A.J. Crouch has accomplished something he has never done before in his collegiate golfing career.
He’s a tournament champion.
Crouch captured the individual title at the Florida Gulf Coast Invitational in Estero, Florida, after shooting an even-par 72 in the third round.
The junior finished the tournament at 2-under-par and was the only player in the field to card a score under-par.
Prior to the tournament, his best finish was a tie for fourth place.
Crouch won the event by two strokes over Florida State golfers Hank Lebioda and Josh Lee. Crouch’s three round score of 214 is the lowest of his college career. He is now the only player on the roster who has won a tournament as a member of the UF golf team. Junior Richard Donegan won two events as a freshman at FAU.
"A.J. was playing great, and I was proud of him," assistant coach John Handrigan said in a release. "Today, I was definitely impressed, not just because he won, but because how he handled himself on the course.
"Coach (J.C. Deacon) and I…we’ve been working on his attitude and demeanor on the golf course, and today he had a lot of adversity thrown his way, and he handled it like a man."
As a team, the Gators finished the tournament in second place, 13 shots behind No. 2 Florida State.
Florida carded a score of 16-over-par over the three days. No teams in the field finished under par. The second-place finish for Florida was its second one of the fall season as it had the same result at the Wolf Run Intercollegiate in September.
Senior J.D. Tomlinson and freshman Ryan Celano finished the tournament at 7-over-par, good enough for a tie for 12th place. Celano was in sixth place after the second round, but struggled on the last 18 holes as he was 6-over in the final round.
Senior Thomas Stewart carded a 9-over-par during the three days of play, as he also finished inside the top 20 with a tie for 16th place. Sophomore Ryan Orr shot 11-over-par in the tournament and came in a tie for 21st place.
Freshman Ramsey Touchberry and Donegan competed at the event as individuals. Touchberry finished at 15-over-par after a 12-over, 84 in the final round. Donegan was four strokes behind Touchberry at 19-over-par.
With the fall season complete and a three month break before the Gators’ next tournament, Handrigan said the second place finish is a good way to finish the fall season.
"We’re never content with second place, as we were here to win the tournament," Handrigan said. "We definitely worked hard, and the guys played hard, and like I said, we’re not always happy with second place, but it’s a good way to end the fall on a positive note.
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