After seeing their seven-shot lead dissolve, one stroke made the difference for No. 11 Florida in Tuesday’s final round of the Allstate Sugar Bowl Intercollegiate Golf Championship.
But despite a late run by No. 13 Oklahoma State, the Gators were able to hold on and finish the day the way it started: in first place.
"I’m so grateful for the opportunity we had today. It was a great learning experience. We slept on the lead, we waited out a rain delay, we played in really tough conditions, and so many other factors that made this team stronger and better," coach Emily Glaser said in a release.
"To come home with a win is an added bonus. The girls fought hard all day, and I’m proud of the way they represented the Gators."
The tough weather conditions left their mark on the leaderboard. Matching her second round score of 2 under par, junior Karolina Vlckova climbed to the top of Florida’s lineup with a collegiate-best final score of 4 under par.
By the day’s end, Vlckova had climbed four spots to secure a tie for third place — good for her fourth top-10 finish of the season. The junior finished one stroke behind Michigan State’s Sarah Burnham and LSU’s Sydney Cavin.
"I played really well the whole week. The key word for me was patience for this tournament. This course can be a little tricky and sometimes can play really hard, but I’m happy with the way I finished," Vlckova said in a release. "I’m really happy for the team and that we’re bring(ing) the trophy home, we’re all happy."
However, aside from Vlckova, the rest of the Gators’ lineup failed to improve.
Marred by a Round 3 score of 3 over par, junior Maria Torres found herself out of the top 10. Torres — who shot an impressive 3 under par on Day 1 and 1 under par on Day 2 — fell from third place to 11th on the final day of the tournament. It was Torres’ third under-par tournament finish this season.
In the middle of the pack for UF, sophomore Taylor Tomlinson and junior Kelly Grassel both fell three spots in the last round. Tomlinson stayed relatively consistent as she finished the tournament with a final score of even par due to her 1 over par third round.
Grassel, however, did not show the same consistency. The junior’s score fluctuated from a 3 over par in Round 1 to a three under par in Round 2 and back to a 3 over par in Round 3 for an overall score of 3 over par.
UF’s final competitor, freshman Sam Wagner, showed similar consistency to Tomlinson. But her results were less desirable, as she shot 3 over par on each day of the tournament. Initially dropping from 38th to 48th between the first and second rounds, Wagner’s final score of 9 over par was enough to keep her in a tie for 48th.
Overall, Florida finished above five top-25 teams and took home its third team title of the season.
The Gators’ next match will be at home in the SunTrust Gator Invitational on March 5.
Contact Alfredo Morales at amorales@alligator.org and follow him on Twitter @amorales_95.
Karolina Vlckova (right) celebrates with coach Emily Glaser during the 2015 SunTrust Gator Invitational at UF's Mark Bostick Golf Course.
