March 28, 2005

AWENDAW, S.C. – Battling high winds and tough conditions on Monday, the South Carolina men’s golf team is tied for second after one round at the inaugural Hootie at Bulls Bay Intercollegiate, held at Bulls Bay Golf Club (Par 71 — 7,147 yards) in Awendaw, S.C. Play was scheduled to begin on Monday, but heavy rain and thunderstorms delayed the start until today. The Gamecocks shot a four-over par 288 to open the tournament.

Senior Alex Hamilton led South Carolina by firing a three-under par 68 and sits tied for fourth place. Junior West Streib shot even par at 71 and is tied for eighth.

“Conditions were as tough as I’ve seen them in a long time,” USC head coach Puggy Blackmon said. “There were constant winds from 20 to 25 miles per hour and gusts of up to 35 or 40. For Alex to shoot a 68 is a pretty incredible round. I’m also extremely pleased with West Strieb. He gave us a good round from our fifth man for the first time this spring. Overall, it was a solid performance on a difficult day. The course is basically a links course with very few trees.”

Freshman Mark Anderson is tied for 22nd following the opening round after shooting a 73. Junior Eirik Johansen carded a 76 and sits tied for 42nd. Junior Robert Svensson rounded out the USC lineup with an 84 and is in 74th heading into Tuesday.

Augusta State leads the 15-team field after shooting an eight-under par 276. Carolina is tied for second with Auburn. Other SEC teams in the field include Kentucky (fourth), Georgia (eighth), LSU (T-9th) Alabama (T-9th) and Vanderbilt (T-12th). Clemson and College of Charleston are tied for 14th.

The second round of play was suspended due to darkness on Monday. Second-round play will wrap-up on Tuesday morning at 7 a.m., followed by the final 18 holes at 9 a.m.

SOUTH CAROLINA INDIVIDUALS
T4 Alex Hamilton, 68 (-3)
T8 West Streib, 71 (E)
T22 Mark Anderson, 73 (+2)
T42 Eirik Johansen, 76 (+5)
74 Robert Svensson, 83 (+13)

TEAM LEADERBOARD
1 Augusta State 276
2 South Carolina 288
Auburn 288
4 Kentucky 290
Georgia Tech 290
6 NC State 291
7 Wake Forest 294
8 Georgia 296
9 Louisiana State 299
Florida State 299
Alabama 299
12 Vanderbilt 300
North Carolina 300
14 College of Charleston 303
Clemson 303