May 18, 2010

COLUMBIA, S.C. – For the third straight year, South Carolina assistant men’s golf coach Michael Burcin has been named a finalist for the Jan Strickland Award, the Golf Coaches Association of America announced.

Burcin joins Josh Brewer of Southern California, Garrett Clegg of Washington, Chris Malloy of Florida State and Chris Whitten of Michigan as one of five finalists for the award presented to the top assistant golf coach in the nation. The Strickland Award is presented to the NCAA Division I, II, III, NAIA or NJCAA assistant coach that, among other things, has excelled in working with their student-athletes on the course and in the classroom.

Burcin is in his sixth season as an assistant coach for the Gamecocks, working primarily with the men’s team this year. In addition to day-to-day coaching duties, Burcin serves as the program’s recruiting coordinator as well as monitoring the strength and conditioning program for both the men’s and women’s teams.

The award winner will be announced June 1, and the recipient will have the opportunity to further his professional development by receiving an invitation to the TaylorMade-adidas Golf Kingdom in Carlsbad, Calif.