5.8.2013-- Lahaina, Maui, HI – Senior Kalena Preus (shown below) secured the Individual trophy and helped his Punahou Team (shown above) take home the Team win in the HHSAA 2013 David S. Ishii Foundation Boys Golf Championship at Ka’anapali Golf Courses firing a 67 (-4) yesterday in the second and final round of the tournament (69-67-136).  The top 96 high school golfers from across the state competed this week on the Royal Ka’anapali Course, a par 71 course that has tested the likes of Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Nick Price, Fred Couples and Jan Stephenson.

Going into the second round, Junior PJ Samiere had the lead by three over defending champion, John Oda of Moanalua and Samiere was four strokes ahead of teammate Kalena Preus. With the trade winds approaching and Trent Jones Senior’s undulating greens, it was still anybody’s game with 18 holes to play.  Preus started out of the gate with a birdie on the first hole and remained steady through the 12^th hole with two more birdies and two bogeys.

Punahou’s Golf Program Director and Ka’anapali’s General Manager said to Preus, “What are you waiting for?” knowing that Preus had it in him to turn it on and take his game to the next level and he was running out of holes to do just that.  As he approached the tee box for the drivable par 4 #14 hole (playing 280 yards), Kalena asked Kageyama for some advise, “Should I go for the green?”  Kageyama replied that most kids had not been playing that hole well today and although it was playing shorter, many were taking a bogey “Lay it up a bit and let the ball run up there to the green,” he stated.  Preus at the time said he thought “Is this guy crazy or what, I feel like I should go for it – but I trust the guy, he’s a smart guy and a great coach and so I trusted him.”

Preus hit his tee shot and it rolled up to just before the green onto the fringe, leaving himself about a 10 foot right to left putt for eagle. “I felt like I was able to read the green well and see the line and I knew that if I got it on the right track, I’d have a chance to sink it for an eagle,” Preus commented. And he did just that.  At this point, Preus was now several strokes ahead of teammate Samiere and Oda, whom had been trading places for the lead all day.

Preus would put the exclamation point on his win with a final birdie on the second hardest hole on the course, the final 18^th hole and shout out in excitement over his last performance of his high school career. “I didn’t even know at that point that I’d had the lead – actually I didn’t even know I’d won until about 30 minutes after I came off the course,” Preus said. He added, “My goal for this tournament was really to play hole by hole which is hard when you’re playing as a team, against other teams – a lot of times you can get caught up in what your competitors are doing and react to their game to play against them but I was really focused on playing my game one shot at a time – I feel like my whole team did a good job of that this week.”

As for the Team Championship Title, Preus commented, “That was what I really wanted this week – the individual trophy is great, but I think I’m more excited about the team win.” He added, “We challenge each other and it helps us all to be better players.” Preus will play next fall at the University of Texas in Austin.

Defending Champion, John Oda shot one over in the final round (72) and came in second place (68-72-140).  Oda stated about the tournament, “The course is great – it was awesome actually – coming into the week, I think a lot of people had expectations about me defending my title but I carried on with business and wanted to let go of the past and just really perform well this week.”  He continued, “The course fits my game perfectly, tee to green – the greens are tough and the elevation changes make some holes tricky, but that’s what makes it fun.”  Oda is a junior this year and will have one more shot with his team for another title in 2014.

PJ Samiere shot 76 (+5) to take third place (65-76-141) and was one of only three players to shoot sub-par for the two-day tournament.  Samiere struggled a bit on Wednesday and started off bogey-bogey on the first two holes. “Going into today’s round, I wanted to take one shot at a time, get some good shots in there but not too aggressive and not too conservative,” Samiere stated.  Samiere double bogeyed the 7^th hole and “I lost my momentum for the day – I could have come back after that but I just couldn’t get it going again.” Prior winner of the Ka’anapali HSJGA Match Play Championship, Samiere commented on the course, “The course is nice, it played really well this week – the greens were just about perfect and with the calm winds there were chances for us to score.”  This is his third straight year in qualifying for the state high school tournament.

As for the Boys Team Championship title, it was Punahou that would win with a two-day sub-par total of 561 (4 players scored each day), winning by 19 strokes over defending team champions, Moanalua (580) and third place went to Kamehameha (616). The Punahou Boys & Girls teams won the 2013 Championship, with one player also taking first in the individual titles as well. Program Director Kageyama commented, “It’s amazing to see what these kids are capable of and I really enjoy working with them as a team and seeing them grow.” With some great young talent at Punahou, the next few years of HHSAA Championships will be filled be filled with a lot of their players for sure.

At the awards ceremony, tournament sponsor and Hawaii golf legend, David Ishii spoke, “Every four years, Ka’anapali puts on a true show for all of us, all of you, and I want to give them all a big Mahalo for making this event so memorable and a success for the kids.”  Ishii added, “Congratulations to all of you for qualifying for the state tournament at Ka’anapali, who hosts one of the best events on the island – you were all treated this week like champions and I hope that you will remember this day in your golfing career.”

Click here for direct link to final online scores.

HISTORY OF THE DAVID S. ISHII FOUNDATION:

In 1996, after 40 years of state Department of Education sponsorship, the Hawaii High School Athletic Association (HHSAA) became a private, non-profit corporation. State money, the bulk of the association’s funding up to that point, was cut to zero. Private sponsors were needed to underwrite the cost of staging both the boys and girls state golf championships.

This potentially dire situation did not escape the notice of Hawaii Hall of Fame golfer David S. Ishii. David – himself the 1973 state champion from Kauai High School – stepped up and committed his own funds to serve as the title sponsor of the event in 1997 and continued to personally sponsor the event for several more years.

Encouraged by his wife Lorraine and assisted by his many friends, David laid the groundwork to establish a foundation that would ensure support for the HHSAA tournament in perpetuity. Beyond that, he envisioned a foundation that could also offer college scholarships, sponsor clinics, and provide learning opportunities for Hawaii’s youth using golf as a means of imparting important life lessons.

The David S. Ishii Foundation was officially founded in 1999 and has more than fulfilled the vision that its founder held for it. Today, the Foundation sponsors the annual HHSAA State Golf Championships for both boys and girls, awards two $4,000 college scholarships to graduating seniors each year, offers travel stipends to the Boys U.S. Junior Amateur and presents workshops and clinics.

For more information about the foundation, visit www.davidsishiifoundation.org

ABOUT KA’ANAPALI GOLF COURSES:

The Royal Ka’anapali Course, a Robert Trent Jones Senior design, opened in 1962 and has tested the skills of golf professionals and amateurs alike.  A Par 71 stretching 6700 yards, the Royal Course combines wide fairways and undulating greens, making it both distinctive and demanding.  Home of the Champions Tour Ka’anapali Classic for 14 years, the Royal Ka’anapali Course also hosted Shell’s Wonderful World of Golf, the Canada Cup and LPGA Kemper Open, donning such golfing greats as Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Greg Norman, Fred Couples, Jan Stephenson and Betsey King.

The Ka’anapali Kai Course is a Par 70, 6,400-yard course and boasts an array of strategically placed bunkers, contoured fairways, and re-shaped and resurfaced greens. This course, host of Golf Channel’s #1 series Big Break Ka'anapali, is a challenge to play and places a premium on strategy off the tee, accuracy with approach shots, and a deft touch around the greens.

In 2005-2007, Ka’anapali Golf Courses invested over $13 million in renovations and infrastructure.  Golf course architect, Robin Nelson, was brought in to oversee the rework of the Ka’anapali Kai Course and enhancements to the championship Royal Ka’anapali Course. Ka’anapali recently celebrated 50 years (1962-2012) and was host of the Champions Tour SKIN GAME January 2008-2011.

For more information about Ka’anapali Golf Courses visit www.kaanapaligolfcourses.com or call (808) 661-3691. Twitter @KaanapaliResort and www.facebook.com/kaanapaligolf

5.5.2013-- The final matches for all three flights of the Francis Brown Four-Ball Championship was held today at the Ala Wai Golf Course with overcast conditions and an occasional light sprinkling of rain throughout the day.

In the Championship flight, the young team of Jared Sawada and Evan Kawai (shown right:: Jared black shirt and Evan blue shirt) won over the team of Mark Takahama and Shannon Tanoue.  In the morning 18, the Sawada/Kawai team started strong winning the first 3 holes and never looked back.  After 9 holes they were 5 up and after 18 holes they were 6up.  For the 2^nd 18 holes, the birdies continued for a total of 15-under par through 32 holes and ended the match there at 6 & 4.

In the A-Flight division, the team of Henry Natividad and Rod Baybayan won over the team of Ronald Rezentes and Bradley Rezentes (team of uncle and nephew).  It was a back and forth match for the morning round, but the Natividad/Baybayan team started strong on the 2^nd 18 holes winning the first 3 holes and finally closing them out on the 31^st hole, 6 & 5.

In the B-Flight division, it was a battle down to the 36^th hole of the match.  The father and son team of Merl Miyashiro and David Miyashiro had a  tough battle with the team of Marcus Lake and James Oshiro in the first 18 holes with the match not going their way with the match going as far down as 4dn but won the 15^th , 16^th , 17^th  and 18^th hole to bring the match back to even.  The match never went lopsided either way and was a hard fought match by both teams with the team of Lake/Oshiro coming through winning the match 1up.

A few details of the winning Championship flight team: 15 birdies, 2 bogeys, had 5 2’s on the par 3’s. Evan Kawai: 13yr old from Punahou, 7^th grade, 1^st HSGA tournament win, 2^nd Francis Brown Four Ball tournament played.  Gave Jared’s smooth cut tee shot a nickname: “the Sawada cutie”. Jared Sawada: 5^th yr. senior at University of Hawaii at Manoa with scholarship.  3^rd Francis Brown Four Ball win (1^st with Michael Jay Sato, 2^nd with Ryan Kuroiwa), probably last FB four ball win, will most likely turn pro in 2014.

5.1.2013-- Lahaina, Maui, HI – Punahou Freshman Mariel Galdiano (shown right) helped lead the Punahou Girls Golf team (shown above) to victory today at Ka’anapali Golf Courses as well as taking the Individual Title. With the winds changing from konas to trades, the girls had to be on top of their game this week playing the championship Royal Course and Galdiano was able to score under par both days 68-69 (137).

Galdiano has a proven track record at Ka’anapali where last May she won her age division in the Junior World Qualifier, in June she won the Junior PGA Championship for the Girls 13-18 Division, and she won the Ka’anapali HSJGA Match Play Championship in 2011. “I was swinging well today - I feel really comfortable on this course – I enjoy playing here at Ka’anapali,” Galdiano stated after her final round today.  She continued, “It’s a good course – tough, but set up well.”  Galdiano when asked about being a scoring leader for her team commented, “It feels pretty good – I try not to put too much pressure on myself – I just want to get out and play good and stick to my game.”

Ciera Min, a Senior at Waiakea came in second place with 72-72 (144) for the tournament.  Min commented about this week’s event, “This was an awesome event – what a good way to end my last year of playing high school golf.” As for golfing conditions, Min added, “Everyone struggled a bit over the last two days with tough conditions but Mariel really had an awesome two rounds so she earned the win!”  She continued, “Yesterday, I just wanted to put up a good score but then today, I felt like I was putting pressure on myself – my friends kept saying ‘Sarah, you need to relax, just go out and play.’”  The Waiakea team came in second place this year for States. Min will play at Gonzaga University next fall.

The Punahou team was back for revenge this year after coming in second place to Iolani in 2012, breaking a 5-year streak in Girls State Golf Titles.  Team Captain and Senior, Kacie Komoto (2012 State Individual Champion) commented on the team, “We knew we had a strong team with four really good freshmen but we didn’t want any expectations getting in the way of our game - we just wanted to go out and play our best.”  Kacie Komoto added, “The greens were tough this week – yesterday we had a tough time with them, but today we all played a little better.”

Komoto continued, “What’s really nice about our team is how different we all are in our personalities and our golf game – this is a group that probably normally wouldn’t hang out together if golf wasn’t our common ground, but we’re all able to come together and play off each others strengths on the course and have a lot of fun together off the course”.  Ed Kageyama, Coach of the Girls Team and Golf Program Director at Punahou stated, “The girls played well this week – they worked well as a team and were able to encourage each other out there, bringing out the best in each of them.” With such a young team, we’ll expect a few more years of great competition from this Punahou team.

Click here for direct link to online final scores.