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Gators golf advances to NCAA quarterfinals

On3 imageby: Keith Niebuhr05/27/25On3Keith
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Florida Gators head golf coach JC Deacon / photo by Nick de la Torre for Gators Online

The Florida Gators’ quest to win the golf program’s sixth national championship still is alive. After four strong days at the NCAA men’s golf championship, UF is one of eight teams (out of 30 at the event) to advance through the stroke play portion and into match play.

The Gators, who placed third in stroke play at 9-under, will face Texas, which finished sixth (5-over) in the quarterfinals Tuesday morning at Omni La Costa Resort & Spa in Carlsbad, Calif.

Florida played its best round of the event Monday.

The Gators entered Monday in fourth place, but turned in an 8-under effort that tied Arizona State for the low round of the day. The Sun Devils, at 14-under overall, are the No. 1 seed entering the quarters.

Monday, Ian Gilligan paced Florida with a 4-under 68, his best round over four days. Gilligan’s card included five birdies—four on the back nine when he posted a 3-under 33.

Matthew Kress and Jack Turner both recorded rounds of 70. Zack Swanwick shot 72 and Luke Poulter had a 76. It should be noted that while Poulter didn’t have a strong day Monday, he had back-to-back under-par rounds on Days 1 and 2.

Kress, at 3-under overall, led Florida during the stroke play portion of the event. That placed ninth in the individual standings. Gilligan, at 2-under, was next among Gators players in 13th place.

The final stroke play standings for the top eight looked like this: Florida Gators take third

1. Arizona State, -14
2. Auburn, -12
3. Florida Gators, -9
4. Oklahoma State, -1
5. Oklahoma, Even
6. Texas, +5
7. Virginia, +9
8. Ole Miss, +11

Florida State missed the cut, finishing one shot back of the Rebels.

The Gators won national titles in 1968, 1973, 1993, 2001, 2023. Current Florida coach J. C. Deacon guided UF to the 2023 championship.

Should the Gators beat Texas on Tuesday, they potentially could face Auburn later in the day in the semifinals. That would match up the last two national champions against each other.

MATCH PLAY QUARTERFINALS

  • No. 1 Arizona State vs. No. 8 Ole Miss
  • No. 2 Auburn vs. No. 7 Virginia
  • No. 3 Florida vs. No. 6 Texas
  • No. 4 Oklahoma State vs. No. 5 Oklahoma

The finals are Wednesday.

Golf Channel’s live coverage of the quarterfinals begins at 1 p.m. ET.

 

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