HARRY Nakamura shot two birdies to recover from his two bogeys and captured the Championship Flight title of the Rotary Club of Saipan’s Goodwill Golf Classic at the Coral Ocean Golf Resort on Saturday.
The hard-hitting golfer performed well on the front nine with at-par shots except for the bogey on the 440-yard Hole No. 2. He completed the first half of the tournament with a birdie on Hole 9 to shoot 36.
On the back nine, he made up for his bogey shot on Hole 13 with a birdie on Hole 17.
Nakamura finished three strokes ahead of Franco Santos and Feng Chung Jin who each shot 78 to take second and third places while Fred Cataluna settled for fourth place with a score of 79.
Jay Muna’s birdies on Holes 9 and 12 handed him the A Flight title with a score of 77, edging Ned Norita in a scorecard playoff. Norita also shot 77 with birdies on Holes 4 and 18 to finish second.
Placing third was Ben Jones Jr. who birdied on Hole No. 18 and scored 79 while Joshua Atalig, one of the youngest participants, eagled on Hole No. 16 and had two birdies. But his triple bogey on Hole 10 and double bogey on Hole 1 dragged his score to 81, good enough for fourth place.
In the B Flight category, Darion Jones notched 12 at-par shots to finish first with a score of 79.
Ben Pelisamen shot 81 to take second place, a stroke away from Carl Hocog who shot 82 for third place. Domingo Atalig was fourth with an 87.
For his part, Joe Kamikaze Camacho chipped into the green 63 inches away from the Hole 3 flag to bag the closest to the pin award.
The other awardees were Zhin Yun Li who was 103 inches away from No. 7; Joseph Muna, 39 inches from No. 12; and Nick Sablan, 56 inches from Hole No. 14.
Joey “Kazu” Dela Cruz hit the accurate drive on Hole 6 while Tars Olopai reigned on Hole 17.
Harry Nakamura thanked the Rotary Club for hosting a “wonderful golfing” event that complied with the Covid-19 safety rules.
Rotary Club of Saipan’s Goodwill Golf Classic champion Harry Nakamura, third left, flashes the hang-loose sign as he, second and third placers Franco Santos and Feng Chung Jin pose for a photo with Rotarians during the awards banquet at Saipan World Resort on Saturday.
