By Mark Soltau
STANFORD, Calif. - Andrew Yun will never forget the first time he beat his father in golf. He was 11 years old when they teed it up on their home course, Oakbrook Country Club in Tacoma, Wash. Andrew shot 76, besting his father Paul by one stroke.
"That's one of the highlights of my golf career and kick-started my love for the game," said Yun, a junior on the Stanford golf team. "Just being able to beat somebody."
Yun has beaten plenty of people since. As a sophomore, he earned first-team All-American honors while leading the Cardinal with a 70.6 scoring average. Last month, he was medalist at the Pac-12 Championships in Corvallis, Ore., becoming the first Stanford golfer to win the title since Jim Seki in 2002.
Yun closed with a 4-under-par 68, which was particularly satisfying. Although he posted seven Top 10 showings last year, he failed to win and had trouble closing out tournaments. This year, he has cracked the Top 10 six times and collected an early-season victory at The Prestige at PGA West.
"I felt like last year, I realized how mentally tough it is to contend," Yun said. "I have a lot of respect for Tiger (Woods). When he was at the peak of his game, he was doing it week-in and week-out. I did play well and put myself in position a lot, but towards the end of the tournament - the last three or five holes - I kind of struggled."
The difference?
"He's just gotten more comfortable handling himself down the stretch and being patient and understanding that sometimes it's not always doing heroic stuff, it's just being solid and staying away from trouble," said Conrad Ray, The Knowles Family Director of Men's Golf. "I think he's done a better job of enjoying himself. He's tried to smile as much as he can and enjoy the walk."
Yun agreed.
"I felt like my attitude changed and allowed me to become more consistent," he said. "Every shot, I put a little too much importance on it when I shouldn't have. There's already enough pressure. I think I learned that and did a really good job of controlling that at the Pac-12s."
Not that Yun didn't have a few tense moments at Trysting Tree Golf Club. He began the second round with a double-bogey.
"I was rushing to the tee because I just had a big lunch," said Yun. "But it didn't really faze me. I knew I had 17 more holes to go in the round. In the past I might have gotten a little anxious and tried to force the situation. But I was able to calm down and play my own game. I shot 70, which is key."
In the third round, a frustrated Yun was 2-over after 13 holes, then had a little talk with himself.
"Let's try and get it back to even par or maybe under par," he said. "And I happened to birdie the last five holes. Situations like that really give me confidence."
His new-found patience paid off again in the final round. After starting with two birdies, he bogeyed three of the next five holes and was headed south. Then on the par-4 eighth hole, he holed out a pitching wedge from 113 yards for eagle.
"There was a steep fall-off behind the green into the rough," said Yun. "It came out a little hot and I was asking for it to sit really hard. It hit the pin hard and dropped right in. I was really lucky. I thought it might be my week."
Yun carded three birdies on the back nine to secure a two-stroke win.
"He's pretty introspective," Ray said. "It's easy for him to go down that road of attaching more to a given situation that it really requires. Like coach (Philip) Rowe (The Enlight Foundation Assistant Coach for Men's Golf) says a lot, `If you're operating in a world of should, you're in trouble.' ''
Paul and his wife Gloria are from South Korea and moved to the United States in 1983. They have two older daughters: Anna and Christy. The latter played one year of college golf at Columbia and is now competing in mini-tour events with hopes of making the LPGA Tour.
When it became apparent 11-year-old Andrew had a talent for golf, Paul sold his convenience stores and gas stations and moved the family from Tacoma to Chandler, Ariz., so he could play and practice year around.
"From then on, he was dedicated to supporting me and doing everything in his power to make me a better player," said Yun. "My parents sacrificed a lot for me."
Paul, a self-taught golfer who once played to a 1-handicap, now owns and manages a hotel in Chandler. He has watched Andrew play in about half of his collegiate tournaments and will be in the gallery this week when Stanford hosts the NCAA West Regional, Thursday through Saturday at Stanford Golf Course.
"We trusted him," Paul said. "He's very mature and a good student. When he makes money in the future, he's going to do missionary work with God and help feed hungry teenagers."
Yun compiled an impressive amateur record and earned a golf scholarship to Stanford. His biggest asset has always been his short game.
"When I was younger, I wasn't a long hitter," said Yun. "Oftentimes I couldn't even reach a par-4 in two, so I just had to work on my wedge game from 50 yards and in, just so I could shoot a number. It's been like that all my life."
Ray thinks Yun's short game is PGA Tour-quality. He's especially good from 20 to 50 yards with pitch-and-run shots.
"He is one of the best I've ever seen in that area," Ray said. "He's got really, really good technique."
While it took a few months to acclimate to life on the Farm, Yun loves college and can't believe how fast three years have flown by.
"It just feels like two weeks ago I was a freshman loading and unloading the bags and sitting in the back of the van," he said of the annual golf team ritual that even Woods had to follow. "It's been more than I imagined and it's gone by a lot quicker than I expected."
Yun no longer does double-takes at the world-class Siebel Varsity Golf Training Complex when alums and donors like George Roberts, Chuck Schwab, Scott McNealy, Sandy Tatum and Jerry Yang drop by to practice.
"We always say he's the hardest working guy on our team," Yun said of Roberts.
Yun is majoring in sociology and has his sights set on the PGA Tour. It's long been a dream.
"I feel like that's my calling,'' said Yun. "I've got to give it a try and see how that goes."
Paul wouldn't want it any other way.
"I'm very proud of Andrew," he said. "He loves Stanford. But he always sounds so tired. He never sleeps."