North Florida, Jacksonville, Flagler golf teams open their fall seasons

Ospreys men’s and women’s program add five international players

• UNF, JU, and Flagler College golf teams begin their seasons with tournaments across the South.
• The teams will travel to locations as far as Hawaii and Puerto Rico throughout the season.
• UNF and JU will host tournaments in the spring, including The Hayt and the Sea Best Invitational.

College golf season begins on the First Coast with the University of North Florida, Jacksonville University and Flagler College fanning out to sites in the South to open their seasons. 

After that, the teams will venture further from home in the fall and spring as far as Hawaii and Puerto Rico. 

The UNF men open the season at the Visit Knoxville Collegiate at the Tennessee National Golf Club Sept. 5-7. The JU men play their first event Sept. 7-9 at the Myrtle Beach Golf Trips Intercollegiate at the Grande Dunes Resort and Flagler starts at home on Sept. 29-30 with the Jennison Cup at the King & Bear. 

The UNF women launch their season Sept. 1-3 at the Boilermaker Classic in West Lafayette, Ind.; the JU women’s head for Statesboro, Ga., for their first tournament Sept. 8-9 at The Southern; and the Flagler women open Sept. 22-23 at the Eckerd Invitational at the Pasadena Yacht and Country Club in St. Petersburg. 

Later in the fall, the Flagler men play in Las Vegas, and the UNF men head for Hawaii. 

The spring will see the UNF men and women play in Puerto Rico. 

Spring will also be the season for teams to host their own tournaments. The JU men will hold the Sea Best Invitational Feb. 2-3 at the Atlantic Beach Country Club, and the UNF men host The Hayt March 7-9 at the Sawgrass Country Club. 

Flagler’s women host the World Golf Invitational Feb. 9-10 at the King & Bear, and the UNF women host the UNF Collegiate Feb. 23-24 at the Jacksonville Golf and Country Club, then the Coach Mo Classic March 30-31 at the St. Johns Golf and Country Club. 

Flagler will host the men’s and women’s Peach Belt Conference tournament April 19-21 at the King & Bear. UNF and JU play at the women’s ASUN Championship April 17-19 at the Dothan (Ala.) Country Club and UNF, and JU play in the men’s ASUN Championship April 21-23 at Kinderlou Forest in Valdosta, Ga.  

UNF completes rosters 

The North Florida men’s and women’s golf teams each completed their 2025-26 rosters by signing three additional players. 

Five of the six are international players. 

The UNF men have added Laurens Schulze-Doering, JP Parr and Diego Alvarez Perez to finish off a signing class that included Bolles graduate Luke Balaskiewicz.

Schulze-Doering, a graduate senior, is a native of Malta and previously played at South Carolina and Young Harris College. Parr, a junior, is a native of Quebec who played at Tennessee and is a two-time Canadian Junior Boys champion. Perez, from Panama, is a freshman and attended Windermere Prep in Orlando. 

The UNF women have signed Mohea Mansbendel, Brianna Castaldi and Ines Izuzquiza Ruiz de Arana, along with Ava Cottis of Savannah, Ga.

Mansbendel, who will be a junior, is from Houmea, New Caledonia and previously played at Keiser University where she was a two-time NAIA first-team All-American and a conference champion. 

Castaldi, of Port St. Lucie, will be a junior and is transferring from East Tennessee. She was All-Southern Conference and had seven top-25 finishes. 

Arana will be a freshman. 

TPC Sawgrass pro cited by PGA 

TPC Sawgrass assistant pro Nicholas Nuzzo is one of 15 PGA professionals who will take part in the 10th cohort of the Association’s PGA LEAD program. 

PGA LEAD, established in 2016, is the Association’s leadership development program created to identify, mentor and progress PGA of America Members towards a path of volunteer leadership roles at the Chapter, Section and National levels. The program also trains PGA of America Members who have a desire to serve on nonprofit boards in the communities where they work and live. 

The 12-month program includes virtual monthly training on topics such as board governance and culture, business metrics, pillars of leadership and personal branding. Additionally, the cohort meets twice a year in person for networking and to witness governance in action at Association functions. The program also includes a final project presented to the Association’s committees and board of directors.  

Ambrose Kinnare has fast finish 

Ambrose Kinnare of St. Augustine posted a second-round 66 last week and tied for third in the Florida Junior Tour’s 13-15 Reunion Open, at the Reunion Resort and Club Palmer Course in Orlando. Kinnare shot 72 in the first round, then played eight holes in the second round at 6-under, with birdies at Nos. 8, 9, 10 and 12, and an eagle at No. 15. He finished two shots behind winner Jack Mokris of Winter Park. … Lily Chiang of Jacksonville tied for sixth in the girls division at 1-over 145, seven shots behind winner Hannah Castillo of Frostproof. … Kim Bruce of Fleming Island and Chuck Kirk of Middleburg shot 2-under 142 and tied for sixth in the FSGA Mixed Team Championship at the PGA National Fazio Course. … Jackson Runquist, a Fletcher senior, has verbally committed to play golf at Boston College. … Retired PGA Tour communications official Jeff Adams matched his age for the first time, making a birdie at No. 18 at the TPC Sawgrass Dye’s Valley to post a 72.