Jacobson Makes Golf Regionals

Bo Jacobson shot a final round 76 to finish in a four-way tie for eighth place at the City Section Golf Championships last Wednesday at Griffith Park. With a two-day total of 150 the Palisades High senior qualified for the Southern California Regionals to be held June 3 at the Southern California Golf Association Course in Murrieta. Jacobson was in fifth position after firing a two-over par 74 in last Monday’s first round. This year, both rounds were played on the shorter Harding Gold Course (instead of one each on Harding and Wilson) and that was reflected in lower scores. Daniel Slovis, a junior from El Camino Real, birdied the third playoff hole to win the individual title over first round leader Brennan Amirkhizi of Taft after both players finished with a two-day total of 143. The top two teams and top 12 individuals advance to the regional tournament. The last Palisades player to win the City title was Ed Turner in 1999. Palisades Coach James Paleno offered some historical perspective in the clubhouse: ‘When Ed won he shot 153. This year, that score won’t even qualify for the regionals. It just goes to show how much City golf has improved the last 10 years.’ The numbers bear Paleno out. Over one quarter of the field (23 players) shot better than 153 this spring. The cut was 7-over-par 151. Venice won the team title with an aggregate score of 745, with Granada Hills shooting 764 to nab the second regional berth. Palisades was in eighth place going into the final round and was unable to make up any ground, despite improving by nine strokes. After shooting 420 in the first round the Dolphins shot 411 in the second for a total of 831, nine strokes behind seventh-place Taft. Senior Sheldon Roberts was Palisades’ second-best golfer. Like Jacobsen, he shot a final round 76 for a two-day total of 154, tied with JustiN Nakagiri of Venice. Senior Chris Lee, who finished 10th overall and qualified for regionals last year, was the Dolphins’ third man in at 168 and junior Devon Edwards was right behind at 169. Sophomore Jared Rosen shot 190 and freshman teammate Sam Jacoby improved by nine strokes in the final round to finish at 199. Palisades won its last City team championship in 2005.