The University of Florida men’s golf team is heading back to the NCAA Championship Tournament. First-year head coach JC Deacon and the Gators finished the NCAA Regional in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, at 9-under-par locking up a fourth place finish.
The Gators are returning to the NCAA Men’s Golf Championship for the first time since the 2012-2013 season when they finished 25th out of the 30-team field. The National Championship tournament will be at The Concession Golf Club in Bradenton, Florida, on May 29 to June 3.
"We’ve come so far from that first tournament where we were in last place after the first round by 12 shots," Deacon said in a release. "So much dedication and hard work and time has gone into this, and I’m just so happy for the guys, especially for the seniors getting to play in a national championship their last year and the freshmen getting to play in their first, and A.J. (Crouch) and Ryan (Orr) getting to play in their first, too."
Entering the final round, the Gators sat in fourth place at 3-under-par and would need every shot to lock up their National Championship berth.
Orr, a sophomore, who tallied his career-best performance on Saturday, led the Gators in Round 3 where they shot 6-under-par.
He shot a 4-under 68 in Round 3 and finished the tournament tied for 32nd at 2-over-par.
"We’ve been kind of frustrated – both of us – all year because we couldn’t really figure out why he wasn’t breaking through because he was playing so well at home and doing everything he needed to do to shoot the scores," Deacon said. "They just weren’t showing up in tournaments. He just stuck with it, showed resilience and played his best round as a Gator on the most important day as a Gator."
Crouch secured a share of ninth after shooting 3-under-par for the tournament and even par in both rounds 2 and 3.
The junior’s ninth-place finish marks his fourth top-10 performance of the season.
Seniors J.D. Tomlinson and Eric Banks both shot 1-under-par in Round 3 finishing tied for 13th and 49th, respectively.
Tomlinson’s share of 13th marks the 10th time this season the senior earned a spot in the top-25 of a tournament.
After playing in only two spring tournaments, freshman Ryan Celano ventured into the Chapel Hill Regional having not played in a competitive tournament in over a month.
Celano led the Gators in Round 1 shooting 3-under-par, the best round of his career, and will have the chance to play in his first NCAA Championship.
He finished the tournament tied for 32nd after shooting 2-over-par for the tournament.
"We all put a lot of time and effort into this and it’s nice when you get results and positive feedback out of it," Deacon said. "I’m just happy for The Gator Nation, and the future of this program is very encouraging."
Follow Ryan Summers on Twitter @RyanSummers18
J.D. Tomlinson swings during Day 1 of the SunTrust Gator Invitational on Feb. 14 at the Mark Bostick Golf Course.
