NAWILIWILI — The annual Easter Seals golf tournament attracted more than 100 golfers on Sunday to Kauai Lagoons Golf Club. Ellen Ching, Easter Seals Hawaii Kauai branch director, said the tournament was a success. “We weren’t sold out on golfers,
NAWILIWILI — The annual Easter Seals golf tournament attracted more than 100 golfers on Sunday to Kauai Lagoons Golf Club.
Ellen Ching, Easter Seals Hawaii Kauai branch director, said the tournament was a success.
“We weren’t sold out on golfers, but with more than a hundred registered, it was a good event,” Ching said. “On top of that, with the final push Friday night at the Kukui Grove Center, we distributed more than a thousand golf balls for the golf ball drop. That’s a lot more than last year, our inaugural golf ball drop.”
The tournament serves as a fundraiser for the Easter Seals, Kauai branch which offers services for children and adults with disabilities and other special needs through three locations on the island.
This year, Easter Seals got help from the Kukui Grove Center and Mokihana Travel Service in being centers where people could acquire golf balls for a donation.
The golf ball drop is a unique feature of the Easter Seals golf tournament where, with the help of Jack Harter Helicopters, golf balls rain down over a designated hole on the course with the top three holders of golf balls dropping into the hole earning premiums.
Casey Riemer, general manager for Jack Harter Helicopters, supervised the event, which served as a warmup for the shotgun start, guiding the helicopter into position for several sweeps over the hole.
“They had a hard time last year, the first time they did it,” said a Kauai Lagoons Golf Club grounds crew who took time out to witness the flyover. “This year, we created a target so the pilot would have an easier time judging where the hole is.”
Tiarre Horner was the holder of the first ball to drop into the hole, earning a Las Vegas trip. Ed Nilson was the recipient of the Kukui Grove shopping spree and Aiko Nakaya held the ball that earned a jewelry shopping spree.
On the course, Glenn Nakamoto in the A Flight, Adam Sagon in the B Flight and Stella Bumacod of the Women’s Flight earned Closest to the Pin honors at the Mauka 5 hole.
At the Mauls 8, Roven Poai of the A Flight, Sydney Murayama of the B Flight and Rachel Watarai of the Women’s Flight were the closest.
Craig Watanabe of the A Flight, Chris Blanchard, the president and CEO of Easter Seals Hawaii, of the B Flight and Amy Stewart of the Women’s Flight came closest at the Moana 5 hole.
Dwight Fujii of the A Flight, Tom Shigemoto of the B Flight and Claire Morishige of the Women’s Flight came closest at the Moana 8 hole.
The duo of Pat Mitchell and George Cotton topped the team winners with David Harjo and Roger Cable getting honors for its ninth place finish. Sharron Weber and Amy Stewart got the nod for 18th place, and the pair of Duane Girard and Steve Crago filled in 29th place in honor of the golf tournament’s 29th anniversary.
