Chun beats Nishimoto for match play crown

By Ann Miller
Advertiser Staff Writer

Mari Chun gave Stacie Nishimoto a pat on the back after beating her 6 and 5 to capture the HSWGA's Match Play title yesterday. Jeff Widener • The Honolulu Advertiser

Yesterday, Chun's charge snowballed into a 6-and-5 win over Stacie Nishimoto in the final at Oahu Country Club. Chun terminated Nishimoto's tenacious run — in her first match play — with another breathtaking performance.

"She just wanted this," said Lani Chun, Mari's mom. "(Three-time champion) Bev Kim and Bobbi ... they're role models for her. She adores them. So this is something she's always wanted. And then after last year, it was something she wanted to come back and try.

"She will always remember this, even when she's old. When I get old, I'll remember this."

Chun won the first three holes and bumped her advantage to 6-up by capturing Nos. 6, 7, and 8. She needed but 12 putts on the front nine and played the 13 holes even-par, despite a bogey and double bogey.

"I was playing not bad, but it's tough when you par the first two holes and you're 2-down," said Nishimoto, an Iolani senior. "She didn't make many mistakes and when she did, she recovered nicely.

"She's a great competitor. She always pushes me hard. When you lose, it points out where you need to improve. It's good to get 'smoosh-ticated' every once in awhile."

Chun, a Kamehameha senior, has known Nishimoto since intermediate school. Both are academically inclined and will be buried in honors classes in the fall. Nishimoto scored 1,540 on her SATs, including a perfect 800 on the verbal portion.

But yesterday, Chun was nearly perfect. She said she found the swing that "smooshes" soon after she failed to qualify for public links. She's won three times.

The only person who could touch her this week was Lani, who carried her daughter's bag up OCC's steep, slippery hills for three days — at Mari's request.

Mom insisted she was never sore — "I think I was numb" — but Mari took no chances. She offered Lani a club and pulled her up the seventh and 13th holes each day.

Mari had energy to burn. She didn't trail all week. Nishimoto didn't win a hole yesterday until the par-4 ninth, which she two-putted for birdie.

Chun never blinked, or doubted herself. She persistently followed the advice of friends to forget the score and simply play the course. She gained confidence from Lani's constant reminders that "I believe in you," between jokes and "random" conversations while they hiked the hills.

"The key was believing in myself," Chun said. "Sometimes when I don't do well I tend to stop believing in myself. That's when I start to falter.

"This is a really good win. I stayed back here because my goal was to win this tournament. I'll always remember this tournament as, as long as you believe in yourself and play your own game you can achieve anything. That's what I did this week."

Ultimately, it ended the way it started when Chun won medalist honors Monday. Her aggressive game was too grooved and her karma too good for anyone to come close. Nishimoto's game forced opponents to birdie to beat her. Chun was more than up to the challenge.

The result gave golf pro Kevin Ralbovsky's students a sweep of Hawai'i's major amateur match play championships. Ryan Perez captured the Manoa Cup at OCC earlier this month. Chun won her major while Ralbovsky was in Virginia, caddying for 2001 match play champion Stephanie Kono, yet another high-profile student.

"In a couple days she'll realize what a big accomplishment it is," said Perez, who followed Chun this week. "You know you can win. It's only going to get better after this."

Reach Ann Miller at amiller@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8043.