Rebels will host college golf elite

Tuesday, Dec. 23, 1997 | 12:32 p.m.

Top-ranked UNLV and defending national champion Pepperdine will be among the 15 teams competing in the Golf Digest Invitational at the Desert Inn Golf Club in March.

Invitations have been extended to 15 of the top collegiate golf programs in the country for what is shaping up to be one of the premier events of the spring, according to Golf Digest's Karen Gallagher.

Joining UNLV in the 15-team field will be Texas Christian, Oklahoma State, Clemson, Houston and East Tennessee State -- all ranked in the top 10 in the latest poll by Golf Week magazine.

Also invited to play in the 54-hole tournament will be Arizona State, New Mexico, Virginia and Florida -- teams ranked in the top 25 this fall.

Rounding out the field will by Southern Methodist, Texas, Southern California and Wake Forest. New Mexico won last year's Golf Digest Invitational (edging UNLV by one stroke), played at the TPC at The Woodlands near Houston.

"It's a strong field, an awesome field," UNLV head coach Dwaine Knight said Tuesday. "That was one of the real goals in getting that tournament here; it would bring the best teams in college golf to Las Vegas.

"With the Rebel Classic, we worked real hard to get a field like this but it was very difficult to put together a group like this. Golf Digest does it every year because of the quality of the tournament they put on. It was a natural for us to try to bring that tournament here."

In addition to boasting 10 of the top 25 teams in the nation, the Golf Digest Invitational will feature the top three teams from last year's NCAA Division I Men's Golf Championships. Pepperdine was the surprise winner, posting a three-shot victory over Wake Forest. Clemson finished third.

Arizona State (tied for fifth), Oklahoma State (tied for fifth) Texas Christian (tied for seventh) and Houston (ninth) all finished in the top 10 at last year's finals.

"We're real proud to host this tournament and it's going to be just an awesome championship being at the Desert Inn," Knight said.

UNLV had been negotiating for two years with Golf Digest officials to bring the tournament to Las Vegas and finally landed the event in September.

For UNLV, which won two tournaments in the fall and is ranked No. 1 in the nation by Golfweek magazine, the Golf Digest Invitational will be one of the most eagerly awaited events of the spring season. The tournament will replace the Rebel Classic on UNLV's schedule and will mark the only time the Rebels will play at home during the 1996-97 season.

"It was always fun to host the Rebel Classic and have a chance to play in front of your home crowd," Knight said. "Now, to bring a quality tournament to town, it's going to be great. Even though we have a young team, we're really looking forward to it.

"It's always fun to play in front of your hometown fans and supporters. The main thing is the quality of the field -- I think it will create a lot of interest here in Las Vegas."

* NOTES: UNLV junior Charley Hoffman has qualified to play as an amateur in the PGA Tour's Buick Invitational at Torrey Pines Golf Courses in La Jolla, Calif. Hoffman, a native of San Diego, will be playing in his third Buick Invitational; he missed the cut in 1994 as a high school junior but made the cut last year and finished 76th among 77 players. Hoffman will miss the Rebels' first tournament of the spring season, the Ping Arizona Collegiate in Tucson, to play in the Buick. "We're playing that week in Arizona so we'll be without Charley, but what a great opportunity for him to play," UNLV head coach Dwaine Knight said. "Any time our guys can have a shot at playing on the (PGA) Tour, we certainly encourage that." ... The Desert Pines Golf Center has joined the Las Vegas International Golf Center on Golf Range and Recreation Report's list of the top 10 new ranges in America. ... Tiger Woods' made-for-TV golf outing with Jeff Gordon, Ken Griffey and Chris O'Donnell will be televised Thursday from 1 to 3 p.m. on CBS.