The 2012 Tim Selinske U.S. Masters started today in Louisville, Kentucky with Tropical Storm Isaac moving closer from the Southwest threatening blustery winds, heavy rains, and flash-flooding.

Today was warm, overcast, and breezy and although the skies were threatening, the 151 players thankfully made it through day one with only a very slight sprinkle here and there.

The fifty-two Pool A players in the Pro divisions started their tournament off on 27 holes at Charlie Vettiner DGC.  Today’s scores are promising some great battles to come this weekend.  Barry Schultz had the early clubhouse lead shooting a 14 under-par 75, and was matched only by Ken Climo who shot the same.  However, right on their heels are Patrick Brown and JohnE McCray who both carded a 76 in their opening round.  To make things even more interesting, Jay Reading is only another throw back at 77, and Dan Sisk came in at 78. That leaves six players within 3 throws of the lead in the Pro Masters division.

In the Ladies Pro Masters division, Elaine King holds the lead with an 88, and Des Reading is 7 throws back at 95.

Not to be outdone by the gentlemen in the Masters division, Gregg Hosfeld leads the Grandmaster division having scored a sweet 76 of his own, only a single throw behind the Masters lead score!  This performance has him leading Johnny Sias by 6 throws and Eric VanDenberg by 8 throws.

In the Senior Grandmasters, Dr. Rick Voakes shot an 85 to lead by 5 throws over Alan Beaver and 10 throws over Charles Murphy.

Pete May is the lone player in the Pro Legends division, and with his score of 101 across the 27 holes he shot well enough to be ahead of some of the Senior Grandmasters.

The Pros in A Pool will play 18 holes tomorrow at Severin Lang DGC then return to Charlie Vettiner on Sunday for 18 holes prior to the Final 9.

The single largest division in the tournament is the Advanced Masters with forty-seven players comprising the B Pool which played 18 holes at Severin Lang this morning.  Michael Bose leads the division having shot a 55.  David Gebhardt and Dana Lanahan are two throws back tied for second place with 57s.  Billy Ray Osborn holds fourth place shooting a 58 and three players, Shelby Watt, Gary Suarez, and Kevin Willis, are tied for fifth at 59.  Four other players are tied for 8th place one throw further back at 60, so a total of eleven players are within five throws of the lead.

The C Pool played Severin Lang this afternoon and consists of fifty-two players from the Advanced divisions of Grandmaster, Senior Grandmaster, and Legends for the Men and the Advanced Masters for the Ladies. The Ladies Advanced Masters has only two competitors but this could be an interesting race as Jennifer Brooks shot a 76 and Dawn Osborn shot a 77.  The lone Advanced Legends player, Mark Robinson, is keeping the ladies company on the course and he shot a very respectable 85 on the afternoon round.

The Mens Advanced Grandmasters is lead by Mark Hauser who shot a 4-under 57 on the Severin Lang course this afternoon to lead by two throws over George Bodiroga who shot a 59.  Eric Blum is in third another throw back at 60 and Ron Robertson holds fourth place at 61.  David Hevia and Mark Ross are tied for fifth having shot 62s.  Four more players are only another throw back at 63, so this division is pretty tight with ten players within 6 throws of the lead.

But not as tight as the Advanced Senior Grandmasters – William Griffith, Phil Bryan, and Mark Whipple all shot 63s to share the lead.  Mike Wulbecker is only a single throw back at 64, and Don Parker and Dennis Rebman are tied for fifth place at 66, only three throws behind the three leaders.  This will be another division to watch.

Both the B and C Pools will play 27 holes at Vettiner on Saturday, with the B Pool returning to Severin Lang on Sunday while the C Pool will play Iroquois DGC on Sunday.

There are a lot of U.S. Masters battles to track, so keep an eye on www.pdga.com to learn what is happening here in Louisville, KY.  It remains to be seen how the rest of the weekend will turn out weather-wise, but all the indicators are that the bad weather is going to be a matter of when, not if.  Many of the players in the 2012 Tim Selinske U.S. Masters are veterans (note the number of World Champions and Hall of Famers playing) who have seen and experienced it all and some of the disc golf battles may be determined by those players who can most successfully battle not only their competition, but the remnants of Hurricane Isaac as well.