Florida Gators
NCAA Championships
No. 6 UF Men's Golf Begins NCAA Championships Tied for Sixth
Thursday, May 29, 2008 | Men's Golf
Led by junior Billy Horschel (Grant, Fla.), the sixth-ranked University of Florida men's golf team continued its quest for a national title by opening the 2008 NCAA Championship tied for sixth place on Wednesday at the Kamden Course.
As a team, the Gators finished 14 strokes over par with a 302. Horschel had the low UF round of the day, carding an even-par 72 and landing in a tie for fourth. He had three birdies on the front nine, entering the turn at one-under. After birdying the 10th hole and making bogeys on 11 and 12, Horschel made par on the last six holes of the course.
“Billy (Horschel) is one of the best players in the country and may not have had as good of a year as he would like but he stepped up at regionals when we needed him,” UF head coach Buddy Alexander said. “He stepped up today because that is what big time players do and it's what All-Americans do so I am not surprised. I wouldn't be surprised to see him play solid all week long.”
“The course we are playing is tough, it has a lot of rough,” the seven-time SEC Coach of the Year said. “This is going to be a long race, but this team is confident in their ability.”
Sophomore Tyson Alexander (Gainesville, Fla.) was the first Gator to tee off Wednesday afternoon and recovered well after a double bogey on the second hole. Alexander finished the round with 11 pars and two birdies to land him in a tie for 40th place with a three-over 75.
Senior Manuel Villegas (Medellin, Colombia) carded a four-over 76 and is tied for 23rd heading into the second day of competition. Villegas rebounded from +3 on the front nine and helped the Gator squad rise in the standings with three birdies in his final five holes. Junior Will Strickler (Charlottesville, Va.) added a seven-over 79 with two birdies to finish in a tie for 87th.
Senior Tyler Brown (Jacksonville, Fla.) began the round strong, making birdies on his first two holes, but was challenged on the back nine. Brown bogeyed 15 and 16 and made double bogeys on the final two holes to finish in a tie for 126th place with an 11-over 83.
Southern California and UCLA lead the 30-team field tied for first with a 297 (+9). Kevin Chappell of UCLA is on top of the individual leaderboard, carding a three-under 69.
Florida will once again be paired with Oklahoma State and Clemson and are set to tee off at 7:20 a.m. ET. Live tournament scoring can be followed at www.Golfstat.com and www.Gatorzone.com.
Team Scores After Round 1
| Place | School | Score |
| T1. | Southern California | 297 (+9) |
| T1. | UCLA | 297 (+9) |
| 3. | Oklahoma State | 298 (+10) |
| T4. | Clemson | 301 (+13) |
| T4. | Kent State | 301 (+13) |
| T6. | Florida | 302 (+14) |
| T6. | Illinois | 302 (+14) |
| 8. | Georgia | 303 (+15) |
| 9. | Washington | 305 (+17) |
| T10. | Auburn | 306 (+18) |
| T10. | Charlotte | 306 (+18) |
| T12. | Middle Tennessee St. | 309 (+21) |
| T12. | Stanford | 309 (+21) |
| T12. | Alabama | 309 (+21) |
| T12. | Texas A&M | 309 (+21) |
| 16. | San Diego State | 310 (+22) |
| T17. | UAB | 311 (+23) |
| T17. | Louisville | 311 (+23) |
| T17. | Arizona State | 311 (+23) |
| T17. | Texas | 311 (+23) |
| 21. | Virginia | 312 (+24) |
| T22. | East Tennessee State | 313 (+25) |
| T22. | Indiana | 313 (+25) |
| 24. | Wake Forest | 314 (+26) |
| T25. | Oregon | 315 (+27) |
| T25. | Penn State | 315 (+27) |
| 26. | UC Irvine | 320 (+32) |
| T28. | Augusta State | 326 (+38) |
| T28. | Mississippi State | 326 (+38) |
| 30. | Saint Mary's | 333 (+45) |
Individual Top 10 Through Round 1
| Place | Player (School) | Score |
| 1. | Kevin Chappell (UCLA) | 69 (-3) |
| T2. | David Markle (Kent State) | 70 (-2) |
| T2. | Tim Sluiter (Southern California) | 70 (-2) |
| T4. | Billy Horschel (Florida) | 72 (E) |
| T4. | Kyle Stanley (Clemson) | 72 (E) |
| T4. | Joel Sjoholm (Georgia State) | 72 (E) |
| T7. | Trent Leon (Oklahoma State) | 73 (+1) |
| T7. | Webb Simpson (Wake Forest) | 73 (+1) |
| T7. | Hudson Swafford (Georgia) | 73 (+1) |
Florida Results After Round 1
| Place | Player | Score |
| T4. | Billy Horschel | 72 (E) |
| T23. | Tyson Alexander | 75 (+3) |
| T40. | Manuel Villegas | 76 (+4) |
| T87. | Will Strickler | 79 (+7) |
| T126. | Tyler Brown | 83 (+11) |
-UF-
