Feb. 18, 2009

LAS VEGAS - The UNLV men's golf team, which is ranked 21st in the country in the latest edition of the Golf World/Nike Golf Coaches' Poll, will be back in action, Wednesday-Friday, Feb. 18-20, as it plays in the 33rd Annual John A. Burns Intercollegiate, which will be played at Leilehua Golf Course (par 72, 6,916 yards) on Schofield Barracks, Oahu, in Wahiawa, Hawaii.

The 54-hole tournament will be played over three days, with 18 holes taking place each day. The 17-team tournament is hosted by Hawaii and also includes Arkansas, Arizona, Auburn, BYU, Colorado State, Denver, Hawaii-Hilo, New Mexico, Nevada, Reno, San Diego, San Jose State, SMU, Texas A&M, UC Santa Barbara, UNLV and UTEP.

Competing for the Rebels will be juniors Brett Kanda and Eddie Olson, sophomore Ji Moon and freshmen Derek Ernst and Colby Smith. Junior Johnny Pinjuv will be competing as an individual, which means his score won't count toward the team total.

Last year's team champion at the Burns Intercollegiate was Auburn, which finished 44-under par at 820. The individual medalist last year was California's Stephen Hale with a score of 15-under 201. UNLV finished third at last year's tournament with a 32-under 832, while Seung-Su Han was UNLV's top finisher as he placed tied for 10th at 8-under 208.

This will be UNLV's second event of the spring season, as the Rebels tied for fourth at the Arizona Intercollegiate in Tucson, Ariz., earlier this month. UNLV has finished in the top five in each of its five tournaments this season.

No live scoring on the internet will be available from the Burns Intercollegiate.