Nov. 19, 2010

By Wes Todd
Assistant Media Relations Director

COLUMBIA, S.C. – Three top men’s golf prospects will attend the University of South Carolina next fall to compete for the Gamecocks as head coach Bill McDonald announced his team’s 2011-12 signing class today.

The Gamecocks will add Sean Kelly (Staten Island, N.Y.), Caleb Sturgeon (Laurens, S.C.) and Will Murphy (Columbia, S.C.) to an already talented roster when the 2011-12 school year begins as all submitted National Letters of Intent in the last week. The group includes two players ranked in Golfweek’s Top 100 of the class of 2011, the No. 1 player in the state of New York and the No. 6 player in South Carolina.

“I am very excited about the addition of these young men for our class of 2011,” McDonald said. “All three are capable of helping us accomplish the goals we have set forth as a program. Being able to land a nationally ranked player the caliber of Sean Kelly is a real testament to the hard work my assistant, Michael Burcin, has done the past few years recruiting. Caleb and Will are highly ranked South Carolina products, and both have done well at the national level as well. I look forward to all three contributing to our program upon their arrival.”

Sean Kelly is the top-ranked junior golfer in the state of New York and is ranked No. 20 overall in the class of 2011 by Golfweek. A native of Staten Island, N.Y., Sean has spend the last two years training at the Leadbetter Academy in Bradenton, Fla., where he was named a Leadbetter First-Team All-American and has attended Saint Stephens Episcopal School. He qualified for the match play round at the 2009 U.S. Junior Amateur and also competed alongside current and former Gamecocks Wesley Bryan and George Bryan IV at this year’s U.S. Amateur. Sean chose South Carolina over Wake Forest, Auburn, Virginia and North Florida.

Caleb Sturgeon is a native of Laurens, S.C., and currently attends Laurens High School. He is ranked No. 90 in the class of 2011 according to Golfweek and currently rates as the No. 7 junior in the state of South Carolina. During the summer of 2010, Caleb tied for medalist honors with a 138 (-6) at the U.S. Junior Amateur qualifier in Bethesda, Md. He was a semifinalist at the 2010 South Carolina Junior Match Play Championship, and finished as runner-up at the 2010 Joe Cheves after tying for medalist honors and losing in a playoff. In 2009, he took the tournament title at the SCGA Tournament of Champions in Pawley’s Island. He was also the youngest player to ever hold a 36-hole lead at the South Carolina Amateur Championship, standing at 7-under-par through two rounds at the age of 15. Caleb chose South Carolina over Clemson, College of Charleston and Winthrop.

Will Murphy is a senior at A.C. Flora High School in Columbia. He has been limited in recent play after undergoing back surgery in the fall, but his prior record has been impressive. He qualified for the 2009 U.S. Junior Amateur and advanced to the second round of match play. He also earned a victory at the 2010 Florence Invitational. His father, JR Murphy, lettered for the Gamecocks in soccer in 1979-80. Will chose South Carolina over Furman – where his brother J.B. plays – and Wofford.