Dec. 8, 2006

Former South Carolina golfer Eirik Johansen (Stavanger, Norway) has earned a European Tour card, exempting him to compete in all of the Tour’s events for the coming year. Johansen competed for South Carolina under head coach Puggy Blackmon for four seasons, exhausting his eligibility in the spring of 2006. After earning a pair of collegiate All-America honors, he has quickly made the jump to professional golf.

Much like the qualifying school for the PGA TOUR in the United States, the European Tour holds a six-round Final Qualifying Stage to determine new tour players. Of the 156 entrants, the top 30 finishers and ties are awarded tour cards. Johansen put together an impressive effort, tying for 13th at the event, which was played on the San Roque Old and New Courses in Cadiz, Spain, last month. After holding the lead through the first and second rounds, he was three-under par at the conclusion of play with a total score of 65-71-72-72-74-75=429.

Johansen, who served as team captain during his senior season, played in all 50 events the Gamecocks entered from 2003-2006. He was a three-time first-team All-SEC selection and earned honorable mention All-America honors twice in 2003 and 2006. In addition, Johansen excelled in the classroom as a three-time member of the SEC Academic Honor Roll and a two-time GCAA All-America Scholar.