PALM BEACH GARDENS (UCFKnights.com) – The UCF men's golf team went wire to wire at the FAU Slomin Autism Invite, held at PGA National on The Squire Course. The Knights took home the team title in the event Sunday, finishing the three-round tournament at just 3-over.
UCF held a 10-stroke lead after the second round. While runner-up Jacksonville State (+10) trimmed the lead just a bit Sunday, the Knights still won by seven strokes. Connecticut finished third at +23.
The Knights put their best round of the tournament together in the third and final round to hold off the Gamecocks.
"The team did a nice job this week with game management," head coach Bryce Wallor said. "This was a short golf course but we played in very windy conditions. As a group, our team played the par fives at 32-under, which was the deciding factor in the scoring of the event. We had a chance to win, leading at UNF a few weeks back and we faltered. This week we were able to play with the lead in each round and capture the team title. We continue to improve every week."
The Knights were led all weekend by junior Manuel Elvira. The Spaniard held the individual lead after both the first and second rounds. He turned in another solid performance Sunday, carding a 2-under 70 to finish the tournament at 6-under. Unfortunately for Elvira, JSU's Daniel Pico matched the best round of the tournament with a 4-under 68 Sunday. His final tally of 7-under was just one stroke better than Elvira.
The Knights had three Top 10 finishers in the tournament. Sophomore Kyler Tate moved up to sixth place after improving in each round of the event. His scores of 76, 73 and 69 left him at 2-over for the tournament. Junior Juuso Kahlos tied for eighth, finishing four strokes over par. Freshman Bobby Bai was just one stroke away from the Top 10, finishing in a tie for 13th at +5.
Playing as an individual, senior George Williams was tied for 22nd. Rounding out the team lineup was senior Ryan Stovash, who finished tied for 30th.
The Knights will be back in action again April 1-2 at the 3M Augusta Invitational.