Dec. 26, 2011

PHOENIX, Ariz. – South Carolina sophomore Blaine Woodruff will compete at the 2011 Patriot All-America Invitational beginning Wednesday at Wigwam Golf Club in Litchfield Park, Ariz. The 54-hole tournament runs through Friday.

Woodruff has played in all four tournaments for the Gamecocks this season and has a stroke average of 75.73. He helped lead Carolina to second and fifth-place finishes, respectively, in its final two tournaments of the fall.

Woodruff will compete against a field that features 84 collegiate golfers from across the nation, and includes 21 of the world’s top-100 ranked amateurs, with seven of those players having ties to the state of Arizona.

Players earning PING All-America honors from the previous season in NCAA Divisions I, II and III plus the NAIA and NJCAA are eligible to be invited to participate in the Patriot All-America.

Additionally, a player from the United States Military, Naval and Air Force Academies have been invited, along with Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA) national award recipients, members of the most recent Palmer Cup Teams, American Junior Golf Association (AJGA) All-Americans and Toyota Junior Golf World Cup participants currently enrolled as college freshmen.

The Wigwam Golf Club, along with the Arizona Golf Association (AGA) and the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA), is partnering with the Folds of Honor Foundation to host the inaugural Patriot All-America. The AGA is the host organization for the event, while the GCAA will administer the player invitations. Senator John McCain and Jerry Colangelo serve as co-chairmen for the event.

To show support for Folds of Honor, each golfer will carry a commemorative PING golf bag bearing the name of a fallen soldier from the community in which they live or attend school.