Kribel moves closer to Open

From a credentials standpoint, Joel Kribel figured to be the likeliest player among 87 Monday at Del Paso Country Club to earn one of six U.S. Open local stage qualifying berths.

Kribel has learned, however, that a glossy golf résumé is meaningless when it comes to posting a score.

"The thing about golf is that you've got to prove it every time you play," Kribel said.

That's why Kribel, 31, a three-time first-team All American at Stanford who has top-five finishes on the PGA and Nationwide tours, was delighted with his 5-under-par 66 that earned him the best-score medal and Del Paso's competitive course record.

Kribel was in the fast lane toward golf stardom after a runner-up finish in the 1997 U.S. Amateur. He turned pro in 1999 following a stellar college career at Stanford, where he was a teammate of Tiger Woods.

He's a golf nomad these days, playing minitours near his hometown of Phoenix and battling injuries and bad play. But he's not giving up.

"Life doesn't always go exactly to the script," said Kribel, a smile on his face. "You take the good days when you have them."

Kribel will attempt to earn his fourth Open berth in two weeks at sectional qualifying. This year's Open is June 12-15 at Torrey Pines in La Jolla.

Brad Bell, a two-time All American at UCLA and a touring pro in the early 1990s, said windy conditions worked in his favor. Bell's three-birdie, no-bogey round of 68 tied him for the day's second-best round.

"I don't do pretty, I just get it done," said Bell, who has played in two Opens but hasn't attempted qualifying the past four years. "When par is a good score, that's when I'm OK."

The 46-year-old architect of five Sacramento-area courses said he wouldn't have tried this year had the qualifier not been at his home course.

"I figured I wouldn't be terrible," he said.

Nate Pistacchio, a 21-year-old fifth-year senior at UC Davis also shot a 68. The all-Big-West Conference first-teamer was the only amateur among 33 to advance.

Jarod Abraham, a 35-year-old assistant pro at Mount Shasta Resort, eagled the first hole on his way to a 68. He qualifies along with former Shasta High School teammate Craig Howard, who shot a 69.

Sacramento's Jeff Wood, 29, earned the final spot despite bogeying his final three holes. A Nationwide player last year but without a tour to call home this year, Wood's round of 70 kept him on track toward fulfilling his main goal this year – qualifying for the Open.

Pistacchio, Abraham, Howard and Wood have never played in the Open.

Elk Grove's Spencer Levin, Manuel Orozco of Las Vegas and amateur Austin Graham of San Clemente shot 71s to miss a playoff by one shot. Levin birdied the 18th hole with a 25-foot sidewinder to get close. Orozco lipped out a 10-foot birdie putt on the ninth hole, his last.

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