Fountain Valley freshman Vu does it again

SAN CLEMENTE – Beckman senior Kaitlin Park, a two-time state championship qualifier, couldn’t seem to get a handle on the greens Monday at Talega Golf Club.

And Elisabeth Bernabe, a former CIF-Southern Section champion, had a hard time judging the speed on her putts, too, watching more than a few birdie chances lip out.

Maybe they just had too much experience.

For the second time in a week, the same Fountain Valley freshman won a tournament. This time, Lilia Vu's 2-under-par 70 gave her the CIF-SS Individual Championship.

Bernabe and Park tied for 10th and 14th, respectively.

And just like after she won the Southern Region title on Oct. 31 with a 4-under-par 70 at Recreation Park Golf Course in Long Beach, Vu didn’t want to talk about what got her to the top of the leader board on Monday. Instead, she decided to focus on the shots that got away.

“I had some problems. I missed four birdie chances at least, and most of them were under 15 feet,” Vu said.

But on a day when only two golfers in the 92-player field finished under par, Vu managed to hole three birdies, which put her one shot clear of Megan Kim of Mira Costa of Manhattan Beach, who came in second with a 71.

“This is exciting," Vu said. I am trying my hardest. I come into each tournament having a lot of confidence, and I just try to keep it going. I played pretty decent overall. I hit some good approach shots. I just couldn’t get some putts to drop.”

Vu was among the 28 players, not already on a qualifying team, to advance to Thursday’s WSCGA So Cal Championship in Murrieta. The cut was 80, however only one player who posted that score could make it to the CIF State Championship qualifying tournament in Murrieta, and Julie Ward of West Ranch became the last player to advance after surviving a six-player sudden death playoff.

Vu was one of two freshmen to place in the top three as Brea Olinda’s Amy Lee won a two-hole playoff when she tapped in her 1-foot par putt on the par-three No. 8. She ended up in a four-way tie for third with Euna Park (Northwood), Lydia Choi (Beverly Hills) and Elizabeth Doty (Palos Verdes) after each player carded an even-par 72.

Lee was a bit surprised that she came out on top because Pak, Doty and Choi all knocked their approach shots on the first playoff hole, the 342-yard, par-4 No.1, to within 10 feet of the pin. Yet all four players ended up halving the hole with a par.

“All I try to do is stay relaxed and not put too much pressure on myself and pass through to the next round (the So Cal Championships),” Lee said. “In the playoff, I really tried. On that first hole, I told myself, ‘Ok, one of these is going to go in.’ They were so close to the hole. I thought I tied for third. At least that’s OK. Somehow I ended up winning (the playoff). Yeah, I am happy.”

She could have been in a different playoff, though, at the end of the tournament, one that decided first place, had she run into some trouble on the back nine, bogeying two of her last three holes.

Pak’s round changed on the back nine, too, but for the better. Although, it didn’t appear that way at first.

She was struggling at 3-over-par when she thought she put her tee shot on the par-5 No. 15 into the hazard. She was wrong.

Her ball was in the middle of the fairway, and she knocked her second shot onto the front of the green, leaving her with a 20-foot uphill putt. Pak drained it for an eagle. After that, she birdied two of the next four holes.

“I was just so out of it at the time because I was playing absolutely horrible,” Pak said. “I messed up the front side, and the backside was such a roller coaster. But that eagle, it really turned things around.”

Fairmont Prep freshman, Kristen Chung became the first Huskies girls golfer to advance to the So Cal championships after shooting a 79 at Talega. She qualified for the  Southern Section tournament when she won the CIF-SS Northern Individual Regional with a 67 at River Ridge Golf Course in Oxnard.

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RESULTS

At Talega Golf Club, par 72, San Clemente

1. Lilia Vu, Fountain Valley, 70; 2. Megan Kim, Mira Costa, 71; 3. Amy Lee, Brea Olinda, 72*; 4t. Lydia Choi, Beverly Hills, 72; 4t. Euna Pak, Northwood, 72; 4t. Elizabeth Doty**, Palos Verdes, 72; 7t. Anne Cheng**, Torrance, 73; 7t. Robyn Ree, Redondo, 73; 7t. Bethany Wu**, Diamond Bar, 73; 10t. Elisabeth Bernabe, Canyon, 74; 10t. Katherine Guo, Arcadia, 74; 10t. Esther Lee, Los Alamitos, 74; 10t. Katelyn Reynolds, Notre Dame, 74; 14t. Kaitlin Park, Beckman, 75; 14t. Mackenzie Raim**, Palm Desert, 75; 16t. Sophia Chen, Thousand Oaks, 75; 16t. Erin Choi, West Torrance, 76; 16t. Kimmy Hill**, Palm Desert, 76; 16t. Tracey Kim, Northwood, 76; 16t. Riley Leming, Vista Murrieta, 76; 16t. JoJo Sottile, La Reina, 76, 22t. Caroline Gariepy, Vista Murrieta, 77; 22t. Raychelle Santos, La Quinta, 77; 22t. Arielle Valdez, Notre Dame, 77; 25t. Jocelyn Chia, Crescenta Valley, 78; 25t. Diana Kim**, Torrance, 78; 25t. Katie Rice, Oxnard, 78; 25t. Morgan Salm, Cabrillo, 78

29t. Dakota Brown, Brea Olinda, 79; 29t. Kristen Chung, Fairmont Prep, 79; Kendall Dusenberry,, Hart, 79; Kathryn Newton, Notre Dame, 79; 33. Julie Ward, West Ranch, 80*

*-Won playoff

**-Member of team that already qualified for the WSCGA So Cal Championships.