Alex and Sumie Francois made the B.C. juvenile golf championships a family affair.
The Burnaby brother and sister pair won their respective golf titles at the Crown Isle Golf Resort in Courtney last Thursday.
Alex, 15, finished the three-day, 54-hole competition with an eight-under-par 208, seven shots ahead of co-runner-ups Diego San Pedro of Richmond and Coquitlam's Henry Lee, who shot a tournament-best 68 on the par-72 course on Aug. 21.
Sumie, just 13, had a harder time of it, eking out a one-shot victory over 15-year-old Team Canada development team member Naomi Ko of Victoria.
Alex started the final round holding a one-shot lead on Trevor Yu of Vancouver.
The turning point for the Moscrop Secondary student came on the par-5 15th, when he drained his putt from 20 feet out for an eagle 3. "That was the tournament right there," said Alex, who was the hero of the recent PGA of B.C. club pro-junior event, following a nine-under-par round of 63 to help the Shaughnessy club to the title.
"It just gave me the confidence to know that I could make as much birdies as I could and that I could stand up under pressure," Alex said in a B.C. Golf press release.
Alex opened the juvenile championship with a two-under 70 before finishing the second day at five-under-par. Yu, who was in the final pairing with Alex, came into the final round with a 140 total before putting himself out of contention with a 76 on Thursday.
Sumie led from start to finish, carding a three-under 69 on opening day that bested even her older brother's score.
But the final round was close after a second-round 79 left Sumie just a single shot ahead of Shirin Anjarwalla of Nanaimo after 36 holes.
Anjarwalla skied to a 76 in the final round, while Ko made a charge with a one-under 71 to finish at 221.
Sumie's par-72 gave the Burnaby teen a 54-hole 220 total.
"I was happy I beat my brother on the first day, but on the second day it was pretty rough," said Sumie in the release. "I was struggling a lot but I was able to handle it today."
