Golf professional Lance Suzuki has been granted a sponsor exemption to play in the pro flight of the Senior PGA Tour Turtle Bay Championship, Oct. 1-7, at the Palmer Course on the Turtle Bay Resort. Suzuki gets Senior
PGA event spotThis will be Suzuki's senior pro tournament debut. He became eligible when he turned 50 yesterday.
The Hauula resident is known for his dedication to junior golf programs on the North Shore.
Hale Irwin is expected to defend his title in the 54-hole event Oct. 5-7. Admission to the tournament is $10 daily.
For more tournament information, call 545-1588.
Kanazawa Karate Cup scheduled for today
Some 400 participants from 15 countries are expected to compete at today's inaugural Kanazawa Cup, a goodwill karate tournament at the Manoa District Park Gym.
Legendary instructor Kancho Hirokazu Kanazawa, founder of the Shotokan International Karate Do Federation, returns to Hawaii for the first time in 40 years. He began his career in Hawaii in 1960.
The opening ceremony is scheduled for 9 a.m., followed by kata and kumite competition at 10 a.m.
The awards ceremony is scheduled for 5 p.m.
Outrigger canoe paddlers heading to Hamilton Cup
Six of Hawaii's top paddlers will leave Tuesday to compete in the Hamilton Cup Outrigger Canoe Races, June 22-25, off Hamilton Island, Australia.
The crew includes four members of last year's champion Team Simple Green: Ravin Aipa, Todd Aipa, Walter Guild and Karel Tresnak Jr.
Also racing from Hawaii under the name "Team Hawaii Maui Jim'' are Nate Hendricks and Bill Pratt, who will team with four paddlers from New Zealand.
The events include 500- and 1,000-meter sprints, a 16-kilometer iron race (with no crew changes) and a 42-kilometer nine-man race.
Over 100 teams are expected to compete in men's and women's open and masters divisions.
Wong-Metzger fifth in FIVB beach doubles
Hawaii's Stein Metzger and Kevin Wong teamed to finish fifth in yesterday's FIVB men's Beach Volleyball World Tour season opener at Tenerife, Canary Islands.
Seeded eighth in the $180,000 international event, Metzger and Wong shared $9,000 in their first international competition as teammates. They were eliminated by the Canadian team of John Child and Mark Heese, 18-21, 21-11, 15-13, in 48 minutes.
After dropping their opening match yesterday to top-seeded Emanuel Rego and Tande Ramos of Brazil, Metzger and Wong upset third-seeded Jorre Kjemperud and Vegard Hoidalen of Norway and fifth-seeded Dain Blanton and Eric Fonoimoana before losing to the Canadians.
Lambert-Smith team goes 3-0 on the beach
Hawaii's Mike Lambert teamed with Colin Smith of California and won all three of their matches at yesterday's AVP Huntington Beach (Calif.) pro beach volleyball tournament.
Lambert and Smith, seeded 19th, were one of 12 teams remaining in the hunt for the $14,000 first-place prize money.
Lambert and Smith will face second-seeded Nick Hannemann and Adam Jewel in a semifinal.
Also in contention are: Honolulu's Lee LeGrande, who advanced with partner Mark Williams as the No. 8 seeds; former University of Hawaii players and beach teammates Sean Scott and Albert Hannemann, seeded seventh; and former UH player Jason Ring, who is teaming with Paul Baxter.
Eliminated yesterday was Honolulu's Mark Paaluhi and teammate Jack Elliott.
Hawaii's Own
Benny Agbayani, Mets: Interleague play is about seeing the best the other league has to offer, and Agbayani got his first career look at Yankee pitcher Mike Mussina yesterday. The St. Louis School and Hawaii Pacific alumnus did not have much luck though, going 0-4 in a 2-1 loss and only getting the ball out of the infield once. Agbayani was moved to second in the order -- where he is now 2-for-14 in his career -- to allow Timo Perez a shot at the leadoff spot, but Mussina collared Perez (0-4) as well.Mike Fetters, Dodgers: The Iolani School graduate did not pitch in Los Angeles' 6-5 loss to Anaheim.
Name: Mike Nobriga
Age: 32
Position: Prep basketball referee and a member of the High School Basketball Officials Association
Why?: "To help the kids. There's nothing like helping them out. I enjoy it. It's like entertainment."
People would be surprised to know: I'm a referee.
Mike Nobriga spends his days and nights trying to keep people in line.But, unlike his day job as a corrections officer, Nobriga trails players up and down a basketball court and makes calls as a referee. Nobriga has been officiating basketball games for three years.
"(I started) by picking up games for the young kids and then it just fell together. We do the regular season, the boys and girls high school with the HSBOA, and the odds and ends like this (last week's Hawaii Basketball Showcase) in the offseason."
A typical day for him means getting off work at 2 p.m. and going out to various sites to ref for four hours. At the girls basketball showcase, Nobriga officiated 12 hours in addition to working his regular job. It's a task he enjoys and one that keeps him on his toes, literally.
"(I like) the action of the game and how spontaneously you have to make the calls," Nobriga said. "It looks easy from the side, but when you're out there it's a little bit different."
Though there aren't many similarities with his day job, Nobriga does see a few parallels.
"(The job's) more serious," Nobriga said. "(Basketball) is serious also but in a different way. You have to keep your ground, stand strong on your call. It's the same thing as a correction officer."
Scholastic surfing overdueWhile I was in high school, I tried to convince the school I was attending to recognize the Hawaiian sports of outrigger canoe paddling and surfing as competitive sports activities within the school system.
Despite the obvious "local roots" and popularity of these activities, I was met with objections based upon concerns about safety and potential liability. I really did not see how surfing and canoe paddling could be any more dangerous than contact sports already recognized in the schools at that time such as football and wrestling.
I am glad to see that outrigger canoe paddling has been part of most school sports programs for a number of years. It now looks like the time has come for the schools to give surfing the recognition it deserves and allow this ancient sport of Hawaiian kings (and queens) to be part of the school curriculum.
Evie Black
Honolulu
(Editor's note: The author is a former state and U.S. surfing champion)
[WINNERS]
<< Brian Ching: The Kamehameha Schools grad showed why the Los Angeles Galaxy chose him in the second round of the Major League Soccer draft, scoring his first MLS goal in the second half of a 4-0 victory over Kansas City on Wednesday and notching his first assist a few minutes later.Phil Mickelson: Its not just that he recorded an ace at the U.S. Open, as 32 other players can say the same thing. What makes Mickelson a winner is the fact that he responded to the moment by giving the ball to a young fan rather than jumping in a cart and speeding off to eBay.
Hula Bowl: The showcase of college talent went pro last week, partnering with the NFL and moving to Pro Bowl weekend when it can draw the kind of talent it always claimed it had.
[LOSERS]
>> Gustavo Kuerten: Apparently, the French Open champion can predict when his body will break down. For weeks, he told reporters he'd skip Wimbledon because the seeding and grass surface give him trouble. When his announcement finally came, he didn't cite the previous reasons, saying a sore groin would keep him away.Competitive balance: Just what Hawaii high school football needed: more blowouts. A proposal for a two-tiered state high school football tournament was shot down at the annual athletic directors' conference.
College pitchers: You'd think reaching college baseball's ultimate event would be a chance to show off your abilities. But not for CWS pitchers, who have combined to surrender more than 15 runs per game.