Men's Golf, Patrick Poate set to play in Fort Lauderdale Intercollegiate

2020 Fort Lauderdale Intercollegiate
Tournament Details	Fort Lauderdale, Fla.. \| F ort Lauderdale Country Club Monday, March 2 – 36 holes Tuesday, March 3 – 18 holes (Par 72)
Follow	Twitter: @FAUMGolf
Florida Atlantic Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule
Participants	FAU, Host - Loyola, Connecticut, Davidson, Florida Gulf Coast, George Mason, Lynn, Mercer, Villanova, Towson, St. John's, South Florida, Utah Valley, and Western Carolina

BOCA RATON, Fla. – Teams from as far as Utah and Connecticut are traveling to South Florida for the Fort Lauderdale Intercollegiate, a golf tournament Loyola is hosting at the Fort Lauderdale Country Club Monday through Tuesday. Florida Atlantic University's squad owns the advantage of residing a mere 22 miles away.

"I feel like we're just going to be comfortable out there because it's a place we've been before," FAU golfer Patrick Poate said of the Fort Lauderdale Intercollegiate. "We know the area and we get to sleep in our own beds, which is always a big plus. Just being comfortable and waking up in the morning and you know where everything is, and so I guess it's more of a comfort thing. And then golf is a game – and sports in general – where if you're comfortable, you're going to perform better."

14 universities are participating in the tournament, including host Loyola, FAU, Florida Gulf Coast, Villanova, Towson, St. John's, South Florida, Utah Valley, Western Carolina, George Mason, Connecticut, Mercer, Lynn and Davidson. The 7,052-yard Fort Lauderdale Country Club course is a par-72.

Wearing shorts and a FAU polo shirt, Poate said last week "there's just nothing like" South Florida's sunny winter weather. Poate described the energy and vibe at FAU as "life-giving," noting few other programs offer both high-level competition and a chance to wake to the sea breeze.

Seeing teams from across the country flock to South Florida for the Fort Lauderdale Intercollegiate helped put that in perspective.

"It's easy to lose sight of what you have, I guess, because it just becomes normal," said Poate, a junior from Niceville, Florida. "And so, it's very important for us to keep perspective and realize how fortunate we are. And that's just another thing on the list: all these teams from around the country are just dying to come down here."

FAU finished 13th in the Wyoming Desert Intercollegiate, its first spring tournament. It wasn't the Owls' intended result but Poate says it's serving a purpose: as "great motivation" for improvement.

With this week's tournament coming only a week after FAU's last, Poate says the team's found – and quickly addressed – the areas it needs to get better. For Poate, that meant "getting in the right state of mind and being able to execute."

If those improvements coalesce at the Fort Lauderdale Intercollegiate, Poate envisions a joyous 22-mile drive home.

"We know that just about any of our players can win a tournament we enter," Poate said. "Our top five, we're all capable of winning, and it's just executing, at this point."

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