There are relationships, and then there are old reliables.

Lorens Chan and Alina Ching endured a day of tricky winds at Waialae Country Club, reaching for their go-to weapons — trusty putters — to secure individual titles yesterday.

Chan, of 'Iolani, outlasted Michael Fan of Kamehameha in sudden death to capture the Interscholastic League of Honolulu boys championship.

Ching emerged to finish ahead of her Punahou teammates Kaci Komoto and Cyd Okino for the girls crown.

Chan's second round, a 1-under 71, gave him a two-day 141. Fan, who had a one-stroke lead over Bradley Shigezawa of Punahou after one round, shot a 73 to fall into a tie with Chan.

They hit the first hole of sudden death at roughly 1:30 p.m. facing those tricky crosswinds. Fan's drive tailed left, and when his second shot hit a tree and landed in the bunker, he was in trouble. He almost saved par, missing on a 12-foot putt as it lipped out.

“;I had a good run at it, hit it a little too hard, but I had a good line,”; Fan said.

Chan was steady, knocking down a short putt for par and victory.

“;I was hoping to get below the pin and work uphill,”; said Chan, who was two strokes back to start the round. “;I got a little lucky, especially with (Fan) in the bunker. He was draining putts all day.”;

Fan and Chan met in a playoff two years ago at the Manoa Cup. Fan won that sudden-death battle.

“;I won that year. It evens out, I guess,”; Fan said. “;My driver was good today. I got in the fairway all day.”;

Chan's reliable putter, a Titleist Scotty Cameron model, is the same one he's used since he was 9. Over the years, as he added length to the aging putter, it wore down. He picked up a newer version of the same model, but it just wasn't the same. Then, by chance, he met Scotty Cameron at the Sony Open.

“;I always liked the old one, so he said he'd help me,”; Chan said.

Refurbished models are made at 34 inches. Chan got his request, a 33-inch length, when it was returned last summer.

“;It's the attitude. I won a lot of tournaments with it,”; he said, noting that Titleist added weights to the head, and even carved in his initials.

“;That's probably what kept me in the game,”; Chan said.

“;It's his home course. His family's members here, so we weren't too concerned with how he'd do,”; Raiders coach Glenn Inouye said.

Ching, meanwhile, finished the day with a 73 for a two-day 144, eight strokes ahead of Komoto and 10 in front of Okino.

It was a breakthrough day for the junior. Ching had led last year's ILH tourney after one day before faltering, and she had the lead at the 2008 state tourney as a freshman before falling.

“;She was mentally ready for today,”; Punahou coach Ed Kagiyama said. “;Sometimes golfers will push too hard and set expectations too high. Today, she was a little more methodical. She looked very calm. This is really the mark on how much growth she's had year over year.”;

Ching had a three-stroke lead after one round and got better despite all kinds of challenges caused by swirling winds.

“;There were times when she'd bogey, but she'd have a birdie on the next hole,”; said Okino, who had won five of six tournaments during the regular season. “;She stayed consistent.”;

Ching stayed low on her drives and conservative on the fast greens of Waialae, especially after the turn, when the winds kicked up.

“;I didn't want to try things I shouldn't and be too aggressive. My putter was working,”; Ching said of a TaylorMade Itsy Bitsy Spider she began using last summer.

“;I just wanted to two-putt and just get around the holes,”; said Ching, who put all 14 of her sticks to work.

The 10th hole was pivotal.

“;I went right behind a tree (off the tee). I just tried to lay up, but I hit the tree. I had to punch it out,”; she said of the bogey. “;It was really ugly. I thought I'd struggle on the back nine after that.”;

Instead, Ching chipped in to save par on the 11th to extended her lead.

After Ching, Komoto and Okino, defending ILH champion Marissa Chow of 'Iolani and Maggie Min of Punahou tied for fourth (159).

On the boys' side, Shigezawa placed third (146), followed by Bryan Lee of Punahou (151). Defending ILH champ Alika Bell of Kamehameha finished in a logjam at 152.

The state tourney will be held May 4-5 at the Turtle Bay Hilton's Fazio (girls) and Palmer (boys) courses.