Gamecocks Golf Tees Off Spring Season
By USC SID
(USC SID) — The University of South Carolina Men’s Golf team opens the 2016 spring season at the All-American Intercollegiate, to be held Feb. 19-21 in Humble, Texas. Carolina will send student-athletes Keenan Huskey, Sean Kelly, Matt NeSmith, Will Starke and Scott Stevens to represent the Gamecocks, while freshman Will Miles will play as an individual.
The Gamecocks will join 15 other teams in Humble, including fellow SEC member Arkansas. Each of the three days features one 18-hole round. Carolina will be paired with the Razorbacks and Houston on Friday, with a start time of 9 a.m. CT. Start times on Saturday and Sunday will be determined based on the team leaderboard.
BREAKING DOWN THE ALL-AMERICAN INTERCOLLEGIATE
The University of Houston and Rice University host the 2016 All-American Intercollegiate, held Feb. 19-21 at the Golf Club of Houston in Humble, Texas, about a half-hour north of the Bayou City. The Gamecocks are the highest-ranked team at the event according to Golfstat, checking in at No. 24, but four other top-40 teams will tackle the 7,422-yard, par-72 layout, including the host Cougars, Arkansas, Charleston Southern and SMU. Each of the three days features 18 holes of golf beginning at 9 a.m. CT.
The Gamecocks won the 2015 edition of the event, then titled the Bayou City Collegiate Championship. South Carolina recorded a three-round total of 850 (-14) to edge Sam Houston State by two strokes. Starke was the top Gamecock on the individual leaderboard, finishing tied for fifth at 212 (-4), while NeSmith tied for 13th at 215 (-1).
NESMITH NAMED TO BEN HOGAN AWARD WATCH LIST
Matt NeSmith was named to the 2016 Ben Hogan Award Watch List on Feb. 10. NeSmith is one of 25 candidates for the top award in men’s college golf and the first Gamecock in program history to make the list. Awarded by Colonial Country Club, the Friends of Golf (FOG) and the Golf Coaches Association of America, the Ben Hogan Award presented by Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A., Inc. (Konica Minolta) is issued annually to the top men’s NCAA Division I, II or III, NAIA or NJCAA college golfer taking into account all collegiate and amateur competitions during the past 12-month period. The list of 10 semifinalists, which could include individuals not on the current list, will be unveiled on Wednesday, April 13. On Tuesday, May 3, that group will be pared down to three finalists. The winner will be crowned on Monday, May 23, prior to the start of the PGA TOUR’s Colonial National Invitation Tournament.
