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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Saturday, June 8, 2002

Victorino, Toyama advance to Manoa Cup title match

By Ann Miller
Advertiser Staff Writer

Travis Toyama, 15, will play Damien Victorino in today's final of the Manoa Cup, where he can become the tourney's youngest champion.

Eugene Tanner • The Honolulu Advertiser

Yesterday's Manoa Cup semifinals belonged to the "old guys."

Today, Damien Victorino — who turns 33 tomorrow — goes for his second state amateur match play championship in six years. Victorino overcame University of Hawai'i-Hilo junior Hee Beom Kim, 3 and 2, in a 36-hole semifinal yesterday at O'ahu Country Club.

Victorino — the only non-teenage golfer in the final four — plays 15-year-old Travis Toyama at 7 this morning. The University High junior held off precocious 14-year-old Kurt Nino in a semifinal that was good to the last putt.

That turned out to be a screaming little three-footer. Toyama nudged it downhill, downgrain, into the heart of the 36th hole (par-4 18th) for double bogey to halve the hole and earn a 1-up victory.

Before he hit the putt, Toyama asked caddy Reyn Tanaka for help.

"You're all on your own," Tanaka said, laughing.

Toyama laughed out loud, then drained the putt.

He held on despite hooking his drive into a water hazard on the final hole. Toyama took the penalty shot, walked back to the tee and ripped another drive 50 yards past Nino's in the middle of the fairway. Toyama put his fourth shot on the green.

"I figured maybe bogey might win," Toyama said, "because we're young and the cameras were making us really nervous. It's hard. You want to hit the good shot, but you don't want to mess up for the cameras. ... They're normally following Michelle Wie."

Nino pulled his second shot and couldn't keep the ensuing chip from rolling downhill, downgrain off the green. Anxious not to leave himself a bogey putt above the hole, Nino's next shot barely reached the green. He missed that putt and still finished the 7-hour day just 4-over par.

Earlier in the week, the Damien sophomore ousted four-time champion Brandan Kop, 2000 champion Randy Shibuya, and Norman-Ganin Asao — the man Shibuya beat that year. This from a guy who weighs 110 pounds and was winning "Pepsi Little People" awards three years ago.

"I play them like they're my size, my age," Nino said. "It doesn't really matter."

It really didn't against Toyama, who is also 5 feet 5 and weighs 125 pounds.

"Travis is tough," Nino said. "He putts well. I just made some mistakes."

Toyama two-putted the final hole to give himself a chance to become the youngest Manoa Cup champion in its 94-year history. Chipper Garriss won the 1967 Cup at the age of 17.

No one was more than 2-up during Nino and Toyama's hike over OCC's steep terrain. Toyama tied the match with eagle on the 28th hole (257-yard par-4 10th) when his drive up the valley stopped three feet from the hole.

"I hit a beautiful drive," Toyama recalled. "You know it's drive-able and so far this whole week I hadn't driven it. My caddy told me, 'Now's the time.'"

Nino grabbed the advantage again on the 12th, but Toyama won the 14th with par — managing to hit out of the trees while Nino hit into one — and birdied the 15th for what ultimately was the difference.

The other semifinal was radically different. Kim owned the morning round, taking a 3-up advantage into the lunch break as Victorino three-putted four times. He found his stroke in the afternoon, playing the last 16 holes in 4-under.

"I played pretty damn good in the afternoon," Victorino said. "Except for 14, I played perfect. Put the pressure on him when I got ahead."

Victorino won five holes on the front side in the afternoon (Kim won one) to go 1-up. They parred the first four holes on the back, then came to the 14th and 15th i downhill holes that play short but pack plenty of trouble.

Victorino nearly drove the par-4 14th, then hit two poor wedge shots and needed to one-putt for his only bogey of the afternoon. Kim was on the green in regulation and three-putted for a disappointing halve.

"That was the key hole," Victorino said. "Even when I made bogey, he missed a close one and I stayed 1-up. Then I won the next two.

On the par-5 15th, Kim's drive found the trees and Victorino one-putted for eagle to go 2-up. Kim could not get up and down on the 16th to end the match.

"I got extremely tired and lost my legs," said Kim, who is from Saipan. "That's the base of my swing. I couldn't pick it up after about the fourth (afternoon) hole.

"It's all up here," Kim said, pointing to his head. "You need so much of your mental game. My mind and my body wasn't strong enough."

The man who is twice as old as this morning's opponent has no problem with the walking-only aspect of Manoa Cup. Victorino has trekked 120 holes since Monday. He usually walks when he practices on Kaua'i. Ironically, his family owns the cart concession at Wailua Municipal.