[ HAWAII GOLF ]Kop is top qualifier
for Manoa CupThe four-time winner shoots
68 to earn medalist honors
The local golf world had better watch out. Brandan Kop, at age 43, is getting better. He's added length to what is still one of the finest short games in the state.
He's averaging around 285 yards with his driver now, 20 yards more than what he was doing before a recent equipment change; Kop credits a new Dunlop ball, the same kind that John Daly uses, for much of the increased length.
"Shhh, it's a secret," Kop said, laughing.
Some of the new power also comes from the renovation of Kop's house. It included the addition of an indoor driving range, so Kop can hit balls whenever he wants.
"And the guy who blessed the house is a Zen master, Ike Odachi," Kop said. "He's only played golf once, but he was very helpful in getting me to slow things down and improve my mental approach. I don't get mad on the course as often."
It's debatable how much the newfound distance and serenity helped him yesterday at Oahu Country Club, since Kop bogeyed three holes at the Manoa Cup qualifier. But he birdied six others on his way to a 68 and medalist honors at the prelude to the state amateur match-play championship.
And when Kop is the top qualifier, it's a good sign for him. Two of his four Manoa Cup victories came after he carded the best score on Monday.
"It's good to have momentum going into match play, even though anything can happen once the matches start," Kop said. "It's also good because you get to play against the highest seeds."
Kop was slated to open match play this morning against Fred Hamamoto, who qualified with an 81.
An adventurous round for Kop began rather routinely with an 8-footer for birdie on No. 1 and four pars. Then he birdied the par-5 No. 6, flying his second shot over the green. He chipped back to give himself a 4-footer. He went over the green again on the par-3 No. 7, but wasn't as fortunate on the way back this time, and he took a bogey. He also bogeyed the par-4, No. 8 and made the turn even.
Kop's bogey binge continued on No. 10, as he banged a shot off a wall on the right (considered in play) for the first time in the more than 100 he's played the course.
His final turning point came when he made a 2-footer for birdie on the par-5 No. 13. "But there was a 6-inch break," Kop said.
He birdied the next two holes too, with a 3-foot putt on the par-3 14th, and a driver-wedge to 15 feet from the hole for a two-putt birdie on the 581-yard No. 15. He also birdied the 17th.
Kop had already won two Manoa Cups (1983 and 1986) before several of today's 64 match-play contestants were born. The teen invasion has passed the novelty stage, and they're a savvy bunch.
"They're not nervous anymore. Intimidation used to be worth one or two holes," Kop said.
The youngest is Tadd Fujikawa, a 13-year-old Moanalua Middle School eighth-grader. He qualified with a 75 yesterday.
"My ball-striking went really well today," Fujikawa said.
He made two birdies, but needs to improve on damage control on par 3s. Fujikawa triple-bogeyed No. 7 and double-bogeyed No. 11.
"That's the part of my game I really need to work hard on," he said. "If one shot doesn't go good, don't let it ruin the hole."
Chip shots: 2002 champion Travis Toyama is helping the organizers rather than playing because he is playing in the Junior World qualifier Friday and Saturday. ... Kellen-Floyd Asao celebrated his 21st birthday with a "DNF." He was two-over after 17 holes. It didn't matter that he didn't play the last hole because as defending champion he automatically qualified for match play. ... Toyama and Ryan Perez, a recent Moanalua graduate who qualified with what he called a "boring" 70, join Asao on the University of Hawaii team next season. Perez drained a 35-foot putt for birdie on the par-3 No. 7. ... Edwin Yokoyama also qualified with a 70. The former Saint Louis School football and basketball player said the key to his round was a "lucky" eagle on the 344-yard par-4 No. 17. He hit his driver to within 30 feet of the hole. ... Todd Rego, the 2002 OCC Invitational runner-up, also broke par with a 70.