AGA Vice Presidents Drew Woods (L) and Jay
Anderson (R) Present Andrew Yun with a
Kachina Trophy
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (April 18, 2009)--Andrew Yun, a 17-year-old senior from Hamilton High School, led wire-to-wire to claim his second Arizona Champions Stroke Play title in three years, posting a tournament low round of five-under 65 on Saturday for a four-day total of four-under par 276, besting Michael Wog II by eight strokes at TPC Scottsdale on the Champions Course.
Fellow Hamilton High School golf team member C.J. Kim of Chandler, the 2009 Arizona State High School champion posted a closing round one-over par 71 to finish the tournament with a four-day total of seven-over par 287 tying Nicholas Losole III of Scottsdale for third. Chris Kessler of Scottsdale, the 2006 Arizona Mid-Amateur champion was fifth with a two-day total of 10-over 290, while Ken Kellaney of Phoenix, a three-time past champion was tied for sixth with Guy Gedeon of Chandler and Darren Hupfer finishing with a four-day total of 12-over 292.
Yun, who is Stanford University bound in the fall, shot a bogey free round recording a three-under 32 on the front nine and a two-under 33 on the back nine, the lowest round of the tournament.
“My putting was the biggest difference,” he said. “The first and last rounds were great. In between, I didn’t keep my focus and my scores showed you that. My dad caddied for me today and he helped to keep me focused on each shot, staying in the moment. I didn’t let one shot get away from me. I stayed mentally focused and am very proud of that.”
Wog II, who saw his three-tournament win-streak come to an end, found himself in a bit of a déjà vu scenario from two years ago, when the duo were again paired in the final round of the Championship and Yun prevailed.
“The whole week was frustrating,” Wog II said. “I couldn’t get a lot out of my rounds and wasn’t putting very well. I was struggling with my swing at the beginning of the week, but having the chance to win today was pretty good.
“Andrew is a really solid player with a simple swing and no wasted movements. He was online all day and that is a tough combination to beat.”
Yun had control of the match the entire round, starting with a one shot lead that expanded to two on the second hole, when Wog II missed a three-footer for par. Yun followed that up by draining a 25-footer on the 174-yard par 3 third hole to increase the lead to three shots.
Both players posted birdie on the fourth hole and Wog continued his only real run by sinking a 12-footer for birdie on the fifth hole to pull within two shots. With back-to-back bogeys, Yun increased his lead to four shots and never gave Wog II a chance to get back in the match.
Ranked No. 7 nationally in the junior boys Golfweek Sagarin Rankings, Yun says it’s been a while since he went wire-to-wire to win a championship and says this title is just as sweet as his first Stroke Play championship.
“The first is always special,” he said. “This at the moment is equal to that victory. Both are equally special in magnitude.” With a second Kachina in hand, Yun left the course with his family en route to a what will surely become a victory celebration…his high school prom. Just another day of amateur golf in the Grand Canyon State.
View results for Arizona Stroke Play
ABOUT THE Arizona Stroke Play
72-holes of individual stroke play at gross. A cut to the
low 51 players + ties will be made after 36 holes. This
is an Open event. All players must have amateur status
and have an active membership with an AGA Member
Club to participate. Individuals must carry an up-to-
date handicap index not exceeding 8.0 under the Rules
of Handicapping to be eligible to participate.
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