Florida Gators

TOURNAMENT INFORMATION
Dates: Monday, May 12 - Wednesday, May 14
Location: Bremerton, Wash. - Gold Mountain Golf Club: Olympic Course 
Host: University of Washington 
Course Par/Yardage: 72 / 7,167 yards for rounds one and three, 72 / 7,114 for round two
Format: 54-hole stroke play (18-18-18) 
Tee Times: 11 a.m. ET on Monday and TBD other days 
Scoring: Clippd
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TEE OFF
The SEC Champion Florida men's golf team continues the postseason at the NCAA Bremerton Regional this week (May 12-14) at Gold Mountain Golf Club. UF tees off the opening 18-holes on Monday at 11 a.m. ET

LINEUP
No. 1 - Ian Gilligan
No. 2 - Jack Turner
No. 3 - Luke Poulter
No. 4 - Matthew Kress
No. 5 - Zack Swanwick
Substitute - Parker Sands

FORMAT
The three-day event will consist of 54 holes (18 each day) that starts on Monday, May 12 at Golf Mountain Gold Club in Bremerton, Wash., hosted by the University of Washington. At the conclusion of play, the top five teams as well as the low individual finisher not on an advancing team will advance to the NCAA Championship at Omni La Costa Resort & Spa in Carlsbad, Calif. from May 23-28. 
 
A total of 81 teams and 45 individuals (not on a competing team) will play across six regional sites - Amherst, Va., Auburn, Ala., Bremerton, Wash., Reno, N.V., Tallahassee, Fla. and Urbana, Ill. Three regional sites will have 13 teams and 10 individuals and three will have 14 teams and five individuals.

Florida looks to make its 58th NCAA Championship appearance and has only missed qualifying twice under head coach J.C. Deacon. UF has made the championship in 19 of the last 22 tournaments as its 57 all-time outings at nationals rank fifth most in the nation behind Oklahoma State (75), Texas (68), USC (58) and Arizona State (58). 

COMPETING TEAMS (Seed Number)
No. 1 Arizona State, No. 2 Florida, No. 3 Utah, No. 4 South Carolina, No. 5 South Florida, No. 6 Colorado, No. 7 Charlotte, No. 8 Kansas, No. 9 Colorado State, No. 10 Kansas State, No. 11 Elon, No. 12 Coastal Carolina, No. 13 Oral Roberts and No. 14 Seattle.

COMPETING INDIVIDUALS (By Seed)
1. Sam Renner (Washington State), 2. Lukas Boandl (Rice), 3. Mason Snyder (Loyola Marymount), 4. Cade Anderson (Loyola Marymount) and 5. Daniel Zou (Rice).

TOURNAMENT HISTORY
The Gators have qualified for 35 of the 36 all-time men's golf regionals and every year under head coach J.C. Deacon as Florida won the inaugural East Regional (Myrtle Beach, S.C.) in 1989. UF has claimed a total of six team titles (1989, 1992, 2006, 2009, 2011, 2018) and six individual titles - Brain Gay (1993), Brad Lehmann (1994), Camilo Villegas (2001), Billy Horschel (2006 & 2007) and Andy Zhang (2018).

This marks the fifth straight year the Gators have been a top-3 seed and in regionals and the seventh time under Deacon. In 10 total regional appearances with Deacon at the helm, Florida has been a top-3 seed eight times and a top-2 seed five times. This is the third time Florida will play regionals in Washington with the previous trips in 2019 and 2021. 

LAST TIME OUT
Deacon led the Gators to their second Southeastern Conference Championship in the last three seasons and 17th in program history, No. 2 among all league men's golf programs. The victory is fourth this season and the 31st tournament title under Deacon in 11 seasons. This is the third straight season of four-plus wins under him and the seventh season of multiple wins, including the last five consecutive.

In the last four years with Deacon, Florida has won the NCAA National Championship, two SEC Championships, NCAA Individual Championship, SEC Individual Championship, 18 tournaments titles and 13 individual titles. The Gators won its 10th match play outing in the SEC Championship, ranking second-most in the conference behind Vanderbilt's 13. In postseason match play, Florida is 12-4 all-time and 9-4 in the SEC.

Florida reached SEC Match Play Finals for the third time overall and in the last four years (2022 & 2023) by defeating the No. 6 ranked Oklahoma Sooners 3-2 in the quarterfinals and the No. 1 seed, No. 2 ranked and the reigning SEC and National Champion Auburn Tigers, 3.5-1.5 in the semifinals yesterday. The win against the Aggies moves the all-time series record to 3-0 in the conference tournament.

In stroke play at the conference tournament, senior Ian Gilligan led the lineup 8-under finish behind a final round of 5-under 65. Sophomore Jack Turner placed T16 at 4-under and freshman Zack Swanwick T22 at 3-under. Gilligan went undefeated in match play (2-0-1) to finish 3-0-1 all-time in match play at the conference tournament en route to earning a spot on the Haksins Award Postseason Watch List. 

Swanwick burst onto the scene at the SEC Championship, going 3-0 in match play with match-clinching victories in the quarterfinals vs. Oklahoma and finals vs. Texas A&M. He was clutch in his first conference tournament, being down one with three to play in the finals and making back-to-back birdies en route to a 1Up victory.

Turner was recently the coach's pick for the 2025 Arnold Palmer Cup and Team USA. At the SEC Championship, he won the match-clinching point in the semifinals against the No. 1 player in college golf and back-to-back SEC Individual Champion, Jackson Koivun of Auburn, the reigning SEC and NCAA Champions. In stroke play, Turner shot all three rounds in the 60s for a T16 4-under outing, marking T22 finishes in his fourth career postseason tournament - runner-up at SECs last year. 

POSTSEASON EXPERIENCE 
After winning the NCAA Team, NCAA Individual and SEC Team Championships behind three seniors and First-Team All-Americans of Fred Biondi, Ricky Castillo and Yuxin Lin the Gators have accumulated postseason experience with a new group of players the last two seasons. 

Entering regionals this week, Florida has a combined 82 postseason rounds in the lineup led by junior Matthew Kress with 33, senior Ian Gilligan 26 and sophomore Jack Turner 17. Both Luke Poulter and Zack Swanwick each gained six from the SEC Championship this year as Poulter was the alternate a season ago at the conference tournament.  Comparing to last year's regional lineup which totaled 68 postseason rounds, which included 5th-year and 2022 SEC Individual Champion, John DuBois. 

Last year at the West Lafayette Regional, Florida entered the final round the in fifth at 2-under with a four-shot lead for the final advancing spot. UF shot a final round of 2-under 286 to produce a 54-hole score of 4-under 860 and make the top-5 championship cut by 12 shots behind a final round of 3-under 69 from Turner, a freshman at the time. Advancing out of the regional last year was some revenge for the Gators as In 2017, Florida was the No. 1-seed and missed the top-5 championship cut after a final round of 24-over 312.

ALL SEC GATORS
Ian Gilligan (First Team), Jack Turner (Second Team) and Zack Swanwick (Freshman Team) collected conference recognition voted by league coaches. 

A Haskins Award Postseason Finalist, Gilligan collects his second conference team award after earning second team last year, his first season in the SEC. Turner also collected his second as he was a freshman team member in 2024. Swanwick selection marks the third straight season with a Gator on the first-year team and sixth in the last six seasons. 

GILLY ON NOTICE
Senior Ian Gilligan has continued to gain recognition in his final collegiate season. He was named one of 15 golfers on the Haskins Awrad Postseason Watch List and one of 10 semifinalist for the Ben Hogan Award, the top two honors in college golf. 

He earned First Team All-SEC honors and is Gilligan is ranked No. 3 in the PGA Tour U Rankings after starting the season at No. 8 and No. 5 in WAGR. He has also earned SEC Golfer of the Week twice this season.  

FALL RECAP
The Orange and Blue concluded the fall slate finishing top-9 in all four outings, highlighted by winning the Barbara Nicklaus Cup, finishing runner-up at the Sahalee Players Championship and shooting the lowest round of the fall (-11) in the final 18-holes of the first half of the season. 

Individually, Ian Gilligan (71.0) and Jack Turner (71.1) paced the Gators in stroke average, top-10 finishes (2) and undefeated (3-0) in match play. Turner finished 4th twice and averaged -0.2 per round and -0.6 per tournament.  

NEW GATORS
The Orange and Blue welcomed two new golfers this season in Parker Sands (Edmond, Okla.) and Zack Swanwick (Hawke's Bay, New Zealand). This summer, Sands won the 2024 Western Junior and the OGA (Oklahoma Golf Association) Junior Championship. Swanwick was the low amateur at the New Zealand Open and placed 3rd at the 2024 Austrian Masters of Amateur. 

Recently, Florida announced the addition of transfer Noah Kent from Iowa. He will compete for the Gators starting next fall and is from Naples and played at Gulf Coast Prep.

A SEASON AGO
Following Florida's SEC and National Championship Titles, the Gators featured a new look lineup while three First-Team All-Americans - Fred Biondi (NCAA Individual Champion), Ricky Castillo and Yuxin Lin - all departed. Returning from the title teams was John DuBois and Matthew Kress.

After a shaky last fall, the Gators responded with five wins in the spring to total six on the season. Florida recorded consecutive seasons with six wins for the first time since 1973-74 and 1974-75. UF ended the spring portion of the season with five tournament wins and a 4th place finish at the Southern Highlands Collegiate, that featured Ian Gilligan winning medalist honors and earning an exemption into the PGA Tour's 2024 Shriners Open in October.

The Orange and Blue have now claimed 27 team titles under head coach J.C. Deacon in 10 seasons. It marked the seventh season under Deacon UF has won multiple tournaments in a year and fourth of three-plus. Six tournament wins in a season is tied for the most under Deacon, which came last season and included an SEC and National Championship.

The new look Gators left their mark in the postseason. At the SEC Championship, UF was led by true freshman Jack Turner, who posted a team-best T2 finish in his first conference tournament start. The performance ties the second-best finish by a Gator true freshman at the SEC Championship with Camilo Villegas, who placed T2 in 2001. Vanderbilt and Florida meet for the third straight season in match play SEC Championship with the Commodores edging out the Gators 3-2 in extra holes in the quarterfinals.  

Moving to Regionals and entering round three in the final advancing spot by four-shots, the Gators shot a final round of 2-under to take 3rd and make the cut by 12 strokes. Through the first hour-and-half in the final rounds, teams battled rainy and cold conditions. Florida put together great start and setup for success when the rain stopped, with a combined 1-under on the first hole (#10) and was even-par on counting scores through the first five holes in the rain.
 
Florida made a charge in the final nine holes after finding itself 1-over at the turn and only a four-shot advantage over Indiana, who had just teed off its round its. The Florida separation began with a trio of birdies from Parker Bell, John DuBois and Ian Gilligan. Then Jack Turner put the Hoosiers and Mississippi State's comeback efforts out of reach with a birdie on six to go up by 10 shots and into fourth place. 

At the NCAA National Championship, Florida concluded with an 11th-place finish and battled for back-to-back match play appearances. An important 1-under 287 third round on Saturday helped advance Florida to the final round of stroke play for the third consecutive season. The Gators started the day in eighth, and in the final match-play spot with a one-shot advantage. The Orange and Blue continued its streak of five straight top-11 finishes after winning the national title - 1974: 2nd, 1994: 3rd, 1969: T5 and 2002: T11.

SUMMER RECAP
Across the board, the Gators captured success this summer, highlighted by securing three spots on the 2024 Western Amateur Semifinals in Parker Bell, Ian Gilligan and Jack Turner. Gilligan and Turner met in a marathon final with Gilligan winning in the 29-hole final. The victory also marked a Gator sweep of the Western with incoming freshman Parker Sands winning the Western Junior.

Bell made his major debut in the U.S. Open and made the first birdie of the tournament and was the leader at one point. He shot a final round of 70 and led the field in driving distance of 346.9 compared to 310.9 in the first two rounds. The junior also finished 4th at the Southern Amateur.

Gilligan made his PGA Tour Debut at the Barracuda Championship, making the cut and finishing T40. He also was part of Team USA's victory at the Arnold Palmer Cup and reached the quarterfinals of the North & South Amateur.

Redshirt-freshman Rylan Shim closed out the summer with a 3rd place outing at the Canadian Amateur to go with a semifinals berth at the VSGA (Virginia State Golf Association) Amateur. 

Ryan Hart collected medalist honors at Wykagyl Country Club to secure a spot in the U.S. Amateur.

THE TURN
If Florida finishes top-5 at the NCAA Bremerton Regional, they will advance to the NCAA Championships at Omni La Costa from May 23-28.