Gators Head to West Lafayette Regional
Sunday, May 14, 2017 | Men's Golf
Florida heads into the tournament as the region’s top seed and fifth in the country.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The University of Florida men's golf team travels to Indiana this week to compete in the NCAA Regional at West Lafayette. The Orange and Blue head into the tournament as the region's top seed and fifth in the country.
The Gators will look to keep their strong season alive. Florida has five tournament victories this season, only the eighth time in program history that the mark has been reached and the first time since 2011.
Individually this season, the Orange and Blue have had three separate individual medalists, also the most since 2011.
Alejandro Tosti is coming off a victory at the SEC Championship, marking the 21st time a Gator has clinched the result. The junior has two individual victories this season, four top-five finishes, leads the team in stroke average (70.04) and was recently named First Team All-SEC.
Sam Horsfield has also put together a stellar season. The sophomore defended his title at the Mason Rudolph Championship, leads the Gators in top-25 finishes with eight and was recently named Second Team All-SEC.
Course Information: The 2017 NCAA West Lafayette Regional is being held at the par-72, 7,411-yard Kampen Course in West Lafayette, In.
Tournament Information: The tournament is a three-day, 54-hole stroke play event.
Head Coach J.C. Deacon:
On being the top seed in the region…
"The guys played and worked really hard all year and one thing you do get is be the number one seed at a regional, get a good tee time and we worked hard for that, so we'll enjoy it. Everyone starts at square one now, so we need to go out, play well and continue what we've been doing."
On what the team has done to prepare for the regional…
"Losing in the SEC Championship hurt a lot. Since then, I've seen a lot of hard work, a lot of dedication and the guys are really prepared. I feel really good about the guys and I think they feel pretty good. We're all just ready to get going because it's been so long since we competed. We're ready to play."
On what the team has to do to advance to the national championship tournament…
"We just have to focus on the things that we have focused on all year, that's playing smart, being patient and doing the things that we're really good at. It's a hard course this week and I think the way that we drive the ball is going to really help us. We've got five elite drivers of the golf ball on our team and that's really going to come in handy this week. We've got to be disciplined, smart into the greens and put the ball where we need to and let our talent take over from there. These guys have all played in so many big tournaments that they're built for moments like this, they love the big moments and they thrive when the scene is bigger and that's why we've been successful so far."
Tee Times (Rd. 1):
| Time | Hole | Player |
| 8 a.m. | 1 | Ryan Orr |
| 8:11 a.m. | 1 | Andy Zhang |
| 8:22 a.m. | 1 | Gordon Neale |
| 8:33 a.m. | 1 | Sam Horsfield |
| 8:44 a.m. | 1 | Alejandro Tosti |
Lineup:
Junior Alejandro Tosti (Rosario, Argentina): Tosti comes into the NCAA Regional after playing well all season. The junior is coming off his second win of the season at the SEC Championship, leads the team in stroke average (70.04) and picked up the team's first individual win of the year at the Tavistock Collegiate in the fall.
Sophomore Sam Horsfield (Davenport, Fla.): Horsfield has shot a solid season, defending his Mason Rudolph Championship individual medalist title. The sophomore leads the team in top-five (4) and top-25 (8) finishes, along with birdies (113) and even or under par rounds (20) and tournaments (6).
Sophomore Gordon Neale (Dove Canyon, Calif.): Neale has built off his stellar fall in the spring as he is tied for the team lead in rounds counted (26) and is second in tournaments even or under par (5).
Freshman Andy Zhang (Reunion, Fla.): Zhang has become a regular in the Gator lineup as a freshman. The rookie is third-best in tournaments even or under par (4), fourth-best in stroke average on the team (72.05) and birdies (81).
Senior Ryan Orr (Belleair, Fla.): Orr has been a major contributor for the Gators this season, picking up his first collegiate victory at the Sea Best Invitational. The senior leads the team in eagles (4) and is tied for the best 36-hole score with 133.
Tournament Field (rank):
Auburn (20)
Augusta
Campbell
Colorado
Cleveland State
FLORIDA (5)
Illinois (8)
New Mexico
Purdue
Richmond
Saint Mary's
South Carolina
UNLV (19)
Live scoring will be available on Golfstat.
Follow the Gators:
FloridaGators.com
Players Mentioned
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