An inductee of UF’s 2019 athletic hall of fame, Horschel was a four-year (2006-09) member of the Gator golf team and three-time (2006-07, 2009) first-team All-American.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Gator Great Billy Horschel was added to the Florida men’s golf coaching staff as a volunteer assistant coach on Wednesday, head coach J.C. Deacon announced.
“It’s an honor to officially announce Billy Horschel as a member of our coaching staff,” said Deacon. “To add his expertise, experience and swagger to our team is a dream come true. Our team now has full access to one of the brightest minds in golf and he has already established a great deal of trust within our guys. He is fully committed to helping our players develop their physical and mental golf skills. From a recruiting perspective, I feel like Billy adds an element that few programs can match. We now have two life-long PGA Tour players guiding our student-athletes career path.”
An inductee of UF’s 2019 athletic hall of fame, Horschel was a four-year (2006-09) member of the Gator golf team and three-time (2006-07, 2009) first-team All-American. A two-time (2007 & 2009) SEC Player of the Year, he won individual medalist honors at the NCAA Regionals back-to-back years (2006-07) and at the SEC Championships in 2009. Horschel also was a four-time First-Team All-SEC selection and a member of the All-Nicklaus Team (2009), a Ben Hogan Award Semifinalist (2009) and helped Team USA win the Walker Cup in 2007.
“I was excited when J.C. Deacon and Dudley Hart asked me to join the team as a voluntary assistant coach,” said Horschel. “I’ve actually had talks with my wife, Brittany, in the past about coaching at UF when my career on the PGA Tour is over. To be offered this opportunity now is really neat and I’m excited to help J.C., Dudley, and the players any way I can so we can get back to winning championships at UF. I know that this team has the ability and talent to bring a title back to Gainesville and the players themselves believe it as well! Go Gators!”
A native of Grant, Fla., he was one of five Gators to be a four-time All-American selection, joining current assistant coach Dudley Hart. Horschel won individual medalist honors at the 2006 U.S. Amateur and his opening round of 60 was a 19-hole tournament and USGA record.
Horschel turned professional in 2009 and successfully gained his PGA Tour card and has remained on tour since with over 282 career outings and is currently ranked the 21st player in the world. He earned his first professional victory at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans in 2013 and by the end of April led the PGA Tour in consecutive cuts made with twenty-three, dating back since June of 2012.
He finished T4 in his first major at the 2013 U.S. Open and held a joint lead with Phil Mickelson at the halfway stage of the tournament. Horschel was one of two players under part the second round, hitting all 18 greens in regulation and trialed only four strokes behind eventual winner Justin Rose. He was played in nine PGA Championships (2013-21), eight U.S. Open’s (2013-17, 2019-21), eight (2013-19, 2021) British Opens and seven Masters (2014-16, 2018-21).
Horschel earned his second career win on tour at the 2014 BMW Championship followed by victory at The Tour Championship a week later and with it the FedEx Cup. He has also earned wins at the AT&T Byron Nelson in 2017, the Zurich Class of New Orleans in 2018, the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play in 2021 and most recently the BMW PGA Championship last September for his second European Tour victory by shooting a final round of 65.
Last summer, he hosted his inaugural event, The Billy Horschel APGA Tour Invitational. The special event was partnered with the Advocates Professional Golf Association (APGA), a non-profit organization with the mission to “bring greater diversity to the game of golf.” Established in 2008, the Tour hosts and operates professional golf tournaments, player development programs, mentoring programs and introduces the game to inner-city youth throughout the country. The weekend included an initial day of a pro-am, roundtable, seminars and other development opportunities all with key partners and industry leaders.
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