Jun 26, 2008

Is third time the charm?

Ex-Carlmont golfer back in U.S. Open

By John Reid / Daily News Staff Writer

Playing in the U.S. Women's Open is becoming old hat for Joanne Lee, a Carlmont-Belmont grad of '07. Lee, in her third Open, tees off at Interlachen Country Club in Edina, Minn., today at 2:09 p.m. Lee has yet to make the cut in her first two tries, but she has high hopes of playing on Saturday this time around.

"I have higher expectations," Lee said. "I've been working hard on my game. I'll be nervous, but not as nervous as the first time I played in the U.S. Open."

Interlachen CC, a par 73, is 6,789 yards long.

"Interlachen has its challenges," said Lee, who has had three practice rounds on the course this week. "It has a wide range of holes, short and long. The greens are small and have a lot of breaks. The ball falls off to the side, so my approach and short game are going to be critical."

Lee will have both her parents watching her in Edina. She also brought a friend out to caddy for her.

"It's great having the support out here," she said.

Lee will be one of seven players with the last name of "Lee" in the tournament. There are eight players with the last name of "Kim."

"They put our full name on the caddy's bag," Lee said. "That avoids confusion."

Lee, who got an exemption into sectionals, qualified for the U.S. Open by shooting a 79-70 at Rancho Santa Fe Golf Club in San Diego. She chipped in on three occasions.

Lee made her mark at Carlmont, winning three Central Coast Section titles from 2003-05, one of two players to ever win three CCS girls golf crowns. Lee was the state champion and NorCal runner-up in 2004.

Lee's college choice was USC, and she played for the NCAA champion Trojans this past season. But Lee wasn't happy at the school and has since transferred to Cal, where she'll have to sit out the 2008-09 season.

"I wanted to be closer to home," said Lee, who has not declared a major. "My choices out of high school were Cal and USC, but USC wasn't quite the best fit for me. I'll be able to focus on golf at Cal."

Lee plans on playing in the U.S. Women's Amateur Aug. 7-10 at the Eugene Country Club in Oregon.



E-mail John Reid at jreid@dailynewsgroup.com.