Jason Redmond / Star staff Chris Gilbert of Simi Valley hits from the 12th fairway during the American Junior Golf Association's Junior Open at Robinson Ranch Golf Club in Santa Clarita last Thursday.

During the middle of the 2008 high school golf season, Chris Gilbert's first as a member of the Royal High team, the then-junior decided he needed to have a heart-to-heart talk with himself.

"I asked myself, Why are you out here if you're not going to be totally committed and not going to give it your best effort?' " Gilbert said. "I made the decision that things needed to change."

With newfound focus, Gilbert started posting scores that were consistently at or below par.

As the scores began to drop, Gilbert's confidence started to take off.

A big moment came during a match at Tierra Rejada, where Gilbert was 5 under after 14 holes, a round that included seven birdies.

While he gave a few strokes back to par coming down the stretch, it proved to Gilbert he could go low and compete with the best the Marmonte League and junior golfers had to offer.

At the Marmonte League tournament, he posted two rounds of 69 over the four-day event, tying for sixth and losing in a playoff to Cameron Tenent for the final spot in the CIF Divisional tournament.

The momentum gained from the strong finish to the high school season has carried over to the summer, including qualifying for this week's United States Junior Amateur at Shoal Creek Country Club in Alabama.

Gilbert was the only junior player from Ventura County to earn a spot in the event.

He did so by finishing fourth at a sectional qualifying tournament at Spring Valley Lake Country Club in Hesperia.

Gilbert finished the 36-hole qualifying event with a score of 3-under 141. He opened with a sparkling round of 4-under 68, which he said really put he pressure on.

"After shooting 68, you don't want to blow it," Gilbert said. "People don't expect you to make it when you shoot 73 the first round, but when you shoot 68, you are supposed to qualify."

The pressure may have got to him early in the second round, because Gilbert made a triple bogey on the third hole.

But as odd as it sounds, Gilbert felt the triple was the best thing that could have happened, because from that point on, he only allowed himself to focus on the next shot and not worry about anything else.

The strategy worked, as he ended up shooting just 1 over for the second 18. When his round was done, Gilbert said the pressure didn't end, as he waited for the next 45 minutes to see if his score would hold up.

"There were all these guys with 69s and 70s on the board who were playing behind me, so as each one came in and they would go to post their score, I would think, Please don't use the red (under par) pen,' " Gilbert. "It was a long wait and didn't sink in until the next day that I was in. It's a great feeling because it is so tough to qualify."

Gilbert's only goal heading into the U.S. Junior Amateur was to try to survive the 36-hole stroke play portion, so he could get to match play part of the event.

Unfortunately it doesn't look like he will accomplish that goal. Gilbert shot a 10-over 81 on the first day, and was tied for 126th on Tuesday when play was suspended due to bad weather.

While he didn't go as far as he would have wanted, making it to a national event is having a positive impact on Gilbert.

As he heads into his senior year, Gilbert knows this summer is key when it comes to getting college golf coaches to take notice.

Prior to qualifying for the Junior Amateur, Gilbert said he sent out a lot of letters to coaches, but got little response.

"It's amazing how many of them answered me once I told them I qualified," Gilbert said. "It's a big relief. I have played better and I can loosen up. I don't feel as much pressure.

"It is so tough to qualify for an event like that, so doing it has really given me a lot more confidence in my game."

That's good news for Royal coach Bob Misko, who inherited Gilbert when his family moved from Raleigh, N.C., in June 2007.

"Chris is a terrific young player. He is a complete player and one of his strengths is his ability to keep the ball in play and manage his round," Misko said. "He is finishing his rounds much better now and has overcome the bogey monster.' "

Gilbert enjoyed his first season with Royal. He especially liked getting to compete against strong players day in and day out.

"It helps to be on a really good team," Gilbert said. "You compete with each other every day in practice and that makes you all much better.

"It made me work harder and it helped me be more confident when I could beat them."

Gilbert's father, Jeff, introduced him to golf at a young age, but he only got serious about it around seventh grade.

By ninth grade, he gave up his first love of basketball to focus on golf.

While his ultimate goal is the PGA Tour, his current priority is playing Division I golf. His father played at the University of Oregon.

"I'm not sure if I want to play on the West Coast or East Coast," Gilbert said. "I just want to keep playing. I love the competition and I love winning. When I win, I feel like I'm on top of the world."