May 31, 2006

SUNRIVER, Ore. -- Wake Forest may be playing its best golf of the season -- its best golf in several seasons, in fact -- and it couldn't come at a better time.

Wake Forest recorded the lowest round in its storied NCAA Tournament history and senior Kyle Reifers shot the best NCAA Tournament round by a Deacon in more than 30 years in the opening round of the NCAA Championships here Wednesday. Wake Forest leads the team race by three strokes over UCLA and Reifers holds a one-stroke lead in the race for the individual crown.

Three Demon Deacons shot under par, paced by Reifers' 7-under par 65, as Wake Forest raced out to a cumulative 11-under par 277 in the first of four rounds at the par 72, 7,630-yard Crosswater Golf Club, located 15 miles south of Bend, Ore. Wake's 277 was one shot better than the Deacons' previous NCAA Tournament single-round low -- a 278 in the fourth round of the 1986 championship, which was won by Wake Forest.

Wake Forest head coach Jerry Haas had a brief message to the team following round one.

"Be happy," Haas said, "but don't be satisfied."

With three days and 54 holes remaining in the Championships, Wake Forest will need rounds similar to today to contend for its fourth NCAA title and its first since 1986.  While the Deacons hold a three-stroke lead, some of the nation's top teams are nipping at their heels. Thirteen of the 30 teams in the tournament are under par through 18 holes including fifth-ranked UCLA (-8), Washington (-7), second-ranked Oklahoma State (-7) and 12th-ranked Clemson (-6).

It was a surprisingly more difficult day for No. 1-ranked and defending NCAA champion Georgia (+5) and fourth-ranked Georgia Tech (+13).

Reifers sank an 18-foot putt on the 18th hole, tying Curtis Strange in 1974 for the lowest single round in Wake Forest's NCAA Tournament history. Reifers' 65, which inlcuded eight birdies and one bogey, tied for the lowest round in his sterling four-year career and it came within one shot of tying the course record.

"Kyle came in as a freshman and has just gotten better and better," Haas said of Reifers, who was named along with teammate Webb Simpson to the PING All-South Region team earlier in the day. "He's at a good place right now. He is striking the ball nicely. I don't have to tell him too much. He has been great to watch."

Reifers holds a narrow one-stroke lead over some of the nation's top college golfers. Oklahoma State's Pablo Martin and Southern California's Taylor Wood are tied for second place at 6-under and Washington's Alex Prugh is two strokes behind at 5-under.

Wake Forest sophomore Chris McCartin tied his lowest round of the season with a 3-under 69 and sophomore Webb Simpson fired a 2-under 70. Junior Sean Moore shot a solid 1-over par 73 and senior Doug Manchester came in with a 4-over 76.

"There is always room for improvement," Haas said. "But we made a lot of birdies today. We were up early this morning and ready to go. I thought the guys had a great attitude and kept to the game plan."

Despite winning the NCAA East Regional, Wake Forest was seeded 16th and most of the prognosticators did not include the Deacons as one of the teams capable of winning the NCAA crown. One Golfweek analyst had predicted Wake would not advance out of the East Regional.

"I told them to go out and play like they have nothing to lose," Haas said. "I wanted us to stay smart, but be aggressive. When we've played well, we have been very efficient -- we haven't made many bogies."

Getting off to a good start, Haas felt, was also a key. When the Deacons won three tournaments during the regular season, each time they got off to a good start.

"They are calling for crummy weather the next couple of days and that's when the tournament will be won," Haas said. "But every time we've won, we have started well."

Reifers has been pointing to the NCAA Championships all year. Last year the Deacons played in the Championships but did not make the cut. As a sophomore, Reifers and the Deacons did not advance past the regionals.

Reifers put his name alongside some of Wake Forest's greats with his 65 today. He joins Strange, Garry Hallberg, Chris Kite, Eddie Pierce, Jack Lewis and Bill Haas as the only Deacons to shoot a 67 or lower in an NCAA Championship round. Four Wake Forest golfers have won NCAA individual titles, although no one has done it since Gary Hallberg in 1979.

"I drove the ball well today and that was key," Reifers said. "It's a tough course if you are not on top of your game. It's a long tournament, but we felt it was important to get off to a good sart. We talked last night about getting off to a good start.

"The thing about a four-round tournament is that the best teams and best players usually rise to the top."

Wake Forest has a later tee time for Thursday's second round -- close to 1 p.m. Pacific. Fifteen teams will be cut from the field after Friday's third round.

TEAM STANDINGS
Wake Forest 277 (-11)
UCLA 280 (-8)
Oklahoma State 281 (-7)
Washington 281 (-7)
Clemson 282 (-6)
Kentucky 283 (-5)
Florida 284 (-4)
Oklahoma 284 (-4)
NC State 284 (-4)
East Tennessee State 286 (-2)
Arizona State 287 (-1)
Minnesota 287 (-1)
Charlotte 288 (E)
Duke 290 (+2)
Texas A&M 291 (+3)
BYU 292 (+4)
Lamar 292 (+4)
Northwestern 292 (+4)
South Carolina 292 (+4)
Georgia 293 (+5)
UNLV 293 (+5)
Auburn 295 (+7)
Arizona 296 (+8)
Coastal Carolina 296 (+8)
Nevada 296 (+8)
Pepperdine 296 (+8)
North Carolina 297 (+9)
Texas Tech 297 (+9)
Loyola Marymount 300 (+12)
Georgia Tech 301 (+13)

INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
1 Kyle Reifers, Wake Forest 65 (-7)
2 Pablo Martin, Oklahoma State 66 (-6)
2 Taylor Wood, Southern California 66 (-6)
4 Alex Prugh, Washington 67 (-5)
5 Daniel Im, UCLA 68 (-4)
5 Jonathan Moore, Oklahoma State 68 (-4)
5 Ray Sheed, Charlotte 68 (-4)
5 Cian McNamara, East Tennessee St. 68 (-4)

WAKE FOREST SCORES
1 Kyle Reifers 65 (-7)
9 Chris McCartin 69 (-3)
15 Webb Simpson 70 (-2)
68 Sean Moore 73 (+1)
118 Doug Manchester 76 (+4)