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Kinney captures junior golf tournament By Kris Henry All Tai Kinney wanted to do was put herself in the final grouping for the third and final round of the American Junior Golf Association�s John Dropping Memorial in Boise, Idaho. The North Medford High junior accomplished that feat with rounds of 74 and 72 in the opening two rounds on Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively. She then carded a 2-over-par 73 in the final round Thursday to claim the championship at Hillcrest Country Club. "Coming in, I saw myself winning this," said Kinney, who won the tourney by two strokes. "I just wanted to be in the final group to give myself a chance." Kinney, 17, stared down second-round leader Kailin Downs, and it was Downs who flinched as Kinney moved into a tie for the lead after the first hole when Downs carded a double-bogey and the Tornado standout earned par. Kinney gained a one-stroke advantage after three holes and went up by three shots after nine holes of play. Downs never recovered as she carded a 77 in her final round. Consistency proved to be the key for Kinney in winning the tournament, with her putting holding steady throughout and her driver finally honing in on its target Thursday. "I kept the ball in the fairway today," said Kinney, who has had some troubles with that part of the game the past month. "I didn�t make as many putts as I did the past few days, but I was in the fairway." Downs chipped away at Kinney�s lead on the par-5, 15th hole, where the Medford resident struggled and made bogey and Downs earned a birdie. "That made it a little interesting," said Kinney. Undaunted, Kinney chipped in from 50 feet to birdie the ensuing hole and closed out the victory in the 21-player tournament. "Today we had a lot of wind and rain, so it made the course a lot longer," said Kinney, who carded a 1-under 34 on the front nine and a 39 on the back. The win allows Kinney a berth in the Rolex Tournament of Champions later this summer. Kinney said she next plans to participate in the Oregon Women�s Amateur set at Eagle Point Golf Course. Obituaries | Sports | Business | Classifieds | Tempo | Prime Times | So Oregon Sites | Outdoor Journal | Subscribe | Contact | Movies | Advertise | Real Estate Showcase | Archive | Editorials | Letters to the editor | Religion | Wake-up Call | NIE | Cyber Chef | Job Network | So Oregon Weather | WSJ Northwest | Forums | AP Wire | AP Money | F.A.Q. | Awards Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. The Community Newspaper Subsidiary of Dow Jones & Co, Inc Copyright �The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA