April 25, 2003

St. Simons, Ga. – After one round of action at the 2003 Men’s Golf Southeastern Conference Championships at the Seaside Course of the Sea Island Golf Club, the South Carolina men’s golf team stands in sixth place with a score of 298. The Gamecocks battled the wind during the early stages of the tournament before the rain, suspending play for a brief time.

Georgia leads the 12-team field with a score of 288. The Volunteers of Tennessee stand in second with 289, followed by Auburn with 291.

Leading the way for the Gamecocks is freshman Eirik Johansen, who fired an even-par score of 70. Johansen is in a three-way tied for fifth place. Redshirt Junior Nash Elliot, the eldest of the five-man squad, shot four-over-par 74 to tie for 19th place. Competing in his first SEC Championship, freshman West Streib stands in 29th place after posting a score of 76.

Alex Hamilton fired 78, while Martin Rominger tallied a score of 80.

Georgia’s Kevin Kisner and Florida’s Brett Stegmaier are tied for first with a three-under-par score of 67.

“We played solid in spots, but need to be a little more consistent on the bigger holes,” commented Head Coach Puggy Blackmon. “This golf course is 18 of the toughest holes you’ll ever see. It is very difficult to make a birdie.”

Round two of the SEC Championship tees off at 8:00 a.m. on Saturday, April 26. Live scoring of the tournament can be viewed at www.secsports.com.

Gamecock FinishesT5th    Eirik Johansen          70T19th   Nash Elliot             74T29th   West Streib             76T39th   Alex Hamilton           78T48th   Martin Rominger         80
Team Finishes1. Georgia                    2882. Tennessee                  2893. Auburn                     2914. Florida                    2925. Alabama                2936. South Carolina             2987. Arkansas                   2998. Vanderbilt                 3029. Kentucky                   30310. Ole Miss                  30411. Mississippi State         31312. LSU                       315