Arbor View, Palo Verde players one stroke back after first round

Van Thomas prefers to go unnoticed early in golf tournaments.

But the Arbor View junior blew his cover Wednesday.

Thomas fired a 3-under-par 69 at Mountain Falls Golf Club in Pahrump and is tied for second with Palo Verde’s Brandon Bauman after the first round of the Division I boys state golf tournament.

“I like being underestimated, and I like showing people what I’m made of,” Thomas said. “I knew I could go low out here. I knew if I just kept my patience and got out of the way of myself, the birdies would just come to me.”

Ben Davis of Shadow Ridge shot 70 and is in a three-way tie for fourth with Owen Rosebeck of Bishop Gorman and Bradley Collet of Palo Verde. Bishop Manogue’s Nick Turner, who nearly holed out from 152 yards on the par-4 16th, leads after a 68.

Eight golfers are within four shots of Turner, setting up what should be an exciting finish today.

Thomas, whose older brother, Zane, is a member of the UNLV golf team, made three birdies and one eagle during his round. The left-hander eagled the par-5 third hole and made the turn at 2 under before dropping a shot on No. 11 when he hit a poor tee shot and then three-putted the short par 5.

Thomas recovered with birdies on Nos. 12 and 14 before missing a 10-footer on No. 18 that would have given him a share of the lead.

“I’ve been working a lot on my putting, and it just finally clicked on the front nine for me,” Thomas said. “I got off to a shaky start on the back nine, but I kept it together and made some clutch putts.”

Bauman went out in 34 and managed to birdie No. 11 despite a bit of bad luck. Bauman’s tee shot stopped in a divot on the right side of the fairway, and the UC Santa Barbara signee topped his second shot as a result. He then stuck his approach to within 6 feet and drained the putt to get to 3 under. Bauman, who played the par 5s in 3 under, also had a chance to grab a share of the lead on No. 18, but he left his birdie putt inches short.

“I don’t mind being in the chase going into the second day,” Bauman said. “I just look forward to going out (today) and giving it everything and maybe pull it off.”

Davis, a UNLV recruit and the Sunset Region champion, got off to a slow start but eagled the par-5 seventh hole and chipped in for eagle on No. 11. His only mistake on the back nine came on the difficult 14th hole when he pulled his tee shot left and ran his chip off the green on the way to a bogey 4.

Collet, who played bogey-free, two-putted from about 60 feet on No. 17 and scrambled to save par on No. 18 after his drive missed the fairway to the right and landed behind a cluster of trees.

Rosebeck helped Gorman shoot 373, and the Gaels lead Palo Verde (376), Coronado (379) and Bishop Manogue (380) in the race for the team title.

In Division I-A, Moapa Valley’s Jacob Causey carded a 71 and owns a two-shot lead over defending champion Luke Logan of Boulder City.

Logan made nine pars on the front side and was 1 under through 11 holes before an adventurous finish. He had a double-bogey 6 on No. 12, then made a 35-foot downhill putt for birdie on the par-3 14th. On No. 18, Logan lipped out a short par putt to finish at 73.

Lowry leads the team standings after a 390, while Faith Lutheran shot 403 to remain in contention. Boulder City was third at 418.

Chris Young of White Pine shot 73 and has a one-shot lead over Dylan Smith of Incline in Division III. Zarek Phillips of Needles is third at 76. Needles shot 413 and leads Battle Mountain (434) and White Pine (443) in the team standings.

Contact reporter David Schoen at dschoen@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5203. Follow him on Twitter: @DavidSchoenLVRJ.