High expectations are the norm for the Florida men’s golf team. As four-time national champions, highly touted recruits came to Gainesville expecting to be part of the squad that brings home a fifth.
In a year in which Florida lost two of its top five players, the Gators will look to fulfill their championship expectations in 2011.
Ranked No. 3 in the nation, UF begins its quest to meet those sky-high expectations Monday at the JU Invitational in Jacksonville.
Led by senior standout Bank Vongvanij, ranked No. 1 in the Southeastern Conference as an individual, the Gators had an outstanding fall campaign that included a first-place finish at the Olympia Fields Invitational in Chicago, a runner-up performance at the Jerry Pate Invitational in Birmingham, Ala., and a third-place showing at the Isleworth Invitational in Orlando.
Along with Vongvanij, sophomore Tyler McCumber (No. 5), senior Andres Echavarria (No. 11), and sophomore Phillip Choi (No. 12) all earned top-20 Southeastern Conference rankings. The fall was also the first time since 2003 that Florida scored top three finishes in all of their fall tournaments.
Coach Buddy Alexander joked the Gators were “moving in the wrong direction,” with the slight regression of their first-, second- and third-place finishes but acknowledged his pleasure with the fall season overall.
What gives Alexander the belief this year’s team can become the first since 2001 to win a national championship is their work ethic.
At the final meeting of the fall season, Alexander told the team to “take one or two weeks to recharge their batteries.” After hearing their coach, however, a few of the players went right out to the practice range.
Alexander is also expecting breakout seasons from McCumber and Choi, observing that golfers typically make their biggest strides between their freshman and sophomore years.
The Gators tee off the JU Invitational at the famed Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass, the annual home of The Players Championship, on Monday before completing the 36-hole event on Tuesday.
