Sputtering start

Adam Candee

Wednesday, May 28, 2003 | 9:59 a.m.

STILLWATER, Okla. -- Out of the spray of dense sand emerged the blond locks of Travis Whisman, his neck straining over the lip of No. 9's greenside bunker to get a look at his stellar blast to within a few feet of the hole. Up went the ball, out came the Reno native and down went the history-making birdie putt -- Whisman's third red number in four holes.

The normally gregarious UNLV sophomore did not offer so much as a grin to accompany his flashed wave to the small gallery as he headed for the scoring tent, though, because the Rebels made the wrong kind of history in Tuesday's opening round of the NCAA Golf Championships.

The Rebels chased down the sun, finishing at 7:30 p.m. CDT and returning to tee off early this morning coming off their worst first round in NCAA postseason play, a painful 25-over score of 313 that left them in a tie for 21st place in the 30-team field. Ryan Moore's team-leading 4-over 76 was also the worst low individual score in an NCAA regional or national tournament for UNLV.

"It's disappointing," Rebels coach Dwaine Knight said. "I thought we could get off to a better start, but they were awfully nervous (Tuesday) morning."

Minutes before Whisman's closing birdie, a brazen tan bunny bounded across the heavily wooded cart path adjacent to No. 8, stopping almost in step with the crowd watching Oklahoma State standout Hunter Mahan. The little rabbit was about the cutest thing at Karsten Creek, a shylock of a golf course that makes players pay with exorbitant interest for any poor swing.

Oklahoma State, North Carolina State, Clemson and Auburn shared the team lead at 11-over after the first of four rounds at the par-72 monster, and Lee Williams of Auburn shot a 3-under 69 to grab the individual lead by one stroke over Lamar's Chris Williams and Augusta State's Oliver Williams. Just four of 156 golfers went under par Tuesday.

"Just by seeing the first few pins, it's pretty easy to start really guiding your ball because you know what's out there," Rebels freshman Ryan Keeney (8-over) said. "It's not very pretty today. It was playing hard."

Seemingly no sooner than the starter announced J.C. Deacon, UNLV's No. 5 golfer, the Rebels found immense trouble. Every Rebel bogeyed the par-4 No. 10 -- the second-hardest hole Tuesday -- to open.

On the next hole, Whisman sailed his approach into the water behind the green to bogey and Moore carded a triple-bogey 7 after losing his tee shot in the tangled woods.

With a team total of 10-over through just three holes, the lard-lined ditch proved too much to climb out from for the inexperienced Rebels. Keeney said Karsten Creek presented a different challenge than the Rebels expected after two practice rounds.

"You know that you've got to get your ball in play off the tee, but I don't think we realized how firm the course was," Keeney said. "It was playing pretty soft the first few days. Coming into these greens (Tuesday), the ball was bouncing more, the greens were much faster and the pins were kind of on slopes."

All senior Brien Davis (9-over) could do was quietly sigh as he exited the tee at No. 17 and glanced at UNLV's mid-round score of 13-over, and Whisman (5-over) buried his head while kneeling by his bag after turning two good shots into a bogey with a fat wedge, a short chip and a missed par putt at the par-5 No. 1 as the Rebels spiraled downward.

Playing three sophomores and a freshman, Knight worried before the tournament that his team would struggle to handle the mental challenge of a course that cannot be physically conquered. Missed fairways and greens invite the 4-inch short rough and various hazards to drive up scores, and the Rebels seemed to find them all. Every UNLV player except Whisman carded at least one 7, a fact Knight called "devastating."

"I can't fault their effort," Knight said. "It's just that we were in some of the most difficult places you could have been in. We just can't score from there.

"On this kind of course -- and we talked about it a lot -- you've just got to control the ball. If you don't control the ball, then the golf course is going to control you. That's basically what happened."

UNLV's lone momentum for today comes from the strong finishes of Moore and Whisman. Moore, the U.S. Open and Masters veteran, rebounded from going out in 42 and to come home in 34, including just a single bogey. That 34 was UNLV's lone sub-par 9-hole score of the day.

"What we've got to do is what's realistic," Knight said. "What can we shoot on this golf course, try to get some confidence."

The Rebels must move into the top 15 to avoid a second consecutive morning tee time Thursday.