TOURNAMENT INFORMATION

Dates: Wednesday, April 23 – Sunday, April 27
Location: St. Simons Island, Ga. – Sea Island Golf Club: Seaside Course
Host: SEC
Course Par/Yardage: 70 / 7,005 yards
Format: 54-hole stroke play (18-18-18) and Match Play (3 matches) 
Tee Times: 8 a.m. on Wednesday and TBA other days 
Scoring: Golfstat
Watch: Semifinals at 3:30 p.m. (SECN+) and Finals at 8 a.m. (SEC Network)
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TEE OFF

The No. 8 Florida men’s golf team opens up play at the SEC Championship this week, teeing off on Wednesday at 8 a.m. at Sea Island GC. 

LINEUP

No. 1 – Ian Gilligan

No. 2 – Jack Turner

No. 3 – Luke Poulter

No. 4 – Matthew Kress

No. 5 – Zack Swanwick

Substitute – Parker Sands

TOURNAMENT HISTORY

The Gators are tied for second all-time in the SEC with 16 conference championships with LSU. Florida won its first title in 1955 and defended it the following season. Between 1988-1996, UF has claimed five championships, including four consecutive from 1991-1994. The other four years they finished runner-up and third twice. 

In the match play portion, Florida is 7-4 all-time with victories over Georgia (2022), Ole Miss (2018, 2023), South Carolina (2017), Texas A&M (2022, 2023) and Vanderbilt (2023). 

Last year, a new Gators lineup reached the quarterfinals and faced Vanderbilt for the third consecutive year (finals in 2022 & 2023). The match was decided in extra holes with the Dores winning the match 3-2.  

In his first SECs, Jack Turned finished tied for runner-up in stroke play and won his match in the quarterfinals after being two down with three holes remaining. His runner-up performance ties the second-best finish by a Gator true freshman at the SEC Championship with Camilo Villegas, who placed T2 in 2001.

COMPETING TEAMS (NCAA Rankings as of April 16 )

No. 15 Alabama, No. 59 Arkansas, No. 2 Auburn, No. 8 Florida, No. 31 Georgia, No. 69 Kentucky, No. 7 LSU, No. 29 Mississippi State, No. 91 Missouri, No. 6 Oklahoma, No. 1 Ole Miss, No. 20 South Carolina, No. 26 Tennessee, No. 3 Texas, No. 17 Texas A&M and No. 18 Vanderbilt.

LAST TIME OUT

Florida ended the regular season on a strong note in defending its title and winning the Calusa Cup behind a final round of 17-under. The round was tied for third all-time in program history by par.

The win marks the third consecutive year UF has won the final regular season event (2024 Calusa Cup & 2023 Augusta Hakskins Award Invite). The final round of 271 tied the lowest round by score this season as the -17 was the season-low score by par in a round. The final team score of 17-under also set a new tournament record for the Calusa Cup. 

UF entered the final round at Calusa Pines Golf Club five shots behind Louisville, who they edged out by one stroke as the Cardinals finished 16-under and a final round of 11-under. The Orange and Blue moved into the lead early in the final round with a 7-under start through holes 2-5 and never looked back, eventually reaching 18-under on one occasion. Florida beat No. 4 LSU by 35 strokes, No. 8 Virginia by 48 strokes and No. 10 UCLA by 17 strokes. 

All five UF golfers shot under par in the final 18 holes, led by Ian Gilligan and Jack Turner with 5-under 67s. The top two Gators tied for 3rd and ended 4-under overall. Gilligan logged his season’s fourth and career 14th total top-3 finish in his 41st collegiate stroke play event. The outing was a season-best finish for Turner, marking his best finish since a runner-up at the SEC Championship last year. In Turner’s two appearances at the Calusa Cup he has finished T3 & 3rd with a combined score of 8-under 424.  

Luke Poulter continued his strong spring season with a solo 6th and a final round of 4-under 68. He placed 3-under for the tournament and has shot par or better in five of his last six rounds. Matthew Kress was a stroke back today with a 3-under 69, regrouping from his opening round of 78. Kress produced back-to-back rounds of under par (71 & 69) for a T16 performance. In his last four stars, he has finished T6-T9-T9-T16. 

Pacing the Gators in the opening round, freshman Zack Swanwick had 1-under 71 to conclude his ninth tournament and fifth appearance in the lineup. He earned a season-best finish in a tie for 7th at 2-under overall.

GILLY ON NOTICE

Senior Ian Gilligan has continued to gain recognition in his final collegiate season. He was recently named one of 10 semifinalists for the Ben Hogan Award, given to the top men’s NCAA college golfer. He was also named one of 20 golfers to the Haskins Award Watch List. 

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

Following the conference tournament, the Gators will learn their NCAA Regional selection on April 30, live on Golf Channel.