Tradition continues at Hawaii State Open

With roots reaching back some 90 years, the Mauna Lani Resort Hawaii State Open provides a vivid look at the history of Hawaii golf.

It started as the Medal Championship of the Territory in 1928. Jimmy Ukauka won four times over a span of 17 years, all on different courses.

Success in its first five decades, with champions ranging from mainland pros Gene Sarazen and Bob Rosburg to future Hawaii Golf Hall of Famers Guinea Kop, Arthur Armstrong and Ukauka, led to becoming the PGA Tour’s Hawaiian Open. That is now the Sony Open in Hawaii and celebrates its 50th year at Waialae Country Club next month.

The event’s local tradition was revived in 1974 as the Ted Makalena Hawaii State Open. It was at Ala Wai Municipal and celebrated the memory of Hawaii’s first PGA Tour champion, benefiting Oahu junior golf.

The Aloha Section PGA took over in 1993 with the intent of "determining the best golfer in the islands." This weekend that tradition continues with a $60,000 tournament featuring 170 golfers on Mauna Lani’s North and South courses.

Leilehua alum Nick Mason is the defending champion, after outlasting Castle grad — and PGA Tour champ — Dean Wilson in a three-hole playoff last year. Both have won two State Opens.

They are just the latest in a line of memorable champs. Amateur Dan Nishimoto won the first revival in 1974 and was followed by a string of future Hall of Famers, including Allan Yamamoto, Lance Suzuki (four titles) and David Ishii (three).

Tour pro Steve Veriato, from Hilo, won his second in 1978, when Lori Castillo captured the first of five women’s championships. The late Althea Tome won the first women’s competition a year earlier and LPGA players Jeannette Kerr, Lenore Muraoka and Susie Berning also were victorious.

In 2002, 13-year-old Michelle Wie — this year’s U.S. Women’s Open champ — won the women’s title by 13 shots. Former Rainbow Wahine Cindy Rarick, in the midst of a five-win LPGA career, was second. Christel Tomori, a two-time State Open champ and winner on the Futures Tour, took third.

"It’s pretty wild because, first of all, she has the composure of a 23-year-old not a 13-year-old," Rarick said of Wie then. "Very composed, she’s extremely well-behaved, she shows a lot of discipline out there. I think she’s there."

Wie was "there," but hasn’t been back to the State Open. Wilson keeps returning as he winds down his $10 million tour career and heads toward 50. He and Mason are playing again this year, along with Parker McLachlin, Alex Ching, TJ Kua, Jared Sawada, Sean Maekawa and Bradley Shigezawa.

Most of those golfers, and many others at Mauna Lani, are looking for a place to land professionally.

Ching and Mason finished in the top 15 at eGolf Tour’s season-ending Tour Championship last week on the East Coast. Both had two eGolf starts the past six weeks, and won a combined $15,000. Tadd Fujikawa, the 2010 State Open winner, also plays on that mini-tour.

Ching, 24, turned pro after an All-American career at San Diego, and has also played on PGA Tour LatinoAmerica. Mason, 32, qualified for this year’s U.S. Open and has won two of the past three Mid-Pacific opens. He also plays Web.com Monday qualifiers and state opens and mini-tours around the country.

"It’s just tough to make it on the (PGA) Tour these days since it’s so international and so competitive," says 1987 U.S. Open champion Scott Simpson, who has four Hawaii State Open titles — the last 20 years ago. "First, they need to make sure they play and compete. Traveling and playing teaches you a lot about yourself, and your game. What is good and what needs work, and how your game compares with the players you have to beat to make it."

Simpson and wife, Cheryl, from Hawaii, are planning to move back to Kailua in the next few months as he winds down his Champions Tour career. His advice for those in the next generation is to do whatever it takes to get on the Web.com tour, or Symetra for the women.

Simpson is playing in the same group with Hall of Famers Kevin Hayashi and Casey Nakama on Friday, in the Senior Open division. Their fourth is defending champ Jeff Coston, who runs a golf academy in Washington. The stacked senior field also includes PGA and Champions tour winner Dave Eichelberger, Veriato and Dean Prince, who won the first seven State Open senior titles.

Mari Chun will defend her women’s championship, against a field that includes U.S. Women’s Open participant Xyra Suyetsugu, Kim and amateur Allisen Corpuz.

LOCAL ACES

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