UF alum Strickler not in a rush to reach PGA Tour

<p>OCALA — Billy Horschel's first professional golf season began alongside headliners such as Ernie Els and Vijay Singh amid the lush, tropical gardens of Honolulu's Waialae Country Club in January.</p><p>Will Strickler's first pro season began without fanfare Thursday morning on a bitter cold golf course in Ocala.</p><p>The two may have been fellow senior starters for the Gator golf team less than a year ago, but their paths have diverged since.</p><p>Horschel cruised through Q-school in his first attempt to earn his coveted tour card and become the latest young PGA Gator to watch — following in the glamorous footsteps laid by budding international superstar Camilo Villegas.</p><p>Strickler's first Q-school attempt ended quickly and quietly, meaning he'll go to work this season away from the spotlight, splitting time between the Hooters and Canadian tours.</p><p>Strickler isn't complaining, though. In fact, watching the success of other former Gators is a source of inspiration for the 6-foot-5 Virginia native.</p><p>“It gives me something to shoot for,” Strickler said. “I see them out there and obviously I want to be out there eventually on the PGA Tour.”</p><p>He's not alone. Joining Strickler at the Hooters Tour's season-opener this weekend were a pair of other former Gators — James Vargas and Tyler Rucarean — along with more than 150 other mostly-young golfers with similar PGA dreams.</p><p>“I'm just taking my time,” Stricker said. “This is my first year at it, so we'll see how it goes.”</p><p>Strickler's first round of the year was a success. He battled brutally cold and windy conditions and carded a 2-under 70, leaving him in a second-place tie.</p><p>Friday didn't go so well. Strickler struggled with his putter and finished at 6-over. He'll enter the weekend tied for 24th place at 4-over.</p><p>Vargas put together rounds of 75 and 76 (7-over) to slip just inside the cut. Rucarean struggled both days and missed the cut.</p><p>Golf's minor league tours are a far cry from PGA glamour. Hooters Tour golfers can sometimes be found four to a room in roadside motels, sleeping and eating on the cheap while grinding on the course for a piece of small to moderate purses. The winner of this weekend's Ocala Marion Sports Commission Classic at Golden Hills will pocket a cool $30,000, but making the cut alone only pays around $900 — less than the event's entry fee.</p><p>Strickler is taking it in stride. His goal this season isn't to qualify for the PGA Tour when Q-school rolls around again this fall, but instead, “to win a golf tournament this summer.”</p><p>That's not going to happen in Augusta or Pebble Beach for Strickler this year. It could happen in Rogers, Ark., or McCormick, S.C., or maybe somewhere in Canada.</p><p>Or it might not happen at all.</p><p>Either way, the mild-mannered Strickler doesn't appear to be worried about his future.</p><p>“I've always been a slow, slow starter,” he said. “I was not a great junior golfer, wasn't great when I came to college, but each year I'm getting better and hopefully, eventually, I'll get up there.”</p>