Culler, Gallman To Tee It Up At S.C. Amateur
8/6/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
Aug. 6, 2008
Spartanburg, S.C. - USC Upstate standout men's golfers Baxter Culler and Josh Gallman are set to begin play at the 77th Annual South Carolina Amateur Championship Thursday morning at Musgrove Mill Golf Club in Clinton.
Culler and Gallman are two of the 137 entrants that will tee it up Thursday for the four-day, 72-hole state amateur championship. Culler qualified for the championship after firing a 3-under-par 69 to win his qualifying tournament on July 15. Gallman is an exempt qualifier after finishing in the top 20 in last year's tournament, finishing tied for 15th at 2-over-par.
The Spartan duo will have their hands full this year as Musgrove Mill is the host course for the tournament. At 6,940 yards, the course is long enough to force players to use their drivers and long irons, but tight enough to demand precision. The scenic course will offer a demanding and true test of golf. Culler and Gallman do have an advantage, though, as Upstate played a college tournament at the course in February of 2007, leading the Spartans to a third-place finish.
Gallman will be the first of the two Upstate players off the tee Thursday. He will start on hole No. 10 at 8:00 a.m. playing with Pageland's Paul Tucker and Columbia's Brent Roof. Culler will tee off on hole No. 10 at 1:30 p.m. with playing partners David Dannelly of Easley and Bo McCullough of Aiken.
Gallman had a tremendous year of college golf as a sophomore in 2007-08. Coming off of a strong freshman season the year before, the Gaffney native hit his stride last year. He won four individual tournament championships, two in the fall and two in the spring, and helped lead the Spartans to two team tournament titles in Upstate's first year playing on the NCAA Division I level. He was named the Atlantic Sun Conference Golfer of the Month three of the six times it was awarded and was an A-Sun First Team All-Conference selection. He finished the year with a remarkable eight top five and 11 top 10 finishes in 12 tournaments.
Culler had a solid year as a junior in 2007-08 following his first two seasons of outstanding golf as one of the founding members of the new men's golf program at Upstate. The golf program was reestablished following a 14-year hiatus from competition and Culler was a member of the first NCAA recruiting class at the school. As a sophomore, he led the Spartans to a second-place finish in the 2007 NCAA Division II National Championships and a final No. 2 national ranking. He won two individual tournament titles, including the Peach Belt Conference championship. As a junior last year, he finished with three top 10 and five top 20 individual finishes in 12 tournaments in Upstate's first year in Division I.
Gallman and Culler have had some success already this summer playing in amateur tournaments. The two teamed to win the Carolinas Four Ball Championship in May and have played several other events throughout the summer. Gallman finished 24th at the prestigious Southern Amateur Championships last month and narrowly missed in his qualifying attempt for the U.S. Amateur.
