Skip to main content
Partner logo
Mobile Icon Link Mobile Icon Link Mobile Icon Link Gamecocks+

March 10, 2011

social_twitter_16h.gif=”” alt=”Twitter Logo” border=”0″ class=”imported”>Follow @GamecockMGolf on Twitter | social_facebook_16h.gif=”” alt=”Facebook Logo” border=”0″ class=”imported”>Gamecock Men’s Golf on Facebook

Tournament Notes Get Acrobat Reader | Live Scoring

By Wes Todd
Assistant Media Relations Director

COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina will head to the West Coast for the first time in several years as the Gamecocks will play Friday and Saturday at the Bandon Dunes Championship in Bandon, Ore. The teams will play 36 holes Friday and 18 on Saturday at the Bandon Dunes Golf Resort; the tournament is hosted by Gonzaga University.

The South Carolina starting lineup for this week’s event features two true freshmen, two sophomores and one junior, the same lineup that earned a fifth-place finish at last month’s Seahawk Invitational. Junior Wesley Bryan (Chapin, S.C.) leads the way for Carolina, coming off his first top-5 finish of the season at the Seahawk Invitational. He will be joined by sophomores Dean Hester (Dublin, Ga.) and Dykes Harbin (Augusta, Ga.). Bryan has played in every event in his two-plus years as a Gamecock, and Hester has played in four of five events this year, earning his first top-10 at the Kiawah Intercollegiate. Harbin will be making his fourth varsity appearance after playing in the last two fall events.

Two true freshmen round out the lineup with Blaine Woodruff (Acworth, Ga.) and Logan Harrell (Huntersville, N.C.) returning after strong fall seasons; Woodruff is the team’s leader in scoring average through five events with a 73.73; he also has three top-20 finishes including a runner-up at the Mason Rudolph Championship.

A total of 16 teams make up the field at this year’s Bandon Dunes Championship, including three Southeastern Conference squads. Fifth-ranked Florida leads the way, along with the Gamecocks and Vanderbilt. Three Pac-10 schools also dot the lineup with No. 24 Washington, No. 34 Oregon and No. 42 Oregon State slated to play the event. Other NCAA teams include Boise State, Colorado, Gonzaga, Loyola Marymount, Mercer, Northern Colorado, San Jose State, St. Mary’s and Utah Valley State. In addition, Canadian school and NAIA member British Columbia will compete.

The trip to Bandon Dunes will serve as a preview for the Gamecocks and the other 15 competing teams for this summer’s U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship, which will be held at the resort in June. Bandon Dunes is a Scottish links-style layout along the Pacific Ocean on Oregon’s westernmost edge. The course plays at par 72, 6,732 yards from the back tees, and weather could be a factor for the competing squads this week as rain and wind are in the forecast for both days.

In addition, the tournament, hosted by Gonzaga University, has been designated an “Under Four” event, in which all players will be encouraged to eliminate slow play with a goal of completing each round in less than four hours.

Carolina will be paired with Oregon and British Columbia for Friday’s first two rounds, which get underway with an 8 a.m. PT (11 a.m. ET) shotgun start. Live scoring is available through golfstatresults.com.