Saturday, November 7, 2009
Saturday, November 7, 2009
It was a huge victory for Tadd Fujikawa. It was the largest margin of victory ever in the 52 years of the Mid Pac Open at the Mid Pacific Country Club.
Fujikawa won the Open by 9 strokes over David Ishii.
Fujikawa and Ishii started the first round on Thursday paired against each other, with T.J Kua. It was an amazing match up for Kua, Ishii’s nephew, to witness.
Fujikawa and Ishii ended up tied for 69 with Michael Monaghan.
But the way they got there was “Master-esque”, particularly coming just a week after the Masters dual of Tiger Woods and Phil Mickleson.
Billy McRoberts, who writes under the pseudonym “Billy the Goat” for 808golf.com, followed the action from the 12th hole:
“David hit his second shot to about 80 yards from the pin. Tadd was 261 out and smoked a three wood to about 20 feet for an eagle putt. David sticks the pin. Tadds’ eagle putt just misses. David strokes in his birdie. Tadd makes his. Both two under with 6 to play. Now onto the Mid Pac version of Amen corner. On the 15th, Tadd hits into the trees on the left and David is in perfect position. Tadd pulls off a semi miracle shot to the front of the green. Davis is off the green on the left.”
And so it went. Back and forth, until Fujikawa and Ishii, and Monaghan, were tied for 69 and the lead after the first round.
The next day, Fujikawa took off, increasing his lead over the field by 5 points after firing a 66. After Saturdays 69 and the final 72, Fujikawa finished 12-under 276 and 9 shots ahead of second place David Ishii.
Fujikawa took home $14,000 for his first place victory. Ishii $10,000. It looks like all that experience on the PGA Tour is really paying off for Fujikawa.
TEENS VS SENIORS – OOPS – CHAMPIONS
There was no Senior Division in the Mid Pac Open at the Mid Pacific Country Club. There were the Professional, Championship, A Flight and B Flight divisions. (You had to have a handicap of 12 or better to get in to the any of the flights; so obviously, these guys are all good players.)
But check out the players who could have been in the Senior flight.
David Ishii, Hawaii Hall of Fame member, the winner of the 1990 Hawaiian Open, the 6 time Pearl Open champion, the 2006 Mid Pac champion and one year he was the top money winner on the Japan Tour, just to name a few of his accomplishments.
Lance Suzuki, Hawaii Hall of Fame member, 8 time Mid Pac Champion, 8 time Waikoloa Open, 5 time Hawaii State Open champion, 5 time Rainbow Open champion, 2 time Pearl Open winner, 2 time Army Open winner, just to name a few.
I could write paragraphs about the accomplishments of Larry Stubblefield, Casey Nakama, Leland Lindsay and the other players who would have been in a division of their own, the Senior division for those age 50 plus, but they went up against the teens and twenty-somethings including Fujikawa, Casey Watabu, Travis Toyama, Norman-Ganin Asao, Michael Monaghan, and 3 time Mid Pac Open winner Regan Lee. That’s just the Professional flight.
The Championship flight could have been a junior golf event.
Christian Akau, who started off in the lead on Sunday, was beat in a playoff with Bradley Shigezawa. Shigezawa said he couldn’t believe he managed to come out on top after starting the final round so far back.
Finishing third, fourth and fifth, we’ve got Lorens Chan, Alika Bell and T. J. Kua.
13 year old Skye Inakoshi finished 17th, just behind Ryan Perez.
The beauty of the Mid Pac Open is the opportunity golfers have to challenge themselves to become a little more creative, a little more aggressive or when to pull back from that “go for broke” shot. That’s what competition can do for you.
During our live broadcast from the beautiful frame the Koolau Range makes behind the Mid Pacific Country Club golf course, we heard some interesting comments from all of our guests including Kua and Inakoshi,
A couple of those comments stood out as really good tips for golfers.
GOING FOR THE GREEN
While I was talking with Bill McRoberts during “The Golf Club” radio show, he spoke of how important it was not to go for the middle of the green. That it was smarter to go for the front of the green because going for the middle risked going too far and ending up behind the pin, or worse, off the green and down the back slope. McRoberts is a good golfer but not a professional golfer or a championship flight golfer. He can play in the A or B flight, depending on how much time he is spending on the course and his handicap.
Later in the show, Mid Pacific Country Club head professional Mark Sousa, PGA, gave me a different take. His opinion was one should always go for the center of the green.
Why such different opinions? It’s called golf course management. When you are playing, you need to consider your ability and your weaknesses.
A professional golfer knows exactly how far each club goes.
An amateur may not have that kind of knowledge or as much experience.
You have to take your shot based on what your percentages are.
Sometimes it’s better to lay up and make a par than overshoot the intended target and find yourself with a double bogey or worse.
KNOWING THE RULES
Hawaii State Golf Association’s Hal Okita served on the Mid Pac Open rules committee. During the show, you can hear it at http://www.radiogolfclub.com/, Okita talked about some of the rulings he had to make during the Open. He also encouraged golfers to get to know the rules of golf.
The rules can often work in your favor and you can avoid making some very costly mistakes.
Mark Sousa and Okita both suggested getting the USGA’s Decisions on the Rules of Golf. It gives you actual events that happened leading to a ruling and then how the rules applied to the given situation and what options a golfer has.
The most often mentioned example of how knowing the rules can benefit the golfer is Tiger Woods use of the rules to have what amounted to a very large loose impediment, or boulder, rolled out of his way to allow for easy access to the ball.
THANK YOU
None of the local amateur, or professional, or combo events would be possible if it weren’t for the generosity of the local sponsors and the volunteers who work the event.
This year, despite the odds, the Mid Pac Open committee was able to not only keep the A and B flights an option, the purse for the event was increased. That’s an amazing accomplishment. I want to thank Michael Kawaharada and Wes Wailehua for their hard work putting everything together. Thank you to all of the Pro-Am participants. Without you, it couldn’t have happened.
Jason Amoy, Mid Pacific Country Club, continued his tradition of excellence. The course is in beautiful condition, he had the greens rolling about 11, and the pin placement became more challenging as the tournament progressed.
PARKER AND WIE TIED FOR SECOND
As this column was being submitted, Parker McLachlin was coming off 6 missed cuts until the Zurich Classic at TPC Louisiana where he was tied for 2nd place after the first round.
Michelle Wie was coming off two extremely disappointing events, where she finished at the bottom of the leaderboard in Korea and at the first LPGA major of the year.
She was also tied for 2nd after the first round in Mexico at the 2009 Corona Championship.
I hope they are the lead story next month!
WOODS ABSENSE GOOD FOR THE GAME
I’m glad Tiger Woods is back and I’m glad Tiger Woods was gone for 8 months.
While Tiger Woods was recovering and rehabilitating from the knee surgery and broken bones, we got to know a whole bunch of great young guys and players who’ve been around for years but had not gotten the attention they deserved.
Some great older players, you know, these days that means the guys are in their mid 30’s to 40’s, came out of their shell and upped their game. Kenny Perry is the prime example.
We got to know the young guys including Anthony Kim, Rory McIlroy, Ryo Ishikawa and Danny Lee. And they didn’t have to go up against Woods in his prime like Sergio Garcia did.
I don’t like hearing Garcia whining any more than anyone else. But I also feel the timing of Garcias’ arrival in the world of golf couldn’t have been worse. The then teenager went up against the golfer who is arguably the best there has ever been. I think it did some damage. What happened to the spirit we saw at the beginning of Garcias’ career?
With the blinding glare of Woods out of the picture, the media had no choice but to find reasons to get to know other players.
But it sure is good to have Woods back. There is no one who can seem to be playing so poorly and still pull off a score of 67. I’m referring to the final round of the 2009 Masters at Augusta National.
Anyone other than Woods would have simply drooped and went on the manage something like a 75. But with Tiger, time after time, his determination to pull himself together and make the next shot is truly an amazing force to watch and reckon with.
Phil Mickleson caught the groove playing in the final round paired with Woods. Mickleson pulled off an incredible front 9 score of 30. But he couldn’t keep the "mojo" going. He beat Woods, in that final round, by one shot.
THE 2009 MASTERS TOURNAMENT
Audio Clip (.swf) Angel Cabrera talks through a translator about his win. You'll hear the Spanish first and then English.
Kenny Perry, the man who held the lead at the Masters for so long we all expected him to win, said something incredible at the finish. While some say Perry lost the event rather than Angel Cabrera winning, Perry said he made mistakes Woods wouldn’t have. Perry said in the clutch moments, Woods comes through like no one else. He put it something like this: “If Tiger had been facing the shots I faced in the end, he would have made them.”
Audio Clip (.swf) Kenny Perry talks about his 4th round loss to Angel Cabrera in sudden death at the 2009 Masters Tournament on the day of his loss.
Two weeks later, Perry talked to the media:
"I wouldn't consider it a choke. By far, that is the last thing that entered my mind," he said. "I think winning and losing is a lot about decision-making."
He rued his first putt at the par-5 No. 13 that resulted in a three-putt bogey. He second-guessed his bladed bump-and-run at No. 17.
"Should you hit a 64-degree sand wedge? That was probably the shot I should have hit," Perry said.
But "I wouldn't consider it choking. I was nervous, yes, but I was enjoying it. I enjoyed the moment. I enjoyed being in it. I was actually thriving on it more than I ever have in the past. So I haven't beaten myself up much about this deal."
"When I got two up with two to play, my thought was, 'All right, two pars and you win the Masters,' " Perry said. "Well, to me, I hadn't been playing like that all week. To me, I was playing, 'Let's hit it here, put it on this part of the green, get an uphill putt here for birdie.' And I was playing great golf.
"When I knew I had to make two pars, I got defensive. To me, that was probably the biggest thing. Instead of being aggressive, I started to hang on. And that's the worst thing to do in golf. When you try to hang on, bad things start happening."
I’d like players and spectators to take away the most significant lesson Perry left us with as his game failed. It was wonderful watching a man with such grace and poise, taking what his golf stroke gave him, without stomping about, swearing, breaking a club or blaming something or someone.
TELEVISION AND SPONSORS
It sure is nice to have Tiger Woods back in the field on the PGA Tour. It’s nice to have him back just for the news coverage he generates. People actually write articles about how much they hate Woods and why. They complain about the focus he gets whenever he is playing, even if he isn’t playing that well. These people don’t like how much time commentators spend talking about Woods while another player is actually in the lead. Yea, CBS could have spent more time following Perry, Cabrera, Campbell and Shingo Katayama without missing any of the Woods and Mickleson pairing.
We didn’t need to see Woods back off from a shot, wait for the wind to die down or check the wind direction with blades of grass. We could have seen the others live rather than in instant replay.
But that’s money and ratings.
Woods seems to be in just about perfect physical condition. He also seems to be in excellent mental condition. And his swing, his full swing with his driver, seems to be exactly the same as it was – unpredictable.
I’m glad Woods is back because he makes for great television, great copy and he helps to employ hundreds of thousands of people. Woods helps to grow the game of golf generating attention from the people who wouldn’t otherwise watch or care about golf.
Those are the people who wouldn’t watch golf if Woods weren’t in the field. The television numbers for Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by MasterCard at Bay Hill were just as high as they were when Woods won the 2008 U.S. Open last year with a broken leg. Woods won at Bay Hill. CBS weekend coverage, while down slightly on Sunday, was the most since 2001 and up 6 percent from 2008.
Audio Clip (.swf) Tiger Woods talks about winning the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill Club and Lodge.
The fact that Tiger Woods generates so much emotion is what the game needs. For a man, in his early 30’s, who keeps challenging himself to improve himself as a golfer and a human being, is wonderful to behold. Sure, he doesn’t take controversial stands. He talks public relations speak. He’s a golfer. And he has given back to the community through his Learning Centers on a level most of us can’t even fathom.
What were you doing at 31?
So let’s catch up with our young guns.
Danny Lee is reportedly turning pro and already has what is reported to be $10 million dollar endorsement deals with equipment and clothing companies, just to start.
Rory McIlroy has turned down the offer to become a PGA Tour member, for the time being. He doesn’t want to play more than 11 events on the PGA Tour.
Anthony Kim pulled off an unprecedented 11 birdies in one round but finished T-20.
John Merrick had the best score for a first time player. He finished T-6 and will return next year.
Ryo Ishikawa played from one end of the U.S. to another and became the second youngest player in a Masters Tournament history. He didn’t make it to the weekend but he put on a good show.
GARY PLAYER – HIS LAST
You don’t expect tears to come from Gary Player. I’ve watched him at several events, including the Wendy’s Champions Skins on Maui. Player is a strong, tough looking guy. But after 52 years his journey to the Masters at Augusta has been an annual trek for Mr. Player and his family they have looked forward to each year since 1957. This year he announced a few weeks ago would be his last. He also said he expected to shed a few tears. As he walked up to the 18th green on his final Friday round, the roar from the crowd, he said, was 10 times louder than those Sundays when he won green jackets. Palmer went down on one knee in appreciation. “It was something you’ll never, never forget. You’ll go to your grave knowing you had tremendous love showered up yourself.”
Borrowing a phrase from one of his favorites, Winston Churchill, Player said: “It’s never a bad thing to cry. It’s a cry of appreciation and enjoyment, a cry of gratitude.”
USGA
Hawaii has been given the opportunity to conduct Local and Sectional Qualifiers for all of the USGA qualifiers around the state and it is imperative we fill these qualifiers. In order to do this we need your help. I have attached a flier with all of the USGA Qualifiers, the criteria to enter and the entry deadlines.
Please spread the word to all golfers to enter if they meet the criteria even if they feel they may not make it to the next level. Hawaii golfers need to support other Hawaii golfers and know that their entry will increase the possibility of one more person from Hawaii to have the opportunity to compete in a National Championship, the more entries, the more Hawaii players in our National Championships.
Please note the entry deadlines fast approaching for the following and make note that all entries close at 11:00 am Hawaii Standard Time. All entries may be done online at http://www.usga.org/.
United States Women's Open Entry Deadline Wednesday May 6
MICHELLE WIE IN TROUBLE?
After such a terrific start to the season, when she played very well in the SBS Open at the Turtle Bay Resort Palmer Course, things just haven’t been going Wies’ way.
At the first major of the LPGA season, the Kraft Nabisco, during the pre tournament interview Wie said she felt very good about her game and optimistic about her opportunity to play on a course she has already done very well on in the past.
The first round went well and then her game went south.
She didn’t have a good round in Korea on the KLPGA, beginning with her decision to withdraw from the Pro-Am because she wasn’t allowed to use her caddy. She had no comment but it didn’t start things off well for her. This development after a very happy greeting with lovely smiles all around when she arrived in her ancestral homeland. She just barely made the cut, much like at the Kraft Nabisco, and went on to finish close to the bottom of the leaderboard.
Hopefully she has done better in Mexico. She sure started out on top.
Sidebar:
Michelle Wie is losing her Sony deal. That’s according to Ron Sirak in GolfWorld who writes: “Wie, who in 2006 made nearly $20 million in endorsements and appearance fees, is finding out that performance needs to live up to potential for the checks to keep coming in. According to multiple sources, Sony has ended its relationship with Wie, which was valued at $5 million a year.”
THE LATEST GOLF CHALLENGE
The brand-new golf course at the Legends Golf & Safari Resort in South Africa is an amazing stretch of 18 holes designed by 18 different top-flight golfers, including Padraig Harrington , Colin Montgomerie , K.J. Choi , Retief Goosen , Justin Rose , Trevor Immelman and Vijay Singh .
But each of those holes are nothing compared to the bonus 19th hole.
The course's so-called "Xtreme 19th" hole is a par 3 -- a par 3 whose tee is atop a cliff on Hanglip Mountain, more than 1,400 feet above a green carved like the continent of Africa. You've got to take a helicopter to get to the tee box, and from there it's more than 630 yards to the pin. Once you tee off, it takes nearly 30 seconds for the ball to hit the ground.
BRITISH OPEN
The rumor that this year’s Open is moving from Turnberry to Royal Troon is rubbish, according to Peter Dawson, the R&A chief executive. There was concern the renovation work on the five-star hotel at Turnberry wouldn’t be finished but Dawson says “it’s going to be fine. The golf course is in great shape, too, so any rumors that The Open is going anywhere else are totally without foundations.” Make your reservations now. Turnberry will be staging the event for only the fourth time and the course has been extended by nearly 250 yards since Nick Price lifted the Claret Jug there in 1994.
OBAMA AND WOODS
This is for Tim Dietrich, the GM at the Mid Pacific Country Club. Dietrich suggested to President Obama he Tiger Woods for tips on improving his golf. Maybe they got a chance during this meeting at the White House.
BEST FOR LAST
The Par 3 contest at the Masters Tournament is really the most fun for everyone – players, family and fans. This is just one of the pictures that demonstrates the best of that day.
There were at least three holes in one during the 2009 Masters Tournament Par 3 contest. One of them belonged to Greg Norman, who did very well on the first day of the 2009 Masters Tournament but not so well on the second. Even though Norman didn’t make the cut, he said he was there for the thrill of just being able to play the course and feel the atmosphere at Augusta this one more time, which may be his last. Norman said he didn’t think of the bad things that happened to him at Augusta National Golf Club. He only remembered the good things.
And that’s what keeps us coming back to the game.
I hope you tune into “The Golf Club” radio show.
You can find us on the radio and at http://www.radiogolfclub.com/.
Thank you for your Mana and may you hit the sweet spot every time.
Aloha,
Danielle
