NW Golf | Lee hangs on to win Seattle Amateur

Richard Lee played like a pro for 45 holes at the Seattle Amateur Golf Championship: The 20-year-old had a 10-stroke lead with nine holes to play.

Poor putting, however, and a late run from 15-year-old Tyler Kato dropped the lead to four, but Lee held on for a four-stroke win Wednesday at West Seattle Golf Course.

"The back nine was rough, but it feels good to win," said Lee, who will play in the U.S. Amateur Public Links tournament next week in Wheaton, Ill. "Coming from Seattle, I know this is one of the bigger tournaments."

Lee finished with a 2-over 74 on the round and 6-under 207 for the 54-hole tournament. The Bellevue Community College sophomore hopes to play for the University of Washington in 2008.

Kato, a sophomore-to-be at O'Dea High School, gave Lee a scare on the back nine with back-to-back chips for birdie at No. 13 and 14, including one from 20 yards. Kato finished second with a 211, just two months after finishing fifth at the Class 3A state tournament.

The low round of the day went to Tyler Matthews, a junior at Vanderbilt University, who shot a 3-under 69.

Lee came into the final round with a seven-stroke lead. The Newport High graduate shot a 4-under 66 at Jackson Park Golf Course in the first round and 3-under 67 at Jefferson Park on Tuesday.

"I played poorly at the [Washington State Amateur] last week; my mental game was really shaky," Lee said. "But coming into this week, I was ready to go. I got my confidence back."

The most shocking moment of the event occurred when the final group was putting at No. 10. A very large branch crashed to the ground just yards away from the players and spectators.

"That's was definitely new," said Brian Misterek, who was able to save par moments after the distraction.

The shot of the day went to Jeff Hunt, who aced the 127-yard third hole. Hunt, representing West Seattle Golf Course, tied for ninth, 11 strokes off the lead.

Other tournament

Daniel Summerhays, a senior-to-be at Brigham Young, birdied his first two holes and went on to grab the first-round lead at Sahalee Country Club in Sammamish with a 3-under 69.

Defending champion Kyle Stanley of Gig Harbor is tied for second at 70 along with Californians Patrick Nagle and Erick Justesen. The tournament concludes Friday.