AROUND THE GREENS
Grand experience for Maui teenager

By Bill Kwon
Special to The Advertiser

Maui teenager Drake Zintgraff now knows why one of Lana'i's two resort golf courses is called The Experience at Koele. He had quite an experience there two weeks ago.

Jerry Kelly, who won his first PGA Tour event Sunday at the Sony Open in Hawai'i, made several friends and lasting impressions while he prepared for the event at Lana'i. Eugene Tanner • The Honolulu Advertiser

Curious to see who he was, Drake peeked at the golfer's bag and saw the name, Jerry Kelly. He remembered the name from a golf magazine that he had just read and quickly told his father that Kelly was a PGA Tour professional.

Bob Zintgraff went over to Kelly, who was on Lana'i practicing during the week of the Mercedes Championships at Kapalua, and asked him if he wouldn't mind giving his son a few tips.

Not only did Kelly give a golf tip or two, he spent the next 90 minutes with the awed youngster, a 6-foot-2 sophomore at King Kekaulike High School where he plays on the golf team and is the starting center in JV basketball.

When they were done, Kelly told Drake, "Hey, I'm playing at 7 in the morning tomorrow. Do you want to join me?"

"You talk about exciting. We were so excited," said the elder Zintgraff, an artist along with his wife, Jeri. They moved to Maui from Los Angeles when Drake was 2. The Zintgraffs, whose mom-and-pop business is aptly named "Moved to Maui," sell hand-painted shirts to Valley Island outlets.

The family was awed that a PGA pro would spend that much time with their son, who has been in the Maui junior golf program since he was 8.

So was Brendan Moynahan, Koele's head golf professional, who played with Kelly and Drake that day.

"It was a selfless thing that (Kelly) did. He did it on his own time when he should have been practicing for the Sony Open," Moynahan said.

By now, if the name Jerry Kelly isn't familiar, it should be. He won the Sony Open in Hawai'i for his first PGA Tour victory and picked up $720,000.

The elder Zintgraff recalls Kelly saying, when they said their goodbyes on Lana'i, "I hope to see you there (Maui) next year," meaning at the winners-only Mercedes Championships.

Yeah, sure, Zintgraff thought to himself.

"You can imagine how we felt when he won," said Zintgraff, who is putting together a book of memorabilia and sending it to Kelly. "I'm going to ask him if we can show him around on Maui when he comes back."

Kelly brought up Drake's name and what happened at Lana'i after his victory Sunday. He, too, was impressed by the golfer next to him at the practice range.

"He was hitting his drives 300 yards and had a good short game, too," Kelly said.

Hesitant to give any advice, Kelly was really glad that the youngster, through his dad, asked for some.

Kelly ought to know. His game was going nowhere except the mini-tours during the early stages of his career.

"I had so many debacles," said Kelly, who recalled that the first time he played with Jack Nicklaus, he hit a 7-iron 80 yards. "I knew I had a substandard swing and was never a world-beater at any level."

At the 1997 PGA Championship at Winged Foot, Kelly saw Lee Janzen and his instructor, Rick Smith, on the practice range. Kelly asked Smith if he could help him.

Smith said yes, telling Kelly, "If you can play with a swing like that, you can win."

Kelly, who finished 35th on the money list with nearly $1.5 million last year, still shudders at the thought of not having stopped to ask for help.

So, it should not be surprising that Kelly feels empathy for anyone asking for advice.

Asked what Drake must be feeling now that he won the Sony Open in Hawai'i, Kelly replied, "I hope he feels happy for me."

Drake does, because it is an experience that he will never forget.

"It's not every day that a PGA Tour pro spends that much time with a kid," Moynahan said. "He's a real down-to-earth, unassuming guy."

The experiences at Koele don't end there.

During his four-day stay on Lana'i with his wife, Carol, and 3 1/2-year-old son, Cooper, Kelly befriended the staff at the Koele Lodge.

He told cart attendant Addie Del Rosario and her daughter, Del, who is also with the guest services there, "If I win (the Sony Open), I will send you tickets to the Mercedes Championships."

There's more, according to Moynahan.

Tom Lehman and Duffy Waldorf were also on Lana'i that week, preparing for the Sony Open. The two, however, practiced and stayed at the island's other resort golf course and hotel, The Challenge at Manele.

"Kelly stayed at the lodge and won the Sony Open," Moynahan pointed out. "The year before, Brad Faxon stayed at Koele and he also won the Sony Open the following week."

Makes you wonder, if Koele Lodge can make it a three-peat next year.

Bill Kwon can be reached at bkwon@aloha.net.