Heading into the final 18 holes of the Schenkel Invitational, sophomore Parker Bell wanted nothing more than to hold onto his lead. The Tallahassee, Florida native came into the day with a one-stroke advantage, hoping to capture his first collegiate win.
Bell started off the way he intended to with three birdies during his first nine holes. But he faced fierce competition with South Carolina junior Nathan Franks. Franks matched Bell with three birdies of his own on the front nine and a quick birdie on hole 12 to tie for first.
Three bogeys in a row to start the back nine pushed the victory out of reach for Bell as Franks recorded two more birdies to secure the first place finish. Bell finished tied for second.
From the start of the tournament, it was clear that the Gators came to play. Round one featured strong play across the board for UF, with six of eight golfers shooting under par. The lineup led the field in both birdies and eagles at the end of round one.
Bell led the charge for UF from the opening round. He struggled at the start with a bogey on hole two but quickly turned it around with two birdies and an eagle on his next seven holes.
At the turn, Bell began with a bogey. However, he recovered with his second eagle of the day just two holes later, and finished round one tied for third at 5-under.
Matthew Kress, another sophomore, also had a slow start to round one recording a bogey on his opening hole. His play did not become a trend as he finished the rest of the front nine bogey-less and with four birdies. After an up and down back nine, he finished round one tied for sixth.
Going into round two, the Gators found themselves tied for first with Middle Tennessee State. Two double-bogeys and three bogeys on the opening five holes was not the start they envisioned to help capture the solo lead. They began to quickly fall behind.
The lineup recovered to finish the front nine with ten team birdies on the next four holes. Bell recorded three birdies of his own to propel himself into first place at the turn.
He continued a strong round two into the back nine, recording three more birdies to just one bogey and finishing the day in solo first.
Kress stayed consistent throughout the day, going bogey-less for the round. He recorded three birdies of his own to remain tied for sixth at the end of the day.
For the second day in a row, six of eight players for UF had finished their rounds under par. This helped the team capture the elusive solo lead, three shots ahead of the field.
None of this impressive play mattered if Florida could not capitalize in the third and final round. The Gators came out hot with eight birdies recorded by lineup players on the front nine. The back nine was up and down for the lineup with seven bogeys and five birdies recorded.
Despite this, UF managed to hang on to its lead, shooting a third round of 283 to secure the win by four shots. Six players finished in the top-30 on the way to victory.
Although they competed as individuals, senior Quentin Debove and fifth-year John Dubois both had strong tournaments, finishing tied for 14th and tied for 30th, respectively. Both players recorded an eagle on hole seven of the final round and Dubois recorded an eagle in round two.
Next, the Gators will continue their season on April 7 at the Calusa Cup in Naples, Florida. They’ll look to capture another team victory.
Contact Hannah Getman at hgetman@alligator.org. Follow her on Twitter @hannahgetman.
