Sam Bonzoumet, Riverside Poly boys golf team shine at Homer Thomas Invitational – San Bernardino Sun

RIVERSIDE — Live scoring was at his disposal Monday afternoon, but Riverside Poly’s Sam Bonzoumet preferred not to know his position at the 45th edition of the Homer Thomas Invitational boys golf tournament at Victoria Club.

After making just one birdie on a back nine that included four par 5s, Bonzoumet found himself trailing King’s Harlan Yapa by two shots. But Bonzoumet played the closer’s role well, making two birdies over his final four holes to shoot a 2-under-par 70 to claim the individual championship by one stroke.

The Bears also showed their depth as a team. Poly played without star freshman Grady Emerson but finished with a team score of 383 (+23) to defeat Apple Valley by 12 strokes. Jack Wasserman along with Michael Viene also posted top five finishes for the Bears after shooting 72 and 73, respectively.

Poly was ranked seventh in last week’s CIF Southern Section rankings, with the top 20 league champions earning automatic Division 1 playoff berths.

“We’re definitely happy with a 383, but I still feel like there’s a lower score in our group,” Bears coach Eric Chavez said. “We’ve got room to be better on the greens and with our approach shots, but I fully believe that this is one of Southern California’s best high school golf teams. Michael Viene has been huge for us behind Grady, Jack and Sam. We’re also getting contributions throughout our lineup which can only help us going into the postseason.”

Bonzoumet bogeyed No. 8 after missing a short par putt. He got that shot back at the par-5 15th hole with an up-and-down for birdie. After three straight pars, he added a second birdie at No. 1 to get under par.

Yapa eagled No. 15 to reach 2 under par, but a late bogey at the short par-4 second hole knocked him back to 1 under par. He had one last look at birdie from 45 feet on No.3 to force a playoff that narrowly missed.

From 236 yards away, Bonzoumet hit a hybrid just onto the green at No. 4 and two-putted from 40 feet for one last birdie to win the individual title.

“I play my best golf when I just focus on my game instead of worrying about how low everyone else might be going. so I had no idea where I was down the stretch,” Bonzoumet said. “It felt great to play well in our home tournament and keep that momentum on our side as we work towards postseason play.”

It’s Bonzoumet’s second individual title of the season after winning Santiago’s Shark Invitational at Monarch Beach Golf Links on March 24. Poly also won that team title by 31 shots over Santiago.

Poly resumes Ivy League play on Wednesday with a match at Fairmount Park Golf Course against Arlington.