Northbrook golfer wins Drive Chip & Putt national title

Northbrook's Martha Kuwahara was the overall winner of the Girls 14-15 division in the national finals of Drive Chip & Putt on Sunday, but it wasn't easy.

Kuwahara, who also qualified for the finals in 2022, had trouble getting to Augusta, Georgia, thanks to two flight delays caused by thunderstorms on Saturday. Up at 2 a.m., Kuwahara's two delays led to a 2 p.m. departure at O'Hare. Her flight arrived at Atlanta at 7 p.m. and the ensuing car ride didn't get her to Augusta until after midnight.

"We missed the parties and registration," she said. "We had all the bad luck then, but all the good luck (on Sunday), so it just all worked out."

The three boys from the Chicago area didn't fare as well. William Comiskey, of Hinsdale, was third in the 10-11 division; North Aurora's Ben Patel was fifth in 12-13 and Lockport's Emory Munoz ninth in 7-9.

Crystal Wang, a fifth-year senior at the University of Illinois, tied for 14th in the Augusta National Women's Amateur, which concluded on Saturday.

Wang survived the 36-hole cut, when rounds were played at Champions Retreat, then shot 75 in the final round at Augusta National. Her 3-over-par 219 left Wang 12 shots behind champion Rose Zhang of Stanford.