Florida Gators
SEC Championships
Men's Golf in First at SEC's
Friday, April 19, 2002 | Men's Golf
The No. 4 University of Florida Men's golf team leads the field after round one of the 2002 Southeastern Conference Championships hosted at the Sea Island Golf Club. The low four Gators are all in the top 16, while two hold the top spots.
The Gators shot 284 on the day, moving one-shot ahead of the Auburn Tigers. Florida fought off a late charge by Auburn at last year's tournament to win the runner-up honors. Behind Auburn, Arkansas carded 290 and Louisiana State is not far behind at 292.
UF also controls the top individual spot with sophomore Camilo Villegas (Medellin, Colombia) alone in first. Currently ranked No. 1 and a Ben Hogan Award finalist, Villegas holds a two-stroke lead at 68. Not far behind him, senior Camilo Benedetti (Medellin, Colombia) is tied for second with his even-par 70.
Tied for 16th are the newer players for UF this season, junior-transfer Ari Savolainen (Helsinki, Finland) and redshirt-junior Dalton Melnyk (Jacksonville, Fla.). The pair both shot 3-over 73, while senior Ben Banks (Surrey, England) is tied for 50th after shooting 79.
The championships will continue Saturday morning and conclude Sunday, April 21.
Agate
SEC Championships
Round 1
Sea Island Golf Course
Par: 70
Yardage: 6,788 yards
Team Standings
1. Florida 284
2. Auburn 285
3. Arkansas 290
4. LSU 292
5. Vanderbilt 294
6. Tennessee 296
Kentucky 296
7. Mississippi 298
Georgia 298
8. South Carolina 302
9. Alabama 305
10. Mississippi St. 306
Florida Scores
1 Camilo Villegas 68
T2 Camilo Benedetti 70
T16 Dalton Melnyk 73
T16 Ari Savolainen 73
T50 Ben Banks 79
