Akau, Oshiro win individual ILH golf championships
| • | Read more about golf in our Golf Report |
By Wes Nakama
Advertiser Staff Writer
The steady play of Kamehameha junior Christian Akau and the courage of St. Francis senior Stefanie Oshiro earned each an Interscholastic League of Honolulu golf championship yesterday at Wai'alae Country Club.
Cory Lum • The Honolulu Advertiser
Akau, the ILH boys regular-season scoring leader, shot an even-par 72 and won with a two-day, 36-hole score of 139. He shot a 5-under 67 in the first round Monday at Makaha West.
Punahou freshman Lindsay Hong finished second in the ILH girls individual championships at Wai'alae Country Club yesterday
"I just tried to play for par and not charge anything," Akau said. "Good course management helped, too. But there were a lot of good scores out there."
Akau won by two strokes over Hawai'i Baptist senior Kellen-Floyd Asao, who shot a 71 yesterday. Kamehameha's Eric Fong and Chris Souza each shot 71 to finish tied for third at 143, and Iolani junior Matthew Ma had the day's best round of 68 to finish fifth at 144.
Kamehameha coach Wes Wailehua said Akau's game scaled new heights just in the past week.
"He's playing exceptionally well," Wailehua said. "I'm really happy for him, because he earned this title. The other players made him work for it. He's definitely a talented player, and he's matured, but he's just starting to reach his pinnacle."
Oshiro needed a 40-foot birdie putt on the second playoff hole to win the girls championship over Punahou freshman Lindsay Hong. Oshiro shot a 3-over 75 at Makaha West on Monday to enter yesterday's final with a three-stroke lead. But she was hobbled by a strained muscle in her right leg and was limping noticeably throughout the final round, finishing with an 82 to tie Hong (79-78—157) after 36 holes.
"I saw a doctor (on Tuesday) and she told me I shouldn't play," Oshiro said. "But I told her I was going to play no matter what."
Oshiro strained the muscle during the regular-season finale at West Loch on Saturday. She said it felt OK during Monday's round, but she collapsed at home trying to walk on it that night.
Yesterday, the pain started early in the round.
"Every time I hit the ball, I knew it was going to hurt," Oshiro said.
She chipped in for an eagle-3 at the par-5 No. 9 hole to go out at 39, but the muscle "was really throbbing" on the back nine and she came in with a 44, forcing the playoff.
After Oshiro and Hong each parred the first playoff hole, Oshiro landed her tee shot 40 feet below the cup on the par-3 No. 2.
"I just putt it straight, and it went in," Oshiro said.
The victory capped a storybook career for Oshiro, who played JV as a freshman, did not qualify for the ILH finals as a sophomore and finished eighth last year.
"This was my last chance," Oshiro said. "This is what I wanted."
ILH golf coordinator John Hom said individual state tournament berths, which were to be determined yesterday, will be awarded pending the outcome of today's meeting between Hawai'i's top school and sports officials regarding the tournament's fate.
