Sep 29, 2014 5 min read

APOLLO – Canon-McMillan High School golf coach Justin White had an unusually relaxing Monday morning. Instead of preparing a long motivational speech or a detailed strategy for senior Lauren Waller, his golfer in the WPIAL Class AAA Girls Golf Individual Championships, White kept his advice simple.

“Trust your instincts,” White told Waller before she teed off at 9:48 a.m.

Waller, a Penn State recruit, has been playing the game for as far back as she can remember. For the last four years, she’s been training to become the WPIAL’s best. Being one of only two female golfers for Canon-McMillan – the other one is her sister – Waller does not care who the competition is.

She does not even care what course she plays on, what the scorecard might show midway through a round or about the pressure of being the defending WPIAL champion.

Clearing her mind of all distractions did the trick. Waller shot a personal-best 4-under-par 68 at Willowbrook Country Club to repeat as WPIAL Class AAA champion and qualify for the PIAA Western Regional, which will be held Oct. 14 at Tom’s Run Golf Course in Blairsville.

“Pretty much everything was working,” Waller said with smile. ” I was using my driver very well. I was striking it down the fairway most of the time. I was able to get a lot of shots close to the pin and I made a lot of putts.”

Waller entered the tournament as the resounding favorite after winning the title last year at Hillcrest Country Club and finishing tied for third at the PIAA Championships. While she was far from concerned, Waller was trailing by one stroke to Gateway junior Johnna Bechner through seven holes.

Though she birdied No. 5, a bogey on the third hole had put her behind. Waller has gotten accustomed to not keeping score. Focusing on each shot off the tee and trying to get close to the pin was her goal Monday.

The result was four birdies the rest of the way as she won the title by eight shots. Her birdie on the ninth hole started a string that also included six pars. She bogeyed only one hole all day.

“On the back nine, I was focused on hitting my drives down the middle, hitting my next shot close and making my putt,” Waller said. “I didn’t really look at my score at the time because I know, when I do, that it messes me up. I was really focused on continuing what I was doing and making some birdies.”

On No. 13 – a hole most golfers struggled with – Waller drove the ball more than 260 yards off the tee to set herself up 150 yards from the pin. She chipped her next shot to within three of the pin but missed a putt for eagle and ended up with a birdie.

Waller has plenty of experience playing in the WPIAL championships. She finished second as a sophomore and eighth as a freshman at Shady Side Academy. Her next step is the Western Regional and then try to win the state title that eluded her last fall.

“She played fantastic. Her tee shots were fabulous, she was putting very well and it was just clicking for her today,” White said. “It’s more of sit back and watch instead of coaching with her. There’s definitely not much I can contribute because she is so well-trained.”

Waller has played in dozens of tournaments, so playing an unfamiliar course was not much of a challenge. She played Willowbrook Country Club Saturday afternoon with her father, focusing on the course’s layout and how the greens played.

Over the last four years, putting has not been her biggest strength. With a new putter in her bag, Waller knew that testing how the greens sloped was critical. The practice round helped as Waller’s short game was working and she finished with a score that captured everyone’s attention.

With school today and her regional qualifier getting closer by the hour, Waller won’t spend much time celebrating the gold medal. As usual, she’ll spend her after-school hours at the golf course improving her game.

“It definitely does a lot for my confidence, especially since today is the lowest score I’ve ever had,” Waller said. “It builds my confidence and I know this is just one step toward making it to states. Ultimately, winnings states is my goal so I have to keep playing well and keep practicing.”

Peters Township sophomore Mia Kness took second place at last year’s Class AAA Individual Championships and she followed that with another qualifying round Monday.

Kness shot a 5-over-par 78 to finish fifth and move on to the regional in Blairsville. Although she had eight bogeys, collecting three birdies, including the par-4 No. 18, helped her case.

“On the back nine, my drives weren’t my strength,” Kness joked. “I was going all over the place. It wasn’t that great, but my drives are usually great. The course is tough, especially on the back nine. You just have to keep it on the fairway, which I couldn’t do.”

Three others miss cut

Two other Peters Township golfers qualified for the championships, but failed to make the top-seven to advance to Tom’s Run.

Junior Synclaire Kuhn missed the cut for the second straight year after shooting 14-over-par 86 to finish 14th and sophomore Brook Hilden finished 22nd with a 94 on the course.

In Class AA, Bentworth senior Cami Dziak shot a 107 to finish 10th and did not make the cut after recording eight double bogeys.