Dec. 28, 2011

LITCHFIELD PARK, Ariz. — South Carolina sophomore Blaine Woodruff carded an opening-round 76 (+5) on Wednesday on the Gold Course at Wigwam Golf Club at the inaugural Patriot All-America Invitational.

Woodruff finished the day in a tie for 46th. The Acworth, Ga., native was solid on the front nine as he made par and bogey to open the day and then reeled off seven straight pars to make the turn at 37 (+1). Woodruff recorded par on the first two holes of the back nine before making bogey, double bogey and bogey on the 12th, 13th and 14th holes, respectively, to fall back to 5-over, where he finished the day.

Woodruff is competing against a field that features 84 collegiate golfers from across the nation, including 21 of the world’s top-100 ranked amateurs. Florida State senior Brooks Koepka fired a 4-under 67 to take the first-round lead.

Players earning PING All-America honors from the previous season in NCAA Divisions I, II and III plus the NAIA and NJCAA are eligible to be invited to participate in the Patriot All-America. Additionally, a player from the United States Military, Naval and Air Force Academies have been invited, along with Golf Coaches Association of America national award recipients, members of the most recent Palmer Cup Teams, American Junior Golf Association All-Americans and Toyota Junior Golf World Cup participants currently enrolled as college freshmen.

The Wigwam Golf Club, along with the Arizona Golf Association and the Golf Coaches Association of America, is partnering with the Folds of Honor Foundation to host the inaugural Patriot All-America. The AGA is the host organization for the event, while the GCAA will administer the player invitations. Senator John McCain and Jerry Colangelo serve as co-chairmen for the event.

To show support for Folds of Honor, each golfer is carrying a commemorative PING golf bag bearing the name of a fallen soldier from the community in which they live or attend school.

Second-round play is slated to begin Thursday morning.