Marissa Chow of Honolulu won the third annual Women’s California State Open by five strokes over Haley Moore of Escondido at Maderas Golf Club in Poway.
Chow, who played at Pepperdine, carded a score of 66-70—136, 8-under-par, while Moore, who scored the winning point as Arizona won the 2018 NCAA Women’s Championship and also captured a Cactus Tour event in Las Vegas last month, finished at 72-69—141.
“What’s funny is I didn’t really realize what I was shooting until I hit that back nine stretch, said Chow, who started the final round with 10 consecutive pars before making three birdies on the back nine. “I wasn’t too comfortable on the first nine, but I just let it all go on the back nine and the ball just started rolling.
“It feels amazing. There are some really good players. This is my second one as a pro and first one here, and I will always remember the first.”
Chow was a three-time All-American for the Waves, was selected 2015 West Coast Conference Player of the year, captured the 2011 Hawaii State Junior Golf Association State Championship and in May won the Texas Women’s Open.
Hannah Kim of Santa Ana shot 70-73—143 to tie for third with Megan Thothong of Dallas, who also finished at 70-73—143, while Jamie Jacob made a hole in one while totaling 76-69—145 to tie for fifth with Yoonju Shin of Irvine, who finished at 73-72—145.
Jacob aced the 15th hole from 168 yards with a 5-iron.
Jennifer Yo of Huntington Beach wound up at 78-68—146 to tie for seven with Waverly Whitson of San Diego, who totaled 73-73—146, and Kacie Komoto of Honolulu, who finished at 71-75—146.
Cara Barker of Coronado shot 77-70—147 to tie for 10th with Janelle Sua of Torrance, who wound up at 76-71—147, and Ingrid Gutierrez Nunez of Albuquerque, N.M., who came in at 71-76—147.
For complete results, visit https://scpga.bluegolf.com/bluegolf/scpga18/event/scpga18165/recap.htm?r=ea556ade-face-4459-afd1-5ac0ee08f17a.
