Clemson in First Place After First round of ACC Championship

April 20, 2007

Clemson, SC-Kyle Stanley fired a four-under-par 68, while David May and Tanner Ervin both fired even-par rounds of 72 to lead Clemson to a 285 team score and the first round lead at the ACC Men’s Golf Championship. The 54-hole event is being played at the par 72 Old North State Club at Uwharrie Point, NC.

It marked the second straight year Clemson had shot an opening round 285 and the fourth straight team under-par round for the Tigers at the ACC Tournament.

Clemson has a one- stroke lead over Duke, who finished with a 286 team score. Georgia Tech and North Carolina are tied for third at 287, but are just two shots from Clemson’s lead.

Virginia Tech, playing its first athletic event since the loss of 32 of its fellow students and faculty members in the tragic on-campus shooting on Monday morning, had a team round of 289 and stood in fifth place.

Stanley had a flawless round with four birdies and 14 pars. The freshman from Gig Harbor, WA, had birdies at 4, 12, 13 and 16 on the way to his seventh round in the 60s and is 12th under-par round this year. Stanley came into the tournament ranked 12th in the nation in the Sagarin rankings, first among all ACC golfers. He is tied for the lead with Virginia Tech’s Ryan Sypniewski, the Hokies number-four player.

Ervin, a junior who is the elder statesman of the Clemson team, was three-over-par for the last six holes, but still shot an even-par round. He got his round to three-under-par after consecutive birdies at 10, 11 and 12. Ervin is playing in his third ACC Tournament for the Tigers and it marked the second straight year he opened the ACC Tournament with an even-par round. He finished 16th with a 213 score last year at The Old North State Club.

May, who finished ninth with a 211 score last year, had nine-hole scores of 36-36 on the way to his round of 72 on the 7,102 yard course. May had birdies on #2, 10 and the difficult par three 17th. But, he had a disappointing bogey on the par five 18th. May had a 65 in the second round last year on the same course, the second best round by any Clemson golfer in ACC tournament play.

Sam Saunders was the fourth counter for Larry Penley’s Tigers on Friday. The first-year freshman had a solid round of 73. He opened with a 39 on the front nine, including a double bogey six on the ninth hole. But, he did not let that hole carry over to the back nine as he scored a two-under-par 34, including birdies at 11 and 13.

Phillip Mollica, a sophomore from Anderson, SC, had an opening round 77. He birdied the first hole, but had double bogeys on number-seven and number 17. He played the round despite suffering a wrist injury during Thursday’s practice round.

Second round action will be held Saturday at The Old North State Club. Clemson’s players should begin teeing off at the first hole at 11:00 AM.