Football may be the sport that brought Clemson University athletics to prominence, but thanks in no small part to a couple of former All-Americans on the links, its golf program is now on the map as well.

Former Clemson teammates and close friends Lucas Glover and Charles Warren talk almost daily, and they have plenty to talk about. Aside from their Clemson connection, both pros have returned to their hometown of Greenville, SC, and both are sponsored on the PGA Tour by Greenville-based IMI, as well as The Cliffs Communities. Moreover, both of these young guns are enjoying a breakout year, forcing the golf world to stop and take notice—having combined for nine top-10 finishes on the PGA Tour so far this year.

Despite both being fiercely competitive and proven winners, their friendship is a constant. As Warren notes, “Lucas and I have enjoyed a relationship that is similar to one you would have with a brother, which works well because whenever we’re in a tournament and I happen to see Lucas’ name on the leaderboard, it just spurs me on even more to play harder. Having our own little internal competition also makes things more interesting. It helps having a close friend out here on Tour with me; we play practice rounds together, have meals together and generally feel like we’re teammates in a sense, which really helps make the entire experience even more fun.”

Glover agrees. “Charles and I have no problem arguing with each other, probably because we are so competitive,” he says. “But we also recognize that competitiveness is a trait we have in common, and that is probably a big reason we have become much closer friends the last few years.”

Their friendship and competitiveness being as they are, there is probably little irony in the fact that these two have taken such similar roads to the top.

The 26-year-old Glover, a former NCAA All-American, has had quite a year so far, surpassing the magical million-dollar mark halfway through this season. Clair Peterson, tournament director for the John Deere Classic, spotted him early on as a rising star: “We’ve always tried to develop relationships with up-and-coming players. Tiger Woods, Justin Leonard, Charles Howell III and Lucas Glover are all players we’ve given exemptions to, expecting that they would succeed on Tour.”

Peterson is right. Glover’s best finish was third in the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, where he finished one stroke out of the playoff and took more than $300,000 back to South Carolina.

A local fixture, he’s only the second player in history to win both the South Carolina Golf Association Junior and Overall Amateur titles, and he won the South Carolina Amateur three times. Unlike many Tour players who pack up and relocate after initial success, Glover is sticking to Greenville, and says, “This has always been home. I love it here and I’m not going anywhere.”

Glover is a big, strong guy who crushes drives, so he favors classic courses like Merion and Baltusrol. He’s a former champion on the Nationwide Tour who’s looking for continued success on the PGA Tour.

He now wears the IMI logo, largely as a result of Charles Warren. “A lot of guys on Tour wear the IMI logo,” Glover says. “Charles had been wearing [the logo] for a few years so I asked him about it. When I learned about IMI, I was impressed with the company, and now we’re both sponsored by IMI and The Cliffs Communities.”

Warren is also a former Clemson All-American (three times, in fact), whose last season with the Tigers was Glover’s first. Warren won the NCAA golf championship in 1997 and finished second in 1998. This fall he was inducted into Clemson’s Athletic Hall of Fame for a collegiate career marked by far too many achievements to list here. And he hasn’t looked back since, amassing more than $700,000 in earnings three-quarters of the way through this year’s PGA Tour season.

Warren also made his mark on the Nationwide Tour on his way to the PGA, winning twice in 2004, running away with the Canadian PGA Championship. Taking the Canadian by seven strokes was the largest margin of victory in the event’s 92-year history. His performance was so dominant that Canadian newspaper headlines borrowed the old sitcom title in proclaiming “Charles in Charge.” He was also sponsored by IMI in his Nationwide days, having grown up in South Carolina and being familiar with the Greenville-based company.

“I feel lucky to be part of the IMI team, because everything they do is first class,” Warren says. “The other guys on Tour look at us with a lot of respect because of our fraternity and our events. I’m privileged to be part of it, and I knew Lucas was a good fit, so I encouraged him.”

Like his friend Glover, Warren is in love with his native Palmetto state, where his wife Kelly is also from, and says, “I can’t foresee leaving. Greenville is such a great place.”

Despite several top-10 finishes, including a recent seventh place at the Western Open and eighth in the FBR Open, when he was the only player to shoot in the 60s all four rounds, his top memory of the year is playing with Tiger Woods on Sunday at Bay Hill. “Anytime you get to play with the number-one player in the world in an event he has won several times, that’s special,” Warren says.

Despite his success, he claims his greatest moment in golf came as a spectator, when, as an 11-year-old, he watched Jack Nicklaus make golf history by becoming the oldest Masters champion ever.

It follows that Warren’s dream is “to finish in the top 40 so I can play in the Masters.” Among the highest-rated ball strikers on the PGA Tour, he has Tour veterans looking over their shoulders, and says, “If you asked other players out there, they would say total driving is my strength.”

With both Warren and Glover playing out of Greenville’s Thornblade Country Club and The Cliffs Communities, look to find them hanging out together on any given day. Also look to find them putting more notches in their belts on the PGA Tour any given weekend.

• 5’8”, 160 pounds

• Born June 1, 1975 in Columbia, SC

• Married to Kelly

• Played golf for Clemson, where he was First Team All-American 1996–1998.

• Last year: Finished eighth on the Nationwide Tour money list. 

• Hobbies include hunting and fishing.

• 6’2”, 188 pounds

• Born Nov. 12, 1979 in Greenville, SC

• Engaged to Jennifer

• Played golf for Clemson, where he was First Team All-American as a senior. Also played in the 2001 Walker Cup and the 2002 U.S. Open.

• Last year: Earned $557,454 on PGA Tour. Ranked 4th in Total Driving and 6th in Ball Striking.

• Hobbies include music and fishing.