Posted at 11:36 a.m., Saturday, July 15, 2006
Kaua'i's Watabu wins U.S. Public Links Championship
Advertiser Staff and News Services
Kaua'i golfer Casey Watabu defeated Anthony Kim of Traverse City, Mich., 4 and 3, to capture the U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship Saturday at Bremerton, Wash., and will receive an invitation to the Masters.The 36-hole match-play final was played at Gold Mountain Golf Club. Watabu, who never trailed in the match against Kim, became the fifth player from Hawai'i to win the U.S. Public Links.
Watabu, 22, of Kapa'a, took a 1-up lead by winning the par-3 fifth hole with a par. On the back nine, he won the 12th, 13th, 16th and 18th holes to go 5-up.
Wins on the 19th and 20th holes gave Watabu a 7-up lead, but Kim then began to chip away. Kim won the 22nd, 24th and 25th holes to cut the lead to 4-up. It remained that way until Watabu's birdie on the par-5 29th hole gave him a 5-up lead. The players halved the next two holes to take the match dormie with Watabu 5-up with five holes remaining.
After Kim won the 32nd hole to close to 4-up, the players halved the 33rd hole, the par-4 15th, to give Watabu the victory.
The U.S. Publinx winner receives an invitation to the Masters as long as the player remains an amateur. The 2007 Masters is scheduled for Aug. 5 to 8 at Augusta (Ga.) National Golf Club.
Other Hawai'i golfers who won the U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship are Charles Barenaba Jr. (1974), Randy Barenaba (1975), Dean Prince (1978) and Guy Yamamoto (1994).
Watabu, a recent University of Nevada graduate, defeated Tim Feenstra of Lynden, Wash., on the 20th hole yesterday to advance to the final. Kim, an All-America golfer from the University of Oklahoma, defeated Kevin Larsen of Santa Barbara, Calif., 6 and 5.
A total of 4,739 golfers entered this year's championship; 155 advanced to play at Bremerton. After two rounds of stroke play, the top 64 golfers advanced to match play.
Watabu was playing in his third U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship. He missed the cut in stroke play in 2000 and 2004. He won the 2006 NCAA West Regional individual title as a senior at Nevada.
The U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship is one of 13 national championships conducted each year by the United States Golf Association.
Last month, Kimberly Kim, a former Hilo resident, was runner-up in the U.S. Women's Amateur Public Links at Pueblo, Colo.
