Maui Invitational fans hit glitch

High demand and a computer glitch tested the patience of fans hoping to purchase tickets for the EA Sports Maui Invitational yesterday.

Online sales for remaining school booster tickets were to go on sale to the general public yesterday at 9 a.m. Hawaii time. But the high volume of requests contributed to a technical problem with the ticketing system, delaying sales until 1 p.m.

A tournament spokesman said sales went smoothly once the system was restored. A message on the tournament’s website thanked fans for their patience through the process.

"We knew there was a huge volume of demand and we did everything we could to prepare for it," said Alex Prosperi of Kemper Sports, which operates the tournament. "It was just a problem with the technology and it got resolved."

The Maui Invitational annually rates among college basketball’s top early-season tournaments. This year’s tournament, set for Thanksgiving week at the Lahaina Civic Center (capacity 2,400), features Connecticut, Kentucky, Michigan State, Oklahoma, Virginia, Washington, Wichita State and host Chaminade.

6 on volleyball watch list

Six players with Hawaii ties are among the 381 on the Under Armour Girls High School All-American team watch list announced by the American Volleyball Coaches Association.

Molokai High’s Kalei Adolpho and Kamehameha-Maui’s Ginger Long, along with Jane Croson of Los Alamitos (Calif.), Monica Stauber from Mater Dei (Calif.) and Jade Vorster of Timber Creek (Fla.) all have orally committed to play for the University of Hawaii next season. Also on the list is Punahou senior setter Alexandra Santi.

In November, the AVCA will name 24 players to the first team and 24 players to the second team. The first-team players will be invited to play in the Under Armour All-America Volleyball Match & Skills Competition, Dec. 18 in Kansas City, Mo., in conjunction with the NCAA final four.

UH basketball open tryouts set

Prospective walk-ons with the Hawaii men’s basketball team will get their chance on Oct. 9, when coach Gib Arnold will host open tryouts.

The tryouts will happen at 10 a.m. in Gym 2 at UH Lower Campus. Participants must be full-time students at UH.

For more information, call director of operations Scott Fisher at 956-6502.

Ching moves on at U.S. Amateur

Honolulu’s Alex Ching won four of the first five holes — two with eagle — and went on to capture his first-round match, 2 up, at the U.S. Amateur Championship, yesterday in Washington.

Ching and Denny McCarthy both parred the first hole. Then Ching, a Punahou graduate about to start his junior year at the University of San Diego, birdied the next two holes and eagled Nos. 4 and 5 to go 4 up.

McCarthy cut the gap to 1 up by the 11th hole. Ching won the 13th and held off McCarthy, a high school senior who won the Maryland Open, Maryland Junior Open and Junior PGA Championship this year.

Patriot Golf Day next weekend

All but a handful of Aloha Section PGA courses and teaching facilities are involved in this year’s Patriot Golf Day fundraiser, which takes place Sept. 3 to 6 around the Labor Day holiday.

Hawaii annually has a high percentage of facilities involved, supporting its military families. Patriot Golf Day is the major fundraiser for the Folds of Honor Foundation, which provides post-secondary educational scholarships for children and spouses of military members disabled or killed while serving.

Some facilities do special promotions, but most ask for an extra dollar added to the greens fee, to be donated to the program. Hawaii raised $10,000 last year and is hoping to triple that.

The inaugural Patriot Golf Day was in 2007. It was started by Maj. Dan Rooney, an F-16 pilot and PGA professional. In the last three years, more than $5.3 million has been raised. A total of 1,163 recipients from all 41 PGA sections have benefited from Folds of Honor scholarships.

American Express is matching all donations this year.

For more information, visit patriotgolfday.com.

Dugas beats Hayashi in playoff

Eric Dugas beat Kevin Hayashi with a birdie on the second playoff hole Monday to win the Aloha Section PGA’s Visa Hall of Fame tournament at Kapalua’s Plantation Course.

Dugas, a pro at Kukio Golf and Beach Club, shot rounds of 69-78 to finish at 1-over-par 147. Hayashi, from Hilo Municipal Golf Course, caught him with a final-round 73. Oahu Country Club’s Andrew Feldmann (73–151) finished third.

First prize was worth $2,000.

Navy-Marine’s David Chin (74–150) won the Senior Division and Hilo Municipal’s Rodney Acia (79–155) took the Super Seniors.

Merkle missed cut at LPGA event

Four-time Jennie K. champion Kristina Merkle shot consecutive 77s to miss the cut at last week’s LPGA Safeway Classic in Oregon.

Merkle, who won state high school championships her final two years at Moanalua (2008 and ’09), qualified by winning the Safeway Classic Amateur Open last month. She is starting her sophomore year at Tulsa, where she was last season’s Conference USA freshman of the year.

Punahou graduate Michelle Wie is playing in the CN Canadian Women’s Open, starting today at St. Charles Country Club in Winnipeg. Wie tied for 37th last week, winning $8,359 and dropping to 20th on the money list with $329,659. Wie starts back at Stanford on Sept. 20.

Min third at AJGA Junior

Hilo’s Ciera Min tied for third in her first American Junior Golf Association tournament last week, the AJGA Junior at Centennial in Medford, Ore.

There were 48 girls in the field from 11 states and Canada. Min finished at 2-under-par 214.

Honolulu’s Justin Chu took eighth in the 82-golfer boys division, also at 2-under 214.