ROGERS — A top class of LPGA Tour rookies, including Michelle Wie and Stacy Lewis, are expected to compete at the P&G Beauty NW Arkansas Championship presented by John Q. Hammons, September 7-13. Jiyai Shin, the 2008 RICOH Women’s British Open champion and the current leader in the Rolex Rookie of the Year race, will also make her Arkansas debut.

On Friday, while standing near the No. 10 tee watching Stacy Lewis begin the back nine of her first round, Morning News photographer William Moore caught me looking like an idiot. I was basically imitating the professional golfers with my “air” swing.

I can just imagine it now: “Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to the No. 10 hole of the P&G beauty NW Arkansas Championship. Please welcome to the tee box professional Nathan Allen!” Except, instead of receiving an applause for my introduction, I’d probably get booed.

I’ll be the first to admit, I’m not a very good golfer, but I often like to think I am. Anyway, I guess I better get back to work.

Officially, Saturday’s delay was 1 hour, 38 minutes long, and as of 11:15 a.m., players are back on the course trying to finish the first round of play.

The second round will officially begin at 11:30 p.m. with the pairing of Jimin Kang, Kristy McPherson and Angela Park at No. 1.

— NATHAN ALLEN

Welcome to the Saturday edition of the P&G beauty NW Arkansas Championship, where it’s pretty much the same ol’ story.

Play began, as scheduled, at 6:45 a.m. this morning, but was postponed at 9:20 a.m. when it began to rain. LPGA officials pulled all players off the course and they’re now sitting in the clubhouse waiting to go back out.

However, the problem is that the Pinnacle Hills area is expected to get more rainfall within the next 30 minutes or so. As of right now, the players are fixing to go back out on the course, and if the rainfall becomes too heavy, they’ll be pulled off again with another delay.

It seems that no matter how hard this tournament tries, it just can’t get the cooperative weather it wants to get this first round in. As of right now, there are still players trying to complete their first round of play.

Kristy McPherson, who birdied her first four holes yesterday, has since moved to 8-under, tying her for first place with Seon Lee. Stayed tuned for more news and information, we’ll try to keep you updated.

— NATHAN ALLEN

So, the P&G beauty NW Arkansas Classic got underway right at 12:15 p.m. today with Stacy Lewis’ group at the No. 1 hole. Roughly 200 people lined both sides of the fairway to watch her tee off and about 200 to 300 have followed her throughout her entire round.

As of 4:20 p.m., Lewis is 3-under through 15 holes. Currently leading is Il Mi Chung, who had an eagle on No. 2. She hit a pitching wedge from 111 yards out and the ball went in the hole to move her to 5-under.

As for the weather, it’s hot and humid outside. A lot of people are walking around the course with water bottles and towels. No more weather is expected today, but that could change tomorrow as there are some slight chances of rain.

Stay tuned for more information. If you want the most up-to-date scores, check the LPGA’s Web site.

— NATHAN ALLEN

Just when everybody thought the tournament was going to start at 10:15 (3 hours after the original start time), it was just announced that the tournament won’t begin until 12:15.

Most of the players are just sitting around the clubhouse, slumped around in chairs and eating a late breakfast. Almost all of them also have a frustrated look on their face.

Apparently, the course is just too wet at this point and everybody is sitting around waiting on things to dry out as much as possible. The sand bunkers are being worked on, along with delicate areas around the greens.

Driving into Pinnacle Hills, it’s evident to see how much rain this area received overnight and this morning. The small creek that runs along the back nine has flowing very heavily and the pond surrounding the 15th green is extremely high. In fact, water is touching the bridge used to walk to the 15th green.

We’ll keep you updated on the latest news and information from today’s first round.

— NATHAN ALLEN

The LPGA has announced what time play will get underway for the first round of the P&G Beauty NW Arkansas Championship at Pinnacle Country Club. We will begin at 10:15. Three hours after original plans.

I just took a quick stroll around part of the course and there is water everywhere. In fact, a river is running through parts of the course. But the tournament directors are confident it will drain quick enough and things will be in good enough shape to begin at 10:15. Hopefully things will hold up.

Either way, the three-hour delay means it will be very, very difficult to get play completed today. Not sure what it means for the concert and other festivities going on later tonight. But there is one thing we do know for spectators: Parking has been moved to Rogers High School. So divert your plans there.

Once again, we’ll let you know what’s going on as we hear it.

It is 8:15 and the LPGA still hasn’t announced the new plans for tee times.

But I am hearing now that an official decision should be made at 8:30.

A lot of the players have been sitting in the clubhouse waiting for news, including Stacy Lewis. She’s been slumped in a chair for much of the past hour.

I’m heading out to the course to see what things look like. I’ll let you know what I hear something definitive.

— Robbie Neiswanger

There’s good news and bad news out here at Pinnacle this morning.

The good: The lights are back on at Pinnacle Country Club after the nasty weather caused a power outage at some point early this morning. It wasn’t much fun sitting here in the dark, but the lights, Internet connection, etc., are all up and running again.

The bad: There will be a delay in the start of play this morning. We’re not sure how long it will be, but tournament officials are expected to make a decision soon. We do know this: The first group, which includes former Hog Stacy Lewis, will not get underway at 7:15.

We’ll let you know when we hear more.

— Robbie Neiswanger

McGill Offers tips on problem that plagues estimated 50 million Americans

By Lana F. Flowers
The Morning News

ROGERS – Jill McGill began playing golf at age 9. Her nose has been running on golf courses almost as long.

“It is hard to concentrate when there’s drainage coming out,” McGill said.

She appreciated Wednesday’s weather, when the wind was low, the sun was shining and allergens were few at the Pinnacle Country Club golf course.

That’s where McGill will play today in the professional-amateur portion of the P&G Beauty NW Arkansas Championship presented by John Q. Hammons.

It’s likely that before she went to sleep Wednesday night, she took her allergy medicine.

“I take a pill every night and I have had great luck,” McGill said.

McGill, who has played golf professionally for 10 years, since she was 22, is working to raise allergy awareness with the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America.

She is one of the estimated 50 million Americans who suffer from allergies, according to the nonprofit foundation.

Common allergens include grass and tree pollen, dust mites, mold spores, pet dander and foods such as milk, nuts, wheat and shellfish, according to the foundation.

The body releases histamine to fight off allergens. It’s a process similar to fighting off a cold – including the side effects, McGill said.

“The biggest factor for me is the fatigue,” McGill said of the draggy, blah feeling she might get on a bad allergy day in the middle of 18 holes.

She has no choice about avoiding the outdoors, as she is playing or practicing on golf courses from February through November each year.

But, amateur golfers who have allergies can pick and choose their tee times to help regulate allergy symptoms.

“Avoid the courses right after they have been mowed,” when grass and weed pollen likely is stirred and airborne, McGill said.

“Play right after a rain, when everything has settled,” she said.

Allergy sufferers also should see their doctors to learn ways to manage allergy symptoms. They should tailor strategies to whether triggers are indoor or outdoor allergies, rather than blindly popping over-the-counter medications or struggling with itchy skin, watery eyes and runny noses, McGill said.

After all, it’s hard to hit the ball from the tee box to the fairway if the golfer can’t see or sneezes in the middle of the backswing.

Web Watch

• The Morning News Tournament Blog
nwablogs.com/nwagolfers

• P&G Beauty NW Arkansas Championship
www.lpganwac.com

• Asthma And Allergy Foundation Of America Challenge Your Course Campaign
www.challengeyourcourse.com

Ticket Information

• 2007 ticket purchases will be honored.
• Daily tickets: $15, valid today; $25, valid any one day, Friday-Sunday.
• Weekly grounds badge: $50, valid for weeklong access.
• Children 17 and younger are admitted free with an adult with any ticket.
Source: www.lpganwac.com

The pairings were just announced for the first two rounds of this weekend’s NW Arkansas Championship.

Here are some of the most notable pairings and their tee times:

Round 1 — Friday: Group 1, No. 1, 7:15 a.m., Paige Mackenzie, Stacy Lewis, Moira Dunn; Group 15, No. 1, 8:32 a.m., Morgan Pressel, Inbee Park, Paula Creamer; Group 25, No. 1, 8:43 a.m., JAi Miyazato, Seon Hwa Lee, Natalie Gulbis; Group 25, No. 1, 12:10 p.m., Jill McGill, In-Kyung Kim, Laura Davies; Group 34, No. 10, 12:54 p.m., Cristie Kerr, Stacy Prammanasudh, Helen Alfresson.

Round 2 — Saturday: Group 26, No. 10, 12:10 p.m., Morgan Pressel, Inbee Park, Paula Creamer; Group 36, No. 10, 1:05 p.m., Paige Mackenzie, Stacy Lewis, Moira Dunn; Group 13, No. 1, 8:21 a.m., Jackie Gallagher-Smith, Marisa Baena, Lucy Nunn.