CdM star has Su-preme effort

HUNTINGTON BEACH ? Like every golfer David Su has faced his share of tribulations on the course.

Monday presented something unique and at the CIF Southern Boys’ Individual Regional it could not have come at a worse time. Playing to keep his season alive, the Corona del Mar High junior hit his tee shot on the 16th hole to a less-than-ideal spot.

Workers were trimming trees ? branches continued to fall all around ? in the area Su’s ball landed. Confusion ensued. A nearby coach said it was a lost ball, Su would be penalized two strokes and have to tee off again.

Su held firm to his composure. He had learned from last season’s experience at the same event. Su bogeyed the hole, but went on to birdie No. 18 with a 30-foot uphill putt to finish with a one-over-par 73 at SeaCliff Country Club and advance to the Southern Section Boys Individual Championship Tournament May 22. The top 24 scores among Monday’s 78 participants advanced.

Su finished tied for fourth.

“I was just trying to get it close,” Su said of his final putt which he plucked from the hole with a bright smile.

It was a different feeling than when he finished the tournament last season. With two holes left, Su held a score that would have qualified. He thought he needed to get a couple strokes lower and so he played aggressively. He missed advancing by three strokes.

“Sometimes I try too hard,” he said. “Now I take it shot by shot. I’m patient.”

Patience is what allowed him to maintain his focus through the incident on No. 16. His ball was later found sitting on the machine to elevate the workers into the trees. After the round CIF officials said he was allowed a drop two club lengths from the area with no penalty. Su was penalized one stroke instead of two.

Sea Kings Coach Mike Starkweather was pleased the ruling did not affect Su moving on.

“It’s very rewarding,” said Starkweather, who witnessed the incident. “He kept his composure. When a situation like that arises you can get tight in the head, so tight you can lose your focus. He’s growing up. Patience is a virtue in golf. He was determined to go on.”

Su had four birdies, the highlight on the 196-yard, par-three No. 3. He stuck his tee shot a foot from the hole. Su said it helped that he was playing in a threesome with two high caliber golfers, both headed to the USC on golf scholarships.

“It makes a difference when you have someone to be competitive with,” Su said. “I wanted to make it and move on.”

The individual finals will be played at Canyon Country Club in Palm Springs. No CdM golfer has advanced to the state championship. Su is competing in the Orange Country Championships at Strawberry Farms over the weekend.

Starkweather would like Su to find time to play practice rounds at Canyon to get adjusted to the heat, the desert climate that allows the ball to fly farther, and the Bermuda greens, which are different from the Poa greens Su normally plays on.

“We’re very excited for next week,” Starkweather said. “He’s just got to take care of business. He can’t project past that tournament. He has to focus.”

The top 28 golfers from the section championships advance to the state final June 1.

Newport Harbor’s Bryce Greely decided before Monday’s round he would use a new set of clubs. Coach Scott Tarnow attempted to convince him otherwise. The junior played on, bogeyed the first three holes and shot 77.

“I played terrible,” Greely said as he sweated out the final score postings to see if he could land in a tie for a playoff to advance. “It’s the worst I’ve played all year.”

Greely missed the playoff by a single stroke. Tarnow said his top golfer had learned his lesson and the pair proclaimed that next season would be different.

“The switch didn’t work for me,” said Greely, who birdied the final hole. “I easily could have shot a 74.”