MEN S GOLF SOUTH CAROLINA SCHEDULE. THIS WEEK S EVENT Tavistock Collegiate Invitational

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1 SEPTEMBER Carpet Capital Collegiate... 3rd of 15 The Farm Golf Club (Rocky Face, Ga.) Shoal Creek Invitational... 6th of 12 Shoal Creek Country Club (Birmingham, Ala.) OCTOBER Tavistock Collegiate Invitational Isleworth Golf & Country Club (Orlando, Fla.) Camden Collegiate Invitational Camden Country Club (Camden, S.C.) NOVEMBER 6-8 Ka anapali Collegiate Invitational Royal Ka anapali Course (Lahaina, Hawaii) FEBRUARY Bayou City Collegiate Championship Golf Club of Houston (Humble, Texas) MARCH 7-8 Palmetto Intercollegiate Palmetto Golf Club (Aiken, S.C.) General Hackler Championship Dunes Golf & Beach Club (Myrtle Beach, S.C.) Valspar Collegiate Invitational Floridian (Palm City, Fla.) APRIL 3-5 Hootie at Bulls Bay Intercollegiate Bulls Bay Golf Club (Awendaw, S.C.) SEC Championship Sea Island Golf Club (St. Simons Island, Ga.) MAY/JUNE NCAA Regionals TBA (TBA) 27-1 NCAA Championship Eugene Country Club (Eugene, Ore.) Home tournament in bold SCHEDULE ROSTER Name Yr. Hometown (High School) Ben Dietrich Jr. Bluffton, S.C. (Heritage Academy) Brendan Gramley Sr. Sharon, Pa. (Shady Side Academy) Alex Handy So. Aiken, S.C. (South Aiken) Keenan Huskey So. Greenville, S.C. (Greenville) Sean Kelly RS Sr. Staten Island, N.Y. (Saint Stephen s Episcopal) Will Miles Fr. Hilton Head Island, S.C. (Heritage Academy) Matt NeSmith Sr. North Augusta, S.C. (North Augusta) Ryan Stachler Fr. Alpharetta, Ga. (Cambridge) Will Starke Sr. Chapin, S.C. (Chapin) Scott Stevens Fr. Chattanooga, Tenn. (Chattanooga Christian) Head Coach: Bill McDonald (9th season, 10th overall) Assistant Coach: Alex Hamilton (3rd season) Volunteer Coach: Carl Paulson (2nd season) THIS WEEK S EVENT Tavistock Collegiate Invitational QUICK FACTS Dates...Oct Course... Isleworth Golf & Country Club Location...Orlando, Fla. Par...72 Yards...7,544 Live Scoring... Schedule... Sunday 8 a.m. paired with UCF, North Carolina...Monday based on team standing... Tuesday based on team standing TOURNAMENT LINEUP 1 Matt NeSmith Sean Kelly 3 4 Keenan Huskey 5 Scott Stevens Will Starke 2 TOURNAMENT FIELD Team Rank* Arizona State Augusta California UCF Florida Illinois... 3 UNLV North Carolina North Florida New Mexico Ohio State South Carolina Texas Tech Vanderbilt Washington State * Golfstat ranking as of Oct. 14, 2015 The Tavistock Collegiate Invitational, hosted by Texas Tech and UCF, is one of the premier collegiate golf tournaments in the country. Each year, 15 of the nation s top golf programs are invited to experience college golf s major championship. The Tavistock Collegiate Invitational rotates between Isleworth Golf & Country Club and Tavistock Group s sister property, Lake Nona Golf & Country Club. The final round of the 2014 Tavistock Collegiate Invitational was a neck-and-neck race between Florida State and Vanderbilt, but in the end, FSU prevailed. The Seminoles combined for five birdies on the final three holes to pull out the victory. Rowin Caron notched four birdies on the back nine to help seal a three-shot win for Florida State. Vanderbilt s Hunter Stewart took home medalist honors by shooting 2-under on the final two holes. COACH BILL MCDONALD On the Tavistock Collegiate Inv. It s always a strong field and it s been a few years since we played down there. The golf course, as I remember it, is more of a second-shot-type golf course where the style of play needs to be very precise going into the greens. Typically, you have a little bit of wind in the Orlando area this time of year in the fall, so it usually plays pretty tough. Most of our guys I don t think have ever seen the golf course, so Saturday s practice round will be very important to make sure we do a good job there preparing. I know the guys are excited about playing and it s going to be some great competition. GAMECOCK 3 Straight NCAA Championship Appearances GamecockMGolf 1

2 BREAKING DOWN THE TAVISTOCK COLLEGIATE INVITATIONAL Six of the 15 teams competing in the Tavistock Collegiate Invitational own top-25 rankings in the latest Golfstat Relative Rankings released Wednesday, Oct. 14. Atop the lineup is Illinois at No. 3 followed by Arizona State at No. 10, California at No. 15, North Carolina at No. 16, Vanderbilt at No. 17 and Florida at No. 23. Seven of the teams reached the NCAA Championship to include South Carolina along with Arizona State, Florida, Illinois, UNLV, Texas Tech and Vanderbilt. Illinois and Vandy were two of the eight teams that advanced to the match championship rounds. The Fighting Illini reached the semifinals before losing to Southern California, while Vanderbilt lost in the quarterfinals to eventual national champion LSU. Cal, North Carolina, North Florida, New Mexico and Ohio State qualified for NCAA Regionals last season as well. RECAPPING THE SHOAL CREEK INVITATIONAL Senior Sean Kelly led the Gamecocks with a 2-under 70 on the final day of the Shoal Creek Invitational, as Carolina finished the tournament in sixth place with a 54-hole total of 876 (+12). The Gamecocks entered the day in a tie for second at 6-over (582) with North Florida and College of Charleston, all seven strokes behind tournament host UAB (-1, 575) after 36 holes. The Blazers ran away with the tournament on the final day, shooting 12-under to win by 15 strokes over North Florida. Kelly shot 2-over for the tournament after carding a pair of 74s in the first two rounds combined with his 70 on the final day and took a tie for 12th place on the individual leaderboard at 218, his eighth career top-20 finish. Classmate Matt NeSmith was the low man for the Gamecocks at the tournament for the second time this fall in as many events with a 216 ( ) to finish even and tied for seventh, the 19th top-10 finish of his career. RECAPPING THE CARPET CAPITAL COLLEGIATE The Gamecocks posted a final-round 296 (+8) on Sunday, Sept. 13, at The Farm Golf Club to finish in third place at the Carpet Capital Collegiate. South Carolina wrapped up the weekend with a 54-hole total of 880 (+16). Auburn captured the tournament title with a total of 868 (+4) after shooting a 287 (-1) on the final day. Carolina senior Matt NeSmith recorded his 18th career top-10 finish as he tied for seventh with a total of 217 (+1) after shooting a final-round 74 (+2). He tallied a pair of birdies and four bogeys on the afternoon. Freshman Scott Stevens concluded a solid debut for the Gamecocks with a tie for 14th with a total of 221 (+5). Stevens carded a 76, which included one birdie and five bogeys. EXPERIENCE RETURNS Carolina returns seven golfers from last year s squad, including seniors Matt NeSmith, Will Starke and Sean Kelly. The senior trio has played in a combined 97 tournaments for the Gamecocks during their careers and has recorded 36 top-10 finishes. Starke (second-team PING and Golfweek) and NeSmith (third-team PING and Golfweek) were named All-Americans last season and both earned first-team PING All-Southeast Region and All-SEC honors. They collected spots on the Golfweek Preseason All-America teams this fall with NeSmith landing on the first team and Starke on the third team. Junior Ben Dietrich has played in 15 tournaments for the Gamecocks, including the 2014 NCAA Championship, while sophomore Keenan Huskey has played in five tournaments and every event this fall. Senior Brendan Gramley has played in two tournaments as an individual. CHASING RECORDS Seniors Matt NeSmith and Will Starke entered the season with several career school records within reach. The duo sits in spots one and two for career scoring average with NeSmith in the top position at and Starke right on his heels at Starke is tied for third in career top-five finishes with 11, while NeSmith is tied for fifth with nine. Kyle Thompson and David Seawell share the school record with 14. NeSmith moved into sole possession of fourth place for career top-10s after tying for seventh at the Carpet Capital Collegiate to open the fall and now has 19 for his career with a seventh-place showing at the Shoal Creek Invitational. He is one shy of tying Eirik Johansen and Seawell for second place. Starke is tied for seventh with 14. Thompson holds the record with 22. STARKE COMPETES IN EUROPEAN TOUR EVENT Senior Will Starke competed in his first career European Tour event in late September, the Porsche European Open at Golf Resort Bad Griesbach in Bad Griesbach, Germany. Starke carded a 2-over 73 on his first day followed by a 1-under on the second for a 1-over 143 in two days. He finished in a tie for 100th place. RECORDS Career Scoring Average (Min. 60 Rounds & Two Years) 1. Matt NeSmith (2012-Present) Will Starke (2012-Present) George Bryan IV ( ) Kyle Thompson ( ) Caleb Sturgeon ( ) David Seawell ( ) Eirik Johansen ( ) Mark Silvers III ( ) Will Murphy ( ) Wesley Bryan ( ) Single-Season Scoring Avg. (Minimum 18 Rounds) 1. Will Starke (2015) Matt NeSmith (2015) George Bryan IV (2010) Kyle Thompson (2001) Webb Heintzelman (1984) Mark Anderson (2008) Paul Woodbury (2010) Wesley Bryan (2010) Eric Ecker (1998) Will Starke (2014) Low 18-Hole Score (Round in Parentheses) 1. W. Starke, 15 Valspar Collegiate Inv. (3) 63 K. Thompson, 99 NCAA Regional (3) 63 D. Seawell, 96 Gator Invitational (2) M. NeSmith, 15 SEC Championship (2) 64 W. Starke, 14 NCAA Championship (1) 64 W. Starke, 14 Seahawk Inter. (1) 64 W. Bryan, 10 Hootie at Bulls Bay (2) 64 M. Silvers III, 09 NCAA Regional (3) 64 K. Thompson, 99 Red River (1) 64 D. Brunson, 99 Red River (1) 64 Low 54-Hole Score 1. M. NeSmith, 15 SEC Championship J. Bloomfield, 99 Red River W. Starke, 15 Palmetto Intercollegiate 201 G. Bryan IV, 09 Hootie at Bulls Bay D. Seawell, 96 Gator Invitational W. Starke, 15 Seminole Intercollegiate 203 D. Seawell, 95 Gator Invitational G. Bryan IV, 10 SEC Championship 204 G. Bryan IV, 07 NCAA West Regional 204 E. Johansen, 04 Palmetto Inter. 204 J. Kransteuber, 97 Gator Invitational 204 MCDONALD S 14 Gamecock head coach Bill McDonald is the winningest coach by tournament victories in school history with 14. McDonald broke the previous record of nine held by Puggy Blackmon ( ) with Carolina s win at the Carpet Capital Collegiate in September GAMECOCK 3 Straight NCAA Championship Appearances GamecockMGolf 2

3 RANKINGS Golfstat 1. Auburn 2. Oklahoma State 3. Illinois 4. Florida State 5. Wake Forest 6. Duke 7. Southern California 8. Stanford 9. Oklahoma 10. Arizona State 11. Penn State 12. Georgia 13. Texas 14. Purdue 15. California 16. North Carolina 17. Vanderbilt 18. Texas A&M 19. Georgia Tech 20. Alabama 21. Clemson 22. Virginia 23. Florida 24. UCLA 25. South Florida 26. South Carolina Rankings as of Oct. 14, 2015 Golfweek 1. Illinois 2. Auburn 3. Wake Forest 4. Florida State 5. Oklahoma State 6. Stanford 7. Duke 8. Southern California 9. North Carolina 10. Oklahoma 11. Texas 12. Penn State 13. Georgia 14. Alabama 15. Vanderbilt 16. Georgia Tech 17. Arizona State 18. Florida 19. Purdue 20. Clemson 21. South Florida 22. UCLA 23. LSU 24. South Carolina 25. Texas A&M Rankings as of Oct. 16, 2015 FRESHMAN CONTRIBUTOR Newcomer Scott Stevens has quickly established himself as a potential fixture in the Gamecocks lineup throughout the season having now appeared in South Carolina s top five for each tournament. He finished in a tie for 14th place in his first tournament, the Carpet Capital Collegiate, and followed with a tie for 20th at the Shoal Creek Invitational. Stevens currently leads the team in first-round scoring average with a and is tops on the squad in par 3 scoring average as well with a 3.04 through two tournaments. A LOOK BACK AT THE SEASON Carolina turned in one of the greatest seasons in school history in The Gamecocks won a schoolrecord five tournament titles, recorded a program-record 10 top-five finishes and shattered the school record for team scoring average in a season by more than four strokes (282.85). The Gamecocks wrapped up the year ranked No. 6 in the Golfweek/Sagarin Rankings and No. 7 in the Golfstat Relative Rankings. Carolina finished tied for second at the SEC Championship and runner-up at the NCAA Bremerton Regional to earn its third-straight trip to the NCAA Championship. Individually, the Gamecocks combined for 33 top-20 finishes in team events, including 11 top-fives and three tournament wins. Will Starke finished the year with the lowest single-season scoring average in program history (70.27), while NeSmith finished with the second lowest (70.51). NeSmith also became the second Gamecock to win an SEC title as he claimed a 6-stroke victory at the SEC Championship with a school-record 54-hole total of 196 (-14). AMONG THE BEST IN THE WORLD South Carolina seniors Matt NeSmith and Will Starke are listed in the latest Golfweek/Amateurgolf.com World Player Rankings. Nesmith is ranked eighth in the world and sixth in the U.S., while Starke is ranked No. 189 in the world and 77th nationally. In the Scratch Players World Amateur Rankings, NeSmith is ranked No. 8 and Starke is ranked 50th. THREE STRAIGHT TRIPS TO THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP The Gamecocks made their third-straight appearance at the NCAA Championship last season. Carolina is one of only four SEC schools and 13 programs nationally to earn a trip to the NCAA Championship each of the last three years. Auburn, Georgia, LSU, Florida State, Texas, Illinois, Georgia Tech, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Washington, UCLA and Southern California also punched their tickets to the 2013, 2014 and 2015 NCAA Championships. A TOP-10 PROGRAM Carolina wrapped up ranked in the top-10 in both the Golfstat Relative Rankings and Golfweek/ Sagarin Rankings. The Gamecocks were ranked No. 6 by Golfweek and No. 7 by Golfstat. South Carolina is currently ranked No. 26 by Golfstat and No. 24 by Golfweek. QUICK FACTS Location... Columbia, S.C. Enrollment... 31,964 Founded Team Name... Gamecocks President... Dr. Harris Pastides Faculty Representative... Dr. Zach Kelehear Athletics Director... Ray Tanner Colors...Garnet (PMS 202C), Black Conference... Southeastern COACHING STAFF Head Coach... Bill McDonald...10th Year (9th as HC, Georgia Tech, 89) Assistant Coach... Alex Hamilton PROGRAM HISTORY NCAA Championship Appearances NCAA Regional Appearances TEAM INFORMATION 2015 SEC Finish... T-2nd/ NCAA Regional Finish... 2nd/ NCAA Championship Finish... 13th/30 Players R/L... 7/3 Newcomers... 3 MEDIA RELATIONS Men s Golf Contact (Interim)... Matt Freed ... mfreed@sc.edu Office Media Relations Fax Website... GamecocksOnline.com GAMECOCK 3 Straight NCAA Championship Appearances GamecockMGolf 3

4 SEASON STATISTICS TOURNAMENT RESULTS Date Tournament Par Yards Total To Par Finish Low Individual Tourn. Avg. Year Avg. Sept Carpet Capital Collegiate 72 7, rd of 15 NeSmith (+1, T-7th) Sept Shoal Creek Invitational 72 7, th of 12 NeSmith (E, T-7th) Oct Tavistock Collegiate Invitational Oct Camden Collegiate Invitational Nov. 6-8 Ka anapali Collegiate Invitational Feb Bayou City Collegiate Championship March 7-8 Palmetto Intercollegiate March General Hackler Championship March Valspar Collegiate Invitational April 3-5 Hootie at Bulls Bay Intercollegiate April SEC Championship May NCAA Regionals May 27-June 1 NCAA Championship INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS Name Events Rounds Low 54 Low 18 Par/Better Top 5 Top 10 Top 20 Strokes Avg. Ben Dietrich Brendan Gramley Alex Handy Keenan Huskey Sean Kelly Will Miles Matt NeSmith Ryan Stachler Will Starke Scott Stevens Team , TEAM RECORD VS. OPPONENTS Alabama Auburn Chattanooga Clemson College of Charleston Dalton State Florida Georgia Tech GRU Augusta Houston Kennesaw State LSU Mississippi State North Carolina North Florida Ole Miss South Florida Tennessee Troy UAB Washington West Virginia Winthrop OVERALL SEC CAREER STATISTICS Name Events Rounds Low 54 Low 18 Par/Better Top 5 Top 10 Top 20 Strokes Avg. Ben Dietrich , Brendan Gramley Alex Handy Keenan Huskey , Sean Kelly , Will Miles Matt NeSmith , Ryan Stachler Will Starke , Scott Stevens GAMECOCK 3 Straight NCAA Championship Appearances GamecockMGolf 4

5 TOURNAMENT-BY-TOURNAMENT RESULTS September Carpet Capital Collegiate The Farm Golf Club (Rocky Face, Ga.) Par 72 7,012 Yards =880 (+16) 3rd of 15 TEAM RESULTS 1. Auburn = Clemson = South Carolina = LSU = Georgia Tech = Alabama = Florida = Tennessee = North Carolina = Kennesaw State = South Florida = T-12. Mississippi = T-12. Chattanooga = North Florida = Dalton State = T-7. T-14. T-24. T-27. T-39. T-47. INDIVIDUAL RESULTS Matt NeSmith = Scott Stevens = Keenan Huskey = Sean Kelly = *Ryan Stachler = Will Starke = *Played as an individual September Shoal Creek Invitational Shoal Creek Country Club (Birmingham, Ala.) Par 72 7,154 Yards =876 (+12) 6th of 12 TEAM RESULTS 1. UAB = North Florida = GRU Augusta = Houston = College of Charleston = South Carolina = Washington = Mississippi State = Ole Miss = Troy = Winthrop = West Virginia = T-7. T-12. T-20. T-26. T-53. INDIVIDUAL RESULTS Matt NeSmith = E Sean Kelly = Scott Stevens = Keenan Huskey = Ryan Stachler = GAMECOCK 3 Straight NCAA Championship Appearances GamecockMGolf 5

6 INDIVIDUAL TOURNAMENT SUMMARIES BEN DIETRICH Has not competed WILL STARKE Carpet Capital Collegiate (Sept ) = T-47th BRENDAN GRAMLEY Has not competed ALEX HANDY Has not competed SCOTT STEVENS Carpet Capital Collegiate (Sept ) = T-14th Shoal Creek Invitational (Sept ) = T-20th KEENAN HUSKEY Carpet Capital Collegiate (Sept ) = T-24th Shoal Creek Invitational (Sept ) = T-26th SEAN KELLY Carpet Capital Collegiate (Sept ) = T-27th Shoal Creek Invitational (Sept ) = T-12th WILL MILES Has not competed MATT NESMITH Carpet Capital Collegiate (Sept ) = T-7th Shoal Creek Invitational (Sept ) =216 E T-7th RYAN STACHLER *Carpet Capital Collegiate (Sept ) = T-39th Shoal Creek Invitational (Sept ) = T-53rd *Played as an individual MISCELLANEOUS STATISTICS Name Lineup Count Pct. Fall Avg. Spring Avg. Rd. 1 Avg. Rd. 2 Avg. Rd. 3 Avg. Par 3 Avg. Par 4 Avg. Par 5 Avg. 60s Ben Dietrich Brendan Gramley Alex Handy Keenan Huskey Sean Kelly Will Miles Matt NeSmith Ryan Stachler Will Starke Scott Stevens GAMECOCK 3 Straight NCAA Championship Appearances GamecockMGolf 6

7 KEENAN HUSKEY S SCORECARDS Carpet Capital Collegiate (Sept ) =225 (+9) Finish: T-24th Yards , ,413 7,012 Par Round To Par E -1 E E E E -1 E E E E Round To Par E E E Round To Par E E E Total Hole To Par E E E Average Shoal Creek Invitational (Sept ) =222 (+6) Finish: T-26th Yards , ,553 7,154 Par Round To Par E E E +3 Round To Par E E +2 E Round To Par E E E E E E E Total Hole To Par E +2 E E E -1 E +2 E Average GAMECOCK 3 Straight NCAA Championship Appearances GamecockMGolf 7

8 SEAN KELLY S SCORECARDS Carpet Capital Collegiate (Sept ) =226 (+10) Finish: T-27th Yards , ,413 7,012 Par Round To Par E E E E E E +2 Round To Par E E Round To Par Total Hole To Par +1 E E E E E Average Shoal Creek Invitational (Sept ) =218 (+2) Finish: T-12th Yards , ,553 7,154 Par Round To Par E E E Round To Par E E E E E E E Round To Par E E E E E E E -2 Total Hole To Par E -1 E E E E E Average GAMECOCK 3 Straight NCAA Championship Appearances GamecockMGolf 8

9 MATT NESMITH S SCORECARDS Carpet Capital Collegiate (Sept ) =217 (+1) Finish: T-7th Yards , ,413 7,012 Par Round To Par E E -1-1 E -1 E Round To Par E E +1 E E E E -1 E E E E E Round To Par E E Total Hole To Par +2 E +1-1 E E E E -1-3 E Average Shoal Creek Invitational (Sept ) =216 (E) Finish: T-7th Yards , ,553 7,154 Par Round To Par E E E E E E +1 Round To Par Round To Par E E E E -1 E E E Total Hole To Par E E +1-1 E E E -1 E E E E E E Average GAMECOCK 3 Straight NCAA Championship Appearances GamecockMGolf 9

10 RYAN STACHLER S SCORECARDS Carpet Capital Collegiate (Sept ) =228 (+12) Finish: T-39th Yards , ,413 7,012 Par Round To Par E E E E E E -1 E E E E E E Round To Par E E E E E E E Round To Par E E E E Total Hole To Par E E E E +2 E E E E Average Shoal Creek Invitational (Sept ) =229 (+13) Finish: T-53rd Yards , ,553 7,154 Par Round To Par E E E E E -1 E E Round To Par E +1 E E E Round To Par E +1 E E E Total Hole To Par E +2-2 E E E E E Average GAMECOCK 3 Straight NCAA Championship Appearances GamecockMGolf 10

11 WILL STARKE S SCORECARDS Carpet Capital Collegiate (Sept ) =230 (+14) Finish: T-47th Yards , ,413 7,012 Par Round To Par Round To Par E E E E E E E E E Round To Par E E E E E E -3 E Total Hole To Par +1 E +1 E E E E +4 E Average GAMECOCK 3 Straight NCAA Championship Appearances GamecockMGolf 11

12 SCOTT STEVENS SCORECARDS Carpet Capital Collegiate (Sept ) =221 (+5) Finish: T-14th Yards , ,413 7,012 Par Round To Par E E E Round To Par E E E E +2 Round To Par Total Hole To Par +1 E +1 E E -1 E +1 E E E E E Average Shoal Creek Invitational (Sept ) =220 (+4) Finish: T-20th Yards , ,553 7,154 Par Round To Par E E E E E Round To Par E E E E -1-1 E E E E Round To Par E +1 E Total Hole To Par E E E +1 E E E E E +4 Average GAMECOCK 3 Straight NCAA Championship Appearances GamecockMGolf 12