By Ryan White
Courtesy of The Oregonian

ALOHA -- Ask a simple question, get a simple answer. Ask Scott McCarron and Brian Henninger what got them rolling on the first day of the 17th Fred Meyer Challenge, and get this: "Brian birdied the first hole," McCarron said.

You expected a treatise on the mechanisms of tournament golf?

Henninger birdied the first hole, and that sent them on their way to a 12-under par 60 on The Reserve Vineyards and Golf Club's Fought Course. They are two shots ahead of Casey Martin and Notah Begay III, three shots in front of an eclectic and demographically pleasing collection of four other teams.

"It was a fun day," McCarron said.

That is one way of describing it. Another would be by way of comparison. Last year, Henninger and McCarron finished 10th out of 12 teams after shooting a two-round total of . . . 12 under par.

So Monday was all the fun of two days rolled into one.

They shot a 30 on the front nine, and a 30 on the back. They closed out the front with birdies on Nos. 5, 6, 8 and 9. The closed out the back with birdies on Nos. 15 and 18 and an eagle on No. 16.

They would have been a bit of a surprise if not for the fact that each has been playing well.

In the last year and a half, McCarron has won once on tour and finished in the top 10 seven other times.

After struggling last year and missing the cut in four of his first five tournaments this season, Henninger is playing some of the best golf of his career.

He has shot 15 consecutive rounds of par or better, and 11 of those have been rounds in the 60s. His best finish at the Challenge is a tie for fourth teamed with Tim Herron in 1999. Henninger, who lives in Wilsonville, always has wanted to play better at the Challenge. Perhaps he has wanted it too bad.

"You can't force things playing golf," he said.

But you can go out with a good friend and have a lot of fun. And looking at the leaderboard, maybe there is something to be said for camaraderie in an individual sport.

Begay and Martin have been friends since they met at Stanford. The first question they got after their round had to do with the school's fight song.

"I don't think we've got one," Martin said. "I don't think we have a mascot, either."

The Cardinal does, of course. It's a tree, and that's why it's forgivable the golf team might not notice.

But that's beside the point. The two moved into second alone with a birdie on the 18th hole, but did their damage on the front nine, where they shot a 6-under 29.

Although Martin, a Eugene native, has struggled this year, Begay has been rounding back to the form he displayed before a back injury cost him most of last season. He won two tournaments in both 1999 and 2000.

"When this guy's on, he's going to win a lot more and soon," Martin said. "Hopefully tomorrow."

Tomorrow means today, and they will be paired with Henninger and McCarron in the final group. The Challenge's winning team splits $180,000.

Behind them are a lot of teams that could sneak up. Lost on no one was the fact that a year ago, two teams broke 60 on the final day. Fuzzy Zoeller and Jean Van de Velde, neither of whom are playing this year, shot a 57.

The group at 9 under features the oldest team in the tournament, the youngest team in the tournament, the father-son combo and two players noteworthy only in that they are both quite good.

Representing the older crowd (read the Senior PGA Tour) was the team of Tom Wargo (59 years old) and Corvallis' Bob Gilder (51 years old). An eagle on No. 16 helped them to their 63.

Courting the young vote were Matt Kuchar, 24, and Charles Howell III, 23 (who probably should have been paired with Begay to make it an even VI). This is the first Challenge for Howell and Kuchar. More than anything, they said they enjoyed the chance to see Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus. Speaking of, Jack and son Gary Nicklaus combined for a 63 and will be paired with Howell and Kuchar today.

Jack said it was the best round of golf he has played all year. Gary, who has made four cuts in 19 tournaments this season, liked the way he played, too. What went right?

"I really don't know," Gary said. "It's the first time I've found the golf course in sometime. Hopefully I'll find it again tomorrow."

Finally, there is the team of Stewart Cink and David Toms. Cink was the star of the 2000 U.S. President's Cup team and won the MCI Classic last year. Toms won three times last year, including the PGA Championship.

Behind those four teams is the pairing of David Duval and Dudley Hart. They shot an 8-under 64.

The defending champions? Not so good. Billy Andrade and Brad Faxon shot a 6-under 66, one shot better than Palmer and tournament host Peter Jacobsen. What Faxon and Andrade were doing also was pretty simple, they said. They were just angling for a big comeback today.