Harbin, NeSmith post top-20 finishes for USC
Despite a tough tournament, the future looks bright for Gamecock golf.
The men's golf team spent its weekend at the Capital Collegiate Classic at The Farm Golf Club in Dalton, Ga. In their first tournament of the season, the Gamecocks concluded the event in an overall tie for 11th place. A final round score of 294 (+6) on Sunday contributed to a total score of 886 (+22) over the three days of tournament play.
The Gamecocks closed the first day of competition with a 296 (+8) to put them in 13th place as a team, but senior Dykes Harbin stood out individually. Harbin finished Friday with a score of 69 (-3), putting him within four shots of the leader at the time, T.J. Mitchell from Georgia.
"(Harbin) stepped up for us last year," said coach Bill McDonald. "We're definitely looking for him to be a leader."
A Georgia native playing in his home state, Harbin made a statement after spending his summer on golf's amateur circuit.
Not much changed on Saturday, as the team finished day two with the same score that it posted the day before, putting USC at 592 (+16) over two days. The combined score kept the team locked in a tie for 13th. Freshman Matt NeSmith emerged as the team's low scorer on the day, carding a 72 for par, the same score he finished with on Friday. This weekend marked the freshman's first collegiate action.
"For his first college event, I thought he did great," McDonald said. "Matt's a really good player, and I saw a lot of good things."
Highly touted coming into his career as a Gamecock, NeSmith spent his offseason competing in junior golf tournaments, including a win at the Rolex Tournament of Champions.
Harbin experienced an up-and-down 18 holes on Saturday, turning a birdie on the 16th hole and a double bogey on the 18th into a 75 (+3) on the day.
The final day of competition was a productive one for South Carolina, which posted the lowest of its three scores and the fourth-best finish of the field on the day.
"To come back after two disappointing days and have the fourth-lowest score in the last round, that showed a lot of pride on (the players') part," McDonald said.
Harbin turned in the team's lowest individual score of the day, a 72 for par, and sophomore Sean Kelly posted his personal best of the tournament with a 73 (+1) on Sunday.
Harbin and NeSmith both came in with top-20 finishes, Harbin in a tie for 14th at an even-par 216 and NeSmith in a tie for 19th place at 219 (+3). Junior Caulder Moore followed Harbin and NeSmith as South Carolina's third-lowest scorer, posting a 224 (+8) overall.
The Gamecocks were not short on adversity during a weekend in which several South Carolina golfers contracted a virus that remained a problem throughout the tournament. To make matters worse, the field included defending national champion Texas. The Longhorns won the Classic with a three-round score of 851, bringing them in 13 strokes under par.
McDonald said a long season of golf to come means plenty of time to work out any kinks that were brought to light by this early tournament.
"We've got three weeks between this event and our next tournament," McDonald said. "I think probably the biggest thing [to work on] is our wedge game and our putting."
The Gamecocks will go back to the drawing board as McDonald works to get his golfers' games where they need to be. South Carolina will resume play in October when it hosts the Rees Jones Invitational at Haig Point Golf Club.
While a 13th-place finish may not be what the Gamecocks would have liked to see, the team has some positives to take away from the tournament.
"While we're a little disappointed with the finish, we're excited about the year," McDonald said. "I think we've got a really good nucleus, and I think you'll see us improve as the year goes on. That's for sure."
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