Andreas Halvorsen wins Florida Azalea

PALATKA, Fla. (March 16, 2014) -- Norway's Andreas Halvorsen shot a final-round 73 and hung on to top Jack Davidson and a loaded field at the 2014 Florida Azalea at Palatka Golf Club. Halvorsen entered the final round with a four-shot lead thanks to a second-round 65. While he wasn't as hot in Sunday's final-round, he managed to hang on for a two-shot win over runner-up Jack Davidson. Davidson, from Wales, closed with a 70 on Sunday and nearly caught the champion thanks to a terrific final-round effort. Davidson shot 69-68 over the first two rounds. Dylan Newman, a former Iona College standout from New Rochelle, NY, shot 67-69-74 to finish tied for third place alongside Corey Carlson (70-68-73), Drew Czuchry (75-65-71) and Spencer Schindler (72-70-69). Andrew Alligood, Jack Comstock and Travis Trace finished tied for seventh place, finishing seven shots behind the winner. First-round leader Jordan Ebanks followed his opening 66 with rounds of 74-76 and finished tied for 10th. Other flight winners included: Jeff McClellan (1st Flight), Randy Werkheiser (2nd), Liu Cheng (3rd), Paul Harrison (4th) and Mike Kegley (5th). A Golfweek/amateurgolf.com rankings event, the Florida Azalea Invitational first began in 1958 as a two-man team tournament. Throughout its history, the field has included numerous players who went on to success at the game’s highest level, including Tommy Aaron, the 1973 Masters champion, and Bob Murphy, an 11-time PGA Tour winner. Peter Uihlein won the event in 2008. The host course is a Donald Ross design dating back to 1925. It only checks in at 6,000 yards from the tips but proves to challenge the ever-improving field with its well-placed bunkers and small and fast greens.