J.C. Deacon

Entering his eighth season as head coach of the Florida Gators, JC Deacon looks to expand on the success of his first seven seasons with the Orange and Blue.

Deacon and the Gators returned to competition in a three-tournament fall schedule that featured SEC only play to combat the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Florida touted a new lineup that featured at least three newcomers in each tournament, recording its best finish at the Vanderbilt Legends Collegiate where a 24-under par score put the team in a tie for fourth place. Deacon lit the fire for the Gators heading into the winter hiatus, responding with back-to-back first place finishes in their first two tournaments, including the second straight win at the Gators Invitational.

The Gators qualified for their 54th NCAA Championship in program history after a gutsy final round in the Cle Elum Regional propelled the team into fifth place. Florida would see its season come to an end after three rounds of stroke play at the Championship, with Ricky Castillo qualifying individually for the final day of stroke play and ultimately finishing 12th in the field.

Deacon oversaw an incredible freshman duo in Joe Pagdin and Tyler Wilkes. Pagdin was named the 2021 SEC Freshman of the Year and the pair were both names to the SEC All-Freshman Team. In addition, Ricky Castillo earned a spot on the Second-Team All-SEC. Castillo and Pagdin were both named to the Division I PING All-Region Southeast Team.

Under Deacon, the Gators were trending upwards before the 2019-20 season abruptly ended due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Following a challenging fall campaign, Florida opened the spring with three-straight top-five finishes. Of those finishes, Deacon’s squad captured the team title at the VyStar Gators Invitational by an impressive 18 strokes, giving the Gators their first team win at Mark Bostick Golf Course since 2011.

Deacon oversaw the best one-two combination in the nation with junior John Axelsen and freshman Ricky Castillo. Both players received recognition at the national and league level following their outstanding play. Castillo was named the 2020 Phil Mickelson Outstanding Freshman Award honoree and SEC Freshman of the Year. He also earned a spot on the All-SEC First Team, NCAA Division I PING All-America First Team and appeared on the Ben Hogan Award Final Watch List. Alongside Castillo, Axelsen also earned First Team All-American and All-SEC First Team honors.