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SC men’s golf announces 2010 signing class

From South Carolina University

COLUMBIA, SC - Three highly touted prospects have signed National Letters of Intent to play golf for the University of South Carolina next season, coach Bill McDonald announced today.

The Gamecocks will add Logan Harrell (Huntersville, N.C.), Caulder Moore (Isle of Palms, S.C.) and Blaine Woodruff (Acworth, Ga.) to their roster in 2010, a solid group of players that have earned numerous accolades during their junior careers.

"I am very excited about the signing of our 2010 class," McDonald said. "It is a very talented and highly motivated group, and I look forward to them being great additions to our program. All three players have their own unique abilities and personalities. I do not want to place unrealistic expectations on this class, but to say that I am thrilled with their talent level, character and potential to help us achieve our goals would be an understatement."

Harrell, a senior at Hopewell High School, was recently named the North Carolina Junior Player of the Year. He was the sectional qualifying medalist for the 2009 U.S. Junior Amateur Championship and advanced to the semifinals of match play in the national championship. He also qualified for the 2009 U.S. Amateur. Also during the 2009 season, Harrell advanced to the round of 16 in the Carolinas Men's Amateur Championship, in addition to earning top-10 finishes in several other AJGA events. Harrell, a student of Ricky Sullivan at Bulls Bay Golf Club, was ranked No. 1 in North Carolina and is ranked 26^th in the nation in the latest GolfWeek Junior Boys Rankings and 11^th among the Class of 2010.

"Logan Harrell is one of the most talented players that I have recruited," McDonald said. "He not only impressed me with his game during the recruiting process, but I thought his ability to handle adversity and the class he showed to his fellow-competitors was very unique for someone his age. Logan has a maturity level on the golf course that is rare for someone his age."

Moore is the only South Carolina native in the group. A senior at Charleston's Porter-Gaud School, Moore is also a pupil of Sullivan at Bulls Bay. The 2009 South Carolina Junior champion has won five times in the last year, including the 2009 Blade Junior and the 2008 George Holliday. He also took home a fourth-place finish from the 2008 SCJGA Players Championship. "Caulder Moore has been committed to us for some time now, and it is great to finally have him signed," McDonald said.

"Caulder has always impressed me with his short game and his ability to win golf tournaments when he gets in contention. Caulder is not afraid to shoot some low scores. His 63 in the final round of the South Carolina State Junior this past summer was one of the best rounds of golf I have ever seen."

Woodruff comes to South Carolina from Harrison High School in Acworth, Ga., the same high school as current Gamecock Michael Raines. He is currently the fifth-ranked player in Georgia, according to GolfWeek, and helped Harrison High to the 2007 Georgia state title. He finished fourth as an individual at the 2008 state high school tournament and was the 2009 Cartersville Amateur Champion. In 2008, Woodruff qualified for the U.S. Junior Amateur as well.

"Blaine Woodruff was a late addition to our class and we were very fortunate to get a player of his ability so late in the process," McDonald said, "but I have known about Blaine since my teaching days back in Georgia. He went through a tremendous growth spurt over the past year, and his game has just started to recover from that awkward period. Blaine is a very hard worker and an excellent student as well. I really think Blaine and his game will flourish in our system here at Carolina.

"In summary, I want to thank director of golf Puggy Blackmon and assistant coach Mike Burcin for their hard work in helping us sign what I think is one of the most talented classes in the country. We, as a staff, all look forward to their arrival next fall."