Florida Gators
Puerto Rico Classic
No. 5 M. Golf Earns Second Place Finish At The Puerto Rico Classic
Tuesday, February 28, 2006 | Men's Golf
Freshman Toby Ragland (Jacksonville, Fla.) matched his career-best score of 67 (-5) during the final round of the Puerto Rico Classic on Tuesday to help No. 5 Florida finish in second place. Top-ranked Georgia won the tournament with scores of 843 (-21), while the Gators carded scores of 284-284-279 = 847 (-17).
The Gators were firing on all cylinders at the Westin Rio Mar Resort's par-72, 6,902-yard course with four players turning in scores at par or lower. Ragland led the way by carding a 67 for the first time since the second round of the Gary Koch Invitational in October. Ragland moved into a tie for 18th-place to earn his second top-20 finish this year.
Senior Matt Every (Daytona Beach, Fla.) earned his fourth top-five finish by carding a 68 (-4) during his final round. Every made birdies on four of his last five holes to tie for third and completed his best three-round total of the spring season.
“I was really a proud of these guys today,” Florida coach Buddy Alexander said. “I didn't see any negatives this week. It's crazy to think you could have five guys all play well in one tournament, but this team seems to be pretty consistent and that's good from a coaching standpoint.”
Freshman Billy Horschel (Grant, Fla.) and senior Brett Stegmaier (Madison, Conn.) both recorded even-par scores of 72 during the final round and finished in a tie for eighth-place. Stegmaier led the 90-player field after the first round, while Horschel contributed with the Gators' best score on Monday.
Senior James Vargas (Miami, Fla.) began his day by going five-over-par on the front-nine, but managed to birdie three holes on the back-nine to finish his final round with a 74 (+2). The Gators now have three wins and a pair second-place finishes when Vargas is in the lineup.
For a second consecutive week, the Gators have topped several of the top-25 teams in the nation according to the latest Bridgestone/GCAA Coaches' Poll. The Puerto Rico Classic field included No. 2 Georgia Tech, No. 3 Oklahoma State, No. 8 Duke, No. 9 Arizona State, No. 19 Clemson, No. 12 Northwestern No. 14 Minnesota, No. 21 East Tennessee State and No. 25 Texas. Florida topped No. 1 Georgia earlier this season at the Carpet Capital Collegiate in November.
Florida will have a week off before heading out west for the Las Vegas Intercollegiate at the Southern Highlands March 10-12.
Team Results
| Place | Team | Scores | Par |
| 1. | Georgia | 281-283-279 = 843 | -21 |
| 2. | Florida | 284-284-279 = 847 | -17 |
| 3. | Oklahoma State | 291-272-299 = 862 | -2 |
| 4. | Alabama | 280-294-291 = 865 | +1 |
| 5. | East Tennessee St. | 292-287-288 = 867 | +3 |
| 6. | Arizona State | 285-300-285 = 870 | +6 |
| T7. | Purdue | 287-288-301 = 876 | +12 |
| T7. | Duke | 296-289-291 = 876 | +12 |
| 9. | Clemson | 294-288-295 = 877 | +13 |
| 10. | N.C. State | 293-292-293 = 878 | +14 |
| 11. | Illinois | 305-288-286 = 879 | +15 |
| 12. | Texas | 286-298-300 = 884 | +20 |
| T13. | Kent State | 302-293-290 = 885 | +21 |
| T13. | Northwestern | 291-298-296 = 885 | +21 |
| 15. | Georgia Tech | 288-298-300 = 886 | +22 |
| 16. | Virginia Tech | 295-292-305 = 892 | +28 |
| 17. | Minnesota | 314-295-291 = 900 | +36 |
| 18. | Michigan | 305-297-304 = 906 | +42 |
Top 10 Results
| Place | Name | School | Scores | Par |
| 1. | Chris Kirk | Georgia | 70-68-67 = 205 | -11 |
| 2. | Pablo Martin | Okla. St. | 68-67-71 = 206 | -10 |
| T3. | Matt Every | Florida | 70-72-68 = 210 | -6 |
| T3. | Brendon Todd | Georgia | 68-72-70 = 210 | -6 |
| T5. | Alejandro Canizares | Arizona St | 69-73-70 = 212 | -4 |
| T5. | Jordan Findlay | ETSU | 72-70-70 = 212 | -4 |
| 7. | David Merkow | Northwestern | 71-70-72 = 213 | -3 |
| T8. | Mark Ogren | Illinois | 74-69-71 = 214 | -2 |
| T8. | Brett Stegmaier | Florida | 68-74-72 = 214 | -2 |
| T8. | Brian Harman | Georgia | 72-69-73 = 214 | -2 |
| T8. | Patrick Nagle | Illinois | 76-69-69 = 214 | -2 |
| T8. | Billy Horschel | Florida | 74-68-72 = 214 | -2 |
| T8. | Stewart Whitt | Alabama | 69-75-70 = 214 | -2 |
Florida Results
| Place | Player | Scores | Par |
| 3. | Matt Every | 70-72-68 = 210 | -6 |
| T8. | Brett Stegmaier | 68-74-72 = 214 | -2 |
| T8. | Billy Horschel | 74-68-72 = 214 | -2 |
| T18. | Toby Ragland | 72-77-67 = 216 | E |
| T38. | James Vargas | 76-70-74 = 220 | +4 |
-UF-
