Delsing Shows No Fear in a 67 : Golf: Former UCLA standout thinking less and enjoying it more as he goes for first victory.

Jay Delsing, a 30-something who has never won in 10 years on the PGA Tour, has it figured out. He believes he knows why he has never done better than a distant second in the New England Classic, an event the week after the British Open. He says he realizes why he’s the least celebrated alumnus of a UCLA golf team that featured Corey Pavin, Steve Pate and Duffy Waldorf.

Jay Delsing was afraid. Afraid of his talent. Afraid of his surroundings. Afraid of being afraid. He also didn’t want to kill anyone.

“I had to learn that everyone hits a snap hook or a hard slice,” Delsing said after shooting a four-under-par 67 in the first round of the L.A. Open.

“In college, we played in front of a few people, but nothing like out here on a Sunday afternoon,” Delsing said. “It can be dangerous when a shot gets away from you and goes into the crowd.”

Delsing, 33, wasn’t playing in front of a lot of people Thursday, teeing off in the first group at 7 a.m.

Delsing’s round at Riviera, three strokes behind leader Tom Purtzer’s, along with a strong showing at Pebble Beach last week, seems to indicate a shift in his success. He says he no longer is afraid and has learned how not to think, a trait that comes remarkably easy to many people.

“I’m trying to think a lot less,” Delsing said. “I just didn’t trust that my talent was enough. I was into mechanics and all of that. . . . I used to get distracted easily. (My biggest distraction was) that my head was on my shoulders. And visually, there was so much to get distracted by.

“Now, I believe that if I do my stuff, I can play with anybody.”

The “don’t think” axiom was first introduced to Jay by his father, Jim, a former major league baseball player remembered as the person who pinch-ran for Eddie Gaedel, the dwarf who had one at-bat for the St. Louis Browns.

“It’s what you tell all athletes,” Jim Delsing said from his home in St. Louis. “Don’t think, you’ll hurt the team. . . . You have to learn to relax.”

Jay’s parents saw him last year in the L.A. Open, but he didn’t make the cut. This year, the trip to California was canceled, partly because of the flood that devastated the Midwest last summer. While the Delsing homestead was a mile from the floodwaters, Jim and his wife adopted a family that did lose its home and have spent the past several months helping the family rebuild.

Most of Riviera is familiar territory for Jay. While at UCLA, the team occasionally practiced at the course. “We could practice on Thursday afternoons after 1:30,” Delsing said. “And with the number of people that play this course, it meant we never saw the last four holes.”

That can be used to explain Delsing’s final hole Thursday. He three-putted for a bogey on the 18th, a 447-yard up-the-hill monster that has an appetite for errant shots.

Then, it was a chance for him to relax. Don’t worry, be happy. He strolled into the interview room with a big smile, and when a reporter put the obligatory tape recorder in front of him, Delsing asked if he could have it. He asked a couple of times. The reporter said no. When Delsing’s microphone slowly fell to the table, he made a joke about it. “Reminds me of my 18th hole.”

From there, he was off and rolling.

“I played a really solid round of golf today,” he said. “I had a lot of opportunities for birdies, but anytime you can get around Riviera in four under, you’re satisfied.

“A few years ago, I would have been very upset about (the bogey on 18). But you have to find optimism in everything, otherwise it’ll beat you.”

Now he is hoping to beat other players. It’s something his father believes might happen.

“I think he’s got it all together,” Jim Delsing said. “We think he’ll do well the entire week. We’re confident of that.”

We’ll find out more about Jay Delsing’s confidence in the next three days.