MURRIETA >> It sounds almost counterintuitive, especially for a sport that demands mental strength and the simultaneous ability to remember what you need to do and forget what you just did. But Angela Heo’s golf game took a great leap forward this season when she remembered to do one thing.

Forget about her score.

“My coach and my parents told me how I can get better mentally – don’t think about my score,” she said. “Go in and focus on one shot. Don’t think about my score and think about the shot in front of you.

“I had a bad season from the beginning of the year through summer and I thought I should stop thinking about my score. I tried that during the school season and I did really well.”

 

Indeed she did. The Murrieta Mesa sophomore overcame a rough spring with a dynamic fall season that brought her the Southwestern League title and her second consecutive Press-Enterprise Girls Golfer of the Year award.

She put together a season that would please any player.

There was the Southwestern League title she won by conquering the demons that haunted her the previous year, when she dunked her approach shot into the pond fronting the 14th green at Menifee Lakes. This time, she parked a 7-iron to 12 feet and sank a tricky eagle putt, a four-shot swing that propelled her past Temecula Valley’s Jordan Parr.

“She absolutely remembered that from last year,” Murrieta Mesa first-year head coach Ryan Ridley said. “I heard from others and other coaches what happened and heard her talking about it. She remembered and I think that was pretty significant in her abilities this year.

“That was pretty awesome to watch and it shows her maturity and her presence on the golf course. It’s recognizable. She’s very mature and composed for her age.”

From there, Heo used that maturity and composure, along with a deceptively long-for-her-size driver, to tie for 13th place at the CIF Regionals at Western Hills Country Club and to tie for fourth place at the CIF-SCGA Finals at Brookside Golf Club in Pasadena.

That culminated in her tie for 13th place on a difficult Poppy Hills course in Pebble Beach at the CIF State tournament. Her 75 on a blustery day on the historic course showed Heo’s mental resilience; she said her swing rhythm was never there that day and she couldn’t find it.

Heo racked up five consecutive top-eight finishes in the competitive Southern California PGA Junior Tour this fall. Included in that was a win at Soule Park and a third in the Tom Pernice Jr. Invitational at Bear Creek.

“She’s a student of the game and she has the competitive drive that allows her to perform at her best most of the time,” Ridley said. “It was very rare throughout the whole season that she was not 2- or 3-under in our matches. “I know she demands a lot of herself. Every conversation you have with her, it’s like ‘Hey coach, I could have played better and I should have played better.’ Yet, she has the top score in every round.

“Her dedication is what makes her special.”

 

FIRST TEAM

MacKenzie Carpenter, Great Oak, Jr.

Angela Heo, Murrieta Mesa, So.

Karen Kim, Roosevelt, Sr.

Sharon Kim. Roosevelt, Jr.

Jordyn Parr, Temecula Valley, Sr.

Carlotta Rusticelli, Murrieta Mesa, Jr.

Venecia Zaia, Vista Murrieta, Sr.

SECOND TEAM

Mia Golovich, Murrieta Mesa, So.

Jennifer Gousikul, King, Fr.

Kaila Higgins, Great Oak, Sr.

Bella Ly, Roosevelt, Fr.

Katelyn Parr, Temecula Valley, Fr.

Chandler Sjoerdsma, King, Sr.

Kate Watanasiripong, Great Oak, So.