Sam Horsfield is coming off his first victory of the year at the Mason Rudolph Championship.
Gators Look to Continue Good Form at SEC Championship
Thursday, April 20, 2017 | Men's Golf
ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – The University of Florida men's golf team travels to Georgia this week to compete in the SEC Championship tournament. Florida has collected 15 victories at the competition in program history, with its most recent win coming in 2011.
The No. 5-ranked Gators will look to keep up their good form as they head into the weekend on a two-tournament winning streak. Florida has five team victories on the year, which is UF's most since 2011 and five tournament titles marks the eighth time in program history that that mark has been reached.
Individually this season, the Orange and Blue have had three separate individual medalists, also the most since 2011.
Sam Horsfield is coming off his first victory of the year at the Mason Rudolph Championship. The sophomore has had a stellar season, leading the team in top-five (4), top-10 (5) and top-25 (7) finishes, along with birdies (105) and even or under par rounds (18) and tournaments (5).
Course Information: The 2017 SEC Championship is being held at the par-70, 6,898-yard Sea Island Golf Club Seaside Course in St. Simons Island, Ga.
Tournament Information: The tournament is a four-day event consisting of stroke and match play. The first day will have 36 holes and the second 18. On the third day, the top eight teams will advance to match play and the four winners will then play each other. The match play final will be held on the final day.
Head Coach J.C. Deacon:
On the SEC Championship…
"It's going to be incredibly tough and we're going to have to be at our absolute best. That's what the guys are looking forward to the most, the challenge. We know how good the other teams are and we want to give them our best and hopefully that's enough to win."
On the team's performance during the regular season…
"It was really special. There was a lot of hard work and sacrifice. To see the results that we got, it's really satisfying for the guys. We proved that we can play at the highest level of college golf. In saying that, this team was built for the postseason and this is why we all came to the University of Florida, to be successful at this time of year. This is what we've been working and preparing for and we're really excited for the opportunity."
On how the two victories at the end of the season help the team going into the postseason…
"The wins are great, but they ae more a product of what we've become as a team. We're an incredibly tight team and everyone is in it for each other, playing for a purpose bigger than themselves. It's really powerful and fun to be around. All of us are having a blast doing this right now and we're excited to play against the other teams in the SEC, the best conference in the country."
Tee Times (Rd. 1):
Lineup:
Sophomore Sam Horsfield (Davenport, Fla.): Horsfield is coming off his first win of the season at the Mason Rudolph Championship. The sophomore leads the team in top-five (4), top-10 (5) and top-25 (7) finishes, along with birdies (105) and even or under par rounds (18) and tournaments (5).
Junior Alejandro Tosti (Rosario, Argentina): Tosti comes into the SEC Championship after playing well all season. The junior leads the team in stroke average (70.25) and picked up the team's first individual win of the year at the Tavistock Collegiate in the fall.
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 (23) and 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 second-best in tournaments even or under par (4), third-best in stroke average on the team (71.50) and fourth-best in birdies (77).
Sophomore Jorge Garcia (Anaco, Venezuela): Garcia has continued to contribute to the Orange and Blue in his second season on the team. His percentage of rounds counted (80 percent) is tied for fourth-best and he's carded eight rounds even or under par.
Tournament Field (rank):
Alabama
Arkansas
Auburn (22)
FLORIDA (5)
Georgia (20)
Kentucky
LSU (7)
Ole Miss (23)
Mississippi State
Missouri
South Carolina
Tennessee
Texas A&M (17)
Vanderbilt (3)
Live scoring will be available on Golfstat.
Follow the Gators:
FloridaGators.com
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The No. 5-ranked Gators will look to keep up their good form as they head into the weekend on a two-tournament winning streak. Florida has five team victories on the year, which is UF's most since 2011 and five tournament titles marks the eighth time in program history that that mark has been reached.
Individually this season, the Orange and Blue have had three separate individual medalists, also the most since 2011.
Sam Horsfield is coming off his first victory of the year at the Mason Rudolph Championship. The sophomore has had a stellar season, leading the team in top-five (4), top-10 (5) and top-25 (7) finishes, along with birdies (105) and even or under par rounds (18) and tournaments (5).
Course Information: The 2017 SEC Championship is being held at the par-70, 6,898-yard Sea Island Golf Club Seaside Course in St. Simons Island, Ga.
Tournament Information: The tournament is a four-day event consisting of stroke and match play. The first day will have 36 holes and the second 18. On the third day, the top eight teams will advance to match play and the four winners will then play each other. The match play final will be held on the final day.
Head Coach J.C. Deacon:
On the SEC Championship…
"It's going to be incredibly tough and we're going to have to be at our absolute best. That's what the guys are looking forward to the most, the challenge. We know how good the other teams are and we want to give them our best and hopefully that's enough to win."
On the team's performance during the regular season…
"It was really special. There was a lot of hard work and sacrifice. To see the results that we got, it's really satisfying for the guys. We proved that we can play at the highest level of college golf. In saying that, this team was built for the postseason and this is why we all came to the University of Florida, to be successful at this time of year. This is what we've been working and preparing for and we're really excited for the opportunity."
On how the two victories at the end of the season help the team going into the postseason…
"The wins are great, but they ae more a product of what we've become as a team. We're an incredibly tight team and everyone is in it for each other, playing for a purpose bigger than themselves. It's really powerful and fun to be around. All of us are having a blast doing this right now and we're excited to play against the other teams in the SEC, the best conference in the country."
Tee Times (Rd. 1):
| Time (Rd. 1) | Hole | Player |
| 8:30 a.m. | 1 | Sam Horsfield |
| 7:50 a.m. | 1 | Alejandro Tosti |
| 8:20 a.m. | 1 | Gordon Neale |
| 8:10 a.m. | 1 | Andy Zhang |
| 8 a.m. | 1 | Jorge Garcia |
Lineup:
Sophomore Sam Horsfield (Davenport, Fla.): Horsfield is coming off his first win of the season at the Mason Rudolph Championship. The sophomore leads the team in top-five (4), top-10 (5) and top-25 (7) finishes, along with birdies (105) and even or under par rounds (18) and tournaments (5).
Junior Alejandro Tosti (Rosario, Argentina): Tosti comes into the SEC Championship after playing well all season. The junior leads the team in stroke average (70.25) and picked up the team's first individual win of the year at the Tavistock Collegiate in the fall.
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 (23) and 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 second-best in tournaments even or under par (4), third-best in stroke average on the team (71.50) and fourth-best in birdies (77).
Sophomore Jorge Garcia (Anaco, Venezuela): Garcia has continued to contribute to the Orange and Blue in his second season on the team. His percentage of rounds counted (80 percent) is tied for fourth-best and he's carded eight rounds even or under par.
Tournament Field (rank):
Alabama
Arkansas
Auburn (22)
FLORIDA (5)
Georgia (20)
Kentucky
LSU (7)
Ole Miss (23)
Mississippi State
Missouri
South Carolina
Tennessee
Texas A&M (17)
Vanderbilt (3)
Live scoring will be available on Golfstat.
Follow the Gators:
FloridaGators.com
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