Multiple Bogeys Drop Booth Into Second Place

Coto de Caza’s Kellee Booth shot eight-over-par 80 in the final round on the NCAA Women’s Golf Championship Saturday and finished second, seven strokes behind winner Marisa Baena of Arizona.

Booth, a sophomore from Arizona State who graduated from Santa Margarita, stayed with Baena for seven holes, but bogeys on eight, 10 and 11 left her scrambling to catch the freshman from Pereira, Colombia. After 13 holes on the La Quinta Resort Dunes course, Booth was five shots behind.

Booth, who had shot consecutive rounds of 74, 74 and 75, made only one birdie on the final day. She made double bogeys on the 12th and 17th holes and bogeyed five others.

Booth finished one shot ahead of UCLA’s Kathy Choi (304), followed by Janice Moodie of San Jose State and Andrea Baxter of Stanford (305). Three other golfers finished at 306.

UCLA’s Eunice Choi, who attended Laguna Hills High, had her best round of he tournament Saturday, shooting a 76 to finish tied for 19th. Alicia Allison, a sophomore at Duke who went to Foothill High, shot an 84 for the second consecutive day and finished tied for 48th.

In one of the closest team competitions in years, Arizona won a one-hole playoff with San Jose State. Texas finished a stroke back in third (1,241) and UCLA was three shots back of the leaders (1,243).

Three-time defending champion Arizona State finished sixth (1,255).

Baena’s eagle on the 18th hole in the playoff was the difference for the Wildcats, who won their first national championship. However, it was not decided until San Jose State’s Vibeke Stensrud missed a five-foot putt that would have forced another playoff hole.