By the end of Sunday’s round of the NCAA Championship in Eugene, Oregon, the Florida men’s golf team was hanging on by a thread.
With other teams still yet to finish their rounds, UF coach J.C. Deacon and his players could only sit and wait to see if they would survive to advance to Round 4.
When the day was over, the Gators made it — barely.
Florida, sitting in 13th place, posted a 13-over-par 293 in Round 3 at Eugene Country Club to end the first three rounds of stroke play at 26 over — a single shot inside the 15-team cutline.
With a 2-over 72, Sam Horsfield had the lowest round for the Gators. The freshman had a difficult back nine, carding three bogeys to only one birdie. He is in a tie for 62nd at 7 over.
Gordon Neale, who jumped into the top five on Saturday after a 3-under 67, didn’t have the same rhythm on Sunday. Neale, who started on the back nine, began his day with a triple bogey on the 10th hole. The freshman would recover, however, shooting 2 under on the front nine to post a 3-over 73. He is in a tie for ninth at even par and enters Round 4 six shots back of the lead held by Oregon’s Aaron Wise.
Sophomore Alejandro Tosti, who had a 9 on the par-5 15th, shot a 4-over 74 in Round 3 and is in a tie for 75th at 9 over.
Junior Ryan Orr netted a 4-over 74, and freshman Jorge Garcia posted a 5-over 75. The two players are in a tie for 142 and 103, respectively.
“The back nine is really tough, but man, the guys fought hard for every shot all day and made it exciting,” Deacon said in a release.
Florida is set to play the fourth and final round of stroke play today.
The Gators are playing for their fifth national title in program history and their first in 15 years. For that to happen, UF will have to overtake the five teams in front of it to advance to match play. Currently, California stands in eighth place at 18 over.
“We just got off to a tough start,” Deacon said. “It happens on this golf course … I’m happy with the way that we finished it.”
Contact Ray Boone at rboone@alligator.org and follow him on Twitter @rboone1994
Sam Horsfield lines up a shot to start the third round of the SunTrust Invitational on Feb. 21, 2016, at UF's Mark Bostic Golf Course.
