Punahou graduate Alex Ching, who just finished his freshman year at the University of San Diego, was named to the Ping All-America honorable mention team by the Golf Coaches Association of America. There were 10 players named to each of the first, second and third teams, and Ching was one of 33 players to be named honorable mention.

Last year Ching won the state high school championship in his only year of high school golf. This year he led USD to its first team appearance at the NCAA Championship. He was tied for first after two rounds and finished 13th after shooting 70-68-76. USD was 13 out of 30 teams.
“I’m very proud of Alex and the season he had,” said USD head coach Tim Mickelson. “It’s nice to see that he was rewarded with All-America status for his play this year. While college golf is a team effort, Alex was instrumental in our success this year in that 37 of his 38 rounds were counted towards the team score. That is outstanding for any player, and quite remarkable for a freshman to have that type of impact. The sky’s the limit for him.”
Ching, the 2009 West Coast Conference Freshman of the Year, finished with a team-best scoring average of 71.72. He becomes the Torero’s first All-American. Prior to nationals he tied for 24th at the NCAA West Regionals with a 214 total (72-69-73), and tied for 15th at the WCC Championships with a 217 finish (74-72-71).
Ching will defend his Mänoa Cup title next week at Oahu Country Club.
Chan Kim, the 2006 state high school champion for Kaimuki before moving to Arizona, earned all-West Region honors. He is an Arizona State freshman.