Gators Finish First Day of Gator Invite Inside Top Five

Saturday, February 16

Gainesville, FL

All Day

Florida Gators

Florida Gators Invitational

Gators Finish First Day of Gator Invite Inside Top Five

Saturday, February 16, 2019 | Men's Golf

By: Lucy Berres

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – After the first two rounds of the annual Florida Gators Invitational, the Gators sit tied for fourth with West Virginia and North Florida, seven strokes off the lead.

Sophomore John Axelsen finished the day in the best position of the team, tied for sixth at one-under-par, six strokes off the leaders. Freshman Manny Girona and senior Gordon Neale also finished the day inside the top 25, both tied for 20, nine strokes off the lead.

Competing as individuals, senior Ryan Celano also sits tied for 20 with Girona and Neale, and freshman Aden Ye finished the day tied for 15, six strokes off the leaders.

Coach's Take
"We were close to having a great day. I saw so many quality shots and putts, we just couldn't get any momentum. I feel like the hard work this team has put in is paying off. We are without a doubt miles ahead of where we were in the fall and I'm really proud of that." – head coach JC Deacon

Tomorrow is such a great opportunity for our team on our home track. We need all five guys playing their absolute best golf to get the job done. I feel like we are right on the brink of breaking through. I'm happy all the effort and determination we have put into this season keeps proving us with these great opportunities."

Scores through Round Two

Place	School	1	2	Total	+/-
1	Vanderbilt	282	275	557	-3
2	Liberty	285	277	562	+2
3	South Florida	277	286	563	+3
T4	Florida	282	282	564	+4
T4	West Virginia	278	286	564	+4
T4	North Florida	277	287	564	+4
7	UCF	291	283	574	+14
T8	Missouri	285	292	577	+17
T8	Coastal Carolina	288	289	577	+17
10	Georgia Southern	285	293	578	+18
11	Mississippi State	291	291	582	+22
12	Princeton	293	291	584	+24
13	Jacksonville	299	287	586	+26
T14	Michigan	297	291	588	+28
T14	Southern Illinois	300	288	588	+28

Florida Players

T6	John Axelsen	Florida	70	69	139	-1
T20	Manuel Girona	Florida	70	72	142	+2
T20	Gordon Neale	Florida	70	72	142	+2
T30	Eugene Hong	Florida	74	69	143	+3
T39	Chris Nido	Florida	72	72	144	+4

Also Competing

T15	Aden Ye*	Florida	72	69	141	+1
T20	Ryan Celano *	Florida	70	72	142	+2
T53	Blake Dyer*	Florida	73	75	148	+8
T53	Robert Eisch *	Florida	73	75	148	+8

Round 3 Tee Times (Hole)
Chris Nido           8:45 (1)
Eugene Hong     8:54 (1)
Manny Girona   9:03 (1)
Gordon Neale    9:12 (1)
John Axelsen     9:21 (1)

Individuals
Robby Eisch        8:18 (10)
Blake Dyer          8:18 (10)
Ryan Celano       8:27 (10)
Aden Ye               8:36 (10)

Follow the Action
Play will continue on Sunday, February 17 at 8:00 a.m. (ET). Live scoring will be available on GolfStat.com. A complete recap with full results will be posted on FloridaGators.com following the conclusion of the tournament.