Crystal Springs' Edan Cui finishes second at state golf championship

“Difficult to reach pins. It was hard to see the grain. … Nor Cal (courses) don’t typically have grainy greens. Not like here.”

That helped explain Cui’s roller-coaster start at the par-71 course southeast of Pasadena. But Cui got in a groove over the last 12 holes on his way to finishing tied for second with a 4-under 67.

“He had opportunities all day, but his putter got hot (on the back 9) and he was, mentally, in the zone,” Klemm said.

Playing partner Willie Walsh, a junior from Serra, finished in a five-way tie for 20th place with a 2-over 73.

“I was battling, all day, with ball striking,” Walsh said. “I didn’t hit many greens and when I did, they were a long way away (from the cup).”

After a bumpy start with a pair of birdies to go with a pair of bogeys, Cui was even at the turn. He made three straight birdies on hole Nos. 11, 12 and 13 to move into contention, moving him two shots back of leader and eventual champion Brandon Knight of Foothill-Pleasanton, who finished with a 5-under 66.

Klemm said it was Cui’s birdie at 13 that really got him into the championship mix. A 539-yard par-5, Cui split the fairway off the tee and, in an unusual move, hit his second shot with his driver as well.

“It’s a rarity anyone can hit (that shot) well. To get it anywhere near the sweet spot is nearly impossible,” Klemm said.

He reached the green and barely missed an eagle putt, settling for a birdie and sitting at 3-under, two shots back with five holes to play.

Pars came on 14 and 15 before Cui birdied the par-4, 415-yard 16th, draining a putt from the fringe to move to 4-under.

Cui scrambled for a par on the 17th to give himself a chance on 18.

“17 was his first errant drive,” Klemm said.

He said Cui’s drive went way right, nearly out of bounds. Cui was in play but faced a tough task of blasting out of the rough and through the trees. Stamm said Cui went with a 2-iron and smoked a low stinger out of the rough and under the tree branches that was destined for the green.

But instead it caught the lip of a bunker.

Instead of putting for birdie a share of the lead, Cui had to scramble for an up and down.

Which he did.

“Nobody wants a 50-yard bunker shot,” Klemm said. “He hit it to 15 feet and drained it for par.”

Cui closed with a par on 18 to wrap up the best round from a Peninsula athlete since Menlo School’s Max Ting also finished in a tie for second in the 2018 championship round.

Cui opened with a birdie on the par-4, 289-yard first hole, but went bogey-par-bogey on holes Nos. 3, 4 and 5. A birdie at the par-4, 356-yard sixth had Cui even.

From there, he stabilized. He closed out the final three holes on the front with three straight pars to be even going out.

“He was playing well,” Klemm said. “You just don’t know when your opportunities are going to come.”

Walsh, conversely, got off to a better start, with pars on the first three holes. He birdied the par-5 fourth and followed that with three more pars before a bogey at the par-4 eighth dropped him to even at the turn.

Unfortunately for Walsh, he could not get off the par train. Starting at No. 9, Walsh parred the next seven holes. Back-to-back bogeys and 16 and 17 took away any hope of a miracle finish.

“I got off to a good start,” Walsh said. “After that, I didn’t have any birdie looks inside 10 feet.”

A seasoned junior tournament player who will play in a three-round event beginning Friday in San Jose, Walsh said a tournament of one round puts the pressure on players to be good all day long.

“The one-dayers are tough because you need some birdies,” Walsh said. “Even though it is a one-day tournament, (the state title) is something I wanted to win very bad. Not just for me, but to bring a state championship back to the school.”

Cui and Walsh had a very similar path this season. Both won their league championships, with Cui taking the West Bay Athletic League title and Walsh winning the West Catholic Athletic League crown. Walsh went on to finish second at the Central Coast Section tournament, with Cui right behind in third as both qualified for the Northern California regional round. The pair then tied for fifth in the Nor Cal regional to qualify for the state championship round.

Editor's note: This article has been updated to correct the name of Crystal Springs golf coach Brian Klemm.