Harry Price calls his shot, closing in on Governor’s Cup final

Heading into Friday’s action of the 52nd annual Governor’s Cup, the question was not who would be in the semifinals, but which competitor would earn the right to call their shot.

Skipper Harry Price of the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia came out on top after the double round robin, earning 18.5 points out of a possible 22. World Sailing’s No. 1 open match racer made a bold move in choosing to take on the defending Governor’s Cup champion in Christophe Killian, sailing for the College of Charleston Yacht Club, in the semifinals.

The storyline of their semifinals matchup is that only one will move on to the finals on Saturday. Price and Killian, a Corona del Mar High graduate, came into the week seeking to become the 11th two-time winner of the event.

A factor in Price’s decision-making process was that Killian arrived at this year’s Governor’s Cup, put on by the Balboa Yacht Club, with two new crew members in his brother, Porter Killian, and Jeffrey Petersen.

Price trailed for the lion’s share of the first leg of the best-of-five semifinal, but as they approached on the right side of the finishing pin, Price just managed to slip in front of Christophe Killian to steal the opening race.

“In the end, it was probably only by a whisker that we crossed through in front,” Price said. “For us to come from that far behind and win, we’ve got big confidence going into tomorrow.”

The second leg saw Price open a 2-0 lead in the semifinal, a commanding lead going into the final day.

“Our goal was to get top four, and we did,” Killian said. “We’re as happy as we could be now. Obviously, we’d be happier if we won, but we’re content with the top four.

“I’m pretty sure that Harry picked me because he knows that we’re pretty even when I have my other crew, and with a new crew, he thinks that he has a little bit of an upper-hand on me, and it looks like it.”

Killian added that he wanted to help his new crew get better at match racing before they go off to college. Porter Killian plans to sail at the University of Pennsylvania.

The Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron’s Leonard Takahashi and Del Rey Yacht Club’s Christopher Weis squared off in the other semifinal. Weis opened their series with a win, but Takahashi struck back in the second race.

“It’s good that we got that one,” Takahashi said. “It’s very relieving because it’s not the best feeling, going into the last day two-nil down.

“I’m really happy that the guys pulled through and leveled it up. Big ups to my guys for getting the boat going fast through the tough times. I think we’re very excited to go tomorrow and win this thing.”

Potential drama at the end of the double round robin did not materialize.

Price carried just a half-point lead over Takahashi with only three flights remaining, and they were scheduled to square off in the last flight.

The winner of the double round robin earned the right to choose their opponent in the semifinals, but an early setback for Takahashi allowed Price to build an insurmountable lead.

Will Boulden of Australia’s Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club beat Takahashi in the first match of the day, allowing Price to clinch the top spot in round-robin action with wins against Great Britain’s Matt Whitfield and Boulden.

Takahashi said the early defeat on Friday did not shake his team’s confidence, and he remains focused on trying to take his first Governor’s Cup title in four career starts. He finished as the runner-up to Christophe Killian last year after taking out Price in the semifinals.

After racing concluded for the day, Price conveyed that last year’s competition is still fresh in his memory.

“We’re just hoping to progress and meet [Takahashi] in the finals,” Price said. “[We would] like to get some revenge on last year on a big stage.”

andrew.turner@latimes.com

Twitter: @ProfessorTurner