Oct. 23, 2015

2015 marks the second edition of the Camden Collegiate Invitational hosted by the University of South Carolina at Camden Country Club in Camden, S.C. Play in the 54-hole tournament gets underway Saturday, Oct. 24, beginning at 8:30 a.m. with a shotgun start and 36 holes of golf. Sunday’s tee times start at 8:30 a.m. as well on holes 1 and 10 based on team standings after the first two rounds.

The Gamecocks’ lineup for the tournament features Sean Kelly, Keenan Huskey, Scott Stevens, Will Miles and Ryan Stachler. Brendan Gramley and Alex Handy will compete as individuals as well.

South Carolina head coach Bill McDonald organized the tournament last year with the intension of highlighting the golf programs in South Carolina. This season, nine schools from the Palmetto State will compete and Newberry College has three players who will play as individuals. From outside the state, Georgia Southern and Columbia University in New York are among the 11-team field.

The Gamecocks rallied to win last year’s event after sitting in second place following 36 holes on day one with a 12-over 572. Wofford held a 7-stroke lead over South Carolina heading into the final day, but the Garnet & Black fired a 275 (-5) to the Terriers’ 283 (+3) to capture the inaugural event by one stroke. South Carolina compiled a score of 847 (+7) and placed three individuals in the top 10. Brannan Hudson from Wofford took home medalist honors with a 201 (-9).

The golf course at Camden Country Club features a challenging par-70, 6,455-yard layout designed by renowned course architect Donald Ross. Camden Country Club has hosted the Carolinas Golf Association Men’s Four-Ball Tournament for 59 years as well as qualifying for the U.S. Amateur and Mid-Amateur.

BREAKING DOWN THE CAMDEN COLLEGIATE INVITATIONAL

South Carolina is the highest ranked team competing in the Camden Collegiate Invitational according to the latest Golfstat Relative Rankings as of Oct. 21 with a No. 25 billing. Georgia Southern is close behind at No. 29 and Charleston Southern is ranked No. 56. Both of those schools in addition to South Carolina competed in the 2015 NCAA Tournament with the Gamecocks advancing to the NCAA Championships for the third year in a row. Coastal Carolina had two individuals compete in NCAAs last year and USC Upstate had one. NCAA Division II power USC Aiken led last year’s NCAA Championship heading into the final day before finishing in sixth place. The Pacers are currently ranked No. 9 by Golfstat for Division II.

RECAPPING THE TAVISTOCK COLLEGIATE INVITE (OCT. 18-20)

Senior Matt NeSmith earned a 16th-place finish (+4, 220) at the Tavistock Collegiate Invitational after carding an even 72 in the tournament’s final round at Isleworth Country Club in Orlando, Fla. It was his third top-20 finish this fall in as many events and the 27th of his career. His 12 birdies over the course of the invitational were second-most in the field. The Gamecocks finished ninth in the event with an overall score of 887 (+23). Illinois (+1, 865) won the Tavistock Invitational after rallying from a 9-stroke deficit in the third round. Sophomore Keenan Huskey also turned in a solid final round, recording a 1-over 73. Huskey finished the event in a tie for 28th (+7, 223). Senior Will Starke earned a 34th-place finish (+8, 224), redshirt senior Sean Kelly recorded a 49th-place finish (+12, 228) and freshman Scott Stevens ended the tournament in a tie for 46th (+11, 227). Stevens’ 3.00 par-3 scoring average for the tourney ranked him third among all competitors.

RECAPPING THE SHOAL CREEK INVITATIONAL (SEPT. 28-29)

Senior Sean Kelly led the Gamecocks with a 2-under 70 on the final day of the Shoal Creek Invitational in Birmingham, Ala., as Carolina finished the tournament in sixth place with a 54-hole total of 876 (+12). The Gamecocks entered the day in a tie for second at 6-over (582) with North Florida and College of Charleston, all seven strokes behind tournament host UAB (-1, 575) after 36 holes. The Blazers ran away with the tournament on the final day, shooting 12-under to win by 15 strokes over North Florida. Kelly shot 2-over for the tournament after carding a pair of 74s in the first two rounds combined with his 70 on the final day and took a tie for 12th place on the individual leaderboard at 218, his eighth career top-20 finish. Classmate Matt NeSmith was the low man for the Gamecocks at the tournament for the second time in a row with a 216 (73-70-73) to finish even and tied for seventh, the 19th top-10 finish of his career.

RECAPPING THE CARPET CAPITAL COLLEGIATE (SEPT. 11-13)

The Gamecocks posted a final-round 296 (+8) at The Farm Golf Club in Rocky Face, Ga., to finish in third place at the Carpet Capital Collegiate. South Carolina wrapped up the weekend with a 54-hole total of 880 (+16). Auburn captured the tournament title with a total of 868 (+4) after shooting a 287 (-1) on the final day. Carolina senior Matt NeSmith recorded his 18th career top-10 finish as he tied for seventh with a total of 217 (+1) after shooting a final-round 74 (+2). He tallied a pair of birdies and four bogeys on the afternoon. Freshman Scott Stevens concluded a solid debut for the Gamecocks with a tie for 14th with a total of 221 (+5). Stevens carded a 76, which included one birdie and five bogeys.

EXPERIENCE RETURNS

Carolina returns seven golfers from last year’s squad, including seniors Matt NeSmith, Will Starke and Sean Kelly. The senior trio has played in a combined 100 tournaments for the Gamecocks during their careers and has recorded 36 top-10 finishes. Starke (second-team PING and Golfweek) and NeSmith (third-team PING and Golfweek) were named All-Americans last season and both earned first-team PING All-Southeast Region and All-SEC honors. They collected spots on the Golfweek Preseason All-America teams this fall with NeSmith landing on the first team and Starke on the third team. Junior Ben Dietrich has played in 15 tournaments for the Gamecocks, including the 2014 NCAA Championship, while sophomore Keenan Huskey has played in six tournaments and every event this fall. Senior Brendan Gramley has played in two tournaments as an individual.

CHASING RECORDS

Seniors Matt NeSmith and Will Starke entered the season with several career school records within reach. The duo sits in spots one and two for career scoring average with NeSmith in the top position at 71.85 and Starke right on his heels at 72.03. Starke is tied for third in career top-five finishes with 11, while NeSmith is tied for fifth with nine. Kyle Thompson and David Seawell share the school record with 14. NeSmith moved into sole possession of fourth place for career top-10s after tying for seventh at the Carpet Capital Collegiate to open the fall and now has 19 for his career with a seventh-place showing at the Shoal Creek Invitational. He is one shy of tying Eirik Johansen and Seawell for second place. Starke is tied for seventh with 14. Thompson holds the record with 22.

STARKE COMPETES IN EUROPEAN TOUR EVENT

Senior Will Starke competed in his first career European Tour event in late September, the Porsche European Open at Golf Resort Bad Griesbach in Bad Griesbach, Germany. Starke carded a 2-over 73 on his first day followed by a 1-under on the second for a 1-over 143 in two days. He finished in a tie for 100th place.

MCDONALD’S 14

Gamecock head coach Bill McDonald is the winningest coach by tournament victories in school history with 14. McDonald broke the previous record of nine held by Puggy Blackmon (1995-2007) with Carolina’s win at the Carpet Capital Collegiate in September 2014.

FRESHMAN CONTRIBUTOR

Newcomer Scott Stevens has quickly established himself as a potential fixture in the Gamecocks’ lineup throughout the season having now appeared in South Carolina’s top five for each tournament. He finished in a tie for 14th place in his first tournament, the Carpet Capital Collegiate, and followed with a tie for 20th at the Shoal Creek Invitational. Stevens is the Gamecocks’ top scorer on par-3s thus far with a 3.12 average.

HUSKEY DISPLAYS CONSISTENCY

Sophomore Keenan Huskey has shown consistent play in the Gamecocks’ first three tournaments this fall by finishing T-24th, T-26th and T-28th in three events. Huskey has seen his score count eight out of nine times appearing in the lineup and he is tied for second on the team in first-round scoring average with a 72.67.

AMONG THE BEST IN THE WORLD

South Carolina seniors Matt NeSmith and Will Starke are listed in the latest Golfweek/Amateurgolf.com World Player Rankings. Nesmith is ranked eighth in the world and sixth in the U.S., while Starke is ranked No. 187 in the world and 79th nationally. In the Scratch Players World Amateur Rankings, NeSmith is ranked No. 8 and Starke is ranked 49th.

A LOOK BACK AT THE 2014-15 SEASON

Carolina turned in one of the greatest seasons in school history in 2014-15. The Gamecocks won a school-record five tournament titles, recorded a program-record 10 top-five finishes and shattered the school record for team scoring average in a season by more than four strokes (282.85). The Gamecocks wrapped up the year ranked No. 6 in the Golfweek/Sagarin Rankings and No. 7 in the Golfstat Relative Rankings. Carolina finished tied for second at the SEC Championship and runner-up at the NCAA Bremerton Regional to earn its third-straight trip to the NCAA Championship. Individually, the Gamecocks combined for 33 top-20 finishes in team events, including 11 top-fives and three tournament wins. Will Starke finished the year with the lowest single-season scoring average in program history (70.27), while NeSmith finished with the second lowest (70.51). NeSmith also became the second Gamecock to win an SEC title as he claimed a 6-stroke victory at the SEC Championship with a school-record 54-hole total of 196 (-14).

THREE STRAIGHT TRIPS TO THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP

The Gamecocks made their third-straight appearance at the NCAA Championship last season. Carolina is one of only four SEC schools and 13 programs nationally to earn a trip to the NCAA Championship each of the last three years. Auburn, Georgia, LSU, Florida State, Texas, Illinois, Georgia Tech, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Washington, UCLA and Southern California also punched their tickets to the 2013, 2014 and 2015 NCAA Championships.