banks improved on his second-round score of 76, shooting a 75 in the third round. However, this was still much higher than his under-par first round of 68. He ended the tournament with a 219 total (+6).
Orr and Richardson also did better from their second to third round scores. Orr shot rounds of 77, 78 and 76, leading to a 72nd place finish and a total score of 231 (+18). Richardson tied for 74th place with rounds of 76, 81 and 76. He totaled 233 (+20) through the three rounds.
“The problem this week was the back end of the lineup,” Alexander said.
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Richard Donegan stands on the course during the Suntrust Gator Invitational on Feb. 15 at the Mark Bostick Golf Course.
