DENNIS ODA / DODA@STARBULLETIN.COM
Kellen-Floyd Asao was thrown into the Oahu Country Club pool after he beat Kurt Nino to win the Manoa Cup. The dunking of the Manoa Cup winner is a tradition.
Asao gets his
birthday wishThe UH golfer beats Nino
to win the Manoa Cup
on his 20th birthday
Kellen-Floyd Asao celebrated his birthday by making a bit of history yesterday at the Oahu Country Club.
The 20-year-old University of Hawaii golfer captured the 95th edition of the Manoa Cup -- the men's state amateur match play championship -- by overpowering the OCC course and his opponent, 15-year-old Kurt Nino, 8 and 7, in the 36-hole final.
For Asao, the victory erased the bitter memory of the 2001 Manoa Cup final, when he lost 1-down to Maui's Ryan Koshi. Yesterday's win was Asao's first in a major local amateur event.
"Two years ago when I played for the championship I was more scared than confident," said Asao. "This time I came out with a different attitude. I told myself, 'You've come this far before. You know how it is. You know you can win.' "
In the five days leading up to the final, Asao played a qualifying round and five matches -- a total of 126 holes. When he woke up for yesterday's 36-hole final, his back was sore and he felt dazed. But he was in no mood for excuses.
DENNIS ODA / DODA@STARBULLETIN.COM
Kurt Nino, right, congratulated Kellen-Floyd Asao after Asao sank the winning putt on the 29th hole of the Manoa Cup final.
"I looked in the mirror and told myself, 'This is the day. Leave nothing behind,' " he said.
He didn't. In 29 holes yesterday, Asao recorded eight birdies and two eagles and chipped in twice. Over his last 11 holes -- the 19th through the 29th -- he was 7 under par with no bogeys.
"In the morning, we both struggled a bit," said Nino, who was only 1-down at the end of the first 18. "But after that, it was just a slaughter. He was hitting fairways and greens, fairways and greens. And making everything."
Actually, it was all Asao all week at OCC. Six days of near-perfect, windless weather, light rough and immaculate course conditions led to an assault on par, with Asao leading the charge.
The UH junior led all qualifiers with a 65 on Monday, and played brilliant under-par golf in almost all of his matches. He made seven or more birdies a round against three of his opponents, and recorded five chip-ins during the week.
"Kellen won the tournament," said Andrew Feldman, the head professional at OCC. "He didn't shoot 2 or 3 over and squeak by. He dominated."
DENNIS ODA / DODA@STARBULLETIN.COM
Asao drank from the Manoa Cup.
No one understood that better than Nino. The 15-year-old Damien Memorial High School golfer, who lost on the 36th hole in last year's semifinal, won yesterday's first hole with a birdie.
It was the only time Nino was ahead in the match.
He quickly lost the second hole, making bogey, and was 3-down after Asao birdied Nos. 6, 8 and 10. Asao made two more birdies coming in, on 15 and 17, but he also bogeyed 14 and 18 when twice blowing 2-foot putts.
When the golfers broke for lunch, Asao worked on his stroke on the putting green to get his confidence back. He then went out and won the first two holes in the afternoon with a par and a birdie to go 3-up.
A birdie on the par-4 23rd hole and a conceded eagle on the par-5 24th -- the latter when he cut a 4-iron to within 25 feet -- put him 5-up. After a par on the 27th hole, Asao's lead was six.
DENNIS ODA / DODA@STARBULLETIN.COM
Kellen-Floyd Asao and his dad, Norman Asao, dried off after they were thrown into the pool at the Oahu Country Club. Usually just the Manoa Cup winner is thrown into the pool, but Asao's brother, sister and dad joined him.
At the short 257-yard, uphill par-4 28th, Asao blasted a 3-wood to the back fringe of the green and then chipped in for eagle. When he followed that up by dropping a 15-footer for birdie on the par-3 29th, the Manoa Cup was his.
Surrounded afterward by family, friends and well-wishers, Asao was bedecked with leis and fitted with a bright purple birthday hat, which he wore at the awards ceremony along with the traditional green jacket given to the winner. Another tradition soon followed: the ceremonial toss into the OCC pool.
"When I first found out that the finals would take place on my birthday, I had it in my mind that I was going to win it," said Asao. "To win the Manoa Cup is a very special thing. But to win it on your birthday ... that's even better."
