Most visitors come to the islands hoping for blue skies and sunny weather.

That’s not the case for a certain UCLA golfer who landed on the Big Island on Tuesday.

"I kind of looked at the forecast for the next few days and there’s a 50 percent chance of rain, which I don’t mind," junior Lorens Chan said. "I’m kind of hoping the wind picks up a little bit."

The 2012 ‘Iolani graduate has been on the cusp of his first collegiate victory, which could come at the Amer Ari Invitational that ends Saturday at the Waikoloa Kings Course.

The 18-team tournament features six teams ranked in the top 20 by Golfweek.com, including No. 3 Oregon and the fourth-ranked Bruins.

UCLA won three of the four fall tournaments it entered, led by Chan, who has recorded one runner-up finish and two top-threes in five events.

Still searching for the elusive college win, Chan could find it at a Waikoloa course that he says he has played close to 100 times.

"I feel like pretty much every time a tournament is on the Big Island, it’s most likely at Waikoloa Kings," Chan said. "Hopefully, it’ll be an advantage for me knowing the course better than most people here. Bermuda is a lot different than the grass on the mainland and I don’t really get nervous when the wind blows, so that’s what I’m hoping for."

Chan was just on Oahu for two weeks over Christmas break but didn’t spend as much time on the golf course as he would have liked.

A nagging wrist injury that would creep up on him during tournaments continued to bother him each time he swung a club.

When he returned to Los Angeles last month, he had a doctor check it out and remove some fluid that had built up in his wrist.

"It was weird because I could do other physical activities like play tennis or throw a ball, but it would only hurt during my golf swing," Chan said. "I haven’t gotten as much practice in as I wanted, but I feel good now."

The youngestof three brothers, Chan was already a decorated golfer when he enrolled at UCLA in 2012.

He played in the 2009 Sony Open alongside Jason Dufner and Ricky Barnes and was a two-time ILH player of the year for the Raiders.

Among the class of 2012, Chan was ranked No. 10 by the AJGA and was voted the 2011 HSGA Amateur player of the year.

It took him time to get situated comfortably among his peers at UCLA, but he says he’s now ready to take his game to the next level.

"The competition escalated so quickly for me (from high school to college) that it kind of took me by surprise," Chan said. "It was a big change. I had to get adjusted, so I didn’t play too well my freshman year, but I think I’ve done a better job of that my sophomore year and now my junior year."

Other teams representing Hawaii are host UH Hilo, the Rainbow Warriors and Texas, which is home to sophomore Kalena Preus, a 2013 Punahou alumnus.

NOTES

Menlo ending football program; 10 Hawaii athletes affected

Menlo College announced Sunday that it is ending its football program, affecting 10 players from Hawaii who played for the Oaks this past season.

"This decision was not one made lightly, knowing full well the deep consequences it has on our student-athletes, their hardworking coaches and staff, and our dedicated supporters and alumni," Menlo College President Richard A. Moran said in a press release.

"The Board of Trustees considered the issue carefully, but ultimately decided that the closure of football was in the best long-term interests of the college."

Menlo College, an NAIA school, is the only non-NCAA Division I institution sponsoring football in the Bay Area.

All current student-athletes will be allowed to retain their scholarships if they choose to remain at Menlo College, and those with remaining eligibility choosing to transfer will be eligible to play immediately.

The 10 players from Hawaii on the football roster are senior running back Jared Hakuole (Farrington), senior defensive back Emilio Mendoza (Moanalua), freshman defensive back Tanner Oshiro (Saint Louis), junior running back Jordan Hakuole (Farrington), senior offensive lineman Christian Daog (Hilo), freshman linebacker Timothy Burke (Kamehameha-Hawaii), sophomore offensive lineman Cameron Bargamento (Kauai), freshman offensive lineman Siaosi Ha‘unga (Leilehua), junior offensive lineman Trevor Collier (King Kekaulike) and freshman receiver Kanoa Iwasaki (Kauai).

UNLV freshman Oda wins first collegiate tournament

UNLV freshman John Oda was the only player to shoot under par on Tuesday and came back from a four-shot deficit to win the Sea Best Invitational in Ponte Verde Beach, Fla.

Oda, a 2014 graduate of Moanalua, had his final round delayed by two hours due to cold weather.

When he finally got on the course, he shot a tournament-low 3-under 67 to earn medalist honors with a final 54-hole score of even-par 210 to win by two.

The victory was the first for Oda in five career tournaments. He has finished in the top-10 three times.

"My goal today was to not make any bogeys and to just play consistent," Oda said in a news release. "I was able to make four birdies and one bogey. Overall, my ball striking was good and I putted great today. It is an awesome feeling."

UNLV finished third in the team standings behind North Carolina and Florida.

Compiled by the Star-Advertiser’s Billy Hull. To submit an athlete for publication, email bhull@staradvertiser.com

AROUND THE NATION

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
» Lia Galdeira, Konawaena ’12: The Washington State junior scored s game-high 29 points in 37 minutes of a 57-54 loss to California on Monday. Galdeira added five rebounds, three assists and three steals and shot 13-for-28 from the field.
» Dawnyelle Awa, Konawaena ’10: The Washington State point guard had 10 points, two assists and two rebounds against the Golden Bears.
» Kylie Maeda, ‘Iolani ’12: The Brigham Young point guard had 10 points, five rebounds, three assists and three steals in a 68-63 win over San Francisco on Thursday.
» Alex Masaquel, ‘Iolani ’13: The William & Mary sophomore forward posted a double-double with 13 points and 13 rebounds on 5-for-10 shooting and added four steals, two assists and two blocks in a 72-66 win over Northeastern on Sunday.
» Ashley Agcaoili, Maryknoll ’11: The Puget Sound guard had nine points, five assists and four rebounds in a 77-73 loss to George Fox on Friday.
» Hailey Ann Maeda, Punahou ’11: The Whitman (Wash.) forward had 12 points and three rebounds in a 71-60 win over Willamette (Ore.) on Friday and added 12 points and six rebounds in a 56-52 win over Lewis & Clark College on Saturday.
» Samantha Alakai, Punahou ’14: The Smith (Mass.) College freshman had a team-high 15 points and four rebounds in 28 minutes of a 66-61 loss to Emerson College on Saturday.
» Jade Chihara, Lahainaluna ’13: The Smith College guard had 14 points and two steals in 16 minutes against Emerson College.

MEN’S GYMNASTICS
» Joshua Yee, Thompson Academy ’12: The Oklahoma junior finished in a tie for second place on the vault with a score of 14.750 in a tri-meet win over Iowa and Ohio State on Sunday.

WOMEN’S GYMNASTICS
» Tiana Montell, St. Joseph’s ’11: The UC Davis senior tied a career high on the vault with a 9.850 to finish in second place in a tri-meet against Utah State and Boise State on Friday. Montell also took second in the floor exercise with a season-best score of 9.8 and was 12th on the beam with a 9.7.
» Jenna Frowein, Punahou ’12: The Stanford junior took second in the floor exercise with a 9.675 in a win over Arizona State on Friday.
» Joey Ching, Punahou ’12: The Air Force junior scored a 9.3 on vault in a loss to Auburn.
» Tracie Villanueva, Moanalua ’13: The Seattle Pacific sophomore finished second on the bars with a 9.725 in a loss to Alaska-Anchorage on Friday.
» Kristi Hayashida, Home School ’13: The SPU sophomore finished third on the floor exercise with a 9.725 and scored a 9.025 on the beam against Alaska-Anchorage.

SOFTBALL
» Kaydi Kochi, Mid-Pacific ’11: The Notre Dame de Namur senior third baseman went 3-for-4 with an RBI and scored twice, including the winning run in the bottom of the seventh inning in a 6-5 win over Cal State Stanislaus on Sunday.

MEN’S TENNIS
» Alec Wagner, Lahainaluna ’12: The Saint Mary’s (Calif.) junior won in straight sets at No. 5 singles in a 6-1 win over Sonoma State on Sunday.

WOMEN’S TENNIS
» Alyssa Tobita, Mililani ’14: The Oregon freshman toughed out a three-set victory at No. 3 singles and won her No. 1 doubles match in a 4-3 loss to Minnesota on Saturday.
» Kristen Poei, ‘Iolani ’13: The Cal State Northridge sophomore, who went 17-3 at doubles as a freshman, won her season-opening match at No. 2 doubles in a 6-1 win over Westmont on Saturday.
» Bobbi Oshiro, ‘Iolani ’12: The Boise State junior won in straight sets at No. 5 singles and also won at No. 1 doubles in a 6-1 win over Seattle University on Friday.

WOMEN’S TRACK AND FIELD
» Sophie Curatilo, Moanalua ’11: The Seattle University senior finished eighth in the women’s 5,000-meter race with a time of 17 minutes, 14.94 seconds at the University of Washington Indoor Invitational last weekend.
» Joshlyn Noga, Kahuku ’11: The Charleston Southern senior finished seventh in the women’s shot put with a throw of 13.34 meters and 19th in the weight throw with a distance of 13.70 meters at the Hilton Garden Inn Invitational on Saturday.

MEN’S VOLLEYBALL
» Micah Christenson, Kamehameha ’11: The Southern California setter had 36 assists, four digs, three kills and three aces in a sweep of Cal State Northridge on Friday.
» Josh Taylor, Punahou ’11: The Pepperdine outside hitter had 14 kills, five digs, two block assists and an ace in a four-set win over UC Santa Barbara on Saturday.
» Rocky DeLyon, Seabury Hall ’12: The California Baptist junior outside hitter hit .273 with 10 kills, two digs and an assist in a three-set loss to Long Beach State on Saturday.
» Kyle Hanagami, Waiakea ’11: The Grand View (Iowa) senior played in four of the Vikings’ five matches in the Molten Invitational last weekend and totaled 59 assists, 12 digs, three aces and two kills as Grand View went 3-2 overall in the tournament.
» Savili Bartley Jr., Kamehameha ’12: The Grand View middle blocker had 16 kills, eight digs, four block assists and two solo blocks in four matches in the tournament.
» Sean Bissen, Kamehameha ’11: The Grand View senior defensive specialist totaled 22 digs and four aces in five matches.
» Kui Aikau-Osurman, Kamehameha ’12: The Grand View junior had four digs in a sweep of Cardinal Stritch University last Thursday to open the tournament.
» Matt Heirakuji, Kamehameha ’11: The Hope International senior tallied 67 digs and four aces in six matches of the Molten Invitational.
» Sky Engelman, Moanalua ’14: The Grand Canyon freshman had a team-high 15 digs and two assists in a four-set win over Saint Francis (Penn.) on Jan. 28.
» Casey Bolda, Kaiser ’13: The Lakeland (Wis.) College sophomore outside hitter had 20 kills, 17 digs, six block assists and four aces in four matches of the Thiel College Invitational over the weekend. The Muskies finished 3-1.

WOMEN’S WATER POLO
» Naomi Ng, Punahou ’12: The Villanova junior scored a game-high four goals in a 10-8 win over Iona and added one goal in a 19-8 loss to Harvard to open the season at the Iona Invitational on Sunday.
» Sarina Shibata, Punahou ’12: The Villanova junior scored one goal apiece against Iona and Harvard.
» Courtney Miller, Punahou ’12: The San Diego junior goalkeeper made 45 saves in four matches at the UC Santa Barbara Winter Invite as the Tritons went 2-2 with wins over Michigan State and Long Beach State and losses to Arizona State and Cal State Bakersfield.

MEN’S WRESTLING
» Patrick Sheehan, Punahou ’11: The New York University senior won two matches, including one by technical fall, in dual meets against Gettysburg and Johns Hopkins on Saturday.
» Zen Ikehara, Kamehameha ’13: The Air Force freshman went 1-1 at 184 pounds in dual meets against South Dakota State and Grand Canyon on Sunday.