TAMPA, FLA., October 16, 2023 – The University of South Florida men's golf team captured their second straight victory at the Quail Valley Invitational and Brock Healy recorded his first win as a Bull on Monday in Vero Beach. South Florida has won back-to-back tournaments four times under head coach Steve Bradley (10th season) and had consecutive individual champions five times in his tenure, but hasn't won both the team and individual championships in two straight tournaments since Bradley's first season in 2014-15.
The victory marked the 23rd tournament win under Bradley, a program record, and the 54th top-five finish for the five-time AAC Coach of the Year.
South Florida won three straight tournaments in the Spring of 2015 (Irish Creek Collegiate, AAC Championship and NCAA Regional) while Rigel Fernandes (Irish Creek) and Ryan Fricker (AAC) claimed individual wins. Overall, the last time the Bulls won back-to-back outings was in March 2019 at the Fort Lauderdale Intercollegiate and the USF Invitational. The last Bulls to record consecutive tournament individual championship honors were Albin Bergstrom (Windom Memorial Classic) and Luke Gifford (Marquette Intercollegiate) in the Fall of 2019.
Healy (Norcross, Ga.), a graduate transfer from Kennesaw State, closed with a 69 (-3) on Monday at Quail Valley Golf Club to make up ground and finish in a three-way tie for first at 203 (-13), his first win at USF. He was awarded medalist honors via tiebreaker. Healy's 203 total is a new career. He opened with a 68 (-4) in Sunday's first round, followed by a 66 (-6) in the second round later that day, and entered the final round in second place.
As a team, South Florida carded a final score of 826 (-38) to edge Toledo's 827 (-37) for the tournament title. The Bulls' 36-hole total of 548 (-28) on Sunday tied the program record, for the second time this season, matching the 36-hole total at the USF Invitational on October 9-10. The -28 total vs. par tied the program mark for low 36-hole score vs. par, set at the 2021-22 at Marquette Intercollegiate.
Senior Jake Peacock (Milton, Ga.), recorded his second top-five finish of the season, finishing fourth at 204 (-12), just one shot behind the leaders. Peacock set a program record for low 36-hole score at 132, topping the record set by Albin Bergstrom in 2018-19 at Fort Lauderdale and matched by Sam Nicholson at the USF Invitational in 2023. His -12 36-hole total is also a program record for 36-hole score vs. par. Peacock opened with a 66 (-6) which tied his career-best and followed with another 66 (-6) in the second round on Sunday. He finished with an even-par 72. Peacock was one of only two players in the field to not card a bogey over the first two rounds.
Senior Sam Nicholson (Atlantic Beach) followed his win in the USF Invitational with the fourth career top-10 finish, shooting 208 (-8) to finish tied for ninth. Nicholson was under par in all three rounds and improved after each round. He opened with a 71 (-1), followed by a 70 (-2) and closed with a 67 (-5).
Redshirt junior Cooper Smith (Tampa) carded three rounds under par to finish tied for 19th with a 211 (-5). Smith bookended two rounds of 70 (-2) a 71 (-1) in the second round
Competing as an individual, junior Chase Gullikson (Orlando, Fla.) finished tied for 42nd. Gullikson carded rounds of 74 (+2), 70 (-2) and 72 (E).
Bulls Team Scores
Place RD1 RD2 RD3 TOTAL
T1 Brock Healy (Gr., Norcross, Ga.) 68 66 69 -13 (203)
4 Jake Peacock (Jr., Milton, Ga.) 66 66 72 -12 (204)
T9 Sam Nicholson (Sr., Atlantic Beach, Fla.) 71 70 67 -8 (208)
T19 Cooper Smith (Redshirt Jr., Tampa, Fla.) 70 71 70 -5 (211)
WD Nino Palmquist (Gr./Knoxville, Ten.) 73 76 WD WD
Individual
T42 Chase Gullikson (Jr. Orlando, Fla.) 74 70 72 E (216)
Tournament Team Scores
Place RD1 RD2 RD3 TOTAL
1 South Florida 275 273 278 -38 (826)
2 University of Toledo 276 272 279 -37 (827)
3 Indiana University 271 281 285 -27 (837)
4 University of North Florida 281 278 282 -23 (841)
5 Cincinnati University 275 283 286 -20 (844)
6 Liberty University 285 274 287 -18 (846)
7 Rutgers University 278 284 287 -15 (849)
8 Kent State University 284 284 284 -12 (852)
T9 University of Memphis 283 281 292 -8 (856)
T9 Northern Illinois University 274 287 295 -8 (856)
11 Michigan State University 283 282 293 -6 (858)
12 University of Minnesota 276 286 299 -3 (861)
13 UNC - Greensboro 290 283 294 +3 (867)
14 Penn State University 282 289 297 +4 (868)
15 University of Maryland 283 289 298 +6 (870)
16 Florida Atlantic University 288 291 295 +10 (874)
Up Next
The Bulls have concluded the Fall portion of their 2023-24 schedule. They will be back on the course to kick off the Spring slate at the Thomas Sharkey Individual Collegiate Feb. 3-4, 2024 at Georgia Southern GC in Statesboro, Ga.
About USF Men's Golf
The USF men's golf program has captured 17 conference titles and has seen players earn 19 All-America honors. The Bulls have won five American Athletic Conference Tournament championships in wire-to-wire fashion, winning four-consecutive from 2015-18. The Bulls have had four individual conference champions, including Albin Bergstrom in 2021, and gone on to earn nine straight NCAA Regional appearances, including a 6th place finish in NCAA Championship match-play in 2015. USF is led by Steve Bradley, who has been named American Athletic Conference Coach of the Year five times since taking over the program in 2014. The Bulls have posted 23 tournament wins under Bradley including two in the 2023-24 season, by far the most under any coach in program history.
Follow @USFMGolf on Twitter for the latest information concerning the program.
- #GoBulls –
