Gamecocks Set for U.S. Collegiate Championship

Oct. 23, 2010

COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina will face one of the toughest fields in college golf this week as the Gamecocks travel to Alpharetta, Ga., for the U.S. Collegiate Championship. The tournament runs Sunday through Tuesday at the par 72, 7,017-yard Golf Club of Georgia.

South Carolina’s lineup will again be youthful as junior Wesley Bryan (Chapin, S.C.) brings the most experience to the roster, having played in every tournament since his arrival at Carolina in the fall of 2008. Three true freshmen – Logan Harrell (Huntersville, N.C.), Caulder Moore (Isle of Palms, S.C.) and Blaine Woodruff (Acworth, Ga.) – will also play for the Gamecocks; all three played in the Mason Rudolph Invitational last month and led Carolina to a second-place finish.

Joining the Gamecock varsity lineup for the first time will be sophomore Dykes Harbin. A native of Augusta, Ga., Harbin has played in four “Garnet Team” or junior varsity events at Carolina, winning the 2009 CSU Fall Invitational and earning a ninth-place finish at the Rees Jones Intercollegiate earlier this month.

The field for this event is loaded, as 11 of the 15 teams are currently ranked in the Golfweek Top 50. Top-ranked UCLA leads the field along with No. 9 Washington and No. 11 California. Georgia Tech, Texas A&M, Virginia, Duke and Wake Forest are among the top-25 teams in the tournament, with Clemson, Florida State and Kent State cracking the top 50. Southern Cal, ETSU and Georgia State round out the field.

The Gamecocks previously competed in this event during the 2008-09 season, finishing in 11th place. Patrick Rada led the team with a three-day total of 225 (+9), and Mark Silvers III, Wesley Bryan and George Bryan IV all shot 226 (+10). The USCC is a unique tournament to college golf, requiring players to wear long pants and employing caddies for all competitors.

Carolina will be paired with rival Clemson and Pac-10 foe California for Sunday’s first round, getting underway at 11:40 a.m. on the No. 1 tee. Live scoring is available via golfstatresults.com.