The 23 other young golfers had all taken their drives, and fittingly Pono Yanagi was the last to go.
There was a fair amount of pomp and circumstance as he approached the tee.
“Time for the main event,” organizer Lance Taketa told the crowd Saturday. He also had a message for the golf attendants out on the fairway at Hilo Municipal Golf Course. “Move back. Way back.”
Exclaimed one parent: “Watch this.”
Then Yanagi hit the ball what seemed like a country mile, especially for a 13-year-old. Yanagi ripped one drive 297 yards, a personal-best, during a local qualifier for the Drive Chip & Putt Championship.
“I went for it,” said Yanagi, who just completed the seventh grade at Kamehameha-Hawaii. “Just another day of golf for me. Each one I just tried my best. Just trying to get it close and hope for the best.”
Taketa gave Yanagi an extra shot to try to reach 300, but he settled for 294.
Yanagi wasn’t as happy with the chipping and putting portions of the competition, but he was in a class by himself, the sole participant in the ages 14-15 division.
“For a little while driving has been my thing,” said the already 5-foot-8 Yanagi. “I hit a (stretch) where I kept on going right or left. I couldn’t really control it, but I got it back. I just had to slow down my swing, keep it smooth, keep everything in tight. No loose parts.”
He was one of 19 golfers to qualify for a subregional at Ko Olina Golf Club in Kapolei, Oahu. The championships will be held in Augusta, Ga., the week before the 2015 Masters.
“Even for Drive Chip & Putt, this was intense,” Yanagi said of the inaugural event.
The other age-group winners were Riley Kaneshiro, Dysen Park, Kaelum Lumanlan, Kaley Saludares, Tia Kualii, Lacey Uchida and Michiko Ejima.
For some, the competition served as a nice change of pace.
“I like this, it’s very relaxing,” said Kualii, who’s finishing the seventh grade at Waiakea Intermediate. “My favorite part was having fun, meeting new people. It wasn’t the same old faces.”
The girls 14-15 division featured three golfers who could be freshman teammates next year at Waiakea High. Saludares (126 points) used a steady putter to outdistance Anne Namamoto and Kaelyn Uchida.
“It was different than what I’m used to and really fun,” Saludares said. “It’s nice to have some variety.”
Many of the participants, including Saludares and Yanagi, will compete next weekend at Waikoloa’s Kings’ Course in a qualifier for junior worlds. Yanagi has reached the championships in San Diego multiple times.
The Drive Chip & Putt qualifiers who conquer the Oahu subregional still have to tackle a California regional to reach Augusta. Taketa knows it’s a long and perhaps expensive path, but he says it’s worth it.
“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime-opportunity if they can somehow get there,” he said. “Awesome, I think. I haven’t been to Augusta, but these kids have that opportunity.
“How good is that?”
BOYS
Ages 14-15
*Pono Yanagi 47-16-25—88
12-13
*Riley Kaneshiro 50-26-35—111
*Isaiah Kanno 37-30-30—97
*Ethan Hironaga 36-20-40—96
Dillon Ah Chong 27-20-35—82
Skye Fronda-McDowell 7-0-25—32
10-11
*Dysen Park 46-25-26—97
*Caleb Chumley 11-16-45—72
*Kobey Geronimo-Babas 21-0-6—27
7-9
*Kaelum Lumanlan 22-16-35—73
GIRLS
14-15
*Kaley Saludares 35-41-50—126
*Anne Nakamoto 32-35-40—107
*Kaelyn Uchida 18-15-41—74
Fiona McDowell 20-5-25—50
12-13
*Tia Kualii 15-25-55—95
*Megan Kimata 14-5-35—54
10-11
*Lacey Uchida 33-10-46—89
*Kiersten Saludares 35-30-16—81
*Kailey Oki 23-15-35—73
Megan Nakamoto 23-16-21—60
7-9
*Michiko Ejima 25-10-45—80
*Sophie Christopher 19-5-16—40
*Cienna Cabrera 7-0-21—28
Madline Christopher 9-1-1—11
