PGA tees off again at Kapalua with different look and feel
Kapalua has been the launching point for the past 12 PGA Tour seasons, but this year will look like no other.
A new title sponsor, free admission and a mind-boggling selection of off-course activities will start a week before the winner is crowned at the Plantation Course. All but five of last year’s tour winners (tentative field of 34) will be on Maui for the Hyundai Tournament of Champions.
The 72-hole tournament runs Jan. 6-9. But by Jan. 2, Kapalua will be inundated with free entertainment options, some of Hawaii’s finest juniors, celebrities, golf freaks and about three dozen of the world’s best golfers.
Practice rounds and the "Fan Zone Delivered by FedEx Cup" will rev up Jan. 2, with Family Fun Day benefiting the Hawaii State Junior Golf Association. The Pro/Celebrity/Junior Golfer Shootout begins at 2 p.m. with teams representing the islands.
Players include defending champion Geoff Ogilvy, Tadd Fujikawa and Rocco Mediate. Juniors qualified from each major island: Cassy Isagawa and Aaron Kunitomo will represent Maui; Kacie Komoto and Michael Fan, Oahu; Pono Tokioka and Kelli Oride, Kaua; and Ric Yamamoto and Ciera Min, Big Island.
A free concert featuring Anuhea follows.
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A Jan. 3 pro-am will also benefit the HSJGA. A Jan. 5 pro-am aids Maui Family Support Services. At 2 p.m. that day, Keali’i Reichel and Jake Shimabukuro will be on the first tee for "FedExCup Kick-Off Festivities" that include the Long Drive Contest and the Pro-Celebrity Charity Challenge.
The top three drivers on tour — Robert Garrigus, Bubba Watson and Dustin Johnson — will be joined by 2009 RE/MAX World Long Drive champion Jamie Sadlowski on the Plantation’s vast 18th hole. Garrigus led the PGA Tour in driving last year, at 315.5 yards. Sadlowski, called "Freaky Boy" by his father, blasts it more than 400 yards.
The Golf Channel will join the party with a live broadcast from 3-5 p.m. The TOC’s first round starts the next morning at 10 a.m. A concert follows all four rounds. All the golf and entertainment is free, all the time, and so is parking.
The field includes part-time Kapalua resident Jim Furyk, wannabe Kapalua resident Ernie Els and Australians Stuart Appleby and Ogilvy. All have won here before. Steve Stricker, sixth in the World Golf Ranking, will play. So will U.S. Open winner Graeme McDowell (No. 7), No. 11 Ian Poulter and No. 13 Matt Kuchar.
Missing are Phil Mickelson — again — three Europeans (top-ranked Lee Westwood, No. 3 Martin Kaymer and No. 10 Rory McIlroy), British Open champ Louis Oosthuizen and Tiger Woods, who didn’t win in 2010.
—Contact Ann Miller at amiller@staradvertiser.com; e-mail sports@staradvertiser.com; or fax to 529-4787
HYUNDAI TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
At Kapalua Plantation Course
JAN. 2
7 a.m.-1:45 p.m.: professional practice rounds
11:30 a.m.: family fun day benefiting hsjga
fan zone delivered by fedex cup activities:
» Free lunch for the first 200 kids sponsored by CJ’s Deli
» Aloha section swing cages
» Polynesian Village luau cultural activities, including spear throwing and hula lessons
» Free all-star card giveaways and prizes
» Na Koa Ikaika Maui professional baseball team autograph zone
» Appearance by Kansas City Royals pitcher Kanekoa Texeira
» Maui Humane Society Animobile
» Taiko drummers
1 p.m.: Dan Boever (trick-shot artist and 2008 senior world long drive champion) on first tee
2 p.m.: Pro/celebrity/junior golfer shootout including Geoff Ogilvy, Tadd Fujikawa, Rocco Mediate and Justin Rose, at nos. 1, 2 and 9
3:30-5:30 p.m.: Free concert featuring Anuhea
JAN. 3
7-9 a.m.: Professional practice rounds at the plantation course
8:30 a.m.: Gates open
8:30 a.m.-5 p.m.: Fan zone delivered by FedEx Cup
9 a.m.: Monday Pro-Am, including Cameron Beckman, Jerry Kelly and Dean Wilson
10 a.m.: Professional practice rounds at the plantation course
JAN. 4
7 a.m.-2:30 p.m.: Professional practice rounds
8:30 a.m.: Gates open
8:30 a.m.-5 p.m.–Fan zone delivered by FedEx Cup
JAN. 5
7 a.m.: Gates open
7:30 a.m.: Pro-Am
8 a.m.-5 p.m.: Fan zone delivered by FedEx Cup
2 p.m.: FedEx cup kickoff
» Entertainment on first tee featuring Keali’i Reichel and Jake Shimabukuro
» Dan Boever, trick-shot artist and 2008 senior world long drive champion
» Long drive contest with Bubba Watson, Dustin Johnson, Robert Garrigus and world long drive champion Jamie Sadlowski on 18th tee
» pro/celebrity charity challenge, including 2010 fedex cup champion Jim Furyk, Anthony Kim, Dustin Johnson, Graeme Mcdowell and surfing world champion Kelly Slater (nos. 1, 2 and 9)
3-5 p.m.: Golf channel live broadcast
JAN. 6
8:30 a.m.: Gates open
8:30 a.m.-5 p.m.: Fan zone delivered by FedEx cup
10 a.m.: First round Hyundai Tournament of Champions
1-5:30 p.m.: Golf Channel telecast
5 p.m. (tentative): Entertainment in FedEx Cup fan zone featuring Gail Swanson
JAN. 7
8:30 a.m.: Gates open
8:30 a.m.-5 p.m.: Fan zone delivered by FedEx Cup
10 a.m.: Second round Hyundai Tournament of Champions
1-5:30 p.m.: Golf Channel telecast
5 p.m. (tentative): Entertainment in FedEx Cup fan zone, featuring Jimmy Mac & The Kool Kats
JAN. 8
8:30 a.m.: Gates open
8:30 a.m.-5 p.m.: Fan zone delivered by FedEx Cup
10 a.m.: Third round Hyundai Tournament of Champions
1-5:30 p.m.: Golf Channel telecast
5 p.m. (tentative): Entertainment in FedEx Cup fan zone, featuring Anden
JAN. 9
8:30 a.m.: Gates open
8:30 a.m-5 p.m.: Fan zone delivered by FedEx Cup
10 a.m.: Final round Hyundai Tournament of Champions
1-5 p.m.: Golf Channel telecast
5 p.m. (tentative): Entertainment in FedEx cup fan zone, featuring George Kahumoku Jr.
Admission, parking and entertainment is free. for shuttle reservations from Kaanapali ($12.50 round trip) call 1-808-242-7777. Shuttles run between Whalers Village Shopping Center and the Plantation Course from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. every half hour.
