After a grueling day in the heat, second seed Joshua Hayashida outmatched first seed Marshall Kim in 21 holes today and took home the trophy in the Boys 13-14 Championship Match.
Marshall Kim was 1Up through nine holes on the Kai Course today playing against Joshua Hayashida. On the 10thhole however, Kim’s drive went out of bounds and Hayashida used this to his advantage and played it safe off the tee. ‘I knew he would probably double the hole because of the OB so I just played my approach to the back of the green and 2-putt for par to win the hole and put us all square (AS),” said Hayashida.
Going into the 18thhole however, Kim was back to 1Up and both had just bogeyed the 17thhole. Hayashida commented, “I was really frustrated after missing the putt on 17 because I should have made it and been all square going into 18.” On 18, Kim would missed a six-footer for par and give the putt to Hayashida, sending them into additional holes. They both made par on the first and second additional holes and headed to the downhill par 3, 3rdhole. “I hit my tee shot to the same spot I had in the earlier round with Marshall, just short and right of the pin – I then chipped up to two feet of the pin. Marshall was just behind me at about 6-feet and missed his putt for birdie,” said Hayashida. Joshua made the final putt to win the match. He added, “I really enjoyed the (Kai) Course, it played pretty tough this weekend– this event definitely reminded me to just stick to each shot and not get myself down.”
Hayashida earned top honors at the HSJGA Junior Tour Under 14 Series (Big Island), T1 in the HSJGA Junior Tour Under 14 (Maui) and came in 7thin the Aloha Section PGA Junior PGA Championship earlier this year.
In the Boys 15-18 Division, Peter Jung defeated Alex Kam 2Up in the semi-final round this morning, moving on to compete in the Championship Match with Noah Koshi, who had defeated Jonathan Morikawa 2&1 earlier in the day.
Koshi was 1Up through the second hole but then Jung went on a birdie hunt with six birdies on holes 8-16 to finish out the match 3&2 over Koshi. Jung commented on the birdie run, “Anything within 100 yards, I was sticking it and then making everything.” On the par 3, 14thhole, Jung hit a 4-iron to just short of the pin high left and sank a 40-foot big breaking left to right putt for an impressive birdie. On the 16thhole and what would be the final hole of the match, both Koshi and Jung hit their drives up the middle. Koshi hit his approach to one foot and Jung gave him the putt. Jung sunk his 5-footer for birdie putt to win the match 3&2. “We always play together so we know each other’s games pretty well. Today, I just sort of stayed in my zone and was pretty quiet throughout the round,” he stated. Peter Jung is a sophomore at Maryknoll.
In the Girls 13-18 Division, Kyung Eun Lee defeated Maui’s only player left in the semi-final championship matches (across all divisions), Lana Calibuso-Kwee 1Up. Myah McDonald defeated Karissa Kilby 4&2 in the morning round to enter the final Championship Match with Lee. Eun Lee got off to a good start in the final match with McDonald, stretching her lead to 4Up through 10 holes and then fell back to just 2Up through 14.
“With Kyung up by four at one point and leading most of the match, I just tried to give my best and not give up – in the end, it all worked out,” stated Myah McDonald. On the 15thhole, both Eun Lee and Myah hit a good shot into the green, but it was McDonald that would sink her 15-footer for birdie. “That gave me a big boost of confidence for the rest of the round,” said McDonald. Eun Lee bogeyed the 16thto put them at AS.
On the 17thhole, both of the girls had great drives up the fairway and McDonald stuck her approach to just one foot which Kyung conceded. Eun Lee would then go on to bogey the hole, edging McDonald to 1Up headed into 18. The final hole on the Kai Course was the first time McDonald had played it because her prior matches hadn’t lasted 18 holes so she was going in blind. “I knew I had to play it safe because there was water on the hole so I played my wood off the tee, giving me about 140 yards to the pin from there,” McDonald commented. Her approach landed in the middle of the green and the pin was in the back. Kyung was left side and pin high. McDonald said, “I just told myself I only needed to 2-putt to win and then I almost made my birdie putt, it was a good feeling.” This is McDonald’s first HSJGA win this year and first time playing in the Match Play Championship. She is a junior at Mid Pacific Institute.
Maui’s Summer Wong competed in the final round for the Consolation Bracket for Girls 13-18 with Honolulu’s Mari Nakamura. Nakamura won 5&3 today in their final round. Ka’ena Kaulia defeated Ian Chapital 2Up in the Boys 13-14 Consolation Bracket. Pono Yonagi defeated Dillon Ah Chong 2&1 in the Boys 15-18 Consolation Bracket Final round.
For a listing of full results from this weekend’s Championship and Consolation Brackets, visit https://www.golfgenius.com/pages/3694309148721176896?no_header=true&banner=false For photos and more information visit www.facebook.com/kaanapaligolfor follow us on Instagram @kaanapaligolf
ABOUT KA’ANAPALI GOLF COURSES:
The Royal Ka’anapali Course, a Robert Trent Jones Senior design, opened in 1962 and has tested the skills of golf professionals and amateurs alike. A Par 71 stretching 6,700 yards, the Royal Course combines wide fairways and undulating greens, making it both distinctive and demanding. Home of the PGA TOUR Champions Ka’anapali Classic for 14 years, the Royal Ka’anapali Course has hosted some of golf’s legends: Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Greg Norman, Fred Couples, Billy Casper, Jan Stephenson and Betsey King.
The Ka’anapali Kai Course is a Par 70, 6,400-yard course and boasts an array of strategically placed bunkers, contoured fairways, and re-shaped and resurfaced greens. This course, host of Golf Channel’s #1 series Big Break Ka’anapali, is a challenge to play and places a premium on strategy off the tee, accuracy with approach shots, and a deft touch around the greens.
In 2005-2007, Ka’anapali Golf Courses invested over $13 million in renovations and infrastructure. Golf course architect, Robin Nelson, was brought in to oversee the rework of the Ka’anapali Kai Course and enhancements to the championship Royal Ka’anapali Course. For more information visit www.kaanapaligolfcourses.com.
