Guest Columnist Ryan Keeney: We still have chance to win

Friday, May 30, 2003 | 10:25 a.m.

Ryan Keeney is a freshman on the UNLV golf team and is writing a guest golf column exclusively for the Las Vegas Sun. He is part of the Rebels' five-man lineup in the NCAA Golf Championship in Stillwater, Okla.

We went back to the hotel after Wednesday's round, hung out and went to the pool. I think a couple of us got naps or just relaxed and laid low. We got some southern-style dinner at this barbecue place that was pretty good.

Then we had our meeting, and the focus of it was pretty positive, just going over what we did well and what we want to do the last half of the tournament. We realized we were only 15 shots back after two days, in not too bad of shape.

On Thursday we slept in, but a couple of guys got breakfast. I think J.C. Deacon went running this morning, just trying to kill time, basically. We got to the course and got some lunch. There was about a 40-minute delay to tee off. Any afternoon time, you're going to be here longer than you want to before you play.

We got out to play and I guess we shot 7-over today. We threw out J.C.'s 80, and then we had a 71 from Travis (Whisman), 73 from myself, 76 from Brien Davis ... I know Travis played awesome. J.C. didn't play so well, he had a couple of tough holes.

I was 5-over myself with 10 holes to play. I made a triple bogey on my eighth hole. I felt like I was playing pretty well, getting a little frustrated. On 18 (the Rebels' ninth hole), I hit one of the best shots I've ever hit in my life and ended up making an eagle. Then, I played 2-under on the front. Just perfect golf, no bogeys, no chance at bogeys, tap-in pars. It's one of the best rounds I've even played in my life. This course is so hard and 73, especially with 5-over after eight holes, is unbelievable.

So I'm really happy about that ... there's a lot of good things that happened today for us. (Twenty) back going into (today) is just not out of it, and then we're eight shots back of third place -- that's pretty good.

We've got a chance to do some good things. We're in seventh place now, and we've got a good chance to get a top three and an outside chance at winning. What more could you ask for? Ryan Keeney is a freshman on the UNLV golf team and is writing a guest column exclusively for the Las Vegas Sun. He is part of the Rebels' five-man lineup in the NCAA Golf Championship in Stillwater, Okla.