Gators Women’s Golf Looks to Defend Gators Invitational for Eighth Consecutive Year

Following its best finish this season, Florida women’s golf will return to Mark Bostick Golf Course in Gainesville to host the 51st VyStar Credit Union Gators Invitational this weekend.

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The two-day, 54-hole tournament will start at 8:30 a.m. Saturday with a shotgun start. Golfers will play 36 holes Saturday ahead of Sunday’s final 18-hole round.

The Gators will look to defend its home course for the eighth year in a row. Florida has won the trophy 25 times since it hosted the inaugural event in 1973.

“We always look forward to this week on the schedule,” Florida head coach Emily Glaser said. “It’s great to play at home. We’ll have a lot of friends and family that will be able to make it to Gainesville to support us.”

Teams Competing

14 teams including Florida will compete in the event. The Gators will welcome SEC rivals Mississippi State and Ole Miss in addition to four in-state rivals — Miami, UCF, FAU and FIU. Five ranked teams will participate including No. 7 Mississippi State, No. 16 Arizona, No. 17 Ole Miss, No. 22 UCLA and No. 25 UCF.

“Our field is especially strong this year,” Glaser said. “We know we have a good challenge on our hands, but I think that’s what you want, and I think combined with the sort of heightened emotion of playing at home, it really — in a lot ways — resembles the postseason.”

Gators Lineup

Senior Annabell Fuller — who earned SEC Golfer of the Week honors last week — will lead Florida’s lineup. The London, England, native is No. 17 in the nation in the latest Golfstat individual ranking. Fuller is the fifth-highest ranked golfer competing in the tournament.

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Seniors Jackie Lucena and Marina Escobar will join junior Maisie Filler and redshirt sophomore Taylor Roberts to complete Florida’s lineup for the team event. Lucena will look to build momentum off her career-low round of 66 in which she sank a hole-in-one.

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Florida fifth-year Jenny Kim and freshman Karoline Tuttle will compete as individuals. Tuttle will make her fifth collegiate appearance after the Lake Mary native won back-to-back Florida State Golf Association (FSGA) Player of the Year awards in 2020 and 2021.