Then there were three

• A closer look at the three finalists

By Tanya Bricking
Advertiser Staff Writer

From left, Cory Mitsui, Ken Lee and Kelly Komoda were chosen as the top three bachelors by Advertiser readers. Deborah Booker • The Honolulu Advertiser What's next The online polls are open until midnight Monday. Go to www.honoluluadvertiser.com and choose your favorite bachelor. We'll announce the winner next week and start sending him on dates April 4. Starting today, you can read the bachelor diaries. Go to the Web site, click their links under "Diaries" and find out what they think about this experience.

Over the past week, one overwhelming new fact of life for our candidates has been the attention they've received since we named them finalists in our Hawai'i's Bachelor contest.

When Kelly Komoda walked into the Mai Tai bar last weekend, fans instantly recognized the fourth-grade teacher as one of the top 10 single men around town. Straight-laced financial planner Cory Mitsui can't work out at the gym without getting second glances. And firefighter Ken Lee is taking a little more ribbing than usual from his coworkers.

One of these men will play our dating game. Readers can vote online to choose which one.

But first, let's address some of your burning questions, like how does a teacher at Jefferson Elementary afford to drive a 2003 Lexus IS 300?

Well, Komoda has some business going on on the side. He sells Herbalife nutrition products, models and tutors part-time and was recently in a Central Pacific Bank commercial. He's the one whose grandmother wants him to be Hawai'i's Bachelor. But Komoda has a following with the young ladies, too.

"He's a normal guy who likes to go out and have fun," said friend Forest Munden, 27, who went to Maui High School with him. "And the chicks dig him."

Next question: Who is the bachelor finalist who still lives with his folks?

That would be Mitsui, the tie-wearing 27-year-old Prudential financial planner who has saved up for his own Lexus IS Sportscross.

"I don't think he's tight with his money," best friend Jeff Lee said. "He just knows what to spend it on."

Jeff Lee's mom, Cynthia, says what Mitsui's colleagues said about him — that he's someone you'd want your daughter to date — is true.

"He calls me 'Auntie,' " she said. "And I told him that's why he can't marry my daughter, because then he'd have to call me 'Auntie Mom.' "

Next question? Haven't you seen firefighter Ken Lee somewhere before?

Yes, the 35-year-old has been on the bachelor circuit for a few years now, and he's taking some heat about it.

"Everybody says things like, 'Watch out! The bachelor is coming!' when he walks in," fellow firefighter Reggie Gawiran said. "We have fun with it every day."

Lee has been in the department's firefighter bachelor auction before. And he was a "firefox" in the 1996 Honolulu Fire Department Firefox Calendar. (Even though that was seven years ago, Lee used a photo from back then in his Hawai'i's Bachelor application.)

Which brings us to something else we want to disclose: This contest is bringing out some Machiavellian characteristics in some people, particularly when it comes to voting.

Our online voting allowed people to cast multiple votes, and we expected people to click away for their favorite bachelor. We decided voting more than once would be OK. We didn't anticipate some of the measures people would go to to increase the tally for their friends — like setting up a computer program to generate votes.

The folks at The Advertiser don't think using computer-generated votes is fair. So in the next round of voting, we will allow only one vote per computer. Voting begins today and is open through midnight Monday.

We'll announce your choice for Hawai'i's Bachelor in a week. And in two weeks, we'll introduce you to the women who will date him.

Have something to say to or about our finalists? You can e-mail us at hawaiisbachelor@honoluluadvertiser.com.

A closer look at the three finalists

• Age: 26
• Height: 5-feet-11
• Weight: 167
• Occupation: teacher
• Turn-ons: looks, independent and career-oriented women
• Turnoffs: laziness, overprotectiveness, smoking and drugs
• He drives: 2003 Lexus IS 300
• Favorite movie: "The Brothers"
• Role model: Tiger Woods
• Hobbies: spearfishing, golfing, basketball, weightlifting, surfing

• Age: 35
• Height: 5-feet-11
• Weight: 185
• Occupation: firefighter
• Turn-ons: intelligence, physical attractiveness, good sense of humor
• Turnoffs: rudeness, short temper, low self-esteem
• He drives: Ford F-10 pickup
• Favorite movie: "Rocky"
• Role model: his parents
• Hobbies: skin diving, singing, working out

• Age: 27
• Height: 5-feet-11
• Weight: 175
• Occupation: financial planner
• Turn-ons: a radiant smile and warm laugh, eyes gleaming with verve
• Turnoffs: smoking, laziness, negativity
• He drives: Lexus IS Sportscross
• Favorite movie: "Serendipity"
• Role model: his manager, George Nabeshima
• Hobbies: volleyball, working out, studying, hanging out with friends