Boy’s golf wins first state title in 18 years

Perfecting his swing, Lorens Chan \'12 watches his ball sail through the air during practice. Photo Courtesy of Richard and Linda Chan.

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Robert Tamai
July 4, 2009
Filed under Sports

Eighteen. The number of holes on a golf course, and also the number of years that ‘Iolani has gone without a golf state title.

In a sport that focuses on individual performances, teamwork was the key to success for the ‘Iolani boys’ golf team at the Royal Ka’anapali Golf Course on Maui on May 13.

Relying on experience and consistency, Lorens Chan ‘12 shot a 2-over to win the individual golf state title; edging out teammate David Fink ’09 by two strokes in a back and forth battle. Led by the strong play of Chan and Fink, ‘Iolani won the 2009 HHSAA Boys’ Golf Championship with a team score of 601 strokes, 18 more than the runners-up Moanalua.

At the end of the first day, freshman Lorens Chan, who shot a 69, led by two strokes over the rest of the field. However, on the second and final day, senior David Fink surged ahead in the first 14 holes to become the leader, one stroke ahead of Chan.

Entering the 15th hole, the afternoon trade winds along with the hot sun made course play more difficult and challenging as the day progressed. Running into some problems, Fink bogeyed the 15th, 16th, and 17th holes to drop two strokes behind his fellow Raider, Lorens Chan. The freshman was able to hold on to the lead with his steady hitting, securing ‘Iolani’s first individual golf title since 1994.

The first and second place finishes by Chan and Fink along with excellent play from fellow Raiders Corey Kozuma ’10, Reo Saito ’11, Elliot Le ’11, and Kelly Masuda ’09 guided the Raiders to a team title.

“It was a team goal (to win the state title) throughout the entire season, and I’m glad we were able to pull through,” explained team captain David Fink. “They’re a great bunch of guys who know all about teamwork.”

Throughout the regular season, the boys’ golf team hardly played with all six players. Fink, a starter on the varsity volleyball team, often skipped golf because of volleyball games, while Chan was unable to make it to some tournaments because of other golf commitments.

However, junior Corey Kozuma noted that “the team really molded together during the state tournament experience. It really helped us to work together, support each other, and achieve our team goal.”