No. 1 Florida men’s golf returned to the course Friday morning to compete in the Fighting Illini Invitational at Olympia Fields Country Club in Chicago.
The Gators finished runner-up in the Sahalee Players Championship last Sunday, led by senior Jack Turner, who placed seventh overall, and junior Parker Sands, who tied for ninth. It marked Turner’s 17th career top-10 finish and he’s projected to finish high in this event.
The Olympia Fields Country Club is a special course for Turner, as he debuted for the Gators three years ago at this track.
Florida faces 14 other teams during the invitational. The Gators face Oklahoma State, which they lost to in their season opener. Other notable competitors include Arizona State, Texas Tech, Illinois, Pepperdine, Stanford, Florida State, Georgia Tech and Alabama, all ranked in the preseason coaches’ top-25 poll.
The Gators have not won this tournament since 2010 and haven’t had an individual medalist in the tournament’s 26-year history.
Oklahoma State (2025) and Georgia Tech (2024) were the last winners of the tournament with the Cowboys tied with Illinois for the most team wins (three). Florida once again fell short in the 2025 Fighting Illini Invitational to Oklahoma State, a team the Gators have a hard time defeating.
The Gators, who are playing Turner, Sands, Luke Poulter, Zack Swanwick and Josh Bai, with Trevor Gutschewski going as an individual, teed off 8:30 a.m. Tee time is to be determined Saturday. Teams will play 36 holes Friday and 18 holes Saturday.
