Mallory Fobes got a bit of a pep talk from her North Carolina-Wilmington teammate Phu Khine before winning the Golfweek Myrtle Beach Amateur on Friday.
“She said this morning before we teed off, ‘I’ve won a Golfweek now I want you to,’ ” Fobes said.
So the sophomore from East Bend, North Carolina, delivered. Khine was there on the 18th green to douse her in water in celebration of the accomplishment.
Khine has been a motivator and a good friend for Fobes, one year her junior on the UNCW women’s golf team. Khine, from Myanmar, has been a stalwart for the Seahawks and was ranked as high as No. 158 in the world. She finished 12th in Myrtle Beach, 12 shots behind Fobes.
Scores: Golfweek Myrtle Beach Amateur
Fobes ended up at UNCW mostly because of head coach Cindy Ho. Living at the beach has been a big perk and so have the friendships with her teammates. Like many programs, UNCW could not compete in the fall season because of COVID-19.
In the absence of team tournaments, Fobes teed it up in the Golfweek Caledonia Amateur (31st), a GCAA Ameteur Series Event (eighth) and the Griffin Amateur (eighth).
In Myrtle Beach, Fobes went 4 under at the Dye Club at Barefoot Resort for three rounds, sealing the victory with a 3-under 69 in the final round.
“Game was definitely in better shape because I had more college tournaments under my belt,” she said.
In fact, in her sophomore season, Fobes logged one top-10 in her four starts and played to the lowest scoring average on the team. This was her second tournament back after an injury to her right hand.
Over the winter, Fobes drilled down on her wedges and also worked more on the putting green. She credits work with instructor Brad Luebchow at Maple Chase Golf and Country Club in Winston Salem, North Carolina, where she calls home, as helping get her to the next level.
“We just got an indoor simulator thing and so it has a fun wedge game where I just try and get over 58% hitting the hardest green level,” she said. “So it just really dialed in my carry numbers on my wedges.”
In the men’s division, Charlie Hanson claimed his first individual title since winning the club championship at Hermitage Country Club in Richmond, Virginia, a little over a year ago.
Charlie Hanson won the Golfweek Myrtle Beach Amateur.
Hanson was one of four Virginia Tech players who made the trip to Myrtle Beach. Every one finished inside the top 10, led by Hanson with his 1-under total and his one-shot victory over Noah Kumar.
The company made it a relaxed week.
“We were able to hang out, chill, stay relaxed back at our condo every day,” Hansen said. “That was a lot of fun.”
The biggest takeaway, however, may be confidence. Hanson hasn’t felt like he had his best stuff lately. But going forward into a summer that will include the Virginia Amateur, the Virginia Open, U.S. Amateur qualifying and the Eastern Amateur, that may not matter anymore.
“It definitely gives me some confidence going into this summer,” Hanson said. “I’ve kind of been struggling with my game the past month or so. To come here, I wasn’t feeling incredibly confident and definitely didn’t have my best game but was able to fight enough to get the win. It just kind of shows me I am capable of winning without my best stuff, which is a huge confidence boost going into the summer.”