Aidan Lee of Pasadena, Calif., completed a wire-to-wire week at the California State Fair Men's Championship, surviving a three-man playoff to capture the title.
Lee, who held the lead after each of the first two rounds, closed with a 6-under 66 to finish at 17-under 199. But his 54-hole total was matched by Kavi Marez of Carmichael and Keita Yobiko of West Covina, setting up a playoff for the championship.
It took four extra holes to decide the winner, with Lee finally breaking the deadlock with a birdie on the fourth playoff hole.
Lee began the tournament with a 7-under 65 and followed it with a 68 to take a one-shot advantage into the final round. He improved again on Sunday, but Marez and Yobiko both mounted strong challenges.
Marez, who started the day one shot behind Lee, fired a 7-under 65 to reach 17-under. Yobiko came from two shots back with the lowest round among the contenders, an 8-under 64, to make it a three-way tie.
Lee ultimately prevailed in extra holes to complete rounds of 65-68-66 and secure the championship.
Nakul Shrivastava of San Ramon also closed with a 66, finishing alone in fourth at 13-under 203, four shots outside the playoff.
Frederick Egnatios of Scottsdale, Ariz., matched Shrivastava's final-round 66 and finished fifth at 12-under 204.
The final round produced plenty of pressure at the top, with Lee, Marez and Yobiko combining to shoot 21-under on the day. In the end, Lee needed one more birdie to turn his three-day stay atop the leaderboard into the California State Fair Men's Championship title.
Round 2 report -
Aidan Lee of Pasadena, Calif., remained on top of the leaderboard after the second round of the California State Fair Men's Championship, following his opening 7-under 65 with a 4-under 68.
Lee, who recently completed his senior season at Saint Mary’s College, moved to 11-under 133 through 36 holes and will take a one-shot advantage into the final round.
Kavi Marez of Carmichael, Calif., stayed within striking distance with his second consecutive 5-under 67. Marez sits alone in second at 10-under 134, one behind Lee.
The biggest move of the second round came from Keita Yobiko of West Covina, Calif. After opening with a 70, Yobiko matched Lee's first-round score with a 7-under 65 to climb into third place at 9-under 135, just two shots off the lead.
Reese Sato of Folsom also remained firmly in contention. Sato posted consecutive rounds of 68 to reach 8-under 136, three shots behind Lee in fourth place.
Four players share fifth at 7-under 137. Nakul Shrivastava of San Ramon made the largest move among that group with a second-round 66 after opening with a 71. Cooper Greenwood, Zach Matzke and Junzhe Wang each added rounds of 68 to sit four shots off the pace.
Lee entered the championship with a one-shot advantage and will carry the same margin into the final round, but the leaderboard has tightened considerably. The top eight players are separated by only four shots with 18 holes remaining.
Round 1 report -
Aidan Lee of Pasadena set the early pace at the California State Fair Men's Championship, opening with a 7-under 65 to take a one-shot lead.
Lee, who recently completed his senior season at Saint Mary’s College in Moraga, Calif., produced the lowest score of the opening round to move ahead of a tightly packed leaderboard.
Cooper Mapes of Pleasanton is his closest challenger after a 6-under 66, while Carmichael’s Kavi Marez sits alone in third following a 5-under 67.
Seven players are three shots behind Lee after opening with matching 4-under 68s. The group includes Eddie Zhang, Maximus Choi, Jack Jarvis, Frederick Egnatios, Ty Weaver, Cameron Wei and Reese Sato.
With the top three separated by just two strokes and seven more players within three of the lead, the championship remains wide open heading into the second round.
This is a live report from the California State Fair Men's Championship. Follow along for more updates as the tournament unfolds.
