July 9, 2009

COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina golfers Mark Silvers III, George Bryan IV and Patrick Rada were selected as Cleveland Golf/Srixon All-America Scholars, the Golf Coaches Association of America announced Thursday. The trio of Gamecocks were among 108 NCAA Division I players who earned the honor.

Silvers, a senior finance major, earns the honor for the second consecutive year. Previously this season, Silvers was named the SEC’s Scholar-Athlete of the Year in addition to being selected to the All-SEC second team and the PING Honorable Mention All-America team. He concluded his Carolina career with a 73.15 stroke average, ranking him fifth all-time in Gamecock history. The native of Savannah, Ga., completed his South Carolina years with an 18th-place tie at the NCAA Championships May 26-28 at Inverness Club in Toledo, Ohio. He finished the season with a 72.74 stroke average to lead the team and recorded four top-10 and eight top-20 showings on the season. His best tournament finish came at the General Jim Hackler Invitational in March when he tied for third place, but his most impressive outing was in the final round of the NCAA Southeast Regional when he fired a 7-under-par 64 to propel the Gamecocks into the NCAA Championships.

Bryan IV, a rising senior sport and entertainment management major, finished only three strokes behind Silvers for the team scoring title this season with an average of 72.82. Bryan IV also posted his share of strong tournament showings, including back-to-back runner-up finishes and five top-10 placements. His best tournament came at the Hootie at Bulls Bay Intercollegiate where he shot 69-67-75=201 (-12) to grab runner-up honors while shooting the second-best 54-hole score in school history. The native of Chapin, S.C., also earned All-SEC second team honors in addition to PING Honorable Mention All-America accolades.

Rada, who is majoring in business, played in 10 of 12 tournaments during the 2008-09 season and was named to the SEC Community Service team for his efforts in and out of the classroom. The junior from Anderson, S.C., had a pair of top-20 finishes on the season, the best of which was a ninth-place effort at the Mason Rudolph Invitational, helping the Gamecocks to the team title. He finished fourth on the team with a 74.54 stroke average and posted his best round at the NCAA Southeast Regional, when he shot a 68 in the first round.

South Carolina has had at least one golfer earn the award every year since 2004. Since 1990, 11 Gamecocks have earned the award a total of 15 times. Silvers joins Alex Hamilton, Eirik Johansen and Brett Quigley as multiple winners of the award.

To be eligible for Cleveland Golf/Srixon All-America Scholar status, an individual must be a junior or senior academically, compete in at least two full years at the collegiate level, participate in 70 percent of his team’s competitive rounds or compete in the NCAA Championships, have a stroke-average under 76.0 in Division I and maintain a minimum cumulative grade-point average of 3.2 or higher.