Nick Mason carved a breathtaking shot into the wind to within six feet of the first playoff hole at Sunday’s 54th annual Mid-Pacific Open. The Leilehua graduate missed the birdie putt, but the courage and conviction of his approach earned him a title he will cherish.
Defending champion Nathan Lashley charged his birdie putt on the playoff, then missed his par coming back, giving Mason the $14,000 first prize at Mid-Pacific Country Club.
"This win really, really helps with everything," said Mason, 29, who played for the University of Hawaii-Hilo before turning pro and playing the mini-tours. "I needed to win. I haven’t won on a big stage in a year and a half. A lot of second and thirds, but I’ve always wanted to win one of the two big ones in Hawaii — this one and Pearl. This is a great tournament. I’m really excited."
Mason (73) and Lashley (69) were the last men standing at 5-under-par 283 after a final-day golf free-for-all into the stiff Lanikai breeze.
After Mason punched in a 16 footer for birdie on the 15th, to get back to 5 under, there were seven golfers within three shots of the lead. When Lashley birdied the 16th and 17th to move to 6 under, Mason was the only guy left with a legitimate shot of catching a golfer he has played with for some six years on the mini-tours.
Lashley bogeyed the final hole of regulation and Mason parred, sending them back to the 18th tee and a playoff sequel.
"I saw Nate make a putt on 16 and 17, so I knew he was 6 under," said Mason, who played two groups behind Lashley. "He bogeyed 18 which helped me out a lot. Sitting on that tee with a 30-mph tradewind having to make birdie is hard."
Lashley pushed his drive into the right rough in the playoff. He did well to get to the left fringe — some 40 feet from the hole — through the trees on his second shot.
Mason was in the left rough and, from 135 yards out, hit an 8-iron into the wind that parachuted to a stop six feet right of the pin.
"I played the flyer and the wind hit it perfectly," said Mason, now off to try and Monday qualify for Nationwide Tour events. "I thought I was going to make the birdie, but that stroke wasn’t very good."
It didn’t matter when Lashley, forced to be aggressive, whacked his long putt three feet by, then missed the come-backer — "just a poor putt" — after Mason had tapped in for par.
The difference was $5,000, and many good memories for Mason.
"I’ve learned a lot playing (professionally) the last seven years," said Mason, who has won four Hilo Open titles. "A year or two ago I wouldn’t have won the way I played today. I did not play very good, but I stuck in there. I made my five footers, I two-putted my 40 footers. That’s what you have to do. You’re not going to get the ball close and that’s what’s fun about this tournament.
"I’m a grinder so I like playing on courses where par is a good score. I like it here."
Mason caught third-round leader Russell Surber when the California pro, who plays mostly on the Canadian Tour, bogeyed three of the front nine’s last four holes.
At the par-3 11th, Surber went from the bunker into the hazard and ended up with a triple bogey. Parring out still left him three shots out of the playoff.
Surber tied for fourth with Kalani’s Richard Hattori (73—286), who won low amateur honors by a shot over Lorens Chan (73). Kaneohe’s Dean Wilson, who has won nearly $9 million the last nine years on the PGA Tour, finished alone in third at 72—285.
Kyle Yawata (82) won a one-hole playoff with 12-year-old Evan Kawai (77) to capture the A Flight after both finished at 315. John Iyoke won B Flight at 87—330.
