WAIKOLOA — The excitement at the Hawaii State Open on Sunday is something usually reserved for buzzer-beaters at basketball games.
Dean Wilson sunk a 7-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole to capture his second Hawaii State Open title in the last three years and avoided a three-man playoff.
“It’s awesome,” said Wilson, who finished 4-under for the tournament. “This is the Hawaii State Open, so it is a very important tournament for a lot of us from Hawaii. I look forward to it every year.”
In 1976, the Aloha Section PGA revived the Hawaii State Open as the ultimate golf championship for professionals and amateurs with the purpose of determining the best golfer in the islands. With that being said, Wilson’s two championships (2012, ’14) and runner-up finish last year puts him in elite company among Hawaii’s golfers.
After favorable conditions Friday, golfers were nearly blown away by consistent Waikoloa winds that many estimated gusted up to 50 mph. Only seven golfers shot under par the final two rounds.
Despite the heavy winds, Wilson maintained a steady pace over the weekend, shooting back-to-back 70s and then even-par 72 Sunday.
“It has been a weekend of crazy golf,” Wilson said. “I don’t know how you can prepare for something like this. I have some familiarity from playing in the wind all over the world, but nothing like this.”
Wilson was alerted heading up to the 17th tee that Sun IL Jung (71-74-68—213) and Ryan Heisey (70-74-69—213) sat in the clubhouse at 3-under. The veteran golfer — who represented Mauna Lani Resort on the PGA tour at one time — knew he had to birdie either the 17th or 18th hole to win. Par meant a playoff, a situation Wilson wanted to avoid. Last year, Wilson lost to UH-Hilo alum Nick Mason in a three-hole playoff.
Wilson made par on the North Course’s tricky 17th hole and opted to walk instead of riding in the cart to the 18th tee.
“I felt I had one opportunity all by myself to birdie the hole and avoid that playoff,” Wilson said.
This year, Wilson took care of business without the need of extra golf, sinking his final putt.
John Oda took home top amateur honors with a 1-over 217 for the tournament.
Casey Nakama won the Senior Open, finishing even for the tournament at 216. The next closest golfer was Mike Kawate, who shot a 6-over 222. Defending Senior champion Jeff Coston (72-77-74 — 223) finished tied for third with first-round leader Kevin Hayashi.
Allisen Corpuz won the Women’s Open with a 20-over 236. Corpuz had a double-digit lead over the rest of the women’s field entering the final day, and needed nearly every stroke after a 15-over 87 Sunday. Kimberly Kim fired a 5-over 77 final round, but came up two strokes short. Mikado Nagatori finished third.
David Long won the A-Flight.