Clemson Finishes 4th at ACC Men’s Golf Tournament

April 17, 2005

New London, NC – Brent Delahoussaye fired a final round 70 and classmate Jack Ferguson joined him with a top four finish, leading Clemson to a number-four team finish at the ACC Men’s Golf Tournament at The Old North State Club in New London, NC. It was the final regular season tournament for the Tigers, who will not await word on an NCAA bid in May.

It was the third consecutive top five finish at the ACC tournament for Ferguson, who had finished third at the ACC Tournament as a sophomore and second as junior. He is the first Tiger to record three consecutive top five finishes at the ACC Tournament since John Engler had four in a row from 1998-01. Ferguson had rounds of 71-72-74 for a 217 score.

Delahoussaye had the low round by a Clemson golfer of the tournament with a final round 70 that included a birdie on the 18th hole. It was the highest finish of the year for the Clemson senior from Greenville and his best finish as a Tiger since last year’s NCAA East Regional at Yale when he also finished fourth. Delahoussaye, who finished his round with birdies on 16 and 18, had consistent rounds of 73-74-70 in finishing at 217.

Clemson had a 290 team score on Sunday, its best team round of the event. The Tigers improved each day from 300 to 293 to 290 and the 883 team score was good enough for fourth place. Duke won the event with an 865 score, the Blue Devils first ACC Men’s golf title since 1966. Georgia Tech was second at 869, while NC State was third at 880. Following Clemson’s 883 team score were Virginia at 884, Wake Forest at 889, Florida State at 898, North Carolina at 906, Maryland and 915 and Virginia Tech at 922.

Ryan Blaum won the individual title with a 206 score, a 10-under-par score. He won the event by eight shots over Chan Song of Georgia Tech. Brad Tilley of Virginia was third at 216, followed by four other golfers, including Ferguson and Delahoussaye from Clemson.

The Tigers got a strong showing on Sunday from freshman Tanner Ervin, who had an even par 72. The native of Mount Pleasant, SC and Wando High School had rounds of 75 and 72 to close the tournament after an opening 85 in windy conditions. It was his second best round of the year, trailing only a 69 at Bulls Bay on March 29.

Brian Duncan and Martin Catalioto had two over par 74 scores on Sunday, providing the Tigers with solid depth. Duncan finished the event with a 223 score, good enough for 19th.

Catalioto had a 239 total for the three days, but his 74 on Sunday represented a 12-stroke improvement over Saturday. It was the best improvement over consecutive rounds in the ACC Tournament for a Clemson golfer since 1985 when Brad Clark went from an opening round 80 to an ACC Tournament record 63 in the second round at Bryan Park Country Club in Greensboro, NC.

Clemson at 2005 ACC Tournament

Old North State Club Par 72, 7102 yards

Jack Ferguson 71 72 74 217 +1 4th

Brent Delahoussaye 73 74 70 217 +1 4th

Brian Duncan 77 72 74 223 +7 19th

Tanner Ervin 85 75 72 232 +16 40th

Martin Catalioto 79 86 74 239 +23 49th

Clemson 300 293 290 883 +19 4th