Their names were Gov. John Burns, Wally Fujiyama and Mackay Yanagisawa and for a half century surrounding statehood they were sporting institutions, legendary for the power they wielded in Hawai'i.

Respected or feared, when something of major consequence happened, chances are it had their blessing or they pulled the strings. Want to get a coach hired — or fired? Or, just snare a ticket to a soldout event? They were your men, "godfathers" and "shoguns" some said, with Burns operating from Washington Place, attorney Fujiyama from a 37th floor office overlooking downtown and promoter Yanagisawa along University Avenue.

When the most recent in the line of influential figures, Walter Dods, stepped down in December as chairman and chief executive of Banc West Corp., parent of First Hawaiian Bank, it left a rare power vacuum in Hawai'i sports.

Some had called Dods "Uncle Walter" for his willingness to underwrite deserving local ventures — from taking a University of Hawai'i football game to Maui to bringing a high school showdown matching national powers De La Salle (Concord, Calif.) and Long Beach (Calif.) Poly against Saint Louis School and Kahuku High to Aloha Stadium. He didn't flex his muscle often, but when he did the results were swift and noticeable. He didn't toot his own horn but, then, he didn't need to.

Now, the question is: Who will fill the void, taking on the unofficial title of the most influential figure in local sports?

What this state needs, right now especially, is somebody with the power and vision to take the lead. Somebody to give it a sense of direction and forge a consensus to help get it there, especially in the realms of UH and high schools sports.

Somebody, for example, capable of loosening the often suffocating knots of the state bureaucracy when necessary. Someone who can compel feuding parties, such as UH football coach June Jones and Kahuku High coach Siuaki Livai, to work out their differences for the common good.

"There's nobody that's stepped out of his (Dods') shadow yet to do that," said a prominent sports figure.

Could Dods' right-hand man, Tony Guerrero, First Hawaiian's vice chairman and a force in his own right in several arenas, turn out to be that difference-maker?

How about Duane Kurisu, real estate and media owner, who friends say still plans to bring back the Hawaii Winter Baseball League that debuted Ichiro Suzuki and Jason Giambi but shut down in 1998?

Or, will a new figure emerge from the shadows?

A female has never dominated the local sports scene and rarely figured in power but suddenly two — Michelle Wie and Gov. Linda Lingle — have the platforms from which to make their marks in their own ways should they choose.

Wie, the 15-year-old golf phenom, is accompanied by an international spotlight wherever she goes. But beyond turning out huge galleries in the few Island events she plays, Wie has yet to do more than scratch the surface here. And there is a question of when she eventually turns pro whether she'll be around much at all.

Meanwhile, the watch for a new No. 1 goes on. And, so does the struggle to get there.

Who will succeed Dods as Hawai'i's sports power broker?

THE CONTENDERS

TONY GUERRERO

DUANE KURISU

TEAM WIE

MARK ROLFING

JUNE JONES

BERT T. KOBAYASHI JR.

JOHN FINK

BRIAN TANIGUCHI

BOBBY CURRAN

KEITH AMEMIYA