An indication of a team that is progressively getting better is overcoming disappointment and adversity.
And it’s happening with the Florida men’s golf team so far through the fall.
After finishing second-to-last in their first tournament, the Gators bounced back and came in second place at the Wolf Run Intercollegiate.
And while coach J.C. Deacon is happy with Florida’s improvement, he feels the team has to get better so they can compete with the top teams in the country.
"We still got beat by 30 by Illinois, so that’s where my mind is at is trying to be one of the best teams in the country," Deacon said. "We have the players to do it I really believe that we just need to get our expectations back to competing at the highest level."
Illinois went into the tournament as the No. 2 team in the country and had the only two players in the field to finish under-par.
The Fighting Illini are now the new No. 1 team in the country with a record of 28-0.
Florida will have to keep progressing throughout the fall, if they want to be ready for the Southeastern Conference and the NCAA’s.
UF had two new players in its lineup in Zionsville. One of them being freshman Ryan Celano and the other, senior Eric Banks.
Banks was an important member to the team last season, as he competed in all but one tournament and collected four top-20 finishes.
Banks finished at 10-over-par and was the third best player over the weekend for the Gators by ending the tournament in a tie for 13th place — his highest finish since tying for 13th at the Old Waverly Collegiate on April 8.
Deacon said Banks’ experience is invaluable to the team.
"Eric brings a great element to the team, he’s got a little bit of fire in him, he’s very competitive," Deacon said. "He wants to be great and he’s been around, he has experience and I really noticed it. It was a pleasure to have him on the road and his scores helped us all three rounds."
The Gators will now have a few weeks off before heading to Orlando for the three-day Tavistock Collegiate Invitational.
Having a good week of practice and playing well in qualifying will be key for Florida before heading into its third tournament of the year.
"I think we just need to go and compete in qualifying and the guys are out there practicing a lot and playing a lot," Deacon said. "I’m starting to see where I need to work with the guys, so that really helps me, because when you watch them in tournaments it’s a different story, you see some different things, so watching that I’m able to kind of pick the parts of their games that I want to improve."
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Eric Banks tees off during Day 2 of the SunTrust Gator Invitational on Feb. 16 at the Mark Bostick Golf Course.
