CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The whistle blew Saturday signifying the end of minicamp and Brian Kinchen was off. Racing across the football field, Carolina's backup tight end barely heard the calls of "Good Luck," and "Go get 'em" his teammates shouted at him.

Kinchen was rushing to a golf course - not just for an average round of 18 holes, but a shot at playing in the U.S. Open

Kinchen will play Tuesday in the U.S. Open regional tournament at Shadow Hawk Golf Club in Houston. If he finishes in the top two, he'll advance to play in the U.S. Open, slated for June 15-18 in Pebble Beach, Calif.

Kinchen, who was recently listed as the NFL's top golfer by Golf Digest, earned the right to compete in the regionals last month by winning a local qualifying tournament at the University Club in his hometown of Baton Rouge, La.

"I had been meaning to try to qualify for years, but I always missed the deadline," he said. "Plus my game was never really good enough that I felt comfortable doing it.

"This year is the first year I really felt real good about my golf game so I got on top of it, and I got my entry in, and it happened to be at a course that I belong to back home."

It cost $100 for Kinchen to enter, which he said was "a no-brainer." Then he shot an even-par 72 that was good enough to win the tournament.

If Kinchen makes the U.S. Open, he would be the first professional athlete from another sport to do so, said USGA media relations director Craig Smith.

"It's a goal that I feel gives you the ultimate credibility as a golfer," said Kinchen. "That article in Golf Digest, well, some will pick it up and say, 'Yeah right, just because he's a professional athlete he gets in Golf Digest.' Well, now you get some credibility behind that and people can see that you're actually a qualifier in what I consider the greatest tournament in the world."

Kinchen is one of 773 golfers nationwide vying for 88 spots in the U.S Open. There are 12 regionals across the country and 28 golfers will be at Kinchen's qualifier in Houston vying for the two spots that will advance.

It won't be easy - playing against him in Houston will be regular PGA Tour players Peter Jacobsen and David Ogrin, as well as former U.S. Amateur champion Hank Kuehne.

But he's willing to give it a shot, anyway. Since winning the qualifying tournament last month Kinchen said he's been able to think about little else.

"Last Sunday I went out before church to hit golf balls. I don't ever do that," he said. "But I was out there sweating my tail off for something that was unimaginable just a few weeks ago."

Panther's coach George Seifert, a fisherman in his spare time, said he doesn't mind Kinchen's venture into golf as long as it doesn't prevent him from reporting to camp next month.

"I don't know anything about golf, but I certainly know about hobbies so I'm all for it," Seifert said. "If he can do it and be at camp in July, I say `Go for it.' "

Seifert didn't even mind when Kinchen and three other Panthers rushed out of practice earlier this week to play a round of golf.

Kinchen didn't win that round. Backup fullback Chris Hetherington bested him, quarterback Steve Beuerlein and center Frank Garcia. Nor did he get all the attention. A camera crew on hand to film the round caught Beuerlein's double eagle on the second hole and the shot quickly overshadowed Kinchen.

"I feel kind of bad that I stole his story," Beuerlein said. "But he always takes my money out there, so I don't really feel that bad."