Rudy Cabalar Jr. is familiar with final-round charges at the Barbers Point Invitational. Saturday, the 16-year-old’s memory served him well as he calmly won a playoff to beat Spencer Shishido, who had chased, caught and passed him after 17 holes.
A double bogey on the final hole of regulation slowed Shishido’s charge. A bogey on the first playoff hole cost him a shot at his second Barbers Point title in seven years.
When Shishido won in 2005, he also hooked his drive on the 18th into garbage on the left. "Same shot. I think I even hit the same tree," he said, shaking his head.
That year, he salvaged bogey, and when then-14-year-old Tadd Fujikawa three-putted, Shishido had his win. Cabalar, a month away from his 17th birthday, was not so generous.
The 2010 state high school champion went wire-to-wire to capture a title that eluded him last year, when he threw six straight birdies at Alika Bell to take the lead in the midst of the final round, only to watch Bell come back. Saturday, Cabalar shot a 2-over-par 74 to finish at 1-under 215 — his 8-footer for birdie on the 16th the difference between first and second. Shishido’s 71 left him on the same number, after some confusion with the scoreboard. The San Jose State senior missed only three greens and sank two 20-foot birdie putts. The final hole was the only blemish on his card.
They took off for the first tee and a playoff. Cabalar hit his approach shot to the front fringe and left his birdie putt to the top of the slope 7 feet short.
Shishido’s drive left him in the left rough, with the ball below his feet. He hit a lob wedge from 92 yards out that bounced through the green and ended up at the bottom of the slope. His third shot rolled 15 feet past the hole and his par putt "didn’t break as much as I wanted it to."
Cabalar’s putt was on the same line — he actually moved his marker for Shishido — and after getting a good look, he drained it, just as he had every other meaningful putt over the final holes.
"I was making those later today," Cabalar said. "In the beginning, I was missing birdie putts left and right."
Shishido and Cabalar grew up playing Barbers Point, but that is where the comparisons end.
Shishido, 23, and his father played there every Sunday while he was in high school, but until this year’s practice round, he hadn’t seen the course since his 2005 win.
He attended Sonoma State four years, winning a NCAA D-II team championship in 2009. He transferred to San Jose State last year to be closer to his coach and used his final season of eligibility. He will graduate in December with a degree in finance.
Cabalar lives 5 minutes from the course and has groomed his precocious game there. This was his first win since capturing the state title and Turtle Bay Amateur last year.
Back problems forced him to give up the game for a month during this high school season, but now he is healthy. After this amateur win, he might not be wealthy but he is definitely wiser. He signed the right scorecard, something he did not do here two years ago when he was disqualified. His goal is to win another state title, and he has a pretty good idea what it takes.
"It takes a brain," he said. "You have to play smart. Even here, with the wind and these greens are fast."
The gusts and Barbers Point’s notoriously tough greens made for some strange scores.
Matt Ma, who won here in 2003, followed a first-round 85 with 67 and finished 11th. Brandan Kop sandwiched a 79 with rounds of 70-69 to pull into fourth behind Bou-An Fujieki, the first-round co-leader who came up two shots short of the playoff.
Others in the top 10 included Bell (71—221), who opened with a 77, and Jonathan Ota (71—221) and Mike Kawate (76—224), who shot 79 and 80 Thursday.
Flight winners were Mervin Matsumoto (seniors) at 78—231, Felix Jaralba (A) at 80—236 and Mark Pacarro (B) at 84—240.
