By
Kamy Shaygan and Kyle Faraday
Arizona Daily Wildcat
Wildcats upset No. 1 Duke by eight strokes
Standing on the fringe of the 16th hole yesterday during the final round of play at the Wildcat Invitational, UA freshman Lorena Ochoa had an opportunity to tie for the individual lead.
The Guadalajara, Mexico native looked over at UA women's golf head coach Greg Allen while facing a difficult 25-foot putt from the edge of the green at The Raven at Sabino Springs golf course.
"I looked at coach, and he said, 'Lorena, I want to see how good you are,'" Ochoa said.
Allen knew that his star freshman was capable of making the difficult putt.
"I told her this is what it's all about," Allen said.
After looking at her coach, Ochoa looked down, focused on her shot and drained the putt, tying her with Duke's Candy Hannemann.
As soon as Ochoa's putter touched the ball, she knew the ball was going in.
"Most of the time, you know (if it's going in) when you hit the ball," Ochoa said. "I love being in that position."
Ochoa and Hannemann finished the tournament tied for first, which forced a sudden-death playoff hole for the individual championship.
The two played the 18th hole - a par-5 - to see who would be crowned champ.
Ochoa smashed her first drive to the center of the fairway, followed with a 5-wood fairway shot that landed on the green. The UA freshman birdied the hole, while Hannemann shot par.
The individual tournament title marks Ochoa's third victory of the young season. The No. 2 Wildcats captured the team title, shooting an 11-over-par 875, eight strokes ahead of top-ranked Duke.
"I think Lorena is one of the best college players I have ever seen," teammate junior Cristina Baena said. "She is just a winner. She always wants to win and be number one.
"I think that's great to have someone like that because it makes us want to play better."
Ochoa has won three out of her last five tournaments, placing second in the remaining two.
Allen said that Ochoa loves to be in critical situations.
"Lorena likes to have the pressure on her," Allen said. "Lorena never gives up and is a champion and certainly proved that today."
As Ochoa captured the individual title, her fellow teammates were cheering her on.
"Everybody was there and screaming and supporting me," Ochoa said. "I really enjoyed this tournament."
Wildcat freshman Natalie Gulbis shot an even 216 for the tournament, earning her a fifth-place finish.
"It's always great to win," Allen said. "We don't get to play here (in Tucson) but once a year in front of them (the hometown crowd), so it's really nice to do that. We have some great support here in Tucson."
Sophomore Anne Lee finished tied for eighth, shooting a 3-over-par 219.
"I think we did great today," Ochoa said. "Everything worked perfect for us."
