Clemson Still 7th after Two Rounds of Hall of Fame Invitational

March 18, 2006

Houston, TX- Freshman David May fired an even par 72 and senior Stephen Poole has a top 10 standing after two rounds of the Hall of Fame Invitational at Redstone Country Club in Houston, TX. The 54-hole event will conclude on Sunday.

Clemson was in third place after the first nine holes on Saturday with an even par score for the day and a 17 over par score for the tournament. But the Tigers were 15 over as a team over the final nine holes as a team.

Clemson stands in seventh place after two rounds, the same standing the Tigers had after the first round. Clemson had a team score of 303 on Saturday, 16-over-par on the par 72 course that is 7442 yards in length. The Tigers have a one-shot lead over number-one ranked Georgia entering the final round.

Oklahoma State is the top team with a 10 over par score of 586. The Cowboys have a seven shot lead on East Tennessee State and Texas. Clemson’s two-day total is 608. Other ACC teams in the tournament include Duke, who is 13th with a 621 score, and Wake Forest, who is 16th at 628.

Anthony Kim of Oklahoma has the individual lead at 136, eight-under par. He has an eight shot lead heading into the final day over Jhonattan Vegas of Texas.

May was the most consistent Clemson performer on Saturday with his 72, one of just six players in the field of 79 golfers to shoot par or better on Saturday. The native of Auburn, NY had nine-hole scores of 36-36. He made par on all nine holes on the front, then had three birdies, a bogey and a double bogey on the back nine. He improved his individual standing from 49th to 25th with his even par round on Saturday.

Poole, a senior from Spartanburg, was also consistent with a birdie, four bogeys and 13 pars. He had nine hole scores of 38-36 and Saturday. He finished strong by playing the final four holes in one under par. His 147 score through two rounds is tied for seventh with Trent Leon of Oklahoma State.

Clemson’s other three golfers struggled down the stretch. Senior Brian Duncan was in good shape coming to his last hole with a two-over par score for the day. But, he triple bogeyed the sixth hole, his final hole, and finished with his second consecutive 77. He was one-under par for the first nine holes and six over for the last nine. Duncan stands in 34th place entering the final round. He has finished in the top 20 in every tournament so far this year.

Luke Hopkins and Vince Hatfield, a pair of freshmen, struggled down the stretch. Hopkins had a score of 80, his second consecutive 80. Hopkins opened the round with an eagle on the par five eighth hole, his first hole of the day, and was still even par through 11 holes. But, Hopkins played the last seven holes in eight-over-par. He had a triple bogey on the par five 4th and a double bogey on the par four 5th. Hatfield, who was Clemson’s second best golfer in the tournament in Las Vegas last weekend, had nine-hole scores of 41-39 in shooting an 81 for the day. He played his last two holes in three over par.

Clemson at Hall of Fame InvitationalHouston, TX