GOLF / STEVE ELLING : The Orient Bows to Orientation

Old age can be a terrifying thing. All that responsibility, all that emotional baggage.

Chad Wright, a grizzled codger of 17, already yearns for days gone by.

“I wish I had another year (of high school) left,” he said. “It’s kind of disappointing.”

Wright earned a trip to Japan based on his superlative performance last week in the Junior World Golf Championship at Torrey Pines Golf Course in La Jolla. The Buena High graduate tied for second at seven-under-par 281, and the top seven earned a free trip to participate next month in the third Japan Cup, against Japanese teen-agers.

Sayonara, suitcase.

Wright had to politely decline, hence his disappointment. The trip conflicts with freshman orientation week at USC, which has awarded Wright a full scholarship. As nice as a trip to Japan seems, a week at USC might cost about the same, and the school is paying the freight.

“I knew beforehand that I wasn’t going to go,” said Wright, who is playing this week in the U.S. Junior Amateur Championship at Waverley Country Club in Portland, Ore. “I want to get to school and get going. I’m excited about it.”

Yet he played as though a free trip to the Taj Mahal was the prize. Wright (5-foot-10, 140 pounds) broke par in three of his four rounds, including a sizzling four-under 68 in the third round.

Wright’s final-round 73 wasn’t as enjoyable as the first three tours of the course. He three-putted two of the first five holes and was three over after five, though he missed only one green in regulation. Still, he was able to perform magic at the par-five 18th hole.

Wright eagled the 490-yard hole over the first three days, then two-putted it for a birdie in the final round. In short, he was seven under on the hole and seven under in the tournament. He finished three shots behind Pat Perez of Cardiff, his playing partner in the last round.

A record 851 youngsters from 38 states and 33 countries competed in the tournament, considered one of the nation’s best.

Darren Angel of Northridge, who also is playing in the U.S. Junior Amateur this week, shot a 288 and tied for fifth. Angel, a junior at Granada Hills, accepted the bid to play in the Japan Cup. Woods finished fourth at 286.

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Add Orient express: For Heidi Voorhees, Japan is the Land of the Rising Sum.

Voorhees, a Notre Dame High graduate who will be a senior in the fall at USC, is touring Japan and Southeast Asia with nine other women from Pacific 10 Conference teams. Voorhees and her conference mates will play against Japanese businessmen and college golf teams from the various countries, her mother Joanie said.

Before Voorhees left on the 2 1/2-week tour--which includes stops in Taiwan, Hong Kong and South Korea--Joanie said her daughter was given the following advice from USC Coach Cathy Bright: “Be sure to take lots of presents to exchange with the Japanese businessmen. Make sure they’re nice, because some of them have salaries in six digits.”

Voorhees bought several pricey golf sweaters as gifts. That’s not all she brought along.

Voorhees, who will return Saturday and play in the U.S. Women’s Amateur Championship next month at San Diego Country Club, complained in a recent postcard that the food was raw and that the only local fare she’d eaten was bread.

Not a problem. Heidi didn’t exactly roll the dice on this count.

“She took all her own food,” Joanie said. “And her own water.”

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Lights out: Chris Zambri slammed his birdie machine from cruise control into overdrive for the home stretch. He knew a fast finish was needed. Standing on the 15th tee at Sunset Hills Country Club in Thousand Oaks last week, Zambri needed four birdies in as many holes to break the course record.

“I was just sort of cruising along,” said Zambri, who graduated from Westlake High in 1988. “That’s when I really got going.”

And then some. Zambri, 22, eagled the par-five 15th hole and knocked in birdie putts on Nos. 16 and 18 to finish with a remarkable 10-under-par 61, breaking the course record by one shot. “I don’t know what happened,” said Zambri, who graduated from USC in May. “I started making putts. You get a lot of birdie putts there because the course isn’t that long.”

Zambri broke the course record set by Brian Lamb, a former Newbury Park High and Cal State Northridge standout. Lamb is the older brother of shortstop David Lamb, who last Saturday received a $300,000 signing bonus from the Baltimore Orioles.

Zambri will play next week in the Western Amateur in Benton Harbor, Mich., then will attempt to qualify for the U.S. Amateur during a sectional tournament Aug. 9 at Redlands Country Club.

Then what? Good question. For the first time in 17 years, Zambri doesn’t have to attend school in September. “I want to be a golfer, but I don’t know if I want to necessarily be a club guy, or if I want to get a real job,” Zambri said, who added he might play on the professional Golden State Tour. “I guess I have to make a decision.”

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Ranch dressing: Debbi Koyama, a member of North Ranch Country Club in Westlake Village, was low amateur in the U.S. Women’s Open last weekend at Crooked Stick Golf Club in Carmel, Ind.

Nonetheless, she was not thrilled, even though it marked the first time she made the 36-hole cut in three attempts.

“It was OK,” Koyama said. “You have goals other than being low amateur. I was hoping for top 20 or top 25.”

Picky, picky. Koyama, who played for the UCLA women’s team that won the NCAA Division I title in 1991, fired rounds of 70-74-72-75 to finish in a tie for 26th place , 11 shots behind champion Lauri Merten.

Koyama, 25, who lives in Monrovia and served as an assistant coach at UCLA last year, “plays almost every day” at North Ranch when she’s in town. She passed up a pretty penny at the Open to maintain her amateur status--she would have won $6,894.

Her payday should come soon enough. Her last amateur event will come next month in the U.S. Women’s Amateur in San Diego.

Two weeks later, she will enroll at the LPGA qualifying school.

She says she is having second thoughts about turning pro. “If it was just up to me, I might stay an amateur,” she said. “But things are tough financially out there. It’s probably best to turn pro.”

Koyama, an All-American in 1991, has spent barrels of cash on travel and lodging to play in national events.

After a while, it’s time for the next level. “You spend thousands for prestige and experience,” Koyama said.

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Imports of import: College of the Canyons, the defending state junior college champion, has a sphere of influence that doesn’t end at the California border.

Coach Gary Peterson has received commitments from two players who reside outside the state--and one from outside the nation.

Peterson’s crop of incoming freshmen is expected to include Ryan Caress of Provo, Utah; Perry Denardo of Lancaster, Pa., and Marshall Patterson of Winnipeg, Canada.

Winnipeg? Did weather have anything to do with Patterson’s decision to head west? “That’s why he’s interested,” Peterson said.

Other incoming freshmen include Julio Cano (Kennedy High), Glen Musser (Alemany) and Ryan Schafer (Crescenta Valley).

Bryant Stover, Shane O’Brien and Chad Butler, who completed their eligibility at Canyons in the spring, plan to play in 1993-94 at Cal State Northridge, Peterson said.

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County countdown: Entries are being accepted for the Ventura County Golf Championship, scheduled for Labor Day Weekend, Sept. 4-6, at three county courses.

The tournament, which includes play in six flights, is 54 holes of stroke play with no cuts. Play will be held at Buenaventura, Olivas Park and River Ridge courses.

The fee is $105 and the entry deadline is Aug. 20. Entries should be mailed in care of the Ventura Men’s Golf Club to tournament chairman Rod Johnsen, 2410 South M St., Oxnard, Calif., 93033.