DAYTON - Clayton Rask has made the 30-hour drive from Minnesota each of the last three years to play in the Stage I qualifier at Dayton Valley Golf Club.
You knew when Rask was in town because he had a little pop-up tent hooked to the back of a pick-up that he parked in the course's parking lot. He slept there every night, having to endure some very cold nights.
Rask, who opened with a 1-under-par 71 on Tuesday, showed up in style this year with a full-sized camper that sleeps three and a new pick-up which he still puts in the course parking lot.
"I got the truck in early September and the camper the first of October," said Rask, who has spent the 2010 season on the Canadian Tour. "Now I can pull over and sleep in my own bed. It was nice. This has all the amenities.
"We took a shortcut that didn't turn out to be a shortcut. The gas tank is a little smaller, so we had to stop more often for gas, but we weren't in any hurry."
Rask is Dayton Valley's adopted son. He and his family members are usually treated to dinner nearly every night they are in town. One member, Zan Roder, has already had the group over twice for dinner. Two other DVGC members have players staying at their house this week.
Last year was Rask's second at Dayton, and it's the one he remembers the most. He birdied his final hole to go 11-under-par and reach the second stage. Later on, he visited Terrible's Casino and ended up winning a 50-inch flatscreen television in a drawing.
Rask made the turn Tuesday at 3-under-par with four birdies and one bogey on the back nine. He ran into problems on the front side though, shooting a 2-over-par 38.
His troubles started on No. 2 when he bogeyed and suffered an injury to his wrist which he had wrapped in ice after his round.
"I felt something at the top of my swing," Rask said. "Something shot up my arm."
Rask registered birdies on Nos. 3 and 5, but had a double-bogey on No. 8, a par-5.
"I had 118 into the wind," Rask said. "I hit a low gap wedge and I'm in the water."
Rask and the rest of the field trail Sacramento's Scott Gordon, who shot a sizzling 64. A stroke behind Gordon is Benjamin Alvarado of Chile. Tyler Aldridge (Nampa, Idaho) is at 66 and Andres Gonzales is fourth with a 5-under-par 67. There is a four-way tie for fifth at 68 with Thomas Petersson of Stockton, Calif., Justin Bardgett of Chesterfield, Mo., Josh Persons of Fargo, N.D., and Nick Killpack of St. George, Utah. There is a 12-way logjam for ninth at 3-under-par 69. The top names in that group are Wil Collins and Dan Buchner, who shot a 60 in one of his practice rounds.
Gordon had nine birdies and one bogey. His bogey came on No. 18, his final hole of the day. He had the good fortune of being in the first group out when the conditions were calm.
"At first I didn't think it would be that big of an advantage," Gordon said.
"We got through the first nine before the wind came up. It definitely helped me out on the front. It was a big advantage. I've played here before (four years ago). I knew that if I kept it in the fairway I had a great chance to have success. I played solid. I putted really well. These are the best greens I've putted on."
Gordon birdied the second through the sixth holes. He canned a 30-footer from the front of green on the par-3 4th. He drained a putt even longer on No. 12.
"I had a handful of 20-footers, and I had two putts from 30 or 40 feet," Gordon said. "I think I missed only three putts from over 20 feet."
Gordon suffered a wrist injury earlier in the year, and didn't start playing golf again the latter part of the summer. He said he's been to five doctors, and the injury has yet to be diagnosed.
For Alvarado, Tuesday represented a much better start than a year ago when he shot a 2-over-par 74. He registered nine birdies.
"It was pretty calm (the conditions)," Alvarado said. "I had to take my chances. I putted very well. It got tough the last five holes when the wind started to blow."
Starting on the back nine, Alvarado birdied Nos. 10, 11 and 12. After three straight pars, he birdied the 234-yard par-3 16th and the 478-yard par-4 17th. He concluded his first nine with a par on the par-5 18th.
Alvarado cruised on the front. After a par at No. 1, he birdied four straight holes to get it to 9-under-par. After pars at Nos. 6 and 7, he took a double-bogey on the par-5 eighth when he drove his tee shot into the water.