LA MIRADA – A knee injury and one of the biggest junior golf tournaments on the schedule prevented two of Sunny Hills’ best players from teeing off in Thursday’s Freeway League match at La Mirada Golf Course.
That allowed a freshman to show his potential.
Nick Choi, a player who Sunny Hills coach Tim Devaney described as “a project,” posted a 3-over-par 38 to help lead the Lancers to a 197-257 victory against Buena Park. He shared medalist honors with his teammate Dario Hamada. Louis Moon also broke 40 for Sunny Hills, finishing with a 39.
“He (Choi) sometimes gets in trouble because he can’t control his shots yet,” Devaney said. “but he will work on that all summer.”
Justin Kim and Junee Lee, the only two players on the 2104 roster who played in last year’s CIF State Championship, missed this match. Kim is at Longbow Golf Club in Mesa, Ariz., for the Heather Farr Classic. Lee is recovering from a meniscus injury he suffered during a snowboarding accident before the season. Devaney doesn’t want to rush him back into the lineup and has only used him twice this season.
Devaney said he expects Lee and Kim to play at Mesa Verde Country Club on Monday during the Estancia Tournament.
Lee, Davaney said, has had to limit his practice time, but Devaney said Lee is still capable of shooting in the 70s during the CIF postseason tournament season, which starts in a month.
“So he will be able to help out,” Devaney said.
