Florida Tech Golfers Set For Titan Winter Invitational
By Florida Tech // January 8, 2014
two-day event is hosted by Eastern Florida State
BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA — The Florida Tech Panthers will begin the spring golf season on Feb. 3 at the Titan Winter Invitational.
The two-day event is hosted by Eastern Florida State and is the first of five tournaments for the Panthers in the spring before the championships start.
“Our first tournament is the Titan Winter Invitational is always a good starter to the spring and we look forward to defending last year’s title,” said head coach Chris Saltmarsh.
“I know Justin [Kalanquin] would like to have the same success here as he did last year with a 2 hole playoff victory.”
After the Titan Invitational, the Panthers will compete in the Matlock Collegiate Classic Feb. 10-11. The Classic hosted by Florida Southern will take place at Lone Palm in Lakeland.
The Panthers will then be off for a month before traveling to Valdosta, Ga. for the Southeastern Collegiate. The tournament hosted by Valdosta State takes place March 10-11 at Kinderlou Forest.
“The Matlock Collegiate Classic always brings in a great field and the tournament never plays the same 2 years in a row,” Saltmarsh said.
“We won the Classic in 2012 but finished 3rd last year even after beating our 2012 score by 1 shot. The Southeastern Intercollegiate is another great tournament with a strong field. In the 2 years that we have played in the field in my tenure we have not finished better than 10th. This year, I hope we can change that.”
March 17-18 the Panthers return to Melbourne to host the Panther Invitational. The Panthers will then travel to Miami Shores for the Buccaneer Invitational. The event hosted by Barry takes place March 31-April 1.
PANTHERS BEGIN SPRING SEASON IN MELBOURNE
“The Panther Invitational is always great to host close to home,” Saltmarsh said.
“It’s always a good tune up for us after spring break heading into the final stretch of the season. The Buccaneer is probably one of my favorite tournaments because it’s a quality field, a challenging course, and the weather is nearly always sunny.”
The championships will then begin for the Panthers April 13-15 at the Sunshine State Conference Championships. The Panthers will compete for the SSC Championships at Lake Jovita Country Club in Dade City.
“It’s a great course to host our conference championship as it is demanding of every shot in your bag,” Saltmarsh said. “We will definitely be looking to improve upon our 7th place finish last season.”
The NCAA Div. II Super Region II Tournament will take place in Dooler, Ga. at Savannah Quarters May 7-9. The NCAA Div. II National Championships will take place May 19-23 in Allendale, Mich. at Meadows Golf Club.
FIRST ROUND PLAY STARTS FEB.3 AT 8 A.M.
“Everything leads up to the Regional Championship,” Saltmarsh said. “In the fall we have won and led some pretty good tournament fields, and if that experience can help us to a top 7 finish, then this is a year that we look to potentially get to the National Championship for the first time in program history.”
The Panthers have one victory under their belt this season, as they claimed the Full Moon Invitational title back on Sept. 16.
First round play at the Titan Invitational gets underway Feb. 3 at 8 a.m. ET.
