Florida Women's Golf To Face Tough Field at the Tar Heel Invitational
Wednesday, October 8, 2014 | Women's Golf
The University of Florida women's golf team will tee off for the second time in the 2014-15 season at the Ruth's Chris Tar Heel Invitational on Oct. 10-12, hosted by the University of North Carolina.
At the 2013 Tar Heel Invitational, the Gators placed eighth out of 18 teams, with sophomore Maria Torres as the only returning player from the 2013 lineup. Torres left the UNC Finley Golf Course with a final five-over (221) and tied for 32nd.
The 2014 field features 18 teams, half of which are ranked in Golfweek's Top-25, led by No. 1 ranked South Carolina and defending national champion Duke. Florida faces a tough challenge as they are only taking four golfers, and every score will count for the first time in head coach Emily Glaser's tenure.
Course Information: The tournament is being held at the par-72, 6,379-yard Finley Golf Course, in Chapel Hill, N.C.
Format: 54-hole stroke play where teams will play three rounds, 18 holes each day.
Tee Times:
Friday – 8:50 a.m.
Saturday – 8:50 a.m.
Sunday – 9:15 a.m. Shotgun start
The Gators' Lineup:
Sophomore Maria Torres: Torres will see her first action of the 2014 season, and holds the lowest scoring average (74.1) from last year's squad.
Freshman Taylor Tomlinson: Led the Gators in Round 3 of the Cougar Classic, shooting even par, to bring her three-day total to 227 in her collegiate debut.
Sophomore Kelly Grassel: Recorded a 75 (+3) in Round 3 of the Cougar Classic on her way to recording the Gators' low tournament score (221) in her Orange and Blue debut, finishing tied for 38th.
Junior Ursa Orehek: At the 2014 season-opening tournament, the Cougar Classic, Orehek shaved six strokes off her Round 2 score to shoot even par in Round 3 and finish with a 226 total.
Head Coach Emily Glaser Says: “The Finley Golf Course is a ball striker's golf course, the greens are big so if you can position the ball well on the greens to give yourself the best looks at birdie that's going to be beneficial. The short game is really what gets it done every week, the best putting team is usually who's going to fare the best. We're going to try to get a good game plan during our practice round and then rely on the short game work we've done the past few weeks.”
Familiar Foes: Among the 18 teams to take the course for the tournament, Florida will face seven other SEC schools: Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, LSU, Ole Miss, South Carolina and Vanderbilt. The field also contains seven teams which competed in the Gators' season-opener, the Cougar Classic.
Tournament Field (Golfweek rankings as of Oct. 3, 2014):
Alabama
Arkansas (2)
Auburn (14)
Duke (6)
FLORIDA
LSU (13)
Louisville (19)
Michigan State
North Carolina
NC State (25)
Oklahoma
Ole Miss
Oregon
Rollins
South Carolina (1)
Vanderbilt (12)
Virginia
Wake Forest (20)
Follow the Gators: Play will begin on Friday, Oct. 10, as teams will tee off at 8:50 a.m. Live scoring will be available on GolfStat.com. A complete recap with full results will be posted on GatorZone.com following the day's play. For complete coverage of the Gators' women's golf program, visit GatorZone.com, follow @GatorZoneGolf on Twitter and @GatorWomensGolf on Instagram and 'like' the University of Florida Women's Golf page on Facebook.
