Gators Land Two in Top Three at Latin America Amateur
Sunday, January 17, 2016 | Men's Golf
LA ROMANA, Dominican Republic - University of Florida men's golfers Alejandro Tosti and Jorge Garcia will return home with a a pair of top-three honors after solid performances at the Latin America Amateur Championship this week. Freshman Garcia finished as the runner-up, while sophomore Tosti tied for third at the Casa de Campo course in the Dominican Republic.
Garcia recorded rounds of 71-72 before posting a bogey-free 69 that propelled him into second entering the final day. The Venezuela native got off to a slow start in Round 4 but never stopped battling. He followed back-to-back bogeys on holes 12-13 with a huge eagle that left him within one shot of leader Paul Chaplet of Costa Rica.
Chaplet bogeyed the 16th hole to share the lead with Garcia, who bogeyed 17 to finish one shot short of forcing a playoff. The Florida freshman wrapped up the championship with a total of 2-under 286 to receive exemptions into the final stage of qualifying for the 2016 U.S. Open and the 2016 Open Qualifying Series for the 145th Open Championship.
Tosti, playing for Argentina, wrapped up the four-round tournament with a total of 1-under 287. After opening with a +3 (75) that put him close to the cut line, Tosti returned on day two to to fire a nine-birdie round and jump more than 40 spots on the leaderboard. His second-round -7 (65) tied for the low round of the tournament and was only one shot shy of Casa de Campo's Teeth of the Dog course record. He went on to post rounds of 73-74 to secure a share of third.
The Gator duo will look to bring its experience from the Latin America Amateur into Florida's spring season, which tees off Feb. 1 at the Sea Best Invitational in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.
Head Coach JC Deacon:
On the Gators' takeaways from the tournament:
"It's an amazing experience with all the TV cameras, the leaderboards and the magnitude of the event. You just can't pay for experiences like that. Both of them handled it incredibly well and are going to be better for it."
"They're competitors, and I know both of them really wanted to win and felt like they should win. I know they're disappointed, but we're going to use these amazing accomplishments as a huge positive for the team."
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Garcia recorded rounds of 71-72 before posting a bogey-free 69 that propelled him into second entering the final day. The Venezuela native got off to a slow start in Round 4 but never stopped battling. He followed back-to-back bogeys on holes 12-13 with a huge eagle that left him within one shot of leader Paul Chaplet of Costa Rica.
Chaplet bogeyed the 16th hole to share the lead with Garcia, who bogeyed 17 to finish one shot short of forcing a playoff. The Florida freshman wrapped up the championship with a total of 2-under 286 to receive exemptions into the final stage of qualifying for the 2016 U.S. Open and the 2016 Open Qualifying Series for the 145th Open Championship.
Tosti, playing for Argentina, wrapped up the four-round tournament with a total of 1-under 287. After opening with a +3 (75) that put him close to the cut line, Tosti returned on day two to to fire a nine-birdie round and jump more than 40 spots on the leaderboard. His second-round -7 (65) tied for the low round of the tournament and was only one shot shy of Casa de Campo's Teeth of the Dog course record. He went on to post rounds of 73-74 to secure a share of third.
The Gator duo will look to bring its experience from the Latin America Amateur into Florida's spring season, which tees off Feb. 1 at the Sea Best Invitational in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.
Head Coach JC Deacon:
On the Gators' takeaways from the tournament:
"It's an amazing experience with all the TV cameras, the leaderboards and the magnitude of the event. You just can't pay for experiences like that. Both of them handled it incredibly well and are going to be better for it."
"They're competitors, and I know both of them really wanted to win and felt like they should win. I know they're disappointed, but we're going to use these amazing accomplishments as a huge positive for the team."
Follow the Gators:
Official Website: FloridaGators.com
Facebook: Florida Gators Men's Golf
Twitter: @GatorsGolf
Instagram: @GatorsMGolf
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