Arizona wins Burns event by seven shots
By Ann Miller
Advertiser Staff Writer
WAHIAWA — Arizona won the latest stop on the Aloha tour of top-ranked schools, capturing Hawai'i's John A. Burns Intercollegiate by seven shots yesterday at Leilehua Golf Course.
The Wildcats fired the low final round — 8-under-par 280 — for a three-day total of 21-under 843. The best four-of-five scores were used each day.
San Diego State, last year's Burns champion, and 2001 winner New Mexico tied for second. UNLV, the tournament's top-ranked team at No. 2 in the Golfweek/Sagarin Performance Index, was fourth.
Hawai'i (288—868) and Hawai'i-Hilo (287—882) had their best showings of the season and couldn't break the top 10, which is not uncommon. UH took 11th, as it did last year. Hilo tied for 13th.
"We can't win," said UHH coach Earl Tamiya, whose Division II team was the only non-DI school in the event aside from Nagoya of Japan. "Before, our goal was to break 300. Now we're greedy. We try to break par."
The Vulcans' progress has been dramatic. Last week they hosted their 13th annual Taylor Made/Waikoloa Intercollegiate. At the first, they shot 1,000-plus.
"They still make fun of us," Tamiya says. "They tell us the computer (scoring) program doesn't go to four digits."
Hilo junior Nick Mason, a Leilehua graduate, closed with a 69 to tie for 20th at 214. The medalist was San Diego State senior Lars Johansson, at 68—208.
James Beston, a junior from Australia, had the Warriors' best finish at 12th. Beston opened with 76 and closed 66-71, needing just 52 putts the final two days.
Matt Kodama, another UH junior, went into the final round a shot ahead of Beston but had a 75 yesterday to tie for 26th. Kodama birdied three of the final four holes for that.
That is indicative of the Warriors' season. They crashed and burned in the fall, with Kodama the only golfer whose average was under 75.
"At the end of the semester we had a good talk," recalled UH coach Ronn Miyashiro, a 1992 Hilo High graduate. "I said 'You don't like this feeling, I don't like this feeling. We've got to do something to turn it around.' A lot of guys went home on the break and worked real hard."
He began to see progress last week at Waikoloa, even with Beston out injured. The final two rounds this week had Miyashiro "encouraged." UH is ranked 15th in District 7, but finished higher than No. 5 UTEP yesterday and was four back of No. 8 Utah.
"The only way we get to the NCAA Tournament now is to win conference championships," Miyashiro admitted. "Our goal for the semester is to get better and better, hopefully peak at conference championships and surprise some people. It feels like the basketball team."
Eighth-ranked Arizona is in another golf world, along with the other eight top-50 teams in the Burns. The Wildcats take sub-par rounds and NCAA appearances in stride.
They practice at Arizona National, otherwise known as Wildcat Course. One call from Director of Golf Rick LaRose gets them on any of 40 other area courses. Last week they practiced at a Leilehua look-alike, right down to the Bermuda grass greens.
Arizona went into the final round three shots ahead, lost that with a mid-round "hiccup," according to LaRose, then rallied with a flurry of birdies, and an eagle, in the final four holes. Five of the six players LaRose brought finished at or under par and "We've got five good players at home," he said.
That is the most significant difference between the top-ranked and the Hawai'i teams, but Beston believes the gap can be cut.
"One good year can make it all for a team," Beston said. "You make it to nationals and start getting good recruits in."
SHORT PUTTS: The Rainbow Wahine's Dr. Donnis Thompson Invitational will be March 18-19. The WAC Women's Championship is April 21-23 at Kapolei.
