Lexmark engineer, Versailles 7-year-old teeing off on competition
A pair of Central Kentucky golfers at opposite ends of the age spectrum are taking on the world.
Christopher Chee, a 56-year-old mechanical engineer at Lexmark, now has a new title: International golf champion.
Abigail Caine, a 7-year-old from Versailles, is preparing for a world competition of her own.
Chee, a University of Kentucky graduate and United States citizen who used to live in Singapore, won the 27th Singapore Open Senior Amateur Championship on Thursday.
Chee posted rounds of 80, 78, 78 for a total of 236 to finish three shots in front of Teo Han Kiat of Malaysia. Douglas Ooi of Singapore finished four shots off the lead. Chee was the only U.S. citizen in the 46-player field for players age 55 and older at par-71 Warren Golf and Country Club.
Caine, who took up golf a year ago and plays at Moss Hill in Versailles, has qualified for the 17th annual U.S. Kids Golf World Championship Aug. 4-6 at Pinehurst, N.C.
The tournament is the world’s largest for players 12 and under.
To qualify, Caine had to win her tour and meet the tournament’s score minimum. She won her age group in all five tournaments she played in on the Nashville U.S. Kids Tour this spring.
“I didn’t know I was going to have a little girl who could drive the ball 140 yards,” said Abigail’s father, Bill.
Abigail scored her first hole-in-one last Friday on the 102-yard ninth hole at Moss Hill, a feat the pro who is showing her the ropes has not yet achieved.
Bill Caine, who said “I shoot in the 90s when I play,” has been surprised by how quickly his daughter has taken to the game. “For her, it’s her play time.”
Abigail attends St. Leo School in Versailles. At Pinehurst, she will compete with 50 others in her age group from around the world. The tournament features 1,500 players in all age groups representing 50 countries.
This story was originally published April 29, 2016 at 1:15 PM with the headline "Lexmark engineer, Versailles 7-year-old teeing off on competition."