A new women's course record in the third round propelled Port Coquitlam's Anica Yoo to victory at the B.C. junior girls golf championship last week at Osoyoos Golf and Country Club.
Yoo, 18, fired a sizzling 65 on Thursday and closed out play Friday with a four-under-par 68 to claim the crown by four strokes over Surrey's Taylor Kim, her 17-year-old Team Canada development squad partner, in the 24-shooter field.
After trading birdies with bogeys on the first six holes Friday, Yoo caught fire and carded four birdies over a five-hole stretch starting on the eighth.
"I struggled a bit in the beginning of the round," Yoo said. "I was able to make birdie then bogey, birdie then bogey. It wasn't until the eighth hole that I got my round going."
Not only did Yoo birdie four out of five holes, she did so all on par 4's, including the third most difficult hole on the day - the 350-yard ninth. That was plenty enough cushion for Yoo, who closed our her round with five straight pars to finish with a 74-70-65-68-277 total.
Despite her brilliant third round, Yoo actually entered the final day tied with Kim, who carded a 66-74-69-72-281 aggregate.
"I was actually really nervous and scared," Yoo conceded. "My coach phoned and wished me a good round and said if I played to my targets, hit my yardages and stayed committed I would have a good round. I guess he was right.
"I wanted this so bad since I was 13 years old. I have won [provincials in] Bantam [2006] and Juvenile [2010] but never the Junior. To do this in my last year [of Junior] is amazing."
Yoo and Kim now join amateur standout and Coquitlam product Jisoo Keel, who received exemption due to a Team Canada scheduling conflict, for a trip to Calgary to compete in the Royal Canadian junior girls championship July 31 to Aug. 3.
The 2011 Canadian junior girls runner-up, Yoo said she's eager to battle against the country's best and brightest at her level.
"This is going to be the biggest competition [for me] ever," Yoo said. "B.C. will definitely be the favourite."
COQUITLAM'S KO BOYS' RUNNER-UP
Coquitlam's Kevin Ko shot a sharp two-under-par 70 on the final day but it wasn't enough to overcome Victoria's Matthew Broughton, who pulled off a two-stroke victory with a 72-72-69-70-283 four-round total.
Ko placed second in a field of 74 finishers with 68-72-75-70-285.
Still, the 16-year-old Ko will join Broughton, 18, and Richmond 16-year-old Chris Crisologo on Team BC for the junior nationals July 31 to Aug. 3 at Osprey Ridge Golf Club in Bridgewater, N.S.
Coquitlam's Henry Lee, a 13-year-old sensation, shot 71-71-72-76-290 to finish in a four-way tie for sixth.
POMO'S LINDBJERG SET FOR SENIOR RUN
Port Moody's Gudmund Lindbjerg is gunning this week for an incredible fifth straight B.C. senior men's golf title at Nanaimo Golf Club.
Lindbjerg will surely have his work cut out for him, namely in the form of popular 13-time B.C. Amateur champion Doug Roxburgh of Vancouver.
The tournament begins today and runs through Wednesday.
