June 9, 2004

Three members of the Duke University men's golf program, including current golfer Nathan Smith, have qualified for the 2004 U.S. Open. Smith and former Blue Devil standouts Joe Ogilvie and Leif Olson will compete in the prestigious tournament, to be held June 17-20 at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in South Hampton, N.Y.

"Having three players compete in the same U.S. Open is pretty darn exciting," said Duke head coach Rod Myers.

Smith, a rising junior, is the first current Duke golfer to qualify for the U.S. Open in Myers' 31-year tenure at the helm of the Blue Devils. A third-team All-America selection, Smith carded a 71-66=137 to tie for ninth and claim one of 33 spots for the field of 184 at Brookside Golf & Country Club/The Lakes Golf & Country Club in Columbus, Ohio. A native of Santa Cruz, Calif., Smith finished ahead of such notable pros as Mark O'Meara and Paul Azinger to qualify for the U.S. Open.

"Nate is the first player I've ever coached who has made the U.S. Open while he's been a student-athlete," Myers said. "It's phenomenal for Nate to play in the Open as a college player. He's taken his game to an absolutely new level this year. No matter how he does, it will be a great experience for him."

Smith ranked second on the Duke squad with a 72.2 stroke average as a sophomore and led the 2003-04 Blue Devils with four top-five finishes, six top-10 showings and 10 top-20 finishes in 12 tournaments.

"It feels pretty awesome to qualify for the U.S. Open," Smith said. "It's just starting to set in as a reality. It will be exciting to measure my game against the pros. My game measured up pretty well against basically a pro field at the sectional qualifier. If I play well, I think I'll have a chance to compete and make the cut. No matter what, it will be a great experience. It's an exciting first step."

Ogilvie, who played golf at Duke from 1994-96 and earned honorable mention All-America accolades in 1995, also qualified at the Columbus, Ohio, sectional qualifier. Ogilvie carded a 68-71=139 to finish in a 10-way tie for 27th place. He qualified for the U.S. Open in a playoff.

"It's been so exciting to watch Joe play all year with the kind of year he's having," Myers said. Ogilvie recorded the best finish of his PGA career when he tied for second at the HP Classic in New Orleans last month.

A 2003 Duke graduate, Olson finished tied for second with a 73-68=141 to claim one of four spots for the field of 72 at the Lake Merced Golf Club in Daly City, Calif.

"Leif is playing with a renewed enthusiasm for the game," Myers said. "He's refreshed and excited about it. This is exciting for all of them."