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FCG Western States Players Cup
Menifee Lakes Country Club (Lakes/Palms) / The Links at Summerly
Menifee, CA / Lake Elsinore, CA

The 3rd Annual Western States Players Cup, held over President’s Day Weekend, was a huge success this year. We received a record number of entries into the field and added an additional golf course for three age groups to finish their last 18-holes on. The weather was fantastic, the courses were in excellent shape and the play reflected it. We saw bunches of birdies and even some eagles scattered throughout the scorecards of all the divisions. Thank you to everyone who came out and participated this year, we hope to see you all again next year for another great event!
54-Hole Tournament: Four age divisions finished their tournament on Monday, the Boys 15-18 division played Menifee Lakes CC while all other age divisions played their final day at The Links at Summerly.
Boys 15-18 Division:
54 holes of golf were not enough to decide the Boys 15-18 division at this year’s Western States Players Cup. Jonathon Lai (Arcadia, CA) and Aaron Wise (Corona, CA), a future member of the Oregon Duck’s golf team, were forced into a playoff after Wise birdied 5 out of the last 7 holes to catch Lai, who finished the last two holes bogey, double bogey. The playoff lasted 3 holes before Lai was able to best Wise and take the title for the Boys 15-18 division. Michael Howe (Temecula, CA), who has committed to playing golf at the University of Rutgers, had a strong showing the last two days of the tournament, shooting both rounds under par. Storm Lee (Korea) and Jack Avarello (San Diego, CA) round out the top five finishers. Both players had two rounds over par the first two days, but rebounded nicely on the final day and shot under-par in order to place in the division. Avarelllo was able to win a card-off against Miguel Delgado (Novato, CA) by shooting a final round 69. Here is how the top 5 players finished in the division:

            Jonathon Lai: 74-70-69—213*
            Aaron Wise: 68-77-68—213
            Michael Howe: 74-69-71—214
            Storm Lee: 74-73-70—217
            Jack Avarello: 74-76-69—219
*Denotes winning the playoff
Girls 15-18 Division:
On her way to grabbing the title in the girls 15-18 division, Casie Cathrea (Livermoore, CA), who is committed to playing golf at Oklahoma State in the fall, made a total of 15 birdies in her three rounds at the Western States Players Cup. This is her second World Series Event victory of 2013. Shannon Oh (Carlsbad, CA) who was definition of consistency this tournament had thre rounds at even par 72. Nastasia Kossacky (San Diego, CA) and Na Hye Go (Oceanside, CA) finished in a tie for third, which was broken by a card-off that Hye Go won thanks to her 73 in the final round. Sasha Banks (Rancho Santa Fe, CA) finished the tournament with a solid even par round and was able to take the fifth place position. Here are the three-day scores for the division:
            Casie Cathrea: 73-69-69—211
            Shannon Oh: 72-72-72—216
            Nastasia Kossacky: 74-69-76—219
            Na Hye Go: 75-71-73—219
            Sasha Banks: 73-78-72—223
Girls 13-14 Division:
Jee Hyun Ahn (Korea) and Hae Ran Ryu (Korea), who are no strangers to winning FCG events lately were again at the top of the Girls 13-14 leader board. Wave Whiston (San Diego, CA) and Vera Markevich (La Quinta) were tied after the three days and Whiston won a third place finish after a card-off which is determined by the low round of the third day. Alli Kim (Murrieta, CA) was able to round out the top five finishers thanks to a strong first day score and a solid final round score at The Links at Summerly. Here is the scoring breakdown of the Girls 13-14 division:
            Jee Hyun Ahn: 78-77-73—228
            Hae Ran Ryu: 75-81-77—233
            Wave Whiston: 79-79-76—234
            Vera Markevich: 74-84-76—234
            Alli Kim: 74-84-79—237
Boys 13-14 Division:
With a three-way tie for second and a tie for fifth, it is safe to say that this was the most closely contested division in the tournament. Gyu Min Lee (Korea) however had first place all to himself, after three solid rounds, he was able to win the division by 4 shots. Cullen Plousha (Carlsbad, CA), Young Myung Jung (Korea) and Kyle Kinnane (Anaheim Hills, CA) all tied for second and had to determine their places for the entire tournament by the rounds they shot that day. Christian Lingamen (North Hills, CA) and Grant McKay (Henderson, NV) also were in a tie, but this one was for fifth place. McKay edged out Lingamen for the fifth place spot. Break down of scores:
            Gyu Min Lee: 72-73-75—220
            Cullen Plousha: 73-77-74—224
            Young Myung Jung: 74-74-76—224
            Kyle Kinnane: 75-74-75—224
            Grant McKay: 79-75-72—226
36-Hole Tournament: Three age divisions played 18-holes on the Lakes course on Saturday and Sunday
Boys 11-12 Division:
The Boys 11-12 division is always a highly competitive division and The 3rd Annual Western States Players Cup did not disappoint. All five of the top finishers were only separated between 5 shots. Jackson Rivera (Rossmoor, CA), 75-78, 153, ended up coming out on top, but it wasn’t without a tough challenge from Brendan Gonzalez (San Diego, CA), 76-79, 155, and Carter Plousha (Carlsbad, CA), 79-77, 156. None of these boys were in first or second place after day one, but thanks to some fairly low rounds by them and some slip ups by other competitors, they were able to take the top three spots in the division.
Girls 11-12 Division:
After shooting a 73 on day one of the tournament, Quynn Duong (San Jose, CA) finished the tournament at a total of 1-under par and won her division by 10-shots after a 2-under par round of 70 on the second day.  April Ranches (San Diego, CA), who was behind Karah Sanford (Escondido, CA) by 4 shots after the first day, was able to turn her game around on the second day and shave three shots off of her score in order to move into second place, finishing the tournament 78-75. Sanford settled for third place after shooting 74-84 over the two days.
Boys 9-10 Division:
Darien Zhao (San Diego, CA) was in control of the Boys 9-10 division from the start. He was 5 shots ahead after a day one 80 and added to his lead after shooting an 81 on the second day. Rei Harashima (Chula Vista, CA) and Caden Fioroni (La Jolla, CA) were both tied after day one of the Western States Players Cup, but Harashima was able to pull away and capture second place after a second day 93 compared to Fioroni’s second day 95, which was good enough for a third place finish.
18-Hole Tournament: Both the Boys 8 & Under and the Girls 8 & Under played 9-holes on the Lakes Course each day, for two days.
Boys 8 & Under Division:
This division consisted of a head-to-head match up between Kevin An (Riverside, CA) and Carson Kim (Fullerton, CA). An ended up coming out on top, but both players improved their scores over the two days, which is always an impressive feat. Kim finished 44-39 for a total of 13-over par, 83. Shooting even par on the final day, An finished his tournament 39-36 for a total of 5-over par, 75.
Girls 8 & Under Division: