Hayashi heads into final round in 28th

Hilo’s Kevin Hayashi kept it in the red Saturday and moved into the top 30 going into the final round of his Champions Tour debut.

What he talked about after was taking his playing partner fishing in January.

Hayashi fired a 2-under-par 70 to go into the final day in 28th place at 142. Hayashi, who was given an exemption, had four birdies and two bogeys. Three of his birdie putts came from within 3 feet, and he sank a 6-footer at No. 8 — his next-to-last hole — for the final birdie. Hayashi left an 8-footer on the lip at the end.

"It’s a privilege to be out here with these guys, and (playing partners) Joe (Daley) and Brad (Bryant) are good guys," said Hayashi, who was inducted into the Hawaii Golf Hall of Fame last year. "Joe was talking to me all the time. He loves fishing and everything. I didn’t know he won a major championship, so when he comes to Hualalai we can go fishing."

Hayashi still golfs as much as he can — he is an eight-time Aloha Section PGA Player of the Year — but focuses more on teaching these days. Hilo junior Ciera Min is one of his students.

That might make today mean even more at age 50.

"I’d like to shoot a low one tomorrow," Hayashi said. "If I can get in the 60s I’ll be happy. You never know, but I’m starting to get a little bit of confidence. Not that I’m as good as these guys, but at least I know I can move it around the golf course. It’s just a matter of getting it in the hole."

Will he think about the $1.8 million that is at stake?

"You do, but I try not to think about it because then you get ahead of yourself," Hayashi said.

"If you play well, it will take care of itself."

Hayashi is playing best among the local contingent. The other four are former Kailua resident Scott Simpson (2-over 146), Dave Eichelberger (6-over 150), David Ishii (9-over 153) and Casey Nakama (12-over 156). Ishii bounced back from a bad back injury to shoot a 3-over 75 Saturday. He often needed his caddy to get the tee out of the ground due to his bad back.

Inside the numbers

The scoring average dropped a half stroke to 71.420. A total of 20 players had rounds in the 60s, compared to 15 on Friday. There were 45 rounds under par on Saturday, compared to 36 in the opening round.

The easiest hole Saturday was the par-5 17th that yielded four eagles and 42 birdies. There were only five bogeys among the 81 golfers in the field for a scoring average of 4.44. The hardest hole was the par-4 10th with a scoring average of 4.222. There were only six birdies. There were also 20 bogeys and two doubles.

Class of 2013 up next

The Champions Tour Class of 2013 includes Vijay Singh, who said he wants to stay on the PGA Tour for now; Rocco Mediate and Steve Elkington. Davis Love III turns 50 the following year, along with Paul Goydos, Scott Verplank and LeeJanzen.