Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State
NCAA Championships
NCAA Golf Finals Come to an End
6/2/2001 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
June 2, 2001
FRESNO, Calif. - The Florida Gators have claimed victory of the 2001 NCAA golf finals which concluded Saturday hosted by Duke University. The Gators jumped from a T13 spot after the first round to claim both the team and individual titles.
Lone Bulldog competitor Nick Watney finished in a three-way tie for 13th. The 2001 WAC Player of the Yea scored 1-under in round one and followed with 2-under in the second round. After a rain delay on Friday, Watney concluded the third round Saturday morning at even 72 and then finished the final round 1-over, giving him 2-under 286 total.
Winning the individual title was Nick Gilliam from Florida, posting a 12-under 276 shooting a low of 66 in round three. Following in a two-way tie for second was fellow Gator Camilo Benedetti and Jamie Elson from Augusta State at 9-under 279.
Watney finishes his second season with the 'Dogs currently ranked at 15th in the Golfstat Cup national rankings. He holds the schools all-time lowest season average at 71.46 over 41 rounds. Watney also holds the Fresno State record for lowest 54-hole score of 200 scored in San Diego in March. Watney was also named first-team All-WAC as well as the Fresno State MVP and most improved player. Watney now looks to the summer where he has been chosen to compete on the USA team to travel and compete in Japan. The team selects five players nationally and travels to compete at the end of June.
