Florida Gator golfers thrive under national championship pressure to take home trophy
David Whitley
When Florida’s golf team showed up at the Phoenix airport Thursday morning, TSA officials had to be a little suspicious.
What were the Gators doing trying to board a plane with an NCAA championship trophy as carry-on luggage? Such a scenario just wasn’t meant to be.
The hardware had to be a fake, or UF must have swiped it from Georgia Tech or North Carolina or one of the other teams who’d spent the past few days at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Arizona.
That was where Florida so often seemed destined not to win. Yet somehow, some way, the Gators kept defying golf death.
It culminated Wednesday night at 9:55 EDT. That’s when Georgia Tech’s Hiroshi Tai conceded a par putt to Fred Biondi, giving Florida a 3-1 win in match play.
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A few minutes later, the Gators were hoisting that trophy, and there was nothing fake about it.
“We just won a national championship!” coach J.C. Deacon beamed.
It was the fifth in UF history, but the first since 2001. That was also the last time the Gators had an individual NCAA champ.
Nick Gilliam was the man back then. This time, it was Biondi. His win on Monday set the template for a week that will live in UF sports history.
The senior from Brazil trailed by five strokes going into the final round. It seemed a win just wasn’t meant to be, but Biondi shot a 67 to win by one shot.
In the process, Florida qualified for the final eight-team match play tournament. First up was Virginia, and the Gators looked like toast. Then Yuxin Lin rallied from three holes down with seven holes to play to win his match and give UF a 3-2 victory.
Gators had to get past Seminoles on way to title
That set up an afternoon encounter with FSU. Talk about not meant to be.
The Seminoles jumped to a 2-0 lead, then Biondi and John DuBois won their matches. That left it all up to senior Ricky Castillo, who’d teed off last as the team anchor.
He trailed by two holes with only three left. Deacon couldn’t say it then, but everyone knew what he had to be thinking.
“We were dead yesterday,” Deacon said during Wednesday’s trophy ceremony. “And these guys, they just don’t quit. They’re tough son-of-a-guns.”
Castillo birdied the final two holes to tie the match, then won it on the third playoff hole.
“He’s got a special gift,” Deacon said. “I got to walk those playoff holes with him, and that’s just his element. That’s where he wants to be. It’s where he feels comfortable, and it’s where he thrives.”
That wasn’t totally the case Wednesday. Lin closed out his opponent on the 15th hole to give UF a 1-0 lead, but every other match was tight.
As the final holes loomed, momentum and the golf gods seemed to be with the Yellow Jackets. Castillo missed a short par putt on the 15th hole that would have tied his match.
He was so mad he kicked the ball into the desert and had to go find it. Maybe the short nature walk did him some good, because Castillo didn’t lose another hole.
Matthew Kress never lost his composure, though he probably felt like it. He hit a good shot on the par-3 16th hole that rolled off the green.
Then Georgia Tech’s Bartley Forrester hit a bad shot that almost went in. It was a screaming tee shot that bounced once and appeared to be headed toward Yuma.
Instead, the ball hit the flagstick and dropped two inches from the cup. The Georgia Tech contingent erupted, sensing the school’s first national golf championship was meant to be.
Not so fast.
Florida golfers played like tough sons-of-guns
In the final crucial holes, the Yellow Jackets hit some loose shots and the Gators played like tough sons-of-guns.
“I mean, it’s just all year long. We've put ourselves in some really, really tough spots over and over and over again,” Deacon said. “These guys are extremely tough, and that's what champions are. They find a way to stay positive and stay in the moment and keep doing the right things.”
After five hours of drama, all Biondi needed to do was two-putt from 20 feet to clinch the win. His first putt stopped six inches from the hole, and the match was conceded.
Back in the fairway, Castillo hugged Deacon and began to cry. A few minutes later, Deacon made it to the green and picked up his little daughter.
“Can you believe we won a natty?” he said.
Believe it.
When the going got tough in Scottsdale, the Gators played as if a national championship was always meant to be.
David Whitley is The Gainesville Sun's sports columnist. Contact him at dwhitley@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @DavidEWhitley