Former UNLV golfer’s confidence soars with fast start

While Bubba Watson was celebrating his victory at the Farmers Insurance Open on Sunday, Bill Lunde was celebrating, too, even though he finished 13 shots behind Watson.

The former UNLV All-American and member of the Rebels' 1998 national championship squad had made three straight cuts to start his 2011 season on the PGA Tour. He already has banked $246,370 and is No. 25 on the tour's money list heading into Thursday's first round of the Waste Management Phoenix Open in Scottsdale, Ariz.

For the 35-year-old Lunde, who has struggled since turning pro in 1998, his early Tour standing is cause for celebration. He is playing well and brimming with confidence.

"I'm putting well," Lunde said. "It's something I've been working on for a year-and-a-half, and I'm finally seeing some improvement. So much of putting is confidence. When you see a putt drop, your confidence grows."

Lunde's confidence has been high since August when he won the Turning Stone Championship. Not only did the win allow him to retain his playing privileges on Tour through 2012, it allowed him to relax and enjoy the game.

"No question, it was a life-changing experience," said Lunde, who finished with a career-best $1,075,874 in 2010, good for No. 102 on the money list. "Last year, I had gotten off to such a terrible start (missing the cut in six of his first 10 events). It was very frustrating. But I started playing better as the summer began, and, when I got to Turning Stone, everything just came together for me.

"Knowing I have a free pass, so to speak, has helped take the edge off things. I can go out and just enjoy playing. I don't have to win to have success. I think that has contributed to my fast start this year. I don't feel the kind of pressure I felt at this time last year."

It's a far cry from 2005, when Lunde quit golf and came back to Las Vegas to work in the private sector selling real estate. But he said leaving the game allowed him time to realize how much he loved golf.

"The best thing I ever did was quit," he said. "I was taking the game for granted. And being out of golf was a humbling experience. But it made me appreciate how much I really missed the game."

Lunde hasn't looked back. In addition to his win at Turning Stone, Lunde finished tied for 10th at the Reno-Tahoe Open and the Puerto Rico Open. He started his 2011 season with a tie for 12th place at the Tournament of Champions and then tied for 13th the following week at the Sony Open.

After taking a week off to prepare for Torrey Pines, the Poway, Calif., native made the cut. But he didn't make up enough ground on the weekend to challenge for the top spot and finished tied for 29th with a 3-under-par 285. But with friends and family cheering him on, Lunde had little to complain about in his return to San Diego.

"There was some excitement out there with Tiger (Woods) back and his troubles behind him and with Phil (Mickelson) starting his season the way he did," Lunde said of Mickelson's runner-up finish to Watson. "Me, I had a lot of support. My middle school P.E. teacher even came out one day. I didn't drive it as well as I had been, and that probably cost me. But I still feel like I have a lot going for my game heading to Phoenix."

Lunde said he's looking forward this week to playing on one of the rowdiest stops on the tour, particularly when he's at the tee box at the par-3, 162-yard 16th hole, which tends to get especially boisterous.

"It's a cool hole," Lunde said. "Hopefully I'll hit the green and not get booed."

Contact reporter Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2913.