Men's Golf Releases (2004-05) - Day 1 O'Briant - Guilford College

Greensboro, NC (09/27/04) -- Defending tournament champion Methodist shot 296 Monday and leads after the first of two rounds at the 17th annual Tom O'Briant Memorial Golf Tournament at the Cardinal Golf and Country Club. Bryce Mueller's three-under-par 67 tops the 93-player field and helped Duke's 'B' team into second place, one stroke behind Methodist. Guilford's 'B' team (296) sits three strokes off the pace in third place, just ahead of the Quakers' 'A' team (301). Oglethorpe shot 302 and rounds out the top-five clubs in the 18-team field.

The rainy and breezy conditions created by remnants of Hurricane Jeanne did not bother Mueller, who registered five birdies, including three on the back nine. Methodist's Eric Dugas (Brewster, MA) stands second after an even-par 70 and teammate Cory Schneider is tied for fifth at 73. The pair's performance helped Division III's top-ranked team overcome an 86 by number-one player Adam Horton (Chesapeake, VA), last year's O'Briant medalist. Guilford sophomore Joseph Poplin (Eden, NC), playing for the Quakers' 'A' team, shares third place with Oglethorpe's Jonathan Davis (Kennett Square, PA). Schneider (Sebring, OH), Hampden-Sydney's Bob Boykin (Virginia Beach, VA) and Johan Blixt (Lerum, Sweden) of Pfeiffer's 'B' team occupy the fifth spot at three-over 73.

Methodist's victory last year ended Duke's 'B' team's record three-year tournament winning streak. The Division I Blue Devils have won a record four O'Briant Memorials in the last seven years.

This year's tournament features eight of NCAA Division III's top-25 teams, according to the September 23 Precept/Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA) poll, including five of the top-10 squads. Four of Division III's last six national champions are also in the field. In addition to top-ranked Methodist, third-ranked Guilford, fourth-ranked Greensboro and number-eight Emory make this one of Division III's top fall tournaments. Ninth-ranked Oglethorpe has finished second in each of the last three O'Briant Memorials.

The teams are competing on the par-70, 6,671-yard Pete Dye-designed layout in northwest Greensboro. Guilford hosted the same tournament from 1978-87 when it was called the Guilford College Invitational.