Columnist Victoria Sun: Five Open entrants have local ties

Victoria Sun

Wednesday, June 13, 2001 | 10:35 a.m.

Victoria Sun covers golf for the Las Vegas Sun sportswriter. Reach her at 259-4078 or by e-mail at victoria@lasvegassun.com.

Las Vegas resident Anthony Kang has never played in the U.S. Open before -- or any other of golf's majors.

So it wouldn't be surprising if the 28-year-old who plays on the Asian PGA Tour was intimidated or starstruck upon his arrival at Southern Hills Country Club.

Kang, one of five players with local ties entered in the field, was neither.

"I'm pretty easygoing, laxed," Kang said. "Things don't really overwhelm me, but also at the same time it was thrilling that I qualified for the U.S. Open.

"But I don't want it to end there. I want to play well."

Kang has kept a low profile since moving to Las Vegas with his wife, Jennifer, in 1996, from Portland, Ore.

While Kang, a former Oregon State golfer, wasn't overly giddy at the prospect of being around some of the world's best golfers, his caddie was.

Kang asked friend and former teammate Casey Winters to carry his bag at the prestigious tournament. He was slightly amused at his friend's reaction to the scene.

"I've been trying to take care of my own business," Kang said. "My friend, I think he's a little bit starstruck. He bought an instant camera and has been snapping pictures like crazy. It's kind of funny."

Until this week, Kang said the closest he ever got to the U.S. Open was watching it on TV.

He is currently ranked sixth on the Asian PGA Tour Order of Merit with $59,510.

This season the native of Seoul, Korea, won the London Myanmar Open and finished tied for 29th at the Singapore Masters.

He arrived in Tulsa on Sunday night to prepare for the tournament.

"I think the biggest difference from what I've seen on TV is how firm the golf course is and how far the ball rolls especially with the driver and irons," Kang said. "You've got to calculate the roll and the terrain.

"It's pretty tough out here. The winds were swirling around, greens firm, rough thick.

"I really have no expecations out here. I haven't been swinging my way out here very well. I putted my way through qualifying."

Jennifer and newborn Kalia, who is two and half months old, didn't make the trip to Tulsa, but will be following Kang on the Internet.

Kang said his first couple of days at the tournament site have been rather routine except for a Tiger Woods sighting.

"I didn't realize there were going to be so many people out here for the practice round," Kang said. "Playing on the Asian Tour, no one watches a practice round.

"It was a totally different environment. We saw Tiger Woods playing his practice round and there were probably 1,000 people following him. It looked pretty scary."

Though Kang aspires to earn his PGA Tour card one day, he is in no rush.

He plays 20-25 events a year and said his next step would be to make it to the Japanese Tour next season which awards larger purses and a higher caliber of player.

"Slowly I'm starting to learn it takes a lot more effort and dilligence to play the pro game," Kang said. "Back then in college, I thought you just do the minimal work, get by and that was enough.

"I wish I worked harder instead of just messing around."

When Kang is home in Las Vegas, he practices at a course he'd rather keep private and spends time with his family.

"When I get back to Vegas I just want to chill and not do anything out here," Kang said.

Former UNLV golfer Chad Campell is hopeful his third trip to the U.S. Open will prove more fruitful than the first two.

"I think being able to play the last two years definitely helps," Campbell said. "Knowing what to expect, maybe not being so intimidated by the people there, the rough and the greens.

Campbell played two years at UNLV and graduated in 1996 before turning pro.

He spent the beginning of his career toiling on the Hooters Tour where he was the leading money winner in 1998 and 2000 before working his way onto the Buy.com Tour.

Campbell won his first Buy.com Tour event at Richmond and is the tour's money leader with $170,540.

"It was very exciting to win in Richmond, definitely the high point of my year," Campbell said.

There could be more highlights in the near future if Campbell regains his composure.

Campbell said he was disappointed with his results from the Steamtown Classic and the Samsung Canadian PGA Championship, the last two events he entered leading up to the U.S. Open, but feels he may have a few good rounds ahead of him.

"At those tournaments, I missed a couple of putts here or there, but I feel pretty good about the way I'm playing," Campbell said.

After playing a practice round at Southern Hills, Campbell dissected the course.

"Putting will be very important," Campbell said. "The greens are really undulating.

"You really gotta put the ball flat on the green to have a chance at a birdie because otherwise you'll be defensive when you're putting. No. 2 and 18 are probably the two toughest holes in my mind."

Here's a brief look at the remaining three local golfers.

Robert Gamez: This has been a tough year for the Las Vegan. Gamez has made the cut in only three of nine PGA Tour events entered and missed the cuts his last three outings. At this point, it looks like making the cut at Southern Hills should be Gamez's top priority. Gamez has missed the cut at the U.S. Open his last three tries. A decent finish would be a bonus for Gamez, who is currently ranked 162nd on the money list with $103,830.

"I've struggled a little bit with my game the last two months, but I've actually been playing pretty good and just not scoring well," Gamez said. "I'm going to try to win. That's my approach."

Skip Kendall: Kendall, a 1987 UNLV graduate, has made 13 of 18 cuts this season. He is ranked 72nd on the money list with $364,506 and has tied for 11th place twice this year. He ranks 16th in putting average and 16th in total birdies which should help him this weekend. Kendall last played at the U.S. Open in 1996 when he tied for 82nd. He may go farther this time.

Bob May: Of the five, May will probably have the best finish. The 32-year-old Summerlin resident pushed Tiger Woods at last year's PGA Championship to the limit before Woods came out on top in a three-hole playoff. This year, May took about two months off to recover from a lower back injury, but has healed nicely. His best finish has been a tie for 11th at the Compaq Classic of New Orleans. At the FedEx St. Jude Classic leading up to the Open, May tied for 28th. Many sports books have the odds on May to win the Open at 75-1. In his first U.S. Open appearance, last year at Pebble Beach, May tied for 23rd.

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