PJ Samiere and Kimberlie Miyamoto might be the poster people for the muggy madness that is Hawaii golf in July.

Both qualified for their U.S. Amateur championships last month, but that was only part of a recent series of golf highlights for the rising college seniors. And they aren’t the only ones who have been extremely busy, and successful, this summer.

After finishing his junior year at San Diego State, Samiere captured the 106th California Amateur Championship. Previous winners include World Golf Hall of Famers Ken Venturi, Gene Littler, Johnny Miller and Mark O’Meara.

The Punahou alum was four down after five holes, but came back to win with birdie on the final hole. He called it “definitely my best moment in golf so far.”

“My dad (Paul) was caddying for me and most of my family was there to share the moment with me,” says Samiere,who was born in Japan and started playing golf in San Francisco, where he lived before moving to Hawaii at age 6. “The tournament also was held at The Olympic Club, which was just icing on the cake for me.”

He came home, where he helped Punahou win three state championships, to earn medalist honors in the U.S. Amateur qualifier at Kapolei.

To warm up for next week’s 117th U.S. Amateur Championship at Riviera Country Club (Calif.), he took third at the Sahalee Players Championship in Washington and played with the world’s 10 top-ranked juniors and Tony Romo at the 115th Western Amateur in Illinois.

Last year, he won the 101st Southwest Amateur in Arizona before helping SDSU to a school-record 19th consecutive NCAA regional appearance. He led the Aztecs with a 72.11 scoring average and was named to the Ping All-West Region team.

Miyamoto, a Baldwin graduate, collected five birdies on the final day to win the 61st Waialae Women’s Invitational last month, after capturing the 61st Maui Women’s Invitational two years earlier. It was her second Waialae title in three years. Yindi Fowler won the low-net title.

Miyamoto rode that momentum to earn medalist honors in the U.S. Women’s Amateur qualifier at Princeville. This week, a second-round 73 at San Diego Country Club wasn’t enough to get her into match play at the national championship.

Still, she called it “the first step in what appears to be the best moment in golf for me.” Soon Miyamoto, who won the 2014 MIL title by 23 shots, starts her final season at Eastern Washington, where she has been an All-American scholar the last two seasons.

Since leaving the Hawaii State Junior Golf Association, she and Samiere have both narrowed down the most critical aspect of their golf game. Beyond everything else, they have to believe they can actually win.

“It sounds a little overconfident, however over the years I have learned that I should not enter a tournament if your goal is not to win,” says Miyamoto, who credits college coach Brenda Howe and swing coach Cathy Torchiana for helping her believe in herself. “In the past, I used to think just play well and it was OK. Not any more.”

She plans to graduate in the spring with degrees in secondary education and interdisciplinary studies, and a minor in communications. “Realistically,” she is looking at teaching school and coaching golf. Samiere should graduate the same time, in economics … ideally so he can invest the money he wins on “a tour somewhere” wisely.

Until then, he just wants to win, again.

“I have won a couple amateur tournaments, but I have yet to win a collegiate event,” he said. “Winning is something every college golfer talks about and only a few are fortunate enough to call themselves champions, so it is definitely something I value greatly.”

Chan Kim, who won the 2006 state high school championship when he was a Kaimuki sophomore, is also in the midst of a memorable summer. He qualified for the U.S. and British Opens, missing the cut at Erin Hills but tying for 11th at Royal Birkdale to win nearly $200,000. Kim also won the Mizuno Cup and Shigeo Nagashima Invitational on the Japan tour.

Also in July, Moanalua alum John Oda was fourth at Sahalee and sixth at the 51st Pacific Coast Amateur. Go Nakatsuka, Madison Takai, Remington Hirano and Jake Sequin got top 10s at the Optimist International in Florida. Scott Ichimura won Hawaii’s U.S. Senior Amateur qualifier by one shot over Carl Ho and Kiyohito Dezaki.

A final-round 71 gave Shawn Lu the title at last weekend’s Army Invitational, by two shots over Scott Hayashi and Kyosuke Hara. Alex Chiarella edged Nainoa Calip by a shot to win his second Maui Open in five years.