Notah leads in Spain - Thursday, April 26, 2007

MADRID, Spain -- Despite a long rain delay and a lack of practice time, Notah Begay III sits atop the leaderboard at the Open de España with Thursday's best round at the Centro National de Golf.

"Aside from the fact that we had an almost 8-hour rain delay, the golf was fantastic," Notah said. "Our group played the first five holes in what some would characterize as 'unplayable weather'. There was casual water all over the course and standing water in many of the fairways and bunkers. I tried not to focus on the conditions but solely on my tempo and execution."

That combination paid dividends for the 4-time U.S. PGA Tour winner as he finished the day as the leader in the clubhouse with a 4-under par 68.

"After falling to 1-over (par) through three holes," Notah said, "I made the turn at even par after birdies on the 16th and 17th, followed by a 3-putt bogey on the 18th. The 3-putt took some wind out of my sails but I immediately got that one back with a 15-footer for birdie on (hole) No. 1 - my 10th hole. I played solid golf the rest of the way, managing three more birdies without dropping a shot."

As if the weather conditions weren't enough to contend with, Notah's clubs were lost upon arrival in Madrid earlier in the week and they finally arrived on the eve of the first round, forcing him to miss any opportunities to play this week's venue.

"Today was the first time I had seen the course due to the fact that my luggage and clubs were lost until Wednesday morning," Notah said. "I didn't have time to get out and see any of the holes and trusted the preparation of my caddie Brendan McCartain. I only missed two fairways on the day so I guess my clubs didn't suffer any from the delay in delivery."

Had his clubs not arrived, Notah was still covered.

"The technicians on the NIKE European Tour Van had already begun the assembly of a completely new set that was to be ready on Wednesday afternoon," Notah said. "It's great knowing that as Tour players we have tremendous technical support that provides a safety net in case of luggage emergencies such as mine."

Be sure to check back with Notah.com to follow NB3 in his quest to earn a fifth Tour victory.



THIS WEEK'S BREAKDOWN

Notah's History at the Open de España (0-0 vs. the cut)
This is Notah's first appearance at the Open de España.

Course
Centro National de Golf, Madrid, Spain

Notah's Group (Rounds 1 & 2)
Christian Nilsson (Karlstad, Sweden)
Emanuele Canonica (Pavia, Italy)

Notah's Tee Times (local time 6 hours ahead of ET)
Th - Notah shot a 4-under par 68 (started on the 10th tee)
Fr - 1:15 pm (1st tee)

TV Times (ET)
Fri 10:00 am - 1:00 pm (Golf Channel)
Sat 8:30 am - 11:30 am (Golf Channel)
Sun 8:30 am - 11:30 am (Golf Channel)