Top local amateur golfer Michael Sims enjoyed a brief respite back home in Bermuda over the weekend after helping lead the University of Rhode Island to first place in the New England district championship at the season's mid-way stage.

The rising star currently carries a 73.9 stroke average, second only on the nine-member squad to sophomore sensation Mike Carbone's 73.2.

Sims burst out of the gate with second place finishes at the Dartmouth Invitational and Adams Cup, where URI achieved their best ever placing of second.

A lost putting stroke saw the Bermudian manage only 67th and 47th place finishes at the Wolf Pack Classic and Gary Koch Intercollegiate tournament.

But Sims bounced back at the New England Championships, where he achieved third behind Carbone, as URI notched their second team win -- they earlier won the Dartmouth event.

"I had a couple of good tournaments, but nothing outstanding . .. I had two good tournaments out of five,'' said Sims, a senior majoring in general business administration.

"I've been struggling a little bit with my putter. I've hit the ball probably as well as ever, but I'm not scoring as well as I should be because of my putting.

"It's there ... I just have to wait for it to come out.'' Yet coach Tom Drennan has already painted his co-captain -- Justin Thompson is the other -- as "easily one of the best players in the nation''.

Sims, though, counters Drennan, saying: "I have the potential to be one of the best ... I haven't done it quite yet.

"I like being in the role of co-captain actually. Me and my other team-mate, Justin Thompson, we like it, we're just trying to organise things and keep everybody's spirits up.'' URI lead a group of some 40 institutions in the New England area, But Sims won't be satisfied until they are not only talked about, but are able to legitimately compete on the national stage along with the more traditional powers.

"It's not a bad position to be in, but that's just the New England region and we're trying to get more of a national ranking among the likes of the big name schools like Clemson, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Arizona, Arizona State, New Mexico, all of them,'' said Sims.

"Last year I think we finished somewhere around 68 in the nation, and we might be a little lower than that right now, but we're on track. We have some big tournaments coming up in the spring and if we play well and can get a top 50 that would be sweet.

"I've gone from my freshman year and not even competing with these guys to where now they actually take a look at us.

"Our team has come together pretty good and we've started to play better as a team. I'm excited, (because) we've been doing really well.'' With the next tournament not taking place until March -- the LSU Spring Invitational -- Sims is now devoting his full attention towards his studies, with final examinations looming close.

He has also embarked on a physical fitness regimen that he hopes will help him be more consistent through the rigours of the second half.

"I'm hitting the weights a little bit,'' he said. "I think that the physical will be a big step that will help me get up to the next level.'' "I don't know if you've been watching golf on TV, with all those guys doing that fitness stuff. Well, I just started getting into that and I think it will help me out mentally as well as physically. And I think I'll start working on a few things with my teacher back in school.'' Michael Sims: hailed by his university coach as "one the best young players in the nation''.