Grant Wins City Title to Cap Rebirth : Prep golf: Three years after resurrecting program, the Lancers rally past Granada Hills to win the team championship.

Grant High student Tyler Cann walked into the principal’s office in 1989 and questioned authority. Albeit politely.

What happened to the golf program?

The reply was simple, really: No coach, no players, little interest. Consequently, the program folded.

Three years after the program was reinstated, the Lancers are the City Section champions.

Grant recorded a five-player total of 398 at Encino Golf Course on Wednesday and finished with a 36-hole score of 802 to win the first golf title in school history.

“Without (Cann) there would be no program,” third-year Coach Howard Levine said. “He got us rolling, he’s responsible for the whole thing.”

Led by Josh Siegel with a second-round 72, Grant charged from seven shots behind first-round leader Granada Hills to bury the Highlanders, who finished second at 397-420--817. Defending champion Taft rebounded from a bad first round to place third at 413-405--818.

Grant and Granada Hills advance to the Southern California Golf Assn. championships June 10 at Marbella Country Club in San Juan Capistrano.

Young Nam of Marshall defended his individual title, rolling to a two-under 70 in the second round to finish at 143, one over par. Nam, a senior, held off the persistent challenge of runner-up Aki Amaya of Birmingham (70-75--145).

Trailing Amaya by three shots after the first round, Nam shot 35 on the front nine and took the lead for good with a birdie on the par-four 14th, a 330-yard dogleg right. Nam cut the corner and drove the ball to within 20 yards of the green, then made a six-foot putt for birdie.

John Choi shot 78 and Cory Karpin shot 80 for Grant, the second team from the City 4-A League to win the team title.

Karpin underscores how far the once-defunct program has come: Last season, he shot a pair of 99s in the tournament.

Levine, the school’s basketball coach, was recruited to coach the golf team.

“It wasn’t hard,” Levine said. “I wasn’t doing anything in the spring except playing golf anyway.”

Sophomore Elise Kimm shot a second-round 84 for the Lancers to give her a 36-hole total of 165, four shots behind girls’ champion Leanne Wong of Eagle Rock.

Grant’s Mike Silverman also shot 84 and Cann was the team’s non-scoring sixth man.