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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Monday, April 21, 2008

LOCAL GOLF
Tadd wins first tourney as a pro

Photo gallery: Mid-Pacific Open golf

By Ann Miller
Advertiser Staff Writer

Hawaii news photo - The Honolulu Advertiser

Seventeen-year-old Tadd Fujikawa, center, shakes hands with David Ishii, left, as John Lynch watches at the end of play on the 18th hole.

Photos by JOAQUIN SIOPACK | The Honolulu Advertiser

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Hawaii news photo - The Honolulu Advertiser

Moanalua High School junior Tadd Fujikawa, 17, reacts while attempting to encourage and steer the ball into the 16th hole during the final round of the Mid-Pacific Open at Mid-Pacific Country Club.

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LANIKAI — While his final round yesterday was not quite the sublime performance he craved to shatter a tournament scoring record, Tadd Fujikawa's victory in the 50th annual Mid-Pacific Open yesterday still bordered on the ridiculous.

The Moanalua High School junior won by seven shots over one of the strongest fields in tournament history. He is the event's youngest champion by four years. Fujikawa, 17, is so young his parents weren't even born when this event started.

But he golfs like a veteran. Even yesterday's closing round of 4-over-par 76 was fairly sophisticated, coming as it did in wicked winds, treacherous course conditions and on the final day of Fujikawa's first victory as a professional. He turned pro last summer, after finishing 20th at the Sony Open in Hawai'i and winning the Hawai'i Pearl Open. He had not made a cut since.

His 11th professional event proved a breakthrough beyond his first paycheck of $13,500. So what if it was at home, in front of a smitten gallery of some 75 and in a $64,000 tournament instead of one worth $6.4 million.

"Having made my first cut as a professional and then winning is pretty cool," Fujikawa said.

His only lapse in four days came when he bogeyed three of the final four holes on the front nine yesterday. The seven-shot lead over David Ishii that he took to Mid-Pacific Country Club yesterday was down to five.

Fujikawa walked up to the 10th tee, looked at a friend and said, "What a hack." He winked.

"I went to the bathroom and gave myself a pep talk," he recalled later. "Tried to get away from everybody for awhile, really tried to focus and bear down."

His approach shot to the 10th hole collided with the pin and bounced out, but clearly Fujikawa was back in control. He parred the first eight holes on the back nine while the breeze and torturous pin placements blew everyone else backwards.

This one was over, maybe before its final round began. Fujikawa did not need a birdie to clinch it — the first round he has gone birdie-free since the 2006 U.S. Open — but he gunned for it anyway on the final hole. He blew his putt 8 feet by and missing that to close with bogey and a four-day total of 10-under 278.

It was seven shots off Ishii's tournament record, set 22 years ago, but more than enough even if Ishii did launch his only birdie of the day on the same hole, from some 50 feet.

"I hit the putt and it went 'Boom!' " said Ishii, 52 and a member of the Hawai'i Golf Hall of Fame. "I thought, 'Uh oh, that's off the green.' I was just trying to get second place. I was like, 'Oh shoot, that ball is 10, 12 feet past the hole.' And then it went 'Zoom!' right in the hole."

That gave Ishii (76-285) second alone, and $9,500. It left defending champion Darren Summers (73) and 2005 champion John Lynch (75) sharing third another shot back. Summers played with Fujikawa the first three days and was playing for second "from the first tee."

"His short game was just too good," said Summers, a pro from Kapalua. "I'm surprised he was 4-over today. ... he was great and he made everything with his putter. The last three days he never missed anything inside 12 feet."

Lynch felt a glimmer of hope at the turn, but it disappeared when he and Ishii bogeyed the 11th while Fujikawa parred.

Ishii came back from a six-shot deficit two years ago to win, but his aggressive play never paid off yesterday.

"I hit the ball good but everything I did just went wrong," he said, listing shots he thought he hit well that turned out badly: An approach he tried to stick that rolled over the green, a charged putt that rolled off the green, another close approach that slid off the slick green and a shot to the 16th that he thought was perfect, until it didn't stop.

"Either you're going to be perfect or you're going to be shafted," Ishii said. "If you just play for par, no problem, but I've got to go for birdies."

Fujikawa forced that by creating separation the first three days on the greens, where he averaged 26 putts. He had that after 13 holes yesterday, but there was never any serious hint of him sliding back to the field. It was precisely what he needed heading into his 2008 JGTO opener this week — the Chunichi Crowns at Nagoya Golf Club. Fujikawa will stay in Japan to play the Munsingwear Open KSB Cup two weeks later, passing on a chance to play the local U.S. Open qualifier.

"I really take a lot of confidence," said Fujikawa, who is going through a "slight" swing change. "A win never puts you down. And I'm putting better than I ever have in my life. My putting right now is really good, I'm really confident. I still need a lot of work on my hitting. It's not where it needs to be yet. And my chipping is very good. So I'm pretty excited about going to Japan."

Kamehameha senior TJ Kua — Ishii's nephew — birdied the first playoff hole to win low amateur honors over Punahou sophomore Bradley Shigezawa. Both finished at 298, with Kua closing with a 73 and Shigezawa 77. Punahou senior Stephanie Kono, the first female to make a cut in this event, tied for 27th in the pro flight at 77—304.

No one broke par yesterday and only the top four finished the tournament under par, which is four more than last year.

Reach Ann Miller at amiller@honoluluadvertiser.com.

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