The Wolf Run Intercollegiate is in the books and the Florida men’s golf team was able to have a complete turnaround from their first tournament, as they finished in second place after posting a score of 37-over-par. After finishing in 13th place in the first tournament, UF had three rounds of steady play and finished ahead of 13 teams.
The winner of the tournament was No. 2 Illinois who shot 7-over-par, and had the only two players shoot under-par in the entire field. The final day of the tournament yielded tough playing conditions and coach J.C. Deacon said playing in the conditions was problematic.
“Today it was really, really difficult. The course was firm, the pin placements were really tough and the wind was up,” Deacon said in a release. “It was 20 mph when we started, and I would say the gusts were close to 25 or 30 mph. It was really windy and it was difficult.”
Teams had to complete the second round after play was suspended due to inclement weather in the opening day, and immediately turn around and complete the final round.
Leading the way for Florida was freshman Ryan Celano, who in his first collegiate tournament, finished at 6-over-par. The Naples, Fla., native ended up in a tie for sixth place after shooting an even-par final round. Deacon said he thinks Celano has a chance to be a special player for the program.
“He listens, he’s very coachable, and I’m just so excited to work with him,” Deacon said. “I think he has a chance to be an All-American pretty soon, if not this year. I don’t want to put that kind of pressure on him, but that’s where I think his capability is.”
Behind Celano was senior J.D. Tomlinson as he completed the tournament with a score of 8-over-par, which was good enough to finish in sole possession of tenth place. Fellow senior Eric Banks finished at 10-over-par and in a tie for 13th place in the first event of his senior season. Sophomore Ryan Orr also finished in the top 20, as he shot 14-over-par.
Senior Thomas Stewart finished the tournament at 24-over-par to round out UF’s lineup. Junior A.J. Crouch competed in the event as an individual and finished in a tie for 62nd place with Stewart.
Even with the improvement from the first tournament of the season, Deacon said the team still has a ways to go.
“I would say it’s a step in the right direction. It’s definitely not close even close to where I want to be, and where I think we should be or can be, but we did beat some people and we hung in there,” Deacon said in a release. “Everyone contributed at one point in the tournament, but we’ve got a long way to go.”
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Eric Banks tees off during Day 2 of the SunTrust Gator Invitational on Feb. 16 at the Mark Bostick Golf Course.
