Senior Bank Vongvanij (Bradenton, Fla.) recorded a tie for 13th, but the Florida Men’s Golf team ended the 2010-11 season with a 23rd-place finish at the NCAA Championships on Thursday at Karsten Creek Golf Course. It was not able to crack the top eight after three rounds and advance to match play.
“This was a hard golf course today,” said head coach Buddy Alexander. “The wind picked up a bit and the hole locations were a bit tougher, but it wasn’t as hard as we made it. I think we got so caught up in the possibilities that we forgot to play golf. It’s disappointing because we are a lot better team than we showed.”
Vongvanij improved each day of the tournament, shooting a team-high 71. He started the day making a birdie on the first hole, followed by consecutive bogeys on four and five. He made his fifth eagle of the season on the 14th hole, made a birdie on 16 and then a bogey on 17 to shoot one-under par for the day. It marks the 11th time Vongvanij finished in the top 20 this season.
Sophomores Phillip Choi (Orlando, Fla.) and Tyler McCumber (Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.) each shot a 79, while sophomore Tommy Mou (Bradenton, Fla.) shot an 80 and redshirt-senior Andres Echavarria (Medellin, Colombia) shot an 83.
Despite the disappointing finish, the Gators had a record-breaking season, highlighted by an SEC Championship, their eighth-consecutive Gator Invitational Championship and three additional tournament wins—the most since 2004.
Vongvanij, Echavarria and Choi led the Florida team, making history in single-season stroke average, individual titles won in a season and top-10 finishes.
“We’ve had a good year and you don’t want to let one tournament diminish what you’ve done all season long,” said Alexander. “From that standpoint, I’m proud of these kids.”
Team Results After Round Three
| Place | Team | Round One | Round Two | Round Three | Final (Par) |
| 1 | UCLA | 286 | 288 | 298 | 872 (+8) |
| 2 | Georgia Tech | 283 | 290 | 302 | 875 (+11) |
| T3 | Oklahoma State | 292 | 293 | 294 | 879 (+15) |
| T3 | Illinois | 291 | 287 | 301 | 879 (+15) |
| 5 | Georgia | 291 | 288 | 305 | 884 (+20) |
| 6 | Ohio State | 291 | 299 | 297 | 887 (+23) |
| 7 | Augusta State | 294 | 294 | 300 | 888 (+24) |
| 8 | Duke | 303 | 293 | 293 | 889 (+25) |
| 9 | Texas A&M | 289 | 301 | 300 | 890 (+26) |
| T10 | Iowa | 304 | 292 | 296 | 892 (+28) |
| T10 | Michigan | 307 | 292 | 293 | 892 (+28) |
| T12 | Southern California | 303 | 289 | 303 | 895 (+31) |
| T12 | Texas | 299 | 301 | 295 | 895 (+31) |
| 14 | Alabama | 288 | 292 | 316 | 896 (+32) |
| 15 | Arkansas | 296 | 298 | 303 | 897 (+33) |
| T16 | San Diego | 300 | 304 | 294 | 898 (+34) |
| T16 | San Diego State | 295 | 301 | 302 | 898 (+34) |
| 18 | Arizona State | 303 | 293 | 303 | 899 (+35) |
| T19 | California | 300 | 299 | 303 | 902 (+38) |
| T19 | Kent State | 304 | 302 | 296 | 902 (+38) |
| 21 | LSU | 306 | 294 | 305 | 905 (+41) |
| 22 | Northwestern | 306 | 296 | 304 | 906 (+42) |
| 23 | FLORIDA | 300 | 299 | 309 | 908 (+44) |
| 24 | Tennessee | 308 | 299 | 303 | 910 (+46) |
| 25 | Pepperdine | 309 | 310 | 300 | 919 (+55) |
| 26 | Kennesaw State | 295 | 312 | 314 | 921 (+57) |
| 27 | N.C. State | 310 | 308 | 304 | 922 (+58) |
| 28 | Oklahoma | 313 | 304 | 313 | 930 (+66) |
| 29 | Arizona | 302 | 308 | 321 | 933 (+69) |
| 30 | Colorado State | 307 | 323 | 308 | 937 (+73) |
Top 10 Individual Results After Round Three
| Place | Player (Team) | Round One | Round Two | Round Three | Final (Par) |
| 1 | John Peterson (LSU) | 74 | 65 | 72 | 211 (-5) |
| 2 | Patrick Cantlay (UCLA) | 72 | 69 | 71 | 212 (-4) |
| T3 | Cameron Peck (Texas A&M) | 68 | 74 | 73 | 215 (-1) |
| T3 | Patrick Reed (Augusta State) | 69 | 75 | 71 | 215 (-1) |
| T3 | Lion Kim (Michigan) | 72 | 70 | 73 | 215 (-1) |
| T3 | J.J. Spaun (San Diego State) | 69 | 75 | 71 | 215 (-1) |
| T3 | Peter Uihlein (Oklahoma State | 73 | 69 | 73 | 215 (-1) |
| T8 | Michael Weaver (California) | 71 | 71 | 74 | 216 (E) |
| T8 | James White (Georgia Tech) | 67 | 73 | 76 | 216 (E) |
| T10 | Todd Baek (San Diego State) | 72 | 72 | 73 | 217 (+1) |
| T10 | Austin Cook (Arkansas) | 70 | 74 | 73 | 217 (+1) |
| T10 | Harris English (Georgia) | 70 | 71 | 76 | 217 (+1) |
Final Florida Results
| Place | Player | Round One | Round Two | Round Three | Final Score (Par) |
| T13 | Bank Vongvanij | 74 | 73 | 71 | 218 (+2) |
| T74 | Phillip Choi | 77 | 71 | 79 | 227 (+11) |
| T113 | Andres Echavarria | 74 | 76 | 83 | 233 (+17) |
| T113 | Tyler McCumber | 75 | 79 | 79 | 233 (+17) |
| T129 | Tommy Mou | 78 | 81 | 80 | 239 (+23) |
