Three from Hawai'i advance in Publinx

By Arthur Utley
Special to The Advertiser

Honolulu's Michelle Wie begins defense of her Public Links title today with the first-round of match play. Associated Press

Kono is a ninth grader; Wie a 10th grader. Both are renowned golfers, albeit on different levels. The two are friends, Kono said, but when asked to talk about Wie's game, Kono's knowledge is about the same as the rest of us.

"I don't know her game that well. I've seen her on TV. I know she hits the ball a long way and is a good putter," Kono said and grinned sheepishly.

The two saw each other briefly on the practice putting green here. Their conversation had nothing to do with golf.

"We talked about Punahou going to school uniforms," Kono recalled. "It sounds like it's going to happen. Too many people are breaking the dress code."

Kono figures the last time she and Wie played together was when they were 9 years old. "We've both changed so much," said Kono, who, at 5-4, is nine inches shorter than Wie.

They have taken divergent paths, but both have accomplished what they set out to do in the U.S. Women's Amateur Publinx Championship at the Golden Horseshoe Golf Club's Green Course: Shoot low enough scores in the 36-hole, on-site qualifying to advance to the match-play portion of the tournament.

Kono, a first-round co-leader, followed her opening 69 with a 2-under 70 yesterday for a 5-under total of 139. She had just two bogeys in two days and is fourth overall. Coach Kevin Ralbovsky, who is caddying for Kono, says her game is "on cruise control."

"The course is not as long as last year and I'm hitting my drives in play and irons on the green," Kono says. "I have chances for birdie. I haven't made any three-putts, and I've made a lot of one-putts."

Wie, who became the youngest player to win a USGA open event when she captured this tournament last year, added an eventful 1-under 71 to her first-round 70. Her 141 total tied for sixth, giving Hawai'i two top finishers in a year of record-setting low scores.

"It shows how good the level of junior golf is Hawai'i now," Ralbovsky said. "It is really high."

In all, three of eight Hawai'i golfers qualified for match play. The third is Lihu'e's Lehua Wise, who shot 148, which tied for 43rd. The cut was 5-over 149. Wise also encountered a harmless black snake slithering across her path on the tee box after a birdie-birdie start.

Wie was 3-under through eight holes when lightning and rain caused a 53-minute suspension.

"I had everything going well," a frustrated Wie said. "I felt like I could shoot 63, 64, and I was trying to shoot birdie on every hole. Something happened after that rain delay. I didn't feel as confident."

When play resumed, Wie lipped out a birdie putt on the 18th hole (her ninth) and bogeyed the second and tripled the third after errant tee shots. She rallied with two birdies to finish in the red.

The triple bogey "was the most horrible hole I've had in a long time," Wie said.

Medalist honors and the top seed went to Duke University sophomore Brittany Lang of McKinney, Texas. She fired the low round of the tournament, a 7-under 65 yesterday, for a two-day total of 135.

The 65 was one stroke higher than her competitive best, but the 135 aggregate eclipsed the Publinx qualifying standard of 137 established by Jill McGill in 1994 and tied by Jenna Daniels in 1999.

A tournament record was set with 15 players finishing under par for the qualifying rounds.

Kono's first opponent is Stephanie Godare (149) of Houston, Texas.

Kono's record in Hawai'i events is superb. She even had a Stephanie Kono Day as an 11-year-old in July 2001 after she aced a par-4 en route to winning the Hawai'i Women's State Match Play title.

Kono qualified for match play in last year's Publinx tournament and lost in 23 holes in the second round.

"Now that I've gotten through stroke play, I can be a little more aggressive and not (be) hesitant," Kono said. "I was hoping to shoot around par today hoping to get a good seed."

The more celebrated Wie, who faces Brooke Goodwin (149) of Fuquay-Varina, N.C., has noticed Kono's play.

"I'm really proud of her. She's played really well for two days," Wie said. "She's won a couple of tournaments in Hawai'i, and she's been getting really good. She doesn't hit the ball a long way, but she hits it in the fairway and has a good short game. She's a really consistent player."

Associated Press contributed to this report.