Clemson Fifth After Two Rounds of Jerry Pate Intercollegiate

Oct. 10, 2005

Birmingham, AL – Martin Catalioto and Tanner Ervin posted career best rounds in leading Clemson to a fifth-place standing in the 12-team Jerry Pate Intercollegiate at The Old Overton Course in Birmingham, AL. Clemson has a 567 team score after two rounds to rank fifth as a team, but just six shots behind second place Georgia and UAB.

Georgia Tech has the team lead at 552 after rounds of 274-278. The defending NCAA Champion Bulldogs and UAB are tied for second at 561, while host school Alabama is fourth at 565, just two shots clear of Clemson. Auburn is sixth with a 568 total. BYU is seventh at 569, while Augusta State is eighth at 570. Augusta State had an opening round 274, but slipped to 296 in the second round. Tulsa is ninth at 574, Arizona is 10th at 578, TCU is 11th at 581 and Vanderbilt is 12th at 582.

The 12-team field includes nine top 25 teams. Clemson was ranked 20th in the nation in the new coach’s poll released Monday. This is the first tournament of the year for Larry Penley’s Tigers, the latest start to the season in 30 years. Clemson stands ahead of top 25 teams Auburn, BYU, Augusta State, Arizona and TCU after 36 holes.

Catalioto tied his career best score with a 68 in the first round, then followed that with an even par 71. It was not surprise that the senior played well here as he had a career best 211 score at the Jerry Pate last year when he finished 24th. It marked just the second time in his career that he has had a first and second round of a tournament at par or better.

Ervin bettered his career best by three shots when he shot an opening round 66. He had a 32 on the front side on the way to his career best five-under par round. He slumped to a 76 in the second round on Monday, but still ranks 16th in the individual race.

Freshmen David May and Phillip Mollica both contributed in their first college tournament. May had rounds of 73 and 71 to shoot a solid 144, while Mollica has a 147 after two rounds. That is last among Tigers, but his score counted towards the Clemson team in both rounds. May and Mollica are the first first-year freshmen to play in a tournament for Clemson since D.J. Trahan made his debut as a first-year freshman in the fall of 1999.

Stephen Poole, Clemson’s top player entering the tournament after shooting 36-under par for the 12 team qualifying rounds, had scores of 74-71 on Monday. His 74 was worst among the Tiger golfers in the first round, but his even par 71 in the second round, tied for the best among Tigers.

The tournament on the par 71 course that is 6958 yards in length concludes on Tuesday.

Clemson after Two Rounds at Jerry Pate Intercollegiate Old Overton Course

Birmingham, AL

Martin Catalioto 68 71 139 -3 5th

Tanner Ervin 66 76 142 E 16th

David May 73 71 144 +2 32nd

Stephen Poole 74 71 145 +3 37th

Phillip Mollica 73 74 147 +5 45th

Clemson Team 280 287 567 -1 5th