Gators Head Into Final Round With 11-Shot Lead At Calusa Cup

The Florida men’s golf team holds an 11-shot lead after 36 holes Monday at the Calusa Cup in Naples. The Gators sit at 7-under for the tournament and are the only team under par among the eight-team field.

Freshman Jack Turner has led the Gators’ lineup going into Tuesday’s final round, shooting 5-under and is tied for first. Turner is seeking his first collegiate win and will tee off at 9:21 a.m. Tuesday.

Round 2 ✔️

Gators sit at -7 and own a 11-shot lead heading into tomorrow's final round! #GoGators 🐊 pic.twitter.com/eCs6OFe7Ca

— Gators Golf (@GatorsGolf) April 8, 2024

Gators Represent Half of Top Six on Leaderboard

Sophomore Parker Bell (5th), senior Tyler Wilkes (T-6) and Turner (T-1) make up the three under-par scores for Florida. Bell shot a round-low 68 (-4) to bring him to 2-under for the tournament while Wilkes followed up a 69 (-3) in round one with a 74 (+2) in round two to put him at 1-under.

Furthermore, Bell, Wilkes and Turner are three of the seven players in the field to be under par. Only 11 players out of the 42 in the field are even-par or better for the tournament.

https://twitter.com/GatorsGolf/status/1777459360802738349

Gilligan Struggles Monday, Shoots 78 (+6)

Junior Ian Gilligan sits tied for 25th at 7-over after putting up a 78 (+6) in round two. Gilligan had no blow-up holes on his scorecard Monday, but recorded seven bogeys with three on the front nine and four on the back nine.

However, Gilligan was able to put a frustrating round behind him on hole 18 (par 5, 548 yards), finishing with a birdie to get some momentum going into round 3.

Gilligan also shot over-par in round one with a 73 (+1), leaving him in unfamiliar territory at tied for 25th. Gilligan is on track to finish over-par in a tournament for the first time this year unless he shoots 8-under or better Tuesday.

The Long Beach State transfer is 22nd in the World Amateur Golf Ranking and has won five tournaments in his collegiate career. In February, he was named the SwingU College Player of the Month by the Golf Coaches Association of America.

The Gators will look to capture their sixth tournament win of the season Tuesday before gearing up for the SEC Championship from April 24-28 at Sea Island GC in St. Simonds, Georgia.