JC Deacon walked up to the press conference lectern and triumphantly delivered his opening statement on Monday.
"Last week was outstanding," he said.
"It was, by far, the best week I’ve had as a coach here at Florida."
Deacon is referring to No. 18 Florida’s second place finish in the Jerry Pate National on Oct. 6.
All five Gator golfers finished in the top 16 at the Old Overton Club in Birmingham, Alabama.
UF had three freshmen in the top ten, with Sam Horsfield tying for fourth and Jorge Garcia and Kyler Tate tying for sixth.
While the Gators may be happy to have placed ahead of then-No. 3 Auburn and then-No. 1 Florida State, Deacon believed the biggest takeaway was the team’s optimistic attitude.
"If you can have a great attitude, it’s not only good for you, but it’s good for the rest of your team," Deacon said.
No one exemplified that shift in attitude more than Garcia did after getting off to a rough start in the first round of the Jerry Pate, shooting a 5-over 75.
Deacon spoke with Garcia before the next round, encouraging him to stay determined and maintain a competitive mindset.
"We got into it pretty good," Deacon said.
"And he didn’t really understand where I was coming from and why his attitude needed to be a certain way. But he said, ‘I’m going to trust you coach, and I’m going to give it my best.’"
Deacon described what happened next as one of the most rewarding things he’d ever experienced during his brief coaching tenure.
"He got absolutely smoking hot, ripped it up, shot 64 — best round that I’ve seen in a long time."
Garcia’s 64 tied for the lowest round of the tournament, but he wasn’t the only Gator in the zone.
UF golfers finished below par in nine of their 10 remaining rounds.
Despite Florida’s strong finish, Deacon doesn’t want to get caught up in past results or future expectations.
"Whether that is a win this weekend, or … in May next year, I don’t know when it’s going to happen," Deacon said.
"I know we are going to win. Results happen when you got a team that’s working this hard, that has this good of an attitude."
The Gators will look to capitalize on that hard work and attitude when they tee-off next at the Tavistock Collegiate at Isleworth Country Club outside of Orlando on Sunday.
Follow Matt Brannon on Twitter @MattB_727
UF men's golf coach J.C. Deacon speaks during a press conference in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.
Led by first-year head coach JC Deacon, the Florida men's golf team returned to the NCAA Championship last season. Here's Ryan Summer's story on the occasion (http://www.alligator.org/sports/golf/article_982fe4ae-fdf2-11e4-833b-83c78d3e0d3f.html)
