Columnist Victoria Sun: Rebel women want to start second season on right foot

Victoria Sun

Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2002 | 9:10 a.m.

Victoria Sun is a Las Vegas Sun sportswriter. She can be reached at victoria@lasvegassun.com or (702) 259-4078.

First-year UNLV women's golf coach Missy Ringler wasn't at the helm when the Lady Rebels began their inaugural season at the Mason Rudolph Championship last September.

She should be glad she missed it.

While Ringler was starting her third season as the Minnesota women's golf coach, the Lady Rebels were shooting their way to the century mark, finishing last among 14 teams with a 100-over-par total.

If Ringler can help it, UNLV won't repeat its season opening debacle at the Comcast Dick McGuire Invitational starting today in Albuquerque.

"We're looking forward to our first tournament," Ringler said. "We've been practicing really hard.

"I think in tournaments, we will be a lot more competitive. We have high goals. Coming in, I wanted to set high goals because we're very talented. I wanted them to understand that we are capable of competing at every tournament. We want to improve on our conference finish and hopefully qualify for the NCAA regionals."

Talented sophomore Hwanhee Lee leads seven returning golfers from a squad that finished fifth in the Mountain West Championships. Lee, Cimarron-Memorial High graduate Erin Borcherts, sophomore Christine Hentzner and freshmen Sunny Oh and Elena Kurokawa made the trip to Albuquerque.

This summer, Lee finished second at the U.S. Women's Amateur Public Links Championship while Oh and Kurokawa advanced to match play at the tournament.

Many of the Lady Rebels spent the summer playing tournaments.

"Getting in good competition is going to help them," Ringler said. "Being new to the program, I knew there were really good competitors on the team. I was glad to see them getting good, quality tournaments this summer."

Ringler took over for former coach Kelley Hester, who left after one season to become coach at Arkansas.

In practice, she has stressed the importance of improving the short game and is eager to see how the team responds against the likes of Pepperdine, Arizona State and Texas, among others.

"I think it's a good measuring stick for us because it's a good field," she said. "It's a good tournament to come out and show what we can do and show the team that they're at that level."

If you don't recognize her name, wait until next year's Greater Hartford Open. You'll know it by then.

Whaley became the first woman to qualify for a PGA Tour tournament by winning a local PGA Section Championship. She played from the front tees but if she chooses to participate in the Greater Hartford Open, she'll play from the back tees, same as the men.

Whaley, a teaching professional at a Hartford golf club, has until a week before the tournament to decide whether she wants to enter. The tournament is usually played in June, but doesn't have a set date next year.

Bill Whaley is general manager of the TPC at River Highlands, the home course of the Greater Hartford Open.

"I think it's great," Baron said. "She went out and played under the conditions set up for her (the closer tees).

"She put up a score that was the best of the day, in those conditions. The conditions are going to be different if she decides to play, but she is not going to embarrass herself in any way. She is a good player."

Baron believes it was the PGA section and not the tournament director who allowed Whaley to play from the front in the open qualifier.