Four Island courses feted by magazine
By Ann Miller
Advertiser Staff Writer
Four Hawai'i resort courses are included in Golfweek's seventh annual list of America's 100 Best Modern Courses. The magazine also publishes the top 100 Classical Courses, defined as those built before 1960. No Hawai'i course made the classical list.
Princeville's Prince Course on Kaua'i came in 39th among modern courses, followed by Kapalua Plantation (44), Mauna Kea (69) and Challenge at Manele Bay (79).
Those are also the first four in the magazine's list of the Top 10 courses in the state. The other six honored courses, in order, are: Kaua'i Lagoons Kiele, Po'ipu Bay, Ko'olau, Dunes at Maui Lani, Wailea Gold and Makena North.
Golfweek's national panel of course raters considers a dozen architectural elements including "ease and intimacy of routing, quality of feature shaping, natural setting, variety and memorability" of par-3s, 4s and 5s, conditioning, landscape and "walk in the park."
The Classical list includes 92 private courses and eight public-access courses. The Modern list has 65 private, 16 resort and 19 daily fee.
• Tomori ties for 39th: Hilo's Christel Tomori tied for 39th at last week's $60,000 Florida Hospital Futures Classic, played at Sun 'N Lake Golf and Country Club in Sebring, Fla. Tomori shot rounds of 77-75-72 and finished 13 back of winner Lee Ann Walker-Cooper.
Tomori missed the cut at the Lakeland Futures Classic, the first event of the season. Punahou graduate Anna Umemura, who lives in Florida, has missed both cuts. The next tournament is Tampa Bay's Next Generation Classic, tomorrow through Sunday at Rogers Park Golf Course in Florida.
• Vulcan tournament set: The Vulcan Golf Tournament will be April 19 at Mauna Lani's South Course. The event raises money for the University of Hawai'i-Hilo golf program.
The benefit has a 1 p.m. shotgun start with an 18-hole stroke play format for men and women. Cost is $150 per player.
Entry deadline is Monday. Special hotel rates are available. For information and entry forms, call Earl Tamiya (974-7493), Dennis Miyashiro (935-2943) or Jim DeMello (974-7543), all on the Big Island.
• Public invited to induction: The public is invited to the 2003 induction of Bev Kim and Marga Stubblefield into the Hawai'i Golf Hall of Fame. The ceremony and luncheon will be April 25, at 11:30 a.m., at the Hawaii Prince Hotel.
Cost is $35. Call 593-2230 for information and reservations before April 21.
The Hall of Fame Championship, a $23,000 Aloha Section PGA tournament, will be May 3-5 at Kapalua's Plantation Course.
• HSJGA accepting members: The Hawai'i State Junior Golf Association — open to all juniors ages 7-18 — is accepting membership applications for its 2003 season.
The $25 fee entitles members to play statewide tournaments at resort courses and have an opportunity to qualify for the Sony Open in Hawai'i's Pro-Junior Challenge. HSJGA also has exemptions to elite national junior tournaments, qualifiers to national junior tournaments, college workshops and clinics.
For more information and enrollment forms, call the HSJGA (532-0559) or go to HSJGA.org.
The HSJGA and Optimist Club of Honolulu will hold the Optimist International Junior Golf Qualifier on June 20 at Makaha Valley Country Club. It is open to players ages 10-18. Field is limited to 140 players and entry deadline is June 2.
More than 650 players nationwide advance to the championship at the PGA National Resort & Spa in Florida. For more information and application forms, contact Alan Wong (383-7457 or hwong@pixi.com).
• U.S. Women's Open local qualifier set: The local 18-hole qualifier for the 2003 U.S. Women's Open Championship will be Tuesday, May 20, at Ko Olina Golf Club.
The championship is open to female golfers who have a Handicap Index not exceeding 4.4. Cost to enter is $125 and the deadline is April 30.
To obtain an application, call the U.S. Golf Association (908-234-2300) or enter online (usga.org). Entrants can select one of approximately 15 local qualifying sites.
Top finishers advance to one of seven sectional qualifying sites. Approximately 90 spots will be awarded to fill the championship field of 150 players. The Open is July 3-6 at Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club in North Plains, Ore.
SHORT PUTTS: The 2003 Mercedes Championships raised $275,000 for Maui charities. Since the event moved to Maui four years ago it has contributed more than $1 million to non-profit groups. Maui organizations seeking consideration for the 2004 tournament can call 669-2440 for information. ... Tickets and information for the 2003 PGA Grand Slam of Golf can be obtained by calling 1-800-PGA-TCKT or going to the PGA.com website. The tournament is Dec. 4-6 at Kaua'i's Poipu Bay Resort, with a Pro-Am Thursday and the 36-hole tournament Friday and Saturday. Winners of the Masters, U.S. Open, British Open and PGA Championship qualify. Tiger Woods has won the the last five slams. ... Edward Kageyama has assumed the position of president of the Aloha Section PGA through the end of the year. Kageyama was vice-President/treasurer.
