Sports Watch
Wallace was there for the popular golf tournament last weekend. He met so many admirers, he could have started a Maui Chapter of the Riley Wallace Fan Club, which saw a decline in membership on Oahu.
"Go get 'em, coach," said an elderly Japanese man, who asked for Wallace's autograph on a bar napkin. A wahine cashier at Star Market in Wailuku gave Wallace a wink and a lucky number coupon after he bought $50 worth of groceries.
Vince Goo, the UH women's basketball coach, was standing right behind Wallace in the checkout line but the same clerk had no clue who he was.
No wonder Wallace was feeling his oats and enjoying himself even though his contract wasn't rolled over - not exactly a vote of confidence by UH athletic director Hugh Yoshida - and his Rainbow men's team finished the season 10-18.
At the pro-am awards dinner, Wallace came in for some digs from John Repetti, the California Hotel's head honcho and spokesman for the Boyd Gaming Group, a diamond sponsor of the Maui Open.
"In case you ever need it, there's an opening at the Clark County Community College," Repetti told Wallace. "And I'll see to it that your contract is rolled over."
HOWEVER, it was on the golf course that Wallace's ego got bruised. Not that he's a bad golfer, mind you. He's better than his 17-handicap. He even finished tied for first in the pro-am competition at the Royal Kaanapali North Course, thanks to his three birdies.
I told him about Kwon's Law, one of golf's immutable rules. After a birdie, beware of at least a double bogey on the next hole. In Wallace's case, disaster struck the next day at the Pukalani Country Club.
Boy, did the three birdies catch up with him. At the narrow par-4 15th hole, Wallace took a 15! Maui Ow-ie.
One of his playing partners, Donald Tamashiro, a retired Hawaiian Air representative, was on the scene to record the disaster, shot by shot:
Wallace's tee shot went out of bounds to the right. He adjusted his stance and knocked the next three drives OB left.
One surely had to admire his consistent swing. But nobody in his foursome dared to say a word.
Wallace finally hit a drive down the middle of the fairway, where he lay nine off the tee. His next shot caught a green-side bunker, where he left one in. He skulled the next shot into another sand trap across the green. He finally got out, just off the fringe. He barely missed a 45-foot putt and tapped in for his 15.
Paraphrasing Arnold Palmer who once took a 12 in the L.A. Open, Wallace replied when asked how come he had a 15, "Because I missed a 45-foot putt for a 14."
To commemorate the occasion, Wallace's Las Vegas buddies all chipped in to buy a T-shirt. On the back it read, "If you can't take the pain, don't play the game."
Appropriately, on each sleeve was the number "15" - in blushing red.
THE Maui Open did have some real golfers, including this year's champion Dick McClean, who won the event for the fourth time. Rain made the Makena South Course unplayable after nine holes on Sunday, so the tournament was shortened to 36 holes as McClean's 138 held up.
McClean, Kapalua International tournament director, plans to attend the U.S. Open this week and then try to make it as a Monday qualifier for the next two Senior PGA Tour events in Philadelphia and Cincinnati at the end of the month. He'll also try to qualify for the U.S. Senior Open.
"Monday qualifying's tough with 150 to 160 golfers trying for three spots," said McClean, who has played in several Senior PGA Tour events.