The University of Florida men’s golf team will open the 2010-11 season on Friday, Sept. 17 at the Olympia Fields Invitational in Chicago. The tournament is hosted by the University of Illinois at the famed Olympia Fields Country Club.
Head coach Buddy Alexander will employ a lineup of seniors Andres Echavarria (Medellin, Colombia) and Bank Vongvanij (Bradenton, Fla.), junior transfer Michael Furci (Sayville, N.Y.) and sophomores Tyler McCumber (Ponte Vedra, Fla.) and Phillip Choi (Orlando, Fla.).
The 15-team field at the Olympia Fields Invitational features nine schools that advanced to the NCAA Championships in 2010: Florida, Augusta State, Oklahoma State, Florida State, Arizona State, California, Duke, Illinois, Stanford. Five of those nine--Augusta State (champion), Oklahoma State (runner-up), Florida State (semi-finalist), Stanford and Arizona State--earned top-10 finishes at the national tournament.
In addition, 10 are ranked in Golf World’s preseason Top 25: Oklahoma State (1), Stanford (2), Augusta State (3), Florida (8), Texas (11), Arizona State (12), Florida State (13), Alabama (15), Illinois (16) and Duke (18). Thirteen individuals were also ranked in the Preseason Top 30 by Golfweek, including Florida’s Echavarria.
Last year marked the first time the Gators played in the Olympia Fields Invitational. The Gators finished in sixth place behind Arizona State, Oklahoma State, Texas, Stanford and Florida State, all returning teams. Echavarria turned in a stunning performance in 2009, shooting a three-over in a tie for third and is this year’s top returner.
The field will play 54 total holes, 18 each day, beginning at 9 a.m. ET on Friday. Live scoring will be available at www.golfstat.com.
