Clark, Koo capture titles in Farr Classic
Throughout Johnnie Clark’s golf career, his parents have encouraged him to think positive.
“Everything that we’ve done from the day that he was born has been about molding confidence,” said Clark’s father, also named Johnnie. “He doesn’t use the word ‘if.’ He says, ‘When. When I win this tournament.’”
Heading into the third round of the 54-hole PING Heather Farr Classic at Mesa’s Longbow Golf Club, Clark was in a four-way tie, but his message still remained the same. He was going to win. And he did.
Clark shot 8-under-71 on Sunday to finish at 14 under, becoming the first player who calls Longbow his home course to win the Boys Division of the event.
“Everybody that was there today I’ve known since I was six or seven,” Clark said. “It was just huge to have them there.”
The winner of the Girls Division, Jasmine Koo, began the Classic’s final day down four strokes, but birdied five holes to shoot four-under-par and finish the tournament with a total of 205.
Koo suffered some missed some putting opportunities over the event’s first two days, contributing to her deficit to then-leader Rianne Malixi. To fix the issue, she spent nearly an hour refining her putting stroke on Sunday morning. Those 50 minutes paid off, as she not only fixed minor issues, but also settled into her game by earning her first birdie on the second hole.
Solving those errors proved crucial to her comeback attempt, as Malixi made four bogeys in her first 14 holes and eventually finished her round two-under-71 and tied for second by two shots
“(Rianne) was still playing really well and she was still keeping me under pressure,” Koo said. “When she stepped down, I just kept trying to make my short putts, trying to make my birdies.”
Putting played a key role in Clark’s success as well. The Mesa native said he averages 32 putts a round. On Sunday, he took 25 and saved seven strokes.
This success came from Clark prioritizing putting at the event. Additionally, he felt like he struck the ball well the entire weekend.
Currently ranked No. 29 in the American Junior Golf Association ranking, He was previously ranked the No. 1 golfer in the world for the 2023 graduating class from ages 10-13.
“My game’s been feeling amazing,” Clark said. “My game is developing in ways that I didn’t realize it could.”
That development contributed to his strong start on Sunday, in which he birdied his first three holes and four of his first five.
“From there, I knew the tournament was mine,” Clark said.
Both winners anticipate that their victory in Mesa will provide crucial momentum for their futures in golf.
Koo, a sophomore who won the Sergio and Angela Garcia Foundation Junior Championship in Austin, Texas this March, can begin talking with college coaches in two months. She believes that back-to-back victories in AJGA events can help her recruitment chances.
The Cerritos, Calif. native, who drove six hours to participate in the Classic, also found that winning the tournament for the first time in three attempts is continuing her seasonlong momentum.
“I’ve had goals since the beginning of the year,” she said. “It was getting to win them.”
Meanwhile, Clark — a junior attending online school who is considering collegiate programs such as Nevada, Arizona State and Oregon — called himself “never satisfied no matter how good I play,” something he thinks will be key for his future growth in golf. He added that earning his second overall AJGA win is going to give him more motivation for future triumphs on the course.
Even though only time will tell what happens in the careers of Clark and Koo, one thing is certain: free rounds at Longbow whenever they want. It’s their reward for winning the Classic.
“We’ve had a lot of people take advantage of it,” Longbow general manager Bob McNichols said.