Florida Gators
Gary Koch Invitational
Gators Win Gary Koch Intercollegiate by 26 Strokes
Tuesday, October 16, 2001 | Men's Golf
Camilo Villegas sank a 20-foot putt on the final hole to claim individual medalist honors in leading defending national champion Florida to its second consecutive Gary Koch/Cleveland Golf Men’s Intercollegiate team title Tuesday. Florida finished the three-round event with an 843 total, 26 strokes ahead of North Florida and TCU which both tied for second place at 869.
On the 18th hole, Villegas sank his 20-foot putt down a hill to win the event. He finished with a 9-under par (207), edging Gator junior Bubba Dickerson by one stroke. Dickerson, who trailed Villegas by four strokes after the first two rounds, placed second at 8-under (208).
“It was a nice battle with Camilo and Bubba,” Florida head coach Buddy Alexander said. “You don’t want either one lose but it was fun to watch and great to see. It’s great to see both of them playing this well this early in the season. Camilo made a great putt to win today. It was not an easy putt by any means.”
Villegas built his lead Monday as he shot a competitive course record 62 in the event’s second round for a nine-under-par 135. Villegas, who birdied 10 holes and parred the eight other, shattered the former course record of 64 held by professional tour member Spider Miller. The record is “competitive” because tournament co-sponsor Gary Koch shot a 66 from the pro tees on multiple occasions with club members. Villegas’ round was shot under tournament conditions on the par-72 course.
In addition, Villegas’ 62 was the lowest round shot by a Gator since 1999 when Steve Scott fired a 63 in the Gator Invitational. According to records, it was also the second lowest round registered in school history. The Florida record-low round is 61 shot three times (Billy Turner in 1957; Adam Armagost in 1981; Brian Gay in 1994) but it was accomplished on the University of Florida’s par-70 course. The win was the second of his collegiate career (he also won last year’s NCAA regional title).
“Camilo didn’t have a great first round,” Alexander said. “He did the same thing in the first couple of tournaments. He played poorly, then got in the zone in the second round.”
All five Gator golfers placed within the field’s top-15. Junior Ari Savolainen finished in a tie for seventh (76-70-68-214) and junior Dalton Melynk, competing in his first collegiate invitational, finished in a tie for 13th place (73-72-73-218). Senior Camilo Benedetti rounded out the Gator lineup in a tie for 15th with a 76-74-79-219. Competing as an individual, junior Robert Litsey tied for 11th place with a 76-69-72-217.
“We needed to play a good event,” Buddy Alexander said. “We didn’t play as well as we wanted to in our first two tournaments. We didn’t play a good first round but our last two rounds, we played just about as well as we could play.”
Florida (292-273-278-843) began the second round in third place after shooting a 292, but the Gators used Villegas’ 62 and Dickerson’s 69 to take command. Kentucky led the field after the first round as it shot a combined 289 (+1), followed by Ohio State (290, +2). After round two, Kentucky trailed the Gators by 14 strokes.
The field featured three of Golfweek’s top-10 nationally ranked teams, five of the top-30 nationally ranked teams (1. TCU, 8. Ohio State, 10. Florida, 17. College of Charleston, and 30. North Florida) and nine of the nation’s top-50 ranked individuals including UF’s Villegas (No. 10) and Dickerson (No. 13).
Florida has now won two straight Gary Koch Intercollegiate titles. In its third year, the Gary Koch/Cleveland Golf Intercollegiate was co-hosted by the University of Florida and the University of Central Florida and was being held in honor of former University of Florida golfer Gary Koch. Koch, who was on hand at the tournament, is a member of the Gators’ 1973 NCAA championship team, captured 10 collegiate tournament titles and was a four-time All America selection as a Gator letterwinner from 1971-73.
After graduation, Koch made an impact on the PGA Tour as he won six events and his earnings totaled over $1 million. In 1990, Koch embarked on a career in broadcast as a golf analyst for ESPN before going to NBC-TV in 1997.
The Old Memorial Golf Course is a par-72, 7,236-yard course. Last year, Florida won the event with a 6-under par three-round total of 858 as 2001 NCAA medalist Nick Gilliam led the Gators with a second-place individual finish. --UF—
GARY KOCH INVITATIONAL FINAL RESULTS FINAL RESULTS Gary Koch/Cleveland Golf Inter * Individual Old Memorial G.C. Tampa, FL Dates: 10/15 - 10/16 (Today:10-16-2001) Par: 72 Yardage: 7236 Fin. Top 20 Teams Scores 1 Florida, U. of 292 273 278 843 2 North Florida, U. of 293 289 287 869 TCU 296 284 289 869 4 Kentucky, U. of 289 290 293 872 5 Ohio State Univ. 290 292 291 873 6 Mississippi, U. of 297 295 285 877 North Carolina State 294 294 289 877 8 Louisiana State U. 299 291 296 886 9 Florida State Univ. 306 294 289 889 10 Charleston, Coll. of 304 298 289 891 11 Rhode Island, U. of 305 297 291 893 12 Texas A&M University 308 295 291 894 13 Georgia State Univ. 306 306 290 902 14 So. Florida, U. of 304 296 305 905 15 Central Florida, U. 312 305 298 915 Fin. Top 20 Players School Scores 1 Camilo Villegas Florida 73 62 72 207 2 Bubba Dickerson Florida 70 69 69 208 3 Adam Rubinson TCU 71 70 70 211 Justin Collins Ohio State 68 71 72 211 5 John Holmes Kentucky 72 70 71 213 Brad Schwartz N. Florida 71 70 72 213 7 Jason Moon NC State 72 69 73 214 Ari Savolainen Florida 76 70 68 214 9 Andy Doeden TCU 76 67 72 215 10 Garth Mulroy NC State 74 74 68 216 11 Ricardo Carrillo So Florida 72 69 76 217 *Robert Litsey Florida 76 69 72 217 13 John Limanti N. Florida 76 72 70 218 Dalton Melnyk Florida 73 72 73 218 15 Stephen Reed Texas A&M 77 73 69 219 Camilo Benedetti Florida 76 74 69 219 Tommy Clement Ole Miss 74 72 73 219 18 Garrett Prather LSU 75 71 74 220 Henrik Sevegran Georgia St 74 75 71 220 J.J. Killeen TCU 72 75 73 220 Daniel Brunson Charleston 74 78 68 220 Rodney Thomas NC State 74 75 71 220 Vince Covello N. Florida 77 71 72 220 FINAL INDIVIDUAL RESULTS FINAL RESULTS Gary Koch/Cleveland Golf Inter * Individual Old Memorial G.C. Tampa, FL Dates: 10/15 - 10/16 (Today:10-16-2001) Par: 72 Yardage: 7236 Fin. Name School Scores 1 Camilo Villegas Florida 73 62 72 207 -9 2 Bubba Dickerson Florida 70 69 69 208 -8 3 Adam Rubinson TCU 71 70 70 211 -5 Justin Collins Ohio State 68 71 72 211 -5 5 John Holmes Kentucky 72 70 71 213 -3 Brad Schwartz N. Florida 71 70 72 213 -3 7 Jason Moon NC State 72 69 73 214 -2 Ari Savolainen Florida 76 70 68 214 -2 9 Andy Doeden TCU 76 67 72 215 -1 10 Garth Mulroy NC State 74 74 68 216 E 11 Ricardo Carrillo So Florida 72 69 76 217 +1 *Robert Litsey Florida 76 69 72 217 +1 13 John Limanti N. Florida 76 72 70 218 +2 Dalton Melnyk Florida 73 72 73 218 +2 15 Stephen Reed Texas A&M 77 73 69 219 +3 Camilo Benedetti Florida 76 74 69 219 +3 Tommy Clement Ole Miss 74 72 73 219 +3 18 Garrett Prather LSU 75 71 74 220 +4 Henrik Sevegran Georgia St 74 75 71 220 +4 J.J. Killeen TCU 72 75 73 220 +4 Daniel Brunson Charleston 74 78 68 220 +4 Rodney Thomas NC State 74 75 71 220 +4 Vince Covello N. Florida 77 71 72 220 +4 24 Jason Oien Ohio State 71 73 77 221 +5 Jordan Dempsey Ole Miss 75 77 69 221 +5 Tyler Garrett Texas A&M 77 71 73 221 +5 John Humphries LSU 74 73 74 221 +5 Ben Lowery Ole Miss 75 74 72 221 +5 Jarrod Gardner Ole Miss 73 77 71 221 +5 Andy Dustman Kentucky 74 72 75 221 +5 *John Beckett Kentucky 76 71 74 221 +5 32 Doug Wade Ohio State 75 74 73 222 +6 Ryan Coyne Kentucky 70 75 77 222 +6 Heath West LSU 75 75 72 222 +6 Matt Ackley Florida St 76 76 70 222 +6 Thomas Giles Rhode Isl. 78 72 72 222 +6 37 Tele Wightman So Florida 75 77 71 223 +7 Mike Carbone Rhode Isl. 77 74 72 223 +7 Andrew Medley Ole Miss 77 72 74 223 +7 Kyle Bradley Charleston 75 73 75 223 +7 Stephen Polanski TCU 77 72 74 223 +7 42 Ben Osbrach UCF 78 74 72 224 +8 Brad Lusenhop Florida St 78 72 74 224 +8 Peter Mitchell Florida St 79 74 71 224 +8 Josh Goldstein Charleston 79 70 75 224 +8 Mark Blakefield Kentucky 78 73 73 224 +8 Johnny Thompson N. Florida 72 76 76 224 +8 Eric Beaty Florida St 75 72 77 224 +8 Philip Schardein Kentucky 73 77 74 224 +8 50 Stephen Davis UCF 77 76 72 225 +9 Adam Grodhaus Charleston 76 77 72 225 +9 Nathan Goulding LSU 75 72 78 225 +9 53 Shaun Helmle Texas A&M 75 76 75 226 +10 54 Jack Croyle Georgia St 78 76 73 227 +11 Erik Labitzke N. Florida 74 80 73 227 +11 James Clarke Rhode Isl. 73 74 80 227 +11 Jay Cavanagh So Florida 73 72 82 227 +11 Justin Walters NC State 74 76 77 227 +11 59 Rand Arbuckle Texas A&M 79 75 74 228 +12 Rick Westbrook Florida St 77 77 74 228 +12 David Denham Georgia St 76 76 76 228 +12 62 David Spitz Rhode Isl. 77 78 74 229 +13 Ryan Dennis Ohio State 76 79 74 229 +13 Matt Boudreau Ohio State 83 74 72 229 +13 65 Jason Horrell LSU 78 77 76 231 +15 66 Kenneth Fahey Rhode Isl. 82 77 73 232 +16 D.J. Fiese Georgia St 78 81 73 232 +16 Andreas Hoegberg UCF 76 76 80 232 +16 69 Fernando Machareffe NC State 82 76 77 235 +19 70 Brad Beverly Georgia St 84 79 73 236 +20 Bruce McDonald Charleston 82 80 74 236 +20 *Dan Grassman So Florida 80 78 78 236 +20 73 Ryan Shears So Florida 85 78 76 239 +23 74 Steve Shuert TCU 81 78 81 240 +24 75 Kevin Kahle UCF 89 79 74 242 +26 76 Josh McCoy Texas A&M 81 85 78 244 +28 77 Tory Carli UCF 81 82 85 248 +32 78 Jason Eder So Florida 84 88 89 261 +45 INDIVIDUAL/TEAM RESULTS Gary Koch/Cleveland Golf Inter Old Memorial G.C. Tampa, FL Dates: 10/15 - 10/16 (Today:10-16-2001) Par: 72 Yardage: 7236 Fin. School Scores 1 Florida, U. of 292 273 278 843 1 Camilo Villegas 73 62 72 207 2 Bubba Dickerson 70 69 69 208 T 7 Ari Savolainen 76 70 68 214 T 13 Dalton Melnyk 73 72 73 218 T 15 Camilo Benedetti 76 74 69 219 T 2 North Florida, U. of 293 289 287 869 T 5 Brad Schwartz 71 70 72 213 T 13 John Limanti 76 72 70 218 T 18 Vince Covello 77 71 72 220 T 42 Johnny Thompson 72 76 76 224 T 54 Erik Labitzke 74 80 73 227 T 2 TCU 296 284 289 869 T 3 Adam Rubinson 71 70 70 211 9 Andy Doeden 76 67 72 215 T 18 J.J. Killeen 72 75 73 220 T 37 Stephen Polanski 77 72 74 223 74 Steve Shuert 81 78 81 240 4 Kentucky, U. of 289 290 293 872 T 5 John Holmes 72 70 71 213 T 24 Andy Dustman 74 72 75 221 T 32 Ryan Coyne 70 75 77 222 T 42 Mark Blakefield 78 73 73 224 T 42 Philip Schardein 73 77 74 224 5 Ohio State Univ. 290 292 291 873 T 3 Justin Collins 68 71 72 211 T 24 Jason Oien 71 73 77 221 T 32 Doug Wade 75 74 73 222 T 62 Ryan Dennis 76 79 74 229 T 62 Matt Boudreau 83 74 72 229 T 6 Mississippi, U. of 297 295 285 877 T 15 Tommy Clement 74 72 73 219 T 24 Jordan Dempsey 75 77 69 221 T 24 Ben Lowery 75 74 72 221 T 24 Jarrod Gardner 73 77 71 221 T 37 Andrew Medley 77 72 74 223 T 6 North Carolina State 294 294 289 877 T 7 Jason Moon 72 69 73 214 10 Garth Mulroy 74 74 68 216 T 18 Rodney Thomas 74 75 71 220 T 54 Justin Walters 74 76 77 227 69 Fernando Machareffe 82 76 77 235 8 Louisiana State U. 299 291 296 886 T 18 Garrett Prather 75 71 74 220 T 24 John Humphries 74 73 74 221 T 32 Heath West 75 75 72 222 T 50 Nathan Goulding 75 72 78 225 65 Jason Horrell 78 77 76 231 9 Florida State Univ. 306 294 289 889 T 32 Matt Ackley 76 76 70 222 T 42 Brad Lusenhop 78 72 74 224 T 42 Peter Mitchell 79 74 71 224 T 42 Eric Beaty 75 72 77 224 T 59 Rick Westbrook 77 77 74 228 10 Charleston, Coll. of 304 298 289 891 T 18 Daniel Brunson 74 78 68 220 T 37 Kyle Bradley 75 73 75 223 T 42 Josh Goldstein 79 70 75 224 T 50 Adam Grodhaus 76 77 72 225 T 70 Bruce McDonald 82 80 74 236 11 Rhode Island, U. of 305 297 291 893 T 32 Thomas Giles 78 72 72 222 T 37 Mike Carbone 77 74 72 223 T 54 James Clarke 73 74 80 227 T 62 David Spitz 77 78 74 229 T 66 Kenneth Fahey 82 77 73 232 12 Texas A&M University 308 295 291 894 T 15 Stephen Reed 77 73 69 219 T 24 Tyler Garrett 77 71 73 221 53 Shaun Helmle 75 76 75 226 T 59 Rand Arbuckle 79 75 74 228 76 Josh McCoy 81 85 78 244 13 Georgia State Univ. 306 306 290 902 T 18 Henrik Sevegran 74 75 71 220 T 54 Jack Croyle 78 76 73 227 T 59 David Denham 76 76 76 228 T 66 D.J. Fiese 78 81 73 232 T 70 Brad Beverly 84 79 73 236 14 So. Florida, U. of 304 296 305 905 T 11 Ricardo Carrillo 72 69 76 217 T 37 Tele Wightman 75 77 71 223 T 54 Jay Cavanagh 73 72 82 227 73 Ryan Shears 85 78 76 239 78 Jason Eder 84 88 89 261 15 Central Florida, U. 312 305 298 915 T 42 Ben Osbrach 78 74 72 224 T 50 Stephen Davis 77 76 72 225 T 66 Andreas Hoegberg 76 76 80 232 75 Kevin Kahle 89 79 74 242 77 Tory Carli 81 82 85 248 Fin. Individuals School Scores T 11 Robert Litsey Florida 76 69 72 217 T 24 John Beckett Kentucky 76 71 74 221 T 70 Dan Grassman So Florida 80 78 78 236
