Perhaps Jason Allen has an ace in the hole this week at the HealthOne Colorado Open.
The professional from Pueblo hopes he set the tone for his tournament by making a hole-in-one during Wednesday’s pro-am at Green Valley Ranch Golf Club.
Allen would love to parlay his good fortune into being a contender in the 46th Colorado Open. And the step he took on Thursday was certainly in the right direction.
Allen shot a 6-under-par 65 to share the lead after the opening day at GVR. He went bogey-free and played his last 11 holes in 6 under.
“I’m elated,” said Allen, a two-time qualifier for the U.S. Open. “This is my first tournament of the year really (except for U.S. Open Local Qualifying). I became the executive director of The First Tee in Pueblo in February and I haven’t been able to devote a lot of time to hitting balls or anything like that. It’s always nice when you play good and don’t expect it.”
On a day when 46 competitors were under par when play was suspended by lightning at 6:40 p.m., the 36-year-old Allen shared the top spot with fellow pros Dustin Mills of Arvada, Scott Harrington of Scottsdale, Ariz., and Nick Killpack of St. George, Utah. Another golfer from the Pueblo area, 1995 Open champion Mike Zaremba, leads a group of five players who shot 66 and trail by one. Also at that figure is Lakewood’s Matt Zions, a former University of Colorado golfer whose wife is expecting a child “any day.”
Defending champion Derek Tolan, also a former CU standout, finished at even-par 71.
The 27 golfers who didn’t complete their first round on Thursday will resume play at 7 a.m. Friday. Tee times for Friday won’t be affected.
Last year, Allen finished eighth in the Colorado Open and said he made as many birdies (24) as did Tolan. But Tolan kept his bogeys to a minimum, while Allen came in 13 strokes behind him.
On Thursday, Allen had another six-birdie round, but no bogeys marred his card. He hit 17 greens in regulation and remained patient despite settling for pars on his first seven holes.
“I kept telling myself to stay in it,” he said. “You haven’t been playing a lot. You’re going to have to chip away at this thing.”
Then the birdies came in bunches — at Nos. 8, 10, 13, 15, 17 and 18.
“I put in a big day of practice (Wednesday),” Allen said. “I put in a good day’s work on all parts of my game hoping I would find the feel for everything. It started to come around a little bit.”
Mills, a 27-year-old playing pro from Arvada, needed just 22 putts in his round of 65. Competing in the much windier afternoon conditions, he made seven birdies and one bogey.
“I putted really well,” he said. “I was very happy with the round today.”
Harrington used an eagle on the 18th hole — his ninth — to help turn a good round into a very good one. He used a hybrid from 262 yards over the sea of cattails and to within 8 inches of the cup on the par-5.
“That really kind of got me going,” said the Canadian Tour player, who placed seventh in last year’s Colorado Open. “I’m obviously really happy I shot 6 under. I really like the state of my game. But I would have liked to keep up the momentum (in the midst of the round). I kind of put it in neutral the last six or seven holes. But I’m not complaining.”
Killpack, a former Brigham Young University golfer, also went bogey-free on Thursday. And sharing the first-round lead after needing to survive a playoff in a qualifier this week just to get into the tournament was a big bonus.
“I hit the ball as well today as I have in months,” he said. “My putting has been there, but my ball-striking helped me out today.”
“I guess I wonder if I’ve played too much golf if I hit a bad shot and don’t care,” Elway said with a chuckle after a round that included a triple bogey, eight bogeys and no birdies. “It was one of those days. I had the “˜rights.'”
Elway, who turned 50 last month, is competing in his fourth Colorado Open, having made the cut once, finishing 37th in 2001. But, barring a weather delay on Friday, he won’t be around for the weekend this year as the 36-hole cut to the low 60 players and ties looms.
“That’s disappointing,” said Elway, the 2009 Trans-Miss Four-Ball champion with Tom Hart. “But it’s always fun to play in these situations and try to get better. You learn every time you play in these situations.”
The frustration for Elway is following up good rounds with bad ones.
“I’d like to play consistent golf,” he said. “I don’t like having these kind of rounds where I shoot (82). You shoot below par every once in a while, then have bad a round. I’m trying to get more consistent at it. That’s kind of my long-term goal. It’s just a hard game. I’m just thrilled to death I had a football career.”
But golf now serves as a competitive outlet for Elway, the Pro Football Hall of Famer. “This is the way I compete now,” he said. “I really enjoy it. I don’t enjoy playing like I played today. It’s such a hard game that I enjoy trying to get better at it.”
