KAHUKU — Little Tadd Fujikawa's year of living large lived on yesterday when the Moanalua High School sophomore beat out 18 amateurs and professionals to win O'ahu's U.S. Open local qualifier and advance to the final qualifying stage. A year ago, Fujikawa was the youngest ever to qualify for the Open. He missed the cut in a flurry of high fives and huge smiles.

The 5-foot-1 Menehune's legend grew the week he turned 16 in January, when he became the youngest in 50 years to make the cut at a PGA Tour event. Fujikawa finished with a share of 34th and most of the gallery at the Sony Open in Hawai'i.

Last month he was invited to Chunichi Crowns, a stop on the Japan pro tour. He missed the cut, but after yesterday's 5-under-par 67 at Turtle Bay Fazio, he is now hoping to make it past the next level and get a chance to "redeem" himself at the Open next month at Oakmont in Pennsylvania.

Fujikawa won a Hawai'i sectional to reach the Open last year. The USGA took that away this year, in part because it questioned the quality of a sectional a 15-year-old could win — a question Fujikawa answered emphatically at Sony. He will now try to qualify in Japan on May 28. Three spots are available. The other 13 sectionals will be June 4.

Hawai'i held onto its women's sectional for this year. It is scheduled for Turtle Bay's Palmer Course on June 11. Maui Waena seventh-grader Kyung Kim, 13, and Kaua'i High senior Miki Ueoka, 18, plan to be there after grabbing two of the three slots available at yesterday's U.S. Women's Open local qualifier. Kim shot 73 while Ueoka had a 74 at Fazio.

But if the sectional does not attract enough qualifiers, they could be forced to one of the six Mainland sectionals. Open entrants must declare where they will play their sectional before the local qualifier. The 2007 U.S. Women's Open Championship will be June 28 to July 1 at Pine Needles Lodge & Golf Club, in North Carolina.

South Korea's Jennifer Song was the medalist at yesterday's women's qualifier. She birdied two of the first three holes, nearly holing out from the fairway on her first hole, and finished at 69.

"After the first three holes I was just trying to calm down, be patient, not get too pumped up," said Song, who had four practice rounds. "Coach always tells me stay in the present."

Song, 17, was born in the U.S. while her father was studying at the University of Michigan. She moved to South Korea at 2 and picked up golf seven years ago in Ann Arbor, Mich., when her father, a professor in Daejeon, was on sabbatical. Song chose to qualify here because it was closest and her grandparents are here. She will go to the sectional qualifier in Daly City, Calif.

Ueoka was with Song when she made the turn in 2-under — almost holing out from the fairway on her fourth hole — but came in with 4-over 40. Ueoka, who was second to Stephanie Kono at last year's sectional, finished first and fretted she had lost another opportunity.

A year ago, she watched Hawai'i's Ayaka Kaneko, Kimberly Kim and Kono all qualify. "I love them all, but I wanted to be there too," Ueoka said. "Especially because I had come in second at sectional. It was hard."

Kyung Kim chipped in for one of her two birdies, needed just 11 putts on her first nine and was much more optimistic than Ueoka when she finished in the second group.

"I felt I did pretty good, but kinda lucky," Kim said. "Usually I'm not really good at the short game but today I was on fire."

Fujikawa had to wait for 12 players to finish before he knew his fate, with a documentary crew from Japan's Asahi TV watching his every move — as it has the last two days. Only one other golfer, amateur Shunsuke Sonoda from Japan, shot in the 60s and Fujikawa won by two.

Coincidentally, that was the number of eagles he had. He hit his hybrid club 230 yards out of the bunker to 30 feet and drained that putt on the 17th (496-yard par-5). On the fourth (517-yard par-5), he tried to slice a 5-iron around a tree and down the fairway from 180 yards out. It ended up 7 feet from the hole.

Fujikawa added two birdies and a bogey, and let out a sigh of relief when pros Parker McLachlin (70) and Pierre-Henri Soero (71) — who won the first two Hawai'i sectionals — finished.

"It's really tough having only one spot. Last year there were three," Fujikawa said. "It's so hard thinking you really have the pressure to play really well. You just have to grind through it and do the best you can."

NOTES

Three Hawai'i golfers are already exempt for the Opens. Castle graduate Dean Wilson qualified for the U.S. Open based on his top-30 finish on the money list last year. Michelle Wie and Kimberly Kim are in the U.S. Women's Open by virtue of Wie's third-place finish last year, and Kim's status as reigning U.S. Women's Amateur champion.

California's Mark Scheibach won Kaua'i's U.S. Open local qualifier Thursday, shooting a 73 at Po'ipu Bay. The Big Island will hold a local qualifier tomorrow at Waikoloa Kings'. The boys state high school championship begins there the following day.

The final Hawai'i local qualifier is Saturday at Makena on Maui. More than 8,500 golfers entered this year's U.S. Open. The U.S. Women's Open had a record 1,251 entries.

Stephanie Kono, who won sectional qualifying here last year, is exempt from local qualifying as is Ayaka Kaneko. Both are expected to play in the Maryland sectional.

Reach Ann Miller at amiller@honoluluadvertiser.com.