Kim paces Stevenson's dominant effort
Angelina Kim's mother loaned her daughter her 5-hybrid last year.
It has yet to be returned.
Kim, a senior at Stevenson's, used the 5-hybrid to set up a birdie at the par-3, 13th at Countryside Golf Club during Wednesday's IHSA Regional Tournament. Kim's 5-over-par 77 earned her medalist honors by 1 stroke over senior teammate Kaitlin Garske and Libertyville senior Ashley Falasz.
Kim's play punctuated Stevenson's tour de force performance. The Patriots fired a 333, good for a 50-stroke margin over second place Lake Forest. Libertyville was the third team to advance. Libertyville and Vernon Hills each shot 385, but the Wildcats won the tiebreaker since their fifth score was lower than the Cougars. In addition, the top eight individuals not on a qualifying team also advance to the sectional tournament.
This was the first time in school history Stevenson has won a regional, and it also marked the first time it has featured the individual champion.
Kim said she used her 5-hybrid as much as possible.
"I rely on that club a lot," she said. "It's my favorite."
After an opening 41, Kim used a deft short game to close with 36.
"I was really good at getting it up and down," she said.
Key for Kim was staying patient on the front nine when the wind and some precipitation made scoring especially challenging. A good example was the way she accepted her fate at the par-5 sixth, which played dead into the wind.
"It was really a par-6," she said with a smile. "None of us could reach it in three shots."
Kim, who won the sectional tournament as a sophomore, is no stranger to winning big tournaments. The same is true for Garske, who was medalist at last week's NSC tournament.
"The competition between Angelina and Kaitlin is closer than the race between McCain and Obama," Stevenson coach Andrew Conneen said.
Stevenson also received stellar play from senior Alex Kessler (83) and junior Sylvia Suh (95).
Since Stevenson won so easily and it was clear Lake Forest would be at least second, all the team drama boiled down to the third spot. The outcome wasn't decided until more than two hours after the first group had posted their score. Carmel (386) almost overtook Libertyville and Vernon Hills, but fell 1 stroke short.
"All you could do was wait," Libertyville coach Billy Pitcher said.
Falasz (78), Marilyn Stone (100), Annie Kreitman (102) and Athena Cocallas (105) had the four best scores for Libertyville.
"Ashley has been carrying us all season," Pitcher said.
On Tuesday, Pitcher shared with his team some advice from the book "Golf is not a game of Perfect.
"Golf is a game of confidence and you have to trust your swing," Falasz said.
The individual qualifiers were Vernon Hills' Kirsten Groody (83), Lakes' Abbie Horan (84), Warren's Lauren Patnoe (89), Carmel's Shannon Howell (89), Vernon Hills' Erin Christensen (90), Johnsburg's Ashley Smith (92), Carmel's Michelle Markiewiez (92) and Lake Zurich's Alexa Haider (94).
Horan finished an up-and-down round with a birdie.
"I was feeling good about my game, but I never got anything going," she said.
Patnoe picked an opportune time to shoot her lowest competitive score. Her highlight came early in the round.
"I chipped in for par and I've never done that before," she said.
Even a four-putt at the seventh hole did not get her down.
"I was really (determined) not to let one bad hole get me down," she said.
Christensen played a smart shot at the par-3 seventh to save par. Faced with wet sand in a greenside bunker, her explosion shot came to rest seven feet from the stick.
"I'm really excied to go one step farther than I did last year," she said.
Much of Haider's improved play this season comes courtesy of her Taylor Made r7 driver. Last year, she hit a 5-wood off the tee.
"I finally found one that worked for me," she said.