J.D. Tomlinson and Florida men’s golf finally have something to smile about.
The Gators concluded the three-day USF Invitational in Dade City on Tuesday with a ninth-place finish. They shot their lowest score of the three rounds, 280, to finish with a total of 856 (-8), their best team score of the year.
“This was easiest of the three days, and the scores definitely reflect that,” coach Buddy Alexander said. “When you shoot eight-under par anywhere, anytime, that’s a great day.”
No. 19 Florida State shot 264 in the third round, which led the Seminoles to an 823 total score and a first-place finish.
Tomlinson definitely runs away with the MVP title of the day. After notching scores of 71 and 72 in the first and second rounds respectively, he shot a career-low round score of 64 and a career-low tournament score of 207 (-9). He earned his third top-10 finish of the year with a tie for seventh place, the highest of the Gators.
“J.D. just kind of picked us up and carried us to the finish line today,” Alexander said. “He played an awesome round of golf.
“I’m proud of (him). We needed a good round out of him, and that was great to see.”
Ryan Orr finished second-highest for Florida, tying for 44th place, with a total score of 217 (+1). Eric Banks followed with a tie for 55th place, finishing with a 219 (+3) total after matching a personal-best round of 68 Monday.
Richard Donegan and Victor Tarnstrom ended up tied in score and finish, each shooting 221 (+5) and tying for 66th. Both earned their best scores of the tournament on Tuesday. Donegan ended with rounds of 76, 74 and 71, and Tarnstrom scored 73, 76 and 72.
Santiago Gavino, who competed as an individual, totaled 223 (+7). He shot 71 on Sunday but slipped Monday and Tuesday after shooting 76 each for rounds two and three.
What the Gators can take away from this tournament is the fact that, as a team, they improved over the three days, finishing three-over on Sunday, at even par on Monday and eight-under on Tuesday. It’s just what Florida needs to potentially spur it on to success in its final three regular season tournaments.
“You know, the fact that we broke par a couple of days in a row was positive even though the scoring wasn’t that good,” Alexander said. “But we’re moving in the right direction, and that’s a good sign overall.”
Follow Layne Weitzel on Twitter @laynejweitzel
