Pacifica resident Hazel Hooper has her place in NCGA history.
Hooper, still only 13 years old, carded a final round even-par 72 to hold off runner-up Madalyn Lee by one and win the 96th NCGA Junior Girls' Championship.
While records have been lost to time, Hooper is believed to be the youngest female champion since a Girls' division was founded in 1982. The 8th-grader-to-be is also on somewhat of a roll. Prior to arriving at Lake Merced, Hooper picked up a win at a Steph Curry Underrated Tour event in Indiana.
"I made a lot of birdies at the Underrated Tour, and I was able to carry that over to here," said Hooper, who finished the event with a 54-hole total of 2-over 218. "It's really special to be one of the youngest winners. It's really cool."
In the final round, Hooper rang up another four birdies to go against four bogeys. One of the bogeys came on the closing 18th, but Lee could only muster a par, keeping the one-shot lead safe.
In what was her NCGA Junior debut, over her 54 holes Hooper posted 10 birdies.
"The course was playing really difficult, especially with the wind. But overall, my game was really solid," Hooper said. "
Lee, a high school junior, was steady all day, carding a 1-under 71 that included a birdie on No.12. She just never was able to gain any more ground, posting 17 pars.
Caroline Gao finished in third place at 225 after a final round 75.
Kailer Stone joined rare company when it comes to the prestigious NCGA Junior Championship.
Stone, a 17-year-old high school senior who has already committed to Pepperdine University, slipped to a final round 73 but it didn't even matter, as the Alameda resident waltzed his way to a seven-shot victory at Lake Merced GC.
With the victory, Stone became only the third player in event history to go back-to-back, joining Tom Johnson (1999-98) and Eddie Fry, who won three straight titles from 1941-43. At last year's event at The Club at Ruby Hill, Stone set a championship record by finishing with a total score of 16-under par.
"It's an honor to be a repeat champion. It's a great feeling," said Stone, who came in with a 54-hole total of 6-under 210.
While he fell backward a bit in the final round, Stone in the first two rounds was again on fire. Over his 36 holes in the first and second rounds, he'd post eight birdies and an eagle to grab a commanding six-shot lead.
"It's tough to have a big lead because you can get distracted at times. After a sort of rocky start, I sort of settled in and just focused on myself," Stone said. "I didn't think about the lead I had. I just played my game."
Along with his putting, Stone also credited maintenance as one of the keys to his victory.
"I'm excited for the rest of the season that is coming," Stone said.
Richard Ding and Pranit Gupta tied for second at 1-over par 217 after final rounds of 74 and 70, respectively. Gupta earned the second place medal after a card-off (lower round of the day).
