Bittersweet induction for Barenaba, Rego

When Charles Barenaba Jr. and Clyde Rego are inducted into the Hawaii Golf Hall of Fame at the fourth annual Hawaii Golf Ho‘olaule‘a Awards on Jan. 13, the memories will be extremely sweet, but also very sad.

They were the Tadd Fujikawa and Lorens Chan of their day.

Barenaba won two Junior World titles between 1968 and ’71. He was the first Hawaii golfer to capture a U.S. Golf Association National Public Links title.

Rego was the first amateur to win the JAL Rainbow Open, getting up and down from a bunker for birdie on the final hole to beat David Ishii in 1976. Two years later, he beat the Hawaii Golf Hall of Famer again to take the Manoa Cup.

Rego turned pro after winning the 1980 Army Invitational. He played on the PGA Tour in 1982 and ’83. He’s one of the few from Hawaii who made it through Q-School.

His last win came at the 1986 Maui Open. In 2004, at age 46, he died of a heart attack following complications from a brain aneurysm. Rego, the 6-foot, 230-pound “Bull” of one of Hawaii golf’s kindest and most gifted families, was gone.

At the time, he was contemplating a comeback on the senior tour. Art, the eldest of four golf-pro siblings and director of golf at Waiehu, will represent Clyde next week. Sister Brenda is head pro at Wailea Old Blue. Brother Darrell, general manager at Molokai’s Ironwood Hills, will be there to accept First Tee of Hawaii’s Coach of the Year honor.

Barenaba also came from a talented golf family. He learned to play at Kahuku’s nine-hole muni and won two Junior World titles (13-14, 17-18) some 40 years ago.

In 1974, while it was a stroke-play competition, he brought Hawaii’s first Public Links championship home from Pasadena, Calif. The next year, when the USGA major became a match-play event, brother Randy won it, beating Allen Yamamoto, another Hawaii Golf Hall of Famer, at Wailua.

That same year, Charles won the Barber’s Point, Mid-Pacific and Kauai Open titles. Five years later, the Oahu Country Club assistant pro was waiting for a ride home when a car hit him. He survived the crash, but it ended his remarkable golf career.

Barenaba still lives on Oahu, but won’t be attending the ceremony.

Friday is the deadline to register for the banquet, which begins at 6 p.m. at Honolulu Country Club. The awards ceremony, which includes Hall of Fame inductions and the announcement of award winners from Hawaii’s golf associations, starts at 7 p.m. The celebration is open to the public.

The cost is $50 for adults and $40 for children 8 and under, with table sponsorships $750. Reservations can be made online at aspga.com. For information, call 593-2230.