ILH golfers have the eye of the Tiger
By Wes Nakama
Advertiser Staff Writer
The sport he plays is golf.
"Like Tiger (Woods) says, maybe golf wasn't for athletes a long time ago, but it's for athletes now," Ma said.
Cross-training, major advancements in technology and a boom in popularity have made golf as competitive as ever. The effect has trickled down to the Interscholastic League of Honolulu, which is holding its championship tournament finals tomorrow at Wai'alae Country Club.
Observers say there has been marked improvement in league scores in the past year alone. Hawai'i Baptist senior Kellen-Floyd Asao was the ILH's scoring leader last season, but his regular-season average of 71 (best four rounds) this year puts him third, behind Kamehameha junior Christian Akau (68.5) and Ma (68.75).
"They got a little longer (off the tee), and they're more composed, more mature than last year," Asao said of Akau and Ma. "There's a lot of good freshmen and sophomores in this league, too."
Kamehameha, with freshmen Chris Caycayon and Chris Souza playing key roles, won the team championship after taking the lead from 'Iolani at midseason. 'Iolani, which finished a close second, also has two freshmen on its team.
In the regular-season finale at West Loch on Saturday, Kamehameha won with a four-player score of 291. The Warriors' No. 4 player, Caycayon, shot 3-over-par 75.
'Iolani finished nine strokes back, even though the Raiders' top four players each shot 76 or better. 'Iolani coach Steve Shishido said scores around the league have been low across the board.
"The kids this year are just super; it's a real good bunch," Shishido said. "These are all strong players from the junior golf program, and a lot of them have played on the Mainland. They're tournament-tough. I think you're going to see even better scores in the next couple years."
Kamehameha co-coach Wes Wailehua agreed.
"All of the schools have improved," Wailehua said. "A lot of the players have matured, and there's a lot of freshmen coming up who seem pretty strong. They've definitely raised the standard."
Asao, who will play for the University of Hawai'i next year, said improvements in equipment also have made play more competitive and increased the pressure to keep pace.
"I changed my set and my swing (in the offseason)," Asao said. "I worked on getting used to that and tried to get more consistent."
Ma said year-round work is a must for in-season success.
"It's getting harder because everyone wants it more," Ma said. "I practice every day; practice makes perfect. I hit balls, I chip, I putt. I work on a lot of mental stuff, too, because you gotta be able to think out there."
As much as the ILH has improved, Big Island power and two-time defending state champion Waiakea still is considered the team to beat.
"They beat us the past two years, so we really want to win this year," Akau said. "If everybody shoots their regular game, I think we've got a good chance."
High-level ILH competition is not limited to the boys. Punahou girls coach Mike Dahlquist said the play also has shown marked improvement this year.
"You can see it in the cutoff for the championship (tournament)," Dahlquist said. "A lot of girls are starting to come in from junior golf, and they're younger but with a lot more experience."
Twelve girls, led by Punahou's Lindsay Hong (76.75), finished the regular season with averages of under 90.
Competition for the league's individual championships began yesterday at the par-72 Makaha West course.
The top 20 qualifiers in the boys division and the top eight qualifiers in girls play advanced to tomorrow's final round at Wai'alae Country Club.
Qualifying yesterday were:
Boys — Christian Akau (Kam) 67, Kellen-Floyd Asao (HBA) 71, Eric Fong (Kam) 72, Chris Souza (Kam) 72, Casey Kobashigawa (Iol) 73, Chris Caycayon (Kam) 73, Nathan Yamamoto (Pun) 74, Andrew Llarenas (Iol) 74, Pomaikai Shishido (Iol) 75, Adam Dornbush (Pun) 75, Troy Higashiyama (MPI) 75, Matthew Ma (Iol) 76, Kala'e Leong (Kam) 76, Todd Kimura (MPI) 76, Nathan Itoga (Iol) 77, Reyn Tanaka (MPI) 77, Brandon Lee (SL) 77, Steven Nguyen 78, Jon Ozaki (MPI) 78, Walter Ching (SL) 78.
Girls — Stefanie Oshiro (SF) 75, Mariel Kotake (Pun) 78, Lindsay Hong (Pun) 79, Darene Matsuoka (SA) 81, Kimberly Tom (Pun) 83, Allison Andrade (Pun) 86, Kari Sur (Iol) 87, Jenna Seki (Pun) 87.
