Billy Horschel, praised by PETA for treatment of alligator, still chasing first Florida win
PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. — After his viral moment at the Cognizant Classic in the Palm Beaches in which he redirected a gator from the course and back into a lake, Billy Horschel was rewarded with a box of chocolates.
In the shape of gators.
The gift comes from PETA, which is recognizing the Gator for the way he treated the gator, calling him the "coolest clubber on the course" after he "gently shooed a wandering gator" off the Champion Course.
“Billy Horschel’s kindness toward one of the most misunderstood and maligned animals on the planet is empathy in action and deserves a round of polite, restrained applause,” PETA senior vice president Lisa Lange said. “PETA urges everyone to follow in his cleats by always treating wildlife with respect."
Horschel, 38, comes from a long line of great Gators. Not gators. The 2009 University of Florida graduate is part of the school's golf royalty that has produced a litany of golfers who have combined to win more than 120 times on the PGA Tour.
Horschel has eight of those, including accepting the trophy from Jack Nicklaus at the 2022 Memorial. And the 2014 FedEx Cup championship and you have a solid career. But aside from winning a major, this is the time of year Horschel would most enjoy hoisting a trophy.
Having been born and raised in Brevard County and now making his home in Ponte Vedra Beach, Horschel is Florida through and through.
And while gently redirecting a 6-foot gator back to a lake with a 60-degree wedge is a cool viral moment for a Florida Man on a Florida golf course, Horschel knows how to top that.
"Being able to win in the state of Florida and say, 'Hey, I won in my home state,' would be really cool,'" he said.
Horschel was inside the top 10 with three holes to play Saturday before bogeys on the 16th and 17th holes, the final two of the Bear Trap. He finished with a birdie on No. 18 giving him a 67 and 10-under for the tournament.
But on the kinder, gentler Champion Course, he was one of 28 golfers at 10-under or better when his round ended.
Runner-up at API closest he's come to winning in Florida
Horschel calls winning in his home state a "pride factor." The closest he's come in 40 starts in Florida is tied for second at the 2022 Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill, one shot behind Scottie Scheffler.
Horschel was the 54-hole co-leader but fell back after playing his first 10 holes in 5 over. He battled back with two birdies and had a 33-foot putt on No. 18 that would have forced a playoff.
"When you look back like, 'Gosh, I let that one slip away,'" Horschel said. "Sometimes you need some breaks go your way. So, yeah, it sucks when let one slip."
What Horschel was most looking forward to was celebrating with his wife, Brittany, and their three children, Skylar, Colbie and Axel. That came three months later at the Memorial when one of his golf goals was checked off.
To win in front of his entire family.
"Awesome," he said about the moment.
But superseding winning in Florida would be adding a major championship to his resume. Horschel was the 54-hole leader at last year's British Open at Royal Troon and shot 68 Sunday, which at most majors would be enough for the lead after three rounds.
But Xander Schauffele topped that with a 65, which gave him a shot victory over Horschel and Justin Rose.
Horschel understands what winning a major would do for his career and how he could be judged differently if that does not happen.
And he's OK with that.
"That is something our career is defined off of," he said. "But there's a lot of great players that didn't win majors."
Among the three golfers with at least 20 PGA Tour wins without a major is the Florida Gator who has won more than any other, Doug Sanders with 20 titles.
"I think if I can add a major, get the 10-plus wins on tour, then I can look at myself and say, 'In my generation, my time I played, I was one of the best players for that time span,'" Horschel said.
"Which is a pretty cool thing."
Billy Horschel making a difference off the course
Horschel is proud of what he's accomplished, which has resulted in about $41 million in career PGA Tour prize money. That has afforded him a lifestyle that allows him to own two houses on the water, one in Melbourne and one he's having built in the Jacksonville area. That gives him and his family easy access when they take out the Grady-White Boat.
And his priorities have changed from when he first started his career. He now spends more time with the family, a lot of that on the boat. Which means less time practicing.
"Hopefully I practice more efficiently," he said.
Even if that does not happen, Horschel impacted the game off the course, too. His contributions, along with those of his wife, Brittany, have been rewarded.
Billy and Brittany recently were honored with the Deane Beman Award, given each year by the Jacksonville Area Golf Association to those who make a difference through golf. And Billy was the recipient of the Charlie Bartlett Award, given annually to a pro golfer for “unselfish contributions for the betterment of society.”
Billy and Brittany run the Horschel Family Foundation, created in 2023 to support mental health, addiction assistance and K9s for Warriors. He also lends his name to Feeding Northeast Florida and support to the Advocates Professional Golf Tour and the American Junior Golf Association.
“You look at the names on the list that have received the award, the hall-of-famers, the great players,” Horschel said in a statement for the Charlie Bartlett Award. “They’ve been just as successful on the golf course as they have been off the course making a difference in this world. To be able to add my name to that list, I could have never imagined.
"When our time is done in this world, if we can make a difference in one person’s life, then we’ve lived a really good life,."
Tom D'Angelo is a senior sports columnist and reporter for The Palm Beach Post. He can be reached at tdangelo@pbpost.com.