The Bulls’ Jake Peacock takes the individual title with record-setting performance.
BELLEAIR, Fla., April 21, 2024 – The University of South Florida men’s golf team won their sixth American Athletic Conference Championship at the Pelican Golf Club in Belleair, Fla. Junior Jake Peacock claimed his first conference championship win, his second victory this season, and third of his career. Peacock shot a career-best 64 (-6) in the third round for a total of 199 (-11), also a career-best.
The 48th-ranked Bulls have now won the American Athletic Conference Championship a conference-leading six times in the first 10 years of the tournament. The win marks the Bulls’ 19th conference championship overall and first since the 2020-21 season. The victory also marks the fourth time USF has won a team conference championship and an individual conference championship in the same year, which also occurred in 2021.
The victory is the 24th tournament win under Head Coach Steve Bradley, a program record, and his sixth conference championship. The Bulls have 54 top-five finishes under the five-time AAC Coach of the Year who is in his 10th season.
Peacock (Milton, Ga.), a member 2022-23 AAC Men’s Golf All-Conference team, entered the final round tied for the lead at 135 (-5). He pulled away from the field with a closing round 64 (-6), his career low, for a five-shot victory at 199 (-11). He recorded a career-best 54-hole total. In the final round, Peacock made seven birdies. Peacock led the field with 15 birdies, in par-4 scoring at 3.89 (-4), and tied for the tournament lead in par-3 scoring at 2.83 (-2). He was under par in all three rounds and improved all three rounds. He opened with a 69 (-1), followed by a 66 (-4) in the second round.
USF entered play in the third round tied for first at 552 (-8). The Bulls distanced themselves from the field with a 276 (-4) for a seven-shot win at 828 (-12). USF led the field with 181 pars, was tied for the lead in par-3 scoring at 3.03 (+2), second in par scoring at 4.07 (+12), and tied for second in par-5 scoring at 4.40 (-18).
Graduate student Brock Healey (Norcross, Ga.) joined Peacock in the top-10, shooting 208 (-2) to tie for sixth. He produced a final-round score of 70 (E). Healey made a big move from the first to the second round, moving up the leaderboard 25 spots after shooting 66 (-4). He opened with a 72 (+2) and closed with an even-par 70.
Senior Sam Nicholson (Atlantic Beach, Fla.) finished just outside the top-10 at even par 210 and tied for 12th. Nicholson shot par or better in the first two rounds, opening with a 70 (E) followed by a 68 (-2) in the second round. He closed with a 72 (+2).
Redshirt junior Cooper Smith (Tampa, Fla.) shot his best round of the tournament, an even-par 70 in the third round, and finished tied for 22nd at 214 (+4), moving up seven spots on the leaderboard. Cooper opened with a pair of two-over 72s in the first two rounds.
Junior Shubham Jaglan (Jr., Delhi, India) opened with an even-par 70. Jaglan contributed a scoring round with a 71 (+1) in the second round. He closed with a 74 and finished tied for 25th at 215 (+5).
Bulls Team Scores
Place RD1 RD2 RD3 TOTAL
T1 Jake Peacock (Jr., Milton, Ga.) 69 66 64 -11 (199)
T6 Brock Healy (Gr., Norcross, Ga.) 72 66 70 -2 (208)
T12 Sam Nicholson (Sr., Atlantic Beach, Fla.) 70 68 72 E (210)
T22 Cooper Smith (Redshirt Jr., Tampa, Fla.) 72 72 70 +4 (214)
T25 Shubham Jaglan (Jr., Delhi, India) 70 71 74 +5 (215)
Tournament Team Scores
Place RD1 RD2 RD3 TOTAL
1 South Florida 281 271 276 -12 (828)
2 SMU 277 275 283 -5 (835)
3 Wichita State 279 285 278 +2 (842)
4 Memphis 280 275 292 +7 (847)
5 North Texas 286 278 289 +13 (853)
6 Charlotte 282 290 283 +15 (855)
7 Rice 285 290 283 +18 (858)
8 UAB 283 300 277 +20 (860)
9 Florida Atlantic 292 278 291 +21 (861)
10 East Carolina 286 292 285 +23 (863)
11 Temple 288 291 290 +29 (869)
12 UTSA 288 293 289 +30 (870)
About USF Men’s Golf
The USF men’s golf program has captured 19 conference titles and has seen players earn 19 All-America honors. The Bulls have won six 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 24 tournament wins under Bradley including three in the 2023-24 season, by far the most under any coach in program history.
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