Gators Set for Southern Highlands Collegiate Masters
Thursday, March 11, 2010 | Men's Golf
The sixth-ranked University of Florida men's golf team will travel to Las Vegas, Nev. for the Southern Highlands Collegiate Masters, being played on the par-72, 7,510-yard Southern Highlands Golf Club. The 2009 UF squad left Las Vegas with a fourth place finish, so the current team, led by coach Buddy Alexander, looks to improve upon their finish last season.
The Gators are coming off one of their worst showings of the season, finishing in seventh place at the John Hayt Invitational. On a positive note, the team climbed its way up the leaderboard throughout the three-day event after finishing in 12th following the first round. Alexander found two more positives in their trip to Jacksonville, one in the play of a senior and the other a freshman. For the second-straight tournament, senior Tim McKenney (Scottsdale, Ariz.) Tim McKenney came back from a poor first round showing to finish in the top five. He has boasted a top-10 finish in his last three tournaments.
On the flip side, freshman Tyler McCumber (Ponte Vedra, Fla.) impressed his coaches as he finished the John Hayt Invitational in a tie for fifth. McCumber, who competed as an individual, will appear second on the lineup for Florida at the Southern Highlands Collegiate Masters. Senior Tyson Alexander (Gainesville, Fla.), freshman Phillip Choi (Orlando, Fla.) and redshirt junior Andres Echavarria (Medellin, Colombia) will round out the lineup for Florida.
The Gators dropped three spots to No. 6 on the latest Golfweek/Sagarin Ratings. The squad will face their toughest tournament field yet, with 14 of the 16 teams competing ranked in the top 30. The Gators will compete against three top-10 teams, including top-ranked Oklahoma State, No. 4 Texas and No. 7 Texas A&M. The following teams are featured in Golfweek's top-30 and will be competing in Las Vegas: No. 12 UCLA, No. 13 Arizona State, No. 14 UNLV, No. 15 Southern California, No. 16 Georgia, No. 19 Texas Tech, No. 20 Georgia Tech, No. 22 TCU and No. 28 Tennessee. Georgia and Tennessee are the only other Southeastern Conference teams teeing off in Las Vegas and the Gators currently boast a 2-1 record against the two SEC foes.
Tournament Field
Arizona
Arizona State
Florida
Georgia
Georgia Tech
New Mexico
Oklahoma State
Southern California
TCU
Tennessee
Texas
Texas A&M
Texas Tech
UCLA
UNLV
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