Men’s Golf Earns No. 1 Ranking

December 7, 1998

Princeton, N.J. – Clemson is ranked number-one in the final fall Mastercard Collegiate rankings. Clemson will hold the number-one position heading into the spring of 1999 season, the first time since 1988-89 that Clemson has been number-one entering the spring season.

The Tigers have reached the top spot in the polls thanks to their most successful fall ever. Larry Penley’s Tigers won three tournaments in the fall, a first in Clemson golf history. The Tigers won the Ridges Intercollegiate in Johnson City, TN, the Jerry Pate Intercollegiate in Birmingham, AL and the Mauna Kea in Hilo, HI. The Pate Intercollegiate was the most prestigious victory, as nine of the top 11 teams in the nation were in the field.

Clemson is ranked number-one in the latest poll, followed by Georgia, Houston, UNLV and Oklahoma State. Texas is sixth, followed by Georgia Tech, Minnesota, Arizona State and South Carolina.

Individually, Clemson has three of the top 25 players in the nation. Jonathan Byrd, a junior on this year’s team, is ranked sixth in the latest player rankings, while John Engler is 13th. Lucas Glover, a sophomore from Greenville, is rated 21st. David Gossett of Texas is the number-one ranked player in the country.

Byrd finished in the top 10 in every tournament he entered this past fall and won The Ridges Intercollegiate. Engler was Clemson’s top player at both the Ping Golfweek Preview and the Jerry Pate. Glover won the Mauna Kea Intercollegiate in Clemson’s most recent tournament.