Mina Harigae

Mina Harigae, 17, of Monterey, Calif., defeated Stephany Fleet, 20, of Dewitt, Mich., 4 and 3, to win her first national title at the 2007 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links Championship at Kearney Hill Golf Links in Lexington, Ky.

Hitting precise irons and putti i t t­ly, Harigae won the 13th USG championship she played in.

“It means so much to me,” said Harigae. “I worked so hard to get here and now it’s paid off.”

Harigae has been in the national golf conscious­ness since she won the California Women’s Amateur as a 12-year-old, winning it four times before she was 16. The Women’s Amateur Public Links marked the first time, however, that she had advanced to a USGA national final.

Fleet was competing in her f USGA championship and said her run­ner-up finish was a surprise. “But it definitely helps my confidence,” she said. “I never knew I could compete against the best players in the country.”

In the morning 18, Harigae made seven birdies against a lone bogey. She made an 8-footer on the first hole to halve it with a par, then rammed in a 12-foot birdie putt on the second hole to again halve the hole.

She led 2 up after nine holes, then won four of five holes beginning at the 12th to take a 6-up lead. Birdies accounted for three of those wins. She ended the morn­ing with a 5-up lead.

Fleet shot a respectable 71 in the morning, but Harigae’s superb iron play gave her a 66, with match-play concessions.

After the lunch break, Fleet made two quick birdies, on the 19th and 20th holes, but only won the 19th as Harig rolled in a 10-foot birdie at the 20th Fleet made hers from 2 feet clos­players struggled over the seven holes, with Fleet mak­three bogeys to Harigae’s two. Harigae still owned a 5­up lead after 27 holes.

The battle was renewed on the 28th hole and the match ended with a flurry. Harigae won No. 28 with a five-foot birdie putt to go 6 up. Fleet answered with an 11-foot birdie putt on the 29th, but then hit her bunker shot at the par-3 30th hole into the water, eventually conceding Harigae’s birdie putt to again 6 down. With six holes to go, had to make something hap-she made two quick birdies at holes 31 and 32 to keep her hopes alive.

Harigae was still dormie 4 going to the par-3 33rd hole. Harigae hit another crisp iron tee shot to within 9 feet of the hole. When Fleet failed to make her birdie putt, Harigae lagged her first putt to within tap-in distance to win the championship.

Harigae was the fifth high-school-age player to win this championship since 2000. Prior to that, no player under the age of 18 had won this title.