Punahou freshman Stephanie Kono beat two-time defending champion Mari Chun by two strokes yesterday for the ILH title.
Kono, Nino win
ILH golf titles
This championship duel should've been part of prime-time TV's sweeps.
Mari Chun chased freshman sensation Stephanie Kono to the very end. Kono, however, hung on to capture the Interscholastic League of Honolulu individual girls championship on a sweltering afternoon at Waialae Country Club.
Kono, of Punahou, finished with a 2-over 74 for a two-round total of 147. Chun, who trailed by a single stroke entering the final hole, shot 4-over-par 76 and completed the tourney at 149.
Defending state champion Kurt Nino of Damien won the boys title with an even-par 72 for a two-day score of 144. Kamehameha's Thomas Kua, who led Nino and Iolani's Shunsuke Aonuma by a stroke after Monday's first round, finished second at 147, three strokes back.
Kono and Chun, the two-time defending ILH champion, provided plenty of daytime drama on the 7,125-yard course.
"I was striking the ball well. It was the first time we've had tradewinds in a while," Chun said. "Stephanie pulled it off. We were both going for it."
Kono estimated her drives at about 260 yards.
"I was a little tentative, and that's when I don't do as good, but it turned out OK," she said. "How we played today, you have to take every shot seriously. My putting felt good, but sometimes, I slipped up."
Kono led by as many as four strokes after a birdie on the par-5 10th hole.
Chun, a senior who will play at Stanford next season, birdied the 426-yard, par-4 11th hole to pull within three strokes.
Kurt Nino of Damien and Stephanie Kono of Punahou showed off the medals they won yesterday as ILH golf titlists.
Kono suffered a bogey on the 203-yard, par-3 13th hole, and Chun took advantage. The Junior World champion parred the hole to pull within one.
That's where Kono showed remarkable resilience in spite of her youth. Using an impeccable drive, she parred the next four holes. At No. 14, Chun wound up in a bunker but saved par with a nice wedge shot.
"After the 14th, I tried to be more aggressive," Chun said.
At the 15th, Kono barely missed a putt for birdie, and both settled for par and a one-stroke margin.
After parring the 16th, Kono and Chun missed opportunities for birdies at No. 17. Kono missed a 12-foot putt by 6 inches. Chun also missed from 12 feet out, coming within an inch of tying the match.
The 18th turned out to be a blessing in disguise for Kono. Her tee shot sailed left, but before it could go out of bounds, the ball landed in a pile of coconut branches and debris. The pile was categorized as rubbish, meaning that Kono could move the branches and debris to continue from that spot.
"She got a break with that," Punahou coach John Proud said. "It was heading toward the net and might've gone out."
That saved her a one-stroke penalty and do-over from the tee. Her ensuing shot wound up behind a tree on the right side of the fairway, but Kono handled it like a veteran. A good 40 yards away, she sent her next shot over the tree, landing within 5 feet of the hole.
She birdied the hole for a final two-stroke margin of victory.
Chun entered the second round tied with Kono, but had some struggles on the front nine.
"Really, I was just trying to play against the course. I had some bad breaks," she said. "I was still, essentially, 4 over. The course was beating me."
Kono, who won all but two ILH tournaments this year, didn't seem deterred by the longer-than-usual course distance.
"It didn't feel that long. I think it would've felt longer with more wind. I prefer it longer, but I like the short courses, too. You have to shoot better on those," she said.
The philosophy of playing a longer course, Proud said, is to better prepare the ILH's golfers.
"We've seen the Big Island golfers play well at states, and they play on long courses all season long," he said.
Meanwhile, Nino was supremely steady en route to his first ILH crown. He lost last year's championship tourney in sudden death.
"We played that one in the dark," the senior said. "This year shows I'm the true champ."
Damien coach Hilary Stevens chided Nino for his lack of modesty, but was stoked for her pupil.
"During the season, we've been watching his putting. He was leaving it short for one-putts, but that was OK," she said. "I think he's more relaxed and more confident in his game this year. He's very easy to coach. I'm happy and proud for him."
Nino is looking forward to defending his state tourney title.
"I felt like I was gonna win the tourney outright today. I've been playing good since last summer," he said.
Next up is the David Ishii Foundation Girls Golf State Championships, set for The Dunes at Maui Lani next Tuesday and Wednesday.
The boys state championships are at the Wailea Emerald Course on Maui, May 17-18.
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