Clemson Finishes 8th at Puerto Rico Classic

March 2, 2008

Clemson, SC — Kyle Stanley and Sam Saunders both shot one under-par rounds of 71 to lead Clemson to a 289 team round and an eighth-place finish at the 15-team Puerto Rico Classic at Rio Mar County Club in Rio Grande, Puerto Rico. It was the first tournament of the spring of Larry Penley’s 13th ranked golf team.

Stanley had rounds of 71-75-71 to finish in 17th place with a 217 score, the top individual finish among Clemson golfers. Saunders had his best round of the tournament on Sunday and finished with rounds of 73-76-71 for a 220 total, tied for 31st. Phillip Mollica, who had a career best 68 in the first round, finished with a 75 on Sunday and a 220 total to also finish in 31st place.

Sophomore Ben Martin had an even par 72 on Sunday, his second even-par round of the tournament, on the way to a 222 total and 40th place finish.

David May was the most consistent player over the tournament with rounds of 75-74-75. He and Stanley were the only Clemson golfers to score at 75 or better in all three rounds and his 74 in the second round was the best of the day among Tigers. May finished in 47th position.

Alabama won the team competition with a 10-under par score of 854, 21 shots better than the Tigers. Oklahoma State was second at seven under par 857, while Georgia, ranked number one in the nation entering the tournament, was third at 861. Duke was fourth at 863, followed by East Tennessee State was fifth at 867. Michigan was sixth at 870 and Georgia Tech was seventh at 871.

The tournament included six of the top 13 teams in the nation. Clemson will be back in action from March 14-16 when it travels to Reynolds Plantation in Greensboro, GA for the third-annual Linger Longer Invitational.

Clemson at Puerto Rico Classic February 29 to March 2, 2008 Rio Mar Country Club, Rio Grande, Puerto Rico Par 72, 6902 yards