Gators Men’s Golf Opens Southern Highlands Collegiate

The No. 10/11-ranked Gators men’s golf team began its first day of competition at the prestigious Southern Highlands Collegiate.

The team posted a total score of 307 (+19). This placed the Gators in a tie for 10th position alongside USC and Oklahoma in a competitive field of top-ranked teams.

Luke Poulter and Zack Swanwick led the charge for the Gators. Both shot rounds of 76 (+4). This placed them in a tie for 30th in the individual competition.

Close behind, Ian Gilligan followed with a score of 77 (+5), securing a tie for 41st place. Jack Turner is T51 with a round of 78 (+6). Redshirt freshman Rylan Shim closes out the lineup in T74 with a score of 82 (+10).

Matthew Kress competed individually and currently ties for 51st after shooting a round of 78 (+6).

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Leaderboard

Coming into this tournament, the path toward victory was not expected to be easy as nine top-25 teams and 13 top-50 teams are participating.

Gilligan (currently ranked No. 3) was competing alongside other top 10-ranked PGA TourU players. Right behind him in rank No. 4, Brendan Valdes from Auburn shot a round of 73 (+1), whilst University of Illinois’ No. 7 Jackson Buchanan shot a round of 76 (+4).

The top-five leaderboard consists of Auburn (-1), UNLV (+2), Pepperdine (+7), New Mexico (+7) and Virginia (+9).

Day 2

With plenty of golf still to be played, the team will be looking to improve its standing. Additionally, it will aim to build momentum as they continue the competition, which promises to be a highly competitive tournament.

Tee times for the second round begin at 12:10 p.m. with Matthew Kress until 1:00 p.m. as Zack Swanwick closes out the Gators roster.