Karen Quincy Loberg / Star staff St. Bonaventure's Adam Carter tees off on No. 13 during Thursday's Tri-Valley League tournament at Olivas Links Golf Course. Carter was medalist with a 1-under 71.

St. Bonaventure High senior Adam Carter has only played Olivas Links Golf Course a few times since it was redesigned, but the lack of course knowledge didn't hurt him during Thursday's Tri-Valley League opener.

Despite heavy winds that caused the course to play extremely difficult, Carter turned in a phenomenal performance, posting a 1-under 71.

It was one of only three scores in the 70s, and it was the only under-par score.

Malibu's Joe Rosenthal finished second with a 5-over 77, while Oak Park sophomore Danielle Kang was third with a 78.

Kang's 78 helped the Eagles win the team competition, as Oak Park finished with a score of 410. Malibu was second at 420, followed closely by St. Bonaventure at 422.

Oaks Christian was fourth at 446, followed by Villanova (466), Bishop Diego (474) and Nordhoff (516).

Carter's two bogeys were examples of just how tough the wind was to gauge. Both times he was sitting in the middle of the fairway hitting his approach shot, and both times the wind wreaked havoc with his shot.

"On No. 10, I hit it over the green which is hard to do and I three-putted," Carter said. "Then on 12, my approach was short because I under-clubbed myself. The winds made it really tough."

Carter said over the last few weeks he's started to see his game come around. A few days ago he had a short talk with his instructor, Bruce Hamilton, about clearing his hips out of the way, and he said that made a difference on Thursday.

Kang didn't blame the wind for making the course tough, but rather her putting.

The talented sophomore said she had several putts lip out.

"I haven't made many putts in a while," Kang said. "I hit the ball well, but I just couldn't make any putts."

Instead of playing dual matches throughout the season, all seven teams in the league host one league tournament. The results from all seven events determine the league champions for both the team and the individual competition.

Teams earn anywhere from one to seven points at each league tournament. By virtue of their win, Oak Park now has seven points. Malibu's second-place finish earns it six points, and so on down the line.

Beck was happy to see his team jump out to an early lead in the league race. More importantly, he was pleased with the team effort. While No. 1 player Ben Howard shot an 83, mostly due to an 11 he took on No. 16, the other Oak Park players picked up the slack.

Besides Kang, No. 4 player Preston Walker, a freshman, fired an 81, and No. 5 and No. 6 players Alex Ferman and Chris Tucker each chipped in with 84s.

"With our depth, I don't think we will shoot many big numbers this season," Beck said. "We may not be in the 360s like we were a few years ago, but under regular conditions at a course we are familiar with, we should shoot around 390. We're a solid, balanced team."

Jon Gomez, St. Bonaventure's first-year coach, was pleased with his team's third-place finish.

"Considering the conditions and how we have been practicing, I'm not upset at all," Gomez said. "I'm really excited about our No. 4 (Jon Poole) who shot an 81 which is awesome."