September 14, 2009 (UPDATED 9/15) –Golfweek is, as they say, for the serious golfer, and the publication, led by Las Vegas resident Lance Ringler, has worked to bring some of the best women college golfers to the Desert Las Vegas golf course at Tom Fazio's Primm Valley Golf Club. The Golfweek Conference Challenge is in its inaugural year, and features four top 30 golf teams from the preseason Golfweek poll. Primm Valley Golf Club, designed by Tom Fazio, features two of the best Las Vegas resort golf courses that are open for all to play. Following the first round, Oklahoma State led at 7-over par. LIVE SCORING. Pepperdine won the team title, UNLV was 7th and Oklahoma State's Caroline Hedwall won the individual title. Complete story to follow.
The No. 18 UNLV women’s golf team opened its season with a first-round 16-over 304. The Rebels are being paced by junior Alejandra Guacaneme, who navigated windy conditions to post a 1-over 73, which has her tied for fifth after 18 holes of play. Guacaneme rolled in five birdies, four bogies and one double bogey on her round, and she is five strokes behind Caroline Hedwall of Oklahoma State, who has the individual lead with a 4-under 68. Oklahoma State has the team lead with a 7-over 295, good for a one-stroke lead over Chattanooga.
“It was not as good of a start as we would have liked,” UNLV head coach Missy Ringler said. “The wind did get to us a little, but we have two more rounds to bounce back. It was also a great first round by Alejandra.” UNLV senior Natasha Krishna and rookie Ellis Keenan are in a group that is tied for 22nd at 4-over 76, Therese Koelbaek is tied for 48th at 7-over 79 and Kristen Schelling is tied for 66th at 9-over 81. Koelbaek made the turn at just 1-over, but she carded a nine on the par-4 hole 10 after her ball got stuck in a bunker and she struggled to get it out.
The Lakes and Desert Las Vegas golf courses are Fazio designs and each offer beauty and challenge. The Lakes course features hundreds of mature pine trees and beautiful lush surroundings. The Desert course offers a more stark environment, but the layout isn't a target-oriented desert course as some southwest desert courses can be. Wide fairways and generous greens allow for an enjoyable day. Click now to reserve your Las Vegas golf tee times or Las Vegas golf packages at Primm Valley Golf Club. Primm Valley is located about 35 minutes from the Las Vegas Strip in the town of Primm, an area that is home to the Star of the Desert arena where big name acts appear. Plus, there are hotels available for golf packages and an outlet mall for shopping.
The Rebels are one of four teams that appeared in Golfweek’s preseason poll that make up the 18-team field, and the others are No. 12 Pepperdine, No. 16 Ohio State and No. 28 Cal. The tournament is being played on the Desert Course at the Primm Valley Golf Club, a par-72, 6,108-yard layout. The tournament continues with 18 holes on Monday with UNLV teeing off at 8:00 a.m. (PT) off of hole one, and the tournament draws to a close on Tuesday. Live scoring is available courtesy of Golfstat with a link found on the schedule page at UNLVRebels.com