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For the Good of the Game

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The right call

For 13-year-old Danny Ochoa, the immediate agony of a self-imposed penalty will likely lead to long-term benefits in his game.

BY ELI MILLERPublished: December, 2008

Danny Ochoa's act of integrity led to victory (Photo: Eddie Meeks).
San Diego native and 51-time PGA Tour winner Billy Casper once said, “Golf puts a man’s character on the anvil and his richest qualities — patience, poise, restraint — to the flame.”

Rancho Santa Fe resident Danny Ochoa is only 13 years old, but he’s already used the game to demonstrate he’s mature enough to withstand such heat.

During the first round of a Future Champions Golf Challenge Tour event in late September at Valley Center’s Woods Valley Golf Club, Ochoa was even-par through 11 holes. Then, on the par-4 12th, he pushed his drive in the vicinity of a hazard.

He approached the area and — thinking he found his Callaway Tour ix ball with a “2” on it — instead played a Callaway Tour i ball with the same number. He hit onto the green, made a 25-foot birdie putt and moved on.

As Ochoa teed it up on No. 13, he took a closer look at the ball and realized his error. He alerted his group of the mistake and went back to the 12th hole to correctly hole out.

With three penalty strokes endured under Rule 15, Ochoa ended up making a triple bogey, then struggled for the remainder of the day en route to an 81.

“I was definitely flustered,” he said. “I tried to get over it, but it was really hard.”

He shrugged off the mishap in the final round of the 36-hole event, firing a 2-under 70 to win by three strokes.

“At no moment have I been prouder of my son than when he called that penalty,” said Ochoa’s father, Don. “He really did the right and honorable thing. For him to come back and win the next day was icing on the cake.”

Added Chris Smeal, founder of Future Champions Golf: “Danny played the game the way it was meant to be played and was rewarded for his actions.”

With a second-place finish in the U.S. Kids Golf World Championships and a sixth-place finish at the European Junior Golf Championships, Ochoa has impressive credentials. In addition to now being much more cautious on the course, he feels his mea culpa will help him be a better golfer.

“It’s definitely made me more confident,” Ochoa said.

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Readers Feedback:

A great show of character and of the man that he may become. Congratulations to a fine young man.
Comment at 11/30/2008
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