Prep Golf : Westlake Boys Win Going Away

Yes, they were playing on their home course and, yes, they had not lost a team match there in four years. But nobody expected the Westlake High School golf team to distance the field the way it did Monday.

Westlake’s five-man team toured the construction-torn North Ranch Country Club course at 12-over-par 362, a record 26 strokes better than the nearest competitors, to win the California Interscholastic Federation-Southern California Golf Assn. team title.

“Coming in, I thought we had a 10-stroke advantage, so I thought we were in pretty good shape,” said Westlake golf Coach Lorin Maygren, who will have four of five golfers back next year. “But what a way to end a year. You couldn’t ask for more.”

In the first round, which determines the team champion, Westlake’s Mike Zambri shot 69, Jimmy Chang 71, Chris Zambri 72, Charlie Wi 73 and John Darin 77 for the 362 total. Way back, at 388, was Taft of the City Section. Carlsbad of the San Diego Section was third at 390, while Indio, which was thought to have the best chance at beating Westlake, finished sixth at 395.

The Westlake domination ran over into the individual competition, where it took the No. 1-ranked junior player in the country to break the stranglehold.

Phil Mickelson of University of San Diego High shot a 1-under-par 139 for 36 holes to win the boys’ individual title. He was a newcomer to North Ranch and beat three local players: Mike Zambri, at 142, Chris Zambri, at 143 and Chang, at 144.

“I just went out and had a good time,” said Mickelson, who opened his first round with a double-bogey on hole No. 1. “A lot of guys get out here and are worried, and try to go at the holes too hard. I just played pretty conservatively, hit irons off the tees and tried to keep the ball in bounds.”

Michele Lyford of Redlands was also off her own course. She fashioned a 1-under-par 70 to beat the field by eight strokes and win the girls’ division while paired with the diminutive Christy Erb, who won the title last year.

Erb, a junior at University of San Diego High, won the Lake Tahoe Junior Memorial at Edgewood in a playoff over Lyford three weeks ago, but had two out-of-bounds Monday and dropped six strokes to Lyford on the back nine. Erb finished in a three-way tie at 79, a stroke behind second-place Brandie Burton of Rialto Eisenhower.

“I really enjoyed playing today,” said Lyford, who will attend Stanford on a scholarship. “I was very relaxed out there today. I’d played this course before, so I had a better idea of where to hit the ball than some of the others.”

The top four finishers--Mickelson, Chris and Mike Zambri, and Chang--advance to the California State Amateur invitational high school championships June 21 at Poppy Hills near Pebble Beach. Lyford and Burton, the top two girls finishers, also advance.