LANIKAI — After blowing by Allisen Corpuz to win her third Jennie K. Wilson Invitational in four years yesterday, Kristina Merkle consoled the 11-year-old by recalling Corpuz's exploits of five hours earlier.

"I wish I could start like you," Merkle said sincerely. "Birdie, birdie, birdie."

Corpuz looked up at the Moanalua High School senior with huge, sad eyes.

"I want to end like you," she said with the utter honesty of a fifth-grader.

It took 51 holes, but Merkle finally chased down Corpuz at drizzly Mid-Pacific Country Club. Once she caught her, Merkle and her maturity poured it on with two birdies on the final four holes. After making the turn in 1-over and down four shots to the latest, greatest, youngest Hawai'i golf prodigy, Merkle closed with a 1-under 71 to finish at 2-under 214 for a four-shot victory.

Her flourish came on the final hole. She followed in an 8-foot birdie putt with a fist pump on the same green where she missed a 4-footer last year that would have put her in a playoff with Xyra Suyetsugu.

"Knowing I missed that 4-footer on the last hole last year to go to a playoff and defend my title ... I didn't want to lose again," said Merkle, well aware of Jennie K's prestige. "I don't like the feeling of losing. Nobody does, but especially senior year. I don't know if I can come back after college. I wanted to end my senior year right."

The daughter of Nagorski pro Lou Merkle turns 18 next month and heads for Tulsa's storied golf team in the fall. In the Jennie K's 59th year, she became only the fifth three-time champion, after Anna Umemura in the late 1990's and Hawai'i Golf Hall of Famers Tura Kahaleanu Nagatoshi, Jackie Yates Holt and Joan Damon, who won six times between 1957 and '66.

As a fairly major footnote to Merkle getting her hat trick at the first Hawai'i women's major of the year, she recently won her second state high school championship. Her wins at Mid-Pac have been memorable: By five shots over 12-year-old Kyung Kim in 2006, by 13 over everybody a year later and finally yesterday's test of time.

She and Corpuz went into the final round tied, but the 2008 Optimist International and 2007 U.S. Kids World 10-under champion came out smokin', birdieing the first three holes from inside 10 feet and adding another at No. 6.

"I was playing great, all my putts were falling," Corpuz said. "And then I just fell apart."

At that point, she was five up on Merkle and no one else could keep up.

Merkle's caddie, Todd Nacapuy, told her to focus on closing the gap "by one or two" by the turn, knowing Merkle's aggressive game was groomed for Mid-Pac's back nine. He also reminded her to breathe through her nose to stay calm. She did the rest, with her father's words — "Knock the Flag Down" — written on her wrist.

The key holes became Nos. 14 and 15, but Merkle started her surge with a brilliant approach shot to the 10th. From 108 yards out, she told Nacapuy "watch this" and lofted the ball precisely 108, getting it to roll up the slope and back down to 4 feet of the pin.

Corpuz's tiny wheels — she has grown some 6 inches the last two years and is now 5 feet 4 — began to come off as she came to the turn. She bogeyed Nos. 9, 11 and 12, but came up with a huge birdie putt on the 13th and still led by three.

On the next hole, her tee shot released through the green. Her first putt was 15 feet short and her second 5 feet by. She missed that for double bogey. When a desperation 25-footer for par on the next hole lipped out, and Merkle punched in a 3-footer for birdie, there was a new leader for the first time all week. Merkle rode her adrenalin home.

Corpuz closed with a 75 — 42 on the back — and 2-over 218 for the week. That would have tied Merkle in 2007 and beat her by three a year earlier. In fact, it would have won every Jennie K. but six. But the only positive Corpuz could come up with after her round was this:

"I've still got next year," said the girl who became the youngest to play in a USGA championship last year, breaking Michelle Wie's record.

And probably many, many years after that.

"She's an amazing player," an ebullient Merkle said. "When I grow up, I want to be like her."

Cyd Okino (76—221) was third and Interscholastic League of Honolulu champ Marissa Chow (74) caught University of Hawai'i junior Corie Hou (75) to tie for fourth at 224. Eimi Koga, 13, had the day's second-best round, a 73 that gave her a share of sixth with Britney Yada and Suyetsugu.

NOTES

Kathy Ordway (82—243) won A flight, Pong Hunter (93—267) B flight, Tina Cole (97—278) C flight, Marcia Anderson (94—279) D flight and Judy Kay Wilks (99—295) E flight.