Kaua‘i County announced earlier this week its 12-member team for the 2007 Mayors’ Challenge Cup against the City and County of Honolulu. They are: • Men’s Open Championship (Handicap Index not exceeding 7.9): Art Fujita (Hawai‘i Golf Hall of Fame)
Kaua‘i County announced earlier this week its 12-member team for the 2007 Mayors’ Challenge Cup against the City and County of Honolulu.
They are:
• Men’s Open Championship (Handicap Index not exceeding 7.9): Art Fujita (Hawai‘i Golf Hall of Fame)
• Men’s Open A (Handicap Index range of 8.0 to 15.9): Kelly Oda
• Men’s Open B (Handicap Index range of 16.0 to 25.0): John Calma
• Men’s Senior Championship (50 and older, Handicap Index not exceeding 7.9): Pat Viernes
• Men’s Senior A (50 and older, Handicap Index range of 8.0 to 15.9): Stan Staulz
• Men’s Senior B (50 and older, Handicap Index range of 16.0 to 25.0): Dennis Makiya
• Men’s Super Senior Championship (60 and older, Handicap Index not exceeding 7.9): Robert Hiraoka
• Men’s Super Senior A (60 and older, Handicap Index range of 8.0 to 15.9): Rand Becker
• Men’s Super Senior B (60 and older, Handicap Index range of 16.0 to 25.0): Charles Kawakami
• Women’s Championship (Handicap Index not exceeding 11.9): Mary Ann Shintani
• Women’s A ( Handicap Index range of 12.0 to 23.9): Cindy Oda
• Women’s B (Handicap Index range of 24.0 to 36.0): Arlene Kawakami
The Kaua‘i team has some notable personalities. Art Fujita is already in the Hawai‘i Golf Hall of Fame. Charles Kawakami is a member of the Board of Regents of University of Hawai‘i and is the owner of Big Save on Kaua‘i, and his wife, Arlene, also qualified for the team.
Kaua‘i Mayor Bryan J. Baptiste and Honolulu Mayor Mufi Hannemann announced the establishment of the Mayors’ Challenge Cup in August.
The inaugural golf event is funded by private sponsors and replaces and expands the defunct Mayors’ Cup.
Next year’s tournament will take place on Kaua‘i and both mayors hope the other counties will also join in for the friendly competition.
“The purpose of the Mayors’ Challenge Cup is to give exposure to many local golfers who otherwise may not have the opportunity to compete in a team-play championship on a multi-county level,” event creator Kerry Komatsubara said in a release. “It is hoped the event will attract golfers from all walks of life and at different skill levels.”
The Mayors’ Challenge Cup finals will be on Nov. 10 and 11 at the Ala Wai Golf Course.
The 2007 Mayors’ Challenge Cup is a team competition among players representing their respective counties of Kaua‘i or Honolulu.
Individual scores are relevant only for the purpose of determining the team points.
The Challenge is a 36-hole, low net, individual stroke play with one team point awarded for each flight.
The county with the most team points wins the tournament and the Mayors’ Challenge Cup Perpetual Trophy, which shall be held by the Mayor of the winning team until the 2008 Mayors’ Challenge Cup.
The Honolulu team is representative of a wide range of golfers. The youngest team member is a 9-year-old, fourth-grader from Punahou, Allisen Corpuz. The oldest member of the team is Richard Sonomura, a 77-year-young golfer who entered the Honolulu qualifying tournament “on the spur of the moment” to win the Men’s Super Senior B Flight. Most of the Honolulu team members are loyal public-links golfers.
Those who made the Kaua‘i team did so by competing in qualifying rounds held at the Wailua Golf Course.
For more information, visit www.808golf.com and click on the 2007 Mayors’ Challenge Cup.
