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March 29, 2007

The South Carolina men's golf team is set to compete in its second event of the week when it travels to the Administaff Augusta State Invitational Friday, March 30, through Sunday, April 1. The 54-hole event will be played at the Par-72, 7,265-yard Champions Retreat Golf Club in Evans, Ga. The Gamecocks tee off beginning at 8:45 a.m. on Friday and will play with fellow Southeastern Conference teams Auburn and Tennessee.

Live scoring can be found online at www.golfstat.com or by following the links from the South Carolina's official athletics web site, USCsports.com.

GAMECOCK LINEUP
South Carolina's five-man lineup will feature freshman George Bryan IV, sophomore Allen Koon, junior Warren Thomas, sophomore Florian Fritsch and redshirt sophomore Patrick Cunning.

NOTING THE SOUTH CAROLINA LINEUP
>> George Bryan IV is the only Gamecock to compete in all seven varsity events this season. The freshman owns a 73.62 stroke average and a pair of top-20 finishes, his best a tie for third at the Bank of Tennessee Intercollegiate.

>> Sophomore Allen Koon sports a 74.67 stroke average, the second-best among golfers who have competed in more than one varsity event. Koon's career best finish came two weeks ago at the Schenkel E-Z-Go Invitational when his placed in a tie for 19th.

>> Junior Warren Thomas is back in the lineup for the sixth time after not playing in the Hootie at Bulls Bay. Thomas' stroke average is 75.00 and his best showing of the season was a tie for 29th at the Isleworth Collegiate Invitational in October.

>> Sophomore Florian Fritsch, who earned all-SEC honors in 2006, has a 74.88 stroke average and is in the lineup for the fourth time this season. After posting four top-20 finishes as a freshman, he is looking for his first such finish of the season this weekend.

>> Redshirt sophomore Patrick Cunning will also compete for the second time this season. Cunning led the Gamecocks by tying for 25th in the final fall event, the CordeValle Collegiate. He has a 71.67 stroke average through three rounds.

THE AUGUSTA STATE FIELD
The 18-team field for the Administaff Augusta State Invitational features six teams that are ranked in the Golfweek/Sagarin Top 25 (March 27). That list includes No. 10 Clemson, No. 11 Coastal Carolina, 13th-ranked East Tennessee State, No. 15 Tennessee, 17th-ranked North Carolina and No. 21 Auburn. Other top 50 teams in the field are No. 28 Minnesota, No. 29 Georgia State, No. 41 South Carolina and No. 47 Virginia Tech. Augusta State, Georgia Southern, Houston, NC State, North Florida, Notre Dame, Virginia and Division II powerhouse USC-Aiken will participate in the Invitational as well. Of the 90 individuals in the field, 19 are ranked among the nation's top 100, according to the Golfweek/Sagarin Performance Index (March 27).

BRYAN NAMED SEC GOLFER OF THE WEEK
South Carolina freshman George Bryan IV (Chapin, S.C.) was selected the Southeastern Conference Male Golfer of the Week for March 21-27. Bryan became the first South Carolina golfer to win the award since the 2005 season.

Bryan led the Gamecocks by tying for 11th in the Hootie at Bulls Bay Intercollegiate (March 25-27). Two of his three rounds were under par and he finished with a three-round total of 69-72-70=211 (-2). It marked Bryan's second top-20 finish of the season.

Bryan owns a 73.62 stroke average, the best of any Gamecock who has competed in more than one event. His best showing of the season came at the Bank of Tennessee Intercollegiate when he placed in a tie for third.

In 2005, current junior Mark Anderson garnered SEC Golfer of the Week honors on two occasions (March 15 and March 23). Former All-American Eirik Johansen won the award on Feb. 11, 2004 and former all-SEC performer Martin Rominger was selected on Feb. 6, 2002.

LAST TIME OUT
The South Carolina men's golf finished ninth in the third annual Hootie at Bulls Bay Intercollegiate, played at Bulls Bay Golf Club (Par 71, 7,261 yards) on March 27. The Gamecocks shot a one-under par 283, their best round of the tournament, today and concluded the event with at total score of 289-294-283=866 (+14). Freshman George Bryan IV placed in a tie for 11th to pace the team. Carolina was the highest finisher among five SEC schools in the 15-team field, which included five squads ranked in the latest Golfweek/Sagarin Top 25.

Bryan recorded a final round 70 to finish the three-day event two strokes under par. The only Gamecock to compete in all seven varsity events South Carolina has entered this season, Bryan recorded his second top-20 finish Tuesday.

Sophomore Allen Koon was Carolina's top performer in Tuesday's final round after shooting a career-best round of 68 (-3). It also represented the best round of any Gamecock during the tournament and helped him to jump 17 spots on the individual leader board. With the exception of a double bogey on No. 11, Koon recorded five birdies and 12 pars Tuesday to finish at six-over par for the tournament. Koon and sophomore Mark Silvers both tied for 36th individually. Silvers posted rounds of 73-72-74=219 (+6).

Junior Mark Anderson finished one stroke back of Koon and Silvers with a three-round total of 72-76-72=220 (+7), good for a tie for 42nd. Sophomore Baker Elmore was nine-over par with rounds of 75-74-73=222 and shared 52nd place.

BRYAN MAKING AN IMPACT
George Bryan IV has wasted little time making an impact for the Gamecocks. The only golfer to compete in all seven varsity events this season, Bryan also owns the best stroke average at 73.62 of anyone who has competed in more than one event. He has a pair of top-20 finishes to his credit, including placing in a tie for third at the Bank of Tennessee Intercollegiate. At the Hootie at Bulls Bay Intercollegiate earlier this weekend, Bryan led South Carolina by tying for 11th. Two of his three rounds were under par and he finished two-under for the tournament.

KOON COMING OF AGE
In preseason, Allen Koon listed being a leader on the team as one of his goals. The sophomore's play has been in line with that goal. Koon was the Gamecocks' top finisher in the first two events of the spring season. He tied for 29th at the John Hayt Collegiate Invitational and shared 19th place, the best finish of his career, at the Schenkel E-Z-Go Invitational. Koon has been in Carolina's top three individuals in all five events he has played in this season.

NEXT UP
South Carolina is preparing for the home stretch of its regular season schedule. The Gamecocks will send the Garnet squad to Spartanburg, S.C., for the Vault Wofford Invitational April 2-3. Carolina travels to Columbus, Ohio, to take part in the Robert Kepler Intercollegiate April 14-15. The SEC Championship is scheduled for April 20-22 at the Sea Island Golf Club in St. Simons Island, Ga.