In the 25 years that Art Perry has been the boys golf coach at Estancia he has sent kids off to play in college alongside Jim Furyk and Tiger Woods, who both eventually became FedEx Cup champions, so he has seen his share of talent come through the school over the years.
But a senior that Perry has on his team this season, he said is best golfer that he has ever had tee it up the Eagles. And on Tuesday, Perry watched him win his third consecutive Orange Coast League Championship.
Jake Knapp won the 36-hole tournament here at Skylinks Golf Course by 11 strokes after posting a 7-under 65 in the final round to finish with a 13-under 131. J.T. Cruse from Calvary Chapel carded a final-round 67 to finish second with a 2-under 142.
“What makes him better is nothing seems to bother him on the course, and none of the players that I have had before played in as many tournaments around the country as he (Knapp) has,” Perry said. “Because of the equipment that we have now, he is so much longer than those other players (that he had in the past), too. I would have to say that Jake rates No. 1.”
On Tuesday, Knapp went out with a 6-under 30, and finished the tournament with 13 birdies and one eagle. The UCLA-bound Knapp is now a total of 27-under par since he first won the league title as a sophomore.
Had he not been bit too aggressive on the final hole of the tournament during his freshman season, he likely would have ended his career at Estancia as a four-time champ. But when playing your older brother for bragging rights, risks are often taken, and he ended up bogeying the 18th hole after landing in the water. His brother, Ryan Knapp, beat him by one stroke.
“I got too greedy,” said Knapp, whose nine-hole scoring average this season is 34.0, 2-under par. “To win three times is cool. I played well, too, so it’s not like I was out here shooting high numbers. I played well. I was happy. Senior year, just another way to send it off.”
The 65 that he posted on Tuesday, Knapp said, is the best round that he has posted at Skylinks, one that has made him the favorite to win the CIF-SS Individual Regional championship. It will be held at Skylink on May 14, and it was there in 2010 that he fired a 5-under 67 during the regional to finish one shot out of the lead.
“I know this course pretty well, and it is going to be set up pretty much the same,” said Knapp, who has at least shared medalist honors in 19 of the Eagles’ 20 matches this season. “It is kind of an advantage to have the league finals here. It would be nice to win the first stage, but I am just trying to play the best that I can. If you don’t win, you just want to make sure that you play well enough to make it to the next round.”
RESULTS
At Skylinks Golf Course, Long Beach, par 72
Top 4 advance to CIF-SS Regional
1. Jake Knapp (Estancia) 131; 2. J.T. Cruse (Calvary Chapel) 142, 3. Aaron Wood (Estancia) 147, 4. Tim Peterson (Laguna Beach) 148, 5. Dan Dimaculangan (Calvary Chapel) 149, 6. Courtland Lee (Estancia) 151, 7. Nelson Negrillo (Costa Mesa) 159, 8. Micah Hubbard (Calvary Chapel) 160, 9. Dane Nelson (Calvary Chapel) 160, 10. Chris Pawinski (Costa Mesa) 161, 11. Jake Stone (Estancia) 161, 12. Davin Ortiz (Estancia) 169
