There was no standing ovations, no cheering crowds, no one yelling, "Tadd is rad!"

But as Tadd Fujikawa walked toward the green at the ninth hole at the Waialae Golf Course yesterday — and carrying his own bag — it was obvious how much that life for this 16-year-old Moanalua High School sophomore has changed.

Camera crews followed him from tee to green. Workers taking down bleachers stopped to watch him putt. Complete strangers came up to shake his hand.

It was at this hole on Friday — the 18th for the Sony Open in Hawai'i — that Fujikawa drained an eagle putt, sealing his place in history as the youngest player to make the cut on the PGA Tour in 50 years.

He walked the fairway to an exuberant standing ovation that day, beaming and waving to a frenzied gallery of spectators.

"I thrive on that," said Fujikawa, taking a break at the snack shop to eat a Spam musubi. "It's fun for me. It's the best thing in the world to have so many people cheering and rooting for you. It's unbelievable."

Fujikawa is still basking in the afterglow of a remarkable week.

He followed up his Friday feat by shooting another round of 66 on Saturday to get his name near the top of the leaderboard.

He finished with a respectable 72 on Sunday to tie for 20th.

"I knew there was a good chance I'd do good," Fujikawa said. "I was playing good and my putting was great. All I needed to do was stay focused and hit the shots."

But no one, not even his mother, expected that kind of performance.

"I just told him to go out there and have a good time, don't worry about it," said Lori Fujikawa, 43, who introduced the game to her son when he was 8. "But things turned out really well. The golf god was with us."

With the Sony Open behind him, Fujikawa is looking toward possibly playing in the 29th Hawai'i Pearl Open next month at Pearl Country Club. This summer he plans to play in the U.S. Junior Amateur Championship, the Mid-Pac Open and a qualifier for the U.S. Open.

With such a busy schedule, Fujikawa will likely pass on playing for Moanalua's golf team this year.

But that doesn't mean the newfound stardom has changed him or his feelings about the game.

"You never know what's going to happen," he said. "But this is what I love to do."

So much so, the day after the final round of the Sony Open, Fujikawa was back at Waialae to play a friendly match game with buddy — and fellow golf phenom — Stephanie Kono, his caddy Garret Hayashi and some friends.

No pressure to win, no cheering section.

"It feels really good to be out here and just have fun," Fujikawa said.

Fujikawa and Kono have been close friends for the past three years, hitting the course together about three times a week.

"He looks young, but he's really composed on the golf course and he hits the ball really well," said Kono of her 5-foot-1 friend.

Kono, a 17-year-old junior at Punahou School, is no stranger to the media spotlight.

Though dwarfed by her classmate Michelle Wie, Kono put away an impressive year in 2006, capturing her second consecutive Interscholastic League of Honolulu girls' title, while shooting a record 64 to win the state crown. She also qualified for the U.S. Women's Amateur and joined Fujikawa as Hawai'i players in the AJGA Canon Cup.

Two weeks ago she won the Joanne Winter Arizona Silver Belle Championship.

Kono was at the Sony Open this weekend to support her friend and practice partner.

"When I saw (his eagle on Friday to make the cut), I almost cried," she gushed. "It was just amazing. And his reaction was so cute!"

While his life may now include TV interviews and the kind of fame that makes him recognizable in grocery stores, Fujikawa doesn't think he's changed much.

He still loves sushi. He still likes hanging out with his friends. And he still has chemistry homework to finish.

"To us, he's no superstar," said Lori Fujikawa, laughing. "He's just somebody who's gotta to go school and keep practicing."

For now, though, Fujikawa is enjoying the attention. He just wishes he didn't have to give up his caddie so quickly.

"You get kinda spoiled," he said, laughing.

Reach Catherine E. Toth at ctoth@honoluluadvertiser.com.