Monday, February 17, 2025
31 C
Brunei Town
More

    Florida to face Georgia Tech in NCAA men’s golf championship match

    SCOTTSDALE, ARIZONA (AP) – Ricky Castillo won a marathon match to bring Florida back from what appeared to be certain defeat.

    Georgia Tech’s Ross Steelman hit clutch shots down the stretch a day after limping to the finish in the individual championship.

    There’s a reason the two seniors were in the anchor matches.

    Castillo rallied from two down with three holes left and birdied the third extra hole to beat Brett Roberts, giving Florida a 3-2 victory over Florida State in the NCAA semifinals on Tuesday at Grayhawk.

    “An hour ago we were just dead. It was over,” Florida coach J C Deacon said. “I honestly saw no way of winning it, but if our programme’s going to be in anyone’s hands I want to be in this guy’s (Castillo).”

    Same with Steelman. A day after losing his grip on the individual championship with three closing bogeys, the senior two-putted for par to beat Peter Fountain One up, sealing Georgia Tech a 3-2 victory over top-seeded North Carolina.

    “I know he’s disappointed what happened before, but I wouldn’t trust anyone more to win a match,” Georgia Tech coach Bruce Heppler said.

    Castillo rallied from two down with three holes to go with birdies on 16 and 17. Neither player could get up and down for par on number 18, sending the match to extra holes.

    After trading three pars, Roberts missed a birdie putt on the par-4 10th hole. Putting on the same line, Castillo rolled his in, pumping his fist as the Gators rushed onto the green in celebration.

    “They’re resilient and mentally tough,” North Carolina coach Andrew DiBitetto said. “We can take on any challenges and just came up short, a putt short.”

    It didn’t look good for the Gators for a while. Florida State won the first two matches, starting with freshman Jack Bigham’s 6-and-5 win over Yuxin Lin. Frederik Kjettrup followed with a three-and-one decision over Matthew Kress.

    Florida tied it when NCAA individual champion Fred Biondi birdied the par-4 17th to beat Cole Anderson one up, then John DuBois beat Luke Clanton one up with a par on number 18.

    Castillo, a senior with three career wins, caught Roberts down the stretch with two birdies and made the final one to cap a day that started with a morning 3-2 win over Virginia in the quarterfinals.

    “Neither of us had our best stuff, but I think both of us grinded it out really, really well today,” Castillo said. “Just fought hard and I ended up getting the win.”

    spot_img

    Related News

    spot_img