Fowler, Kanda Set for Run at State Title

Southern Section champion Rickie Fowler of Murrieta Valley and Southern California regional champion Brett Kanda of Flintridge Prep are among the favorites today at the state golf championships at Poppy Hills Golf Course in Pebble Beach.

Murrieta Valley, which finished third in the regional, is also competing for the team title.

Fowler, a sophomore, shot 76 and finished tied for 21st at last year’s state championship. He shot a Southern Section-record eight-under-par 64 May 23 at the individual championships and tied for third at the regional with a four-under 68. He has averaged 69.4 in five postseason rounds.

Kanda, a senior headed for Nevada Las Vegas, shot six-under 66 when he won the regional last week. He has an average of 69 for three postseason rounds and is 12-under for the season.

Another player to watch is Cameron Tringale of Mission Viejo. The Georgia Tech-bound senior was the regional runner-up and tied for 10th in the section championships. He and Fowler are the only Southern California golfers who have advanced to the state finals two consecutive years.

Tringale, who has averaged 68.7 in three postseason rounds, shot 73 and finished tied for ninth in the 2004 state championships.

Other Southland qualifiers are Brian Locke of Playa del Rey St. Bernard, John Schmocker of Rolling Hills Estates Peninsula, Michael Drake of Riverside King and Rui Takamatsu of Bermuda Dunes Desert Christian.

Murrieta Valley will again be without sophomore Josh Anderson, who broke his arm in a car accident four days after the section team championships. Anderson shot a team-best four-under 68 as the Nighthawks won the section title and led the team in 18-hole scoring average up to that point.

Andrew Cortez shot 71 and James Warburton shot 73 in the regional finals to help Murrieta Valley finish third and advance to the state finals. Stephen Stallworth, Tyler Pritkin and Michael Lott round out the Nighthawk lineup.

Torrey Pines won the team title last year at Santa Maria Country Club, and Eddie Olson of Aptos won the individual title. Neither has qualified for this year’s finals.

San Jose Bellarmine Prep won the team title at the Northern California regional, and Joe Bramlett of Mountain View St. Francis won the individual title. Bramlett has withdrawn from the state finals because he is playing in a U.S. Open Sectional qualifier in Colorado.