The last time No. 20 Florida played in the Alamo Invitation in 2013, Maria Torres was just a freshman. But the Puerto Rico native, showed poised during the tournament and tied for 24th at 1-over par.
This time around, Torres — now a junior — is tied for third with an impressive 1-under 71 Sunday at Briggs Ranch Golf Club in San Antonio, Texas.
As a team, the Gators find themselves in first place at 5-over after the opening round, one stroke ahead of highly-touted Southeastern Conference rival No. 7 Arkansas.
Sophomore Taylor Tomlinson, junior Kelly Grassel and junior Sydney Needham — who’s competing as an individual — are all tied for 12th place at 1-over.
Junior Karolina Vlckova and freshman Sam Wagner will begin today in a tie for 30th at 4-over.
“I’m happy to be in the hunt of the golf tournament,” coach Emily Glaser said in a release. “It will make the next few days exciting and a great experience for the team.”
Despite Arkansas on their tails, the Gators’ biggest opponent might be the San Antonio weather, which rained out the practice round on Monday and delayed the start on Sunday.
“We played hard today in tough, windy conditions and with little course knowledge given the cancelled practice round. Our good attitudes kept us in it today.”
UF will tee-off in their second of three rounds today at 9:30 a.m.
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Maria Torres hits the ball during the SunTrust Gator Women's Golf Invitational on March 15.
