KAPALUA, Maui » About the only thing Steve Stricker hasn’t done on a golf course in the 50th state is win a PGA Tour event.

Between the Plantation Course and the Waialae Country Club he has earned nearly $3 million with more near-misses than a bad air-traffic controller. In three previous appearances here, he has two top 10s and nearly $1 million in earnings.

His streak at Waialae is even more impressive, with seven top-15 finishes in 11 starts, including solo thirds in 1996 and 2010.

In 42 rounds at Waialae, the man from Wisconsin has failed to produce a score of par or better only five times en route to nearly $2 million in earnings. On Maui, he has failed to shoot par or better only once in 15 rounds and has landed in the 60s all three times this week.

Stricker was so intent to hoist a trophy this year, he arrived with family and friends in the island chain on New Year’s Eve. Golf analyst Mark Rolfing said on the Golf Channel broadcast that he was often the only pro around, early on, sharpening his game.

It must have paid off.

Yesterday in a stiff Kona breeze, all Stricker did was go out and shoot 8-under 65 to move into a tie for first with fellow Americans Jonathan Byrd (67) and Robert Garrigus (69) at 18-under 201 on the par-73 course. Because the weather in Wisconsin and Phoenix wasn’t conducive to practice, practice, practice, Stricker made sure his game came first here before spending time with his family.

"I don’t treat it as a vacation," Stricker said. "I come over here trying to get off to a good start and I try to take advantage of this warm weather and try to get as much practice in as I can because I can’t do that at home.

"I’ve been home in Wisconsin trying to get the rust off and hit some balls. Got over here a little early and excited to be here. It’s a great place to start the year, coming over to Hawaii and we are staying over next week, also. It’s a good two-week trip."

It would be even better if Stricker could manage a victory today or a week from now to ensure a fast start to the season. Even though Stricker played well in his last two events of 2010 — Chevron and the Shark Shootout — he never takes for granted that his game will remain by his side.

"I always come into the new year with some — I don’t know if they are doubts, but you’re just not sure what’s going to happen," Stricker said. "I think always there’s some apprehension, too. You’re not sure what this new year is going to bring. I try to erase those doubts or apprehension by telling myself I’m still the same player I was at the end of the year."

Stricker is coming off another stellar season, with wins at the Northern Trust Open and John Deere Classic and $4.2 million in earnings. He was seventh on the FedEx Cup list with 2,028 points and believes getting off to a fast start in Hawaii helps take off the pressure down the road.

He also believes playing this difficult Plantation Course requires repetition. It’s tricky to learn all the nuances in one or two appearances. A good example was the wind shift yesterday that went from the normal trades to a brisk Kona breeze. If you haven’t played in it before, you might not be well versed enough to make the necessary adjustments.

"It’s a course where I think you need some repetition on it," Stricker said. "You need to learn a lot of things about this course. There’s some different things here that we don’t normally face at any other tournament. You’ve got big undulations, big downhill shots, some uphill shots, a lot of wind.

"Putting uphill is pretty slow and putting downhill is extremely fast. So a lot of different factors going on around here. I think the more times we play it around here, the better you learn going around here each time."