Island Air to connect Hilo-Kona

KPUA.net - KPUA Hawaii News

Island Air to connect Hilo-Kona

By Associated Press

HONOLULU (AP) _ Island Air is planning to launch daily service next month connecting the East and West sides of the Big Island.

The carrier says it will begin flying the 21-minute route between Hilo and Kona on January tenth. Tickets will be priced at 20 dollars each way.

Les Murashige, a vice president at Island Air, says he's confident there is solid demand for the service considering the soaring cost of fuel and hassle of driving the 90-mile route, which normally takes about two and a half hours.

He says the new route should appeal to the growing number of Big Island residents who live in Hilo and work in Kona, as well as tourists who want to fly directly to the mainland from Kona.

The new route is scheduled to depart Hilo at 8 a-m and return from Kona at 5:10 p-m.

In addition to the Hilo-Kona service, Island Air is adding daily service between Kona and Lihue on Kauai.

Former Kauai Man Killed In Tsunami

TheHawaiiChannel - KITV 4 News

Former Kauai Man Killed In Tsunami

Former Garden Isle Taxi Company Owner Moved To Thailand

HONOLULU -- A former Kauai resident is confirmed among the dead in Thailand. The 58-year-old man was among thousands killed in a series of tsunamis to hit South Asia and parts of eastern Africa.

David Sammann was living in a village north of Phuket, Thailand, called Khao Loc, when the tsunami hit.

Sammann spent many years of his life on Kauai. He owned a taxi company on the Garden Isle before marrying a Thai woman and moving to Phuket about four years ago.

"The embassy did call us. I guess it was the embassy in Bangkok. They called us about 1 o'clock," Sammann's stepmother, Betty Sammann, said. "His dad answered the telephone and they told him that his son was found. We knew they were looking for him and they said they had found his son."

Betty Sammann said as soon as she got word of the tsunami hitting Thailand she knew her stepson would somehow be affected.

"We knew where he was and at. We knew he was in the middle of it in Phuket," Betty Sammann said.

He was about two weeks away from finishing his new home before he was killed.

An underwater earthquake registering 9.0 on the Richter scale caused the series of massive tidal waves. The tsunamis killed people in 11 countries from Asia to Africa. Sri Lanka is where most of the deaths are recorded.

The Sammann family said David was very close to his parents and two brothers. His family last saw him in April when he brought his wife and daughter to California. David's stepmother said even though David lived thousands of miles away from home, he never let the distance keep him from staying in touch.

"He called just about every week to 10 days to say hi and if we were okay," Betty Sammann said.

David Sammann is survived by his parents, two brothers, a wife and 5-year-old daughter.

Let American Airlines Help With Bouts of Cabin Fever This Winter ... Try Some Great Low Fares to Hawaii

Try Some Great Low Fares to Hawaii
Press Release Source: American Airlines

Let American Airlines Help With Bouts of Cabin Fever This Winter ... Try Some Great Low Fares to Hawaii

Monday December 20, 3:44 pm ET

FORT WORTH, Texas, Dec. 20 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Scientists may have yet to find a cure for the common cold, but another winter malady -- cabin fever -- is more easily handled. Just take plenty of warm sunshine while leisurely lying on a beautiful beach in Hawaii.
American Airlines can help fill your prescription this winter with great low fares for travel between the continental U.S. and Hawaii -- and we won't even require proof of insurance to get big savings!

American flies to four destinations in the Hawaiian Islands, including Honolulu, Oahu; Kahului, Maui; Lihue, Kauai; and Kona on the big island of Hawaii. A fifth destination -- Hilo on the island of Hawaii -- is served by codeshare partner, Hawaiian Airlines. All five destinations are now on sale.

The Hawaii sale fares are effective for travel Jan. 5 through March 15, 2005. Tickets must be purchased no later than Jan. 6, 2005. Other restrictions apply. For complete rules and restrictions, see the terms and conditions below, or visit American's AA.com® Web site.

Here are samples of American's great low fares to -- or from -- Hawaii. Fare amounts shown are round trip, available on AA.com, and are effective for travel Monday through Thursday. Slightly higher fares apply for travel other days of the week.

HAWAII FARE SALE
Round-Trip Fare
City Pair Available on AA.com*
Atlanta - Honolulu $518
Boston - Maui $531
Charlotte - Honolulu $518
Chicago O'Hare - Honolulu $518
Chicago O'Hare - Maui $546
Dallas/Fort Worth - Honolulu $504
Dallas/Fort Worth - Maui $546
Los Angeles - Honolulu $368
Los Angeles - Maui $410
Los Angeles - Kona $389
Los Angeles - Lihue $389
New York LaGuardia - Maui $531
San Francisco - Honolulu $347
San Francisco - Maui $389
San Jose, Calif. - Honolulu $347
San Jose, Calif. - Maui $389


* Fares shown are for round-trip off-peak Economy Class travel purchased
on AA.com, and are in U.S. dollars. Fares do not include government-
imposed taxes and fees.


In addition to great low fares and an extensive route network, customers on American also have the opportunity to earn and redeem AAdvantage® travel reward miles -- all of which combine to make travel on American an exceptional value.

Travelers can check schedules and fares and book flights by visiting AA.com. Bookings made on AA.com earn up to 1,000 AAdvantage bonus miles. For an additional $5 per ticket, travel arrangements can also be made by calling American's reservations number at 1-800-433-7300 (en Espanol 1-800-633-3711) within the United States and Canada. Outside the United States and Canada, call the local reservations number. For an additional $10 per ticket, travel arrangements can be made at an American Airlines Travel Center or Airport Ticket Office.

Customers on American will find exceptional service both on the ground and in the air. In addition, First or Business Class seating is available throughout American's fleet. Also available on most of the fleet are large overhead storage bins that allow carry-on luggage to be stored "wheels first", creating more overall storage space and making it easier to stow and remove bags.

For those who like to "stay connected" during their trip, powerports are located at each seat in the First or Business Class cabins and are conveniently placed throughout the coach cabins on most of American's aircraft, so passengers can work en route, operate their own CD or DVD players, or even recharge cell phones.

American also has a number of exciting vacation packages to Hawaii available through AmericanAirlines Vacations(SM). To contact AA Vacations, call 1-800-321-2121, or visit AAVacations.com.

Terms and Conditions
Fares shown are for round-trip Economy-Class travel purchased on AA.com, and are in U.S. dollars. Fares shown are valid for travel Monday through Thursday; other travel days are available at additional cost. Fares are subject to change without notice.

Fares do not include (a) a federal excise tax of $3.20 per U.S. domestic flight segment, defined as one takeoff and landing, of a passenger's itinerary; (b) up to $18 per round trip in local airport charges; and (c) September 11th Security Fee of $2.50 per enplanement originating at a U.S. airport, up to $5 per one way or $10 per round trip.

Tickets must be purchased at least seven days prior to departure, within 24 hours of making reservations, or by 11:59 p.m., Jan. 6, 2005, (Central Time), whichever comes first.

Fares are valid for travel Jan. 5 through March 15, 2005. A three-day minimum stay is required and a 60-day maximum stay is allowed.

Advertised fares are valid only on American Airlines, American Eagle, and AmericanConnection® carriers and do not apply to other codeshare flights, except Hawaiian Airlines flights to Hilo or select Alaska Airlines flights to/on the West Coast. Seats are limited. Fares may not be available on all flights. Schedules are subject to change without notice.

Fares are nonrefundable and nontransferable. Changes to your ticket may be made if you meet the restrictions of the new fare and pay up to a $100 change fee plus any fare difference. Changes must be made before your flight departs. When ticketed flights are canceled prior to departure time, the ticket will be valid for one year from the date of issue on an unused ticket or one year from travel origination on a partially used ticket. If you do not cancel your flight before departure time, the ticket has no value.

A portion or all travel may be operated by American Eagle, American's regional airline affiliate, or by AmericanConnection® service carriers (Chautauqua Airlines, Corporate Airlines, or Trans States Airlines), or by our codeshare partner, Alaska Airlines. Flights to Hilo operated by Hawaiian Airlines. American Airlines, AmericanAirlines Vacations, AA Vacations, AA.com, AAdvantage, American Eagle and AmericanConnection are trademarks of American Airlines, Inc. American Airlines reserves the right to change the AAdvantage program at any time without notice and to end the AAdvantage program with six months' notice.

Tickets may also be obtained through an American Airlines Telephone Reservations Office for an additional $5, or at an American Airlines Travel Center or Airport Ticket Office for an additional $10.

To purchase tickets on AA.com you must use a credit card with a billing address in the United States, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, Canada, the United Kingdom, or select Latin American and Caribbean countries. If electronic ticketing is available but the passenger requests a paper ticket, a fee of $50 per passenger applies, except for passengers with a billing address in the United Kingdom. If the FedEx delivery option is selected for tickets issued more than eight days prior to the date of travel, a $25 fee per reservation will be assessed.

About American Airlines

American Airlines is the world's largest carrier. American, American Eagle and the AmericanConnection® regional carriers serve more than 250 cities in over 40 countries with more than 3,800 daily flights. The combined network fleet numbers more than 1,000 aircraft. American's award- winning Web site, AA.com, provides users with easy access to check and book fares, plus personalized news, information and travel offers. American Airlines is a founding member of the oneworld Alliance, which brings together some of the best and biggest names in the airline business, enabling them to offer their customers more services and benefits than any airline can provide on its own. Together, its members serve more than 575 destinations in 135 countries and territories. American Airlines and American Eagle are units of the AMR Corporation (NYSE: AMR - News).

AmericanAirlines, American Eagle, AmericanConnection, AA.com, AAdvantage and Net SAAvers & Special Offers are marks of American Airlines, Inc.

AmericanAirlines(R) We know why you fly(SM)
Current AMR Corp. releases can be accessed via the Internet.
The address is http://www.aa.com

DUDLEY CHILD / 1931-2004

Honolulu Star-Bulletin News /2004/12/21/

DUDLEY CHILD / 1931-2004

Resort founder
boosted neighbor isles
More obituaries

By Rod Thompson
rthompson@starbulletin.com
Walter D. "Dudley" Child Jr., a resort executive whose Inter-Island Resort Corp. fostered the growth of neighbor island tourism as Hawaii grew with statehood, died Sunday at his Waimea home on the Big Island. He was 73.

Although Inter-Island was dissolved in the 1980s, its many hotels remain, such as the four "Surf" resorts on Kauai and Maui and in Kona and Hilo.

"He was also a very gentle businessman," said marketing company owner Priscilla Texeira. "He championed giving local folks management positions."

Describing herself as "a little girl who started out in the cane fields" on Kauai, Texeira said that Child allowed her to rise to the position of sales director for the company. Others used management skills learned with Inter-Island to become government leaders, she said.

Besides growing his company, Child recognized the need for public facilities to grow, said former Inter-island executive Bill Mielke. Child ensured that Mielke had time in the 1960s to work on the creation of the airport at Keahole, North Kona, and development of Queen Kaahumanu Highway, now the gateway to most West Hawaii resorts.

Child's father, Walter Sr., had entered the hotel business by buying the Blaisdell Hotel in downtown Honolulu in the 1930s. Child attended Cornell University in New York in the 1950s but returned to run the company after his father had a stroke, said Rep. Bob Herkes, a former company executive.

In 1960 the company opened the Kona Surf, so opulent that it was the first neighbor island hotel to have an elevator, Herkes said. It was so large for its day, 104 rooms, that Child worried about whether the DC-3 interisland airplanes could carry enough guests.

While Child developed the five-star Surf resorts, he also pioneered the budget-priced Interisland Inns, said Richard Kelley, whose Outrigger resorts focused on Waikiki while Child concentrated on the neighbor islands.

Child enjoyed a range of activities outside of business. He was a pole-vaulter at Punahou, said Star-Bulletin columnist Ben Wood, who attended Lincoln (Elementary) School with him.

Herkes remembers hunting and fishing with Child, who also liked to ride a motorcycle, sail with his family and pilot his own plane.

"He was a great family man," Kelley said.

Child is survived by wife Mary Lou, five children and several grandchildren. Services are pending.

High Surf Rolls In To State

TheHawaiiChannel - Weather Watch 4 - Forecasters Predict Rainy Christmas: "Forecasters Predict Rainy Christmas

High Surf Rolls In To State

Brent Suyama, Managing Editor TheHawaiiChannel.com
POSTED: 9:03 am HST December 21, 2004
HONOLULU -- The National Weather Service has forecasted rain to drop over the islands through the Christmas holiday and into next week.

The rains are associated with a large low-pressure system to the north. The system is bringing rain. Forecasters say that the system is bringing unstable weather.
Residents and motorists got a taste of the rains Tuesday morning. There were pockets of heavy downpours that slowed down traffic during the morning rush hour.
A high-surf warning is in effect for the north- and west-facing shores of Oahu and Kauai. The alert is also in effect for all west-facing shores except Molokai; a high-surf advisory is in place for the north shores of Molokai and Maui.
High surf is also pounding the state's north and west shores. Waves up to 25 feet have been recorded Tuesday morning. The waves are predicted to reach at least 35 feet by Tuesday afternoon.
Surf is expected to remain high through Thursday night. "

Resort founder Dudley Child dies

KPUA.net - KPUA Hawaii News

Resort founder Dudley Child dies

By 67AM KPUA News

(Waimea-KPUA.net) -- Walter D. 'Dudley' Child Jr., a resort executive whose Inter-Island Resort Corp. fostered the growth of neighbor island tourism as Hawaii grew with statehood, died Sunday at his Kamuela home. He was 73.

Although Inter-Island was dissolved in the 1980s, its many hotels remain, such as the four former 'Surf' resorts on Kauai and Maui and in Kona and Hilo.

Child is survived by wife Mary Lou, five children and several grandchildren. Services are pending. "

Andy Irons clinches the O'Neill World Cup of Surfing jewel

Surfing News & Contests, Surf Reports & Forecasts

Andy Irons clinches the O'Neill World Cup of Surfing jewel

O’Neill World Cup of Surfing

ASP 6 Star WQS Mens Event
Sunset Beach, Oahu, Hawaii
26 November - 7 December 2004

Day 8: Andy Irons clinches elusive jewel at O'Neill World Cup of Surfing.
Patacchia and Reyes Qualify for 2005 World Championship Tour.

Surfersvillage Global Surf News, 03 December 2004: - - Three-time world champion Andy Irons (Kauai) today clinched the one jewel of the Vans Triple Crown of Surfing that has eluded him for five years, rounding out a sensational season by winning the 30th annual O'Neill World Cup of Surfing at Sunset Beach. Joining an illustrious list of legendary past winners that was in the making before he was born, 26-year-old Irons is now back on track for a third consecutive Vans Triple Crown of Surfing Series title.

The 35-minute final featured a four-man lineup of past, present and future surfing champions with Irons pitted against 22-year-old North Shore local Fred Patacchia Jr., 23-year-old Joel Parkinson (Australia), and pro surfing's veteran Mark Occhilupo (Australia), 38. But age had nothing to do with the quality of surfing on offer as all four surfers closely matched each others scores through three rounds of competition today en-route to the final.

Scores remained tight for the first half of the final, but Irons hit a strong rhythm at the half-way point to steal away with the lead. His score of 16.17 points out of 20 for his best two rides earned him $15,000. Second place was Occhilupo (13.8 points and $8,000), third was Patacchia (12.87 points for $6,000), and fourth was Joel Parkinson (10.5 points and $4,000).

"I've gotten second here before," said Irons. "I knew I'd have to play it smart against those guys."

After a shocking first round loss in the first event two weeks ago, the Vans Hawaiian Pro at Haleiwa, Irons had written off the likelihood of regrouping his results to be able to challenge Series leader Sunny Garcia (Hawaii). But his win today takes him within 150 points of Garcia, who dropped to second on the Triple Crown ratings after losing in one round prior to the quarter finals this-morning. Australian Phillip MacDonald, runner-up at Haleiwa and semi-finalist today, has taken a 122 point lead on the Series. MacDonald sits on 1764 Triple Crown points, Garcia has 1632, and Irons 1488 points.

"This is such a prestigious spot," continued Irons. "To have a win here is very special. I'm really bummed now that I did bad at Haleiwa. I'm fiending for (the Triple Crown title). But I think Sunny's going to have to have the wheels fall off for me to beat him."

With a smaller than usual winter swell on offer today, just 4-6 foot faces, two distinctly different styles of surfing emerged between the regular foot surfers (those who ride facing the wave) and the goofy-footers (those who surf with their back to the wave). In the final, goofy-footers Occhilupo and Patacchia amassed large numbers of maneuvers with their tight, driving top-to-bottom turns, while regular-footers Irons and Parkinson honed into every possible tubing ride to counter the scores. Ironically, it was a rare left-breaking wave that offered Irons a high-scoring back-side tube ride that turned the tables in the heat - the best ride of the final at 8.67 points out of a possible 10. Association of Surfing Professionals (A.S.P.) Head Judge Perry Hatchett called the wave the highest scoring left ever ridden at Sunset during Triple Crown competition.


Marc Occhilupo : photo Carol Cunningham/Cunninghamphotos.com

"I think it looked like I was a little deeper than it really was," Irons said of the left. "But I'll take it and I'll run with it."

Second placed Occhilupo won over another generation of surfing spectators with a youthful, effervescent string of heats today. By far the heaviest surfer in the final and the oldest surfer in the event, Occhilupo didn't miss a beat and surfed with the same speed, flair and enthusiasm as his far younger rivals.

Third placed Patacchia received as huge a welcome as Irons upon his return to shore, securing a berth on the A.S.P.'s elite World Championship Tour (W.C.T.) for 2005 with his performance today. His promotion to the top ranks of pro surfing was four years in the making and came as a huge relief and motivation to the Haleiwa surfer.

"The dream first started in high school, but it's definitely been strong the last four years," said Patacchia. "The second I made the quarters, I felt a lot better. By the final, my thought was, You're job's done.

"I always love surfing events out here. Some guys would kill just to shake these guys hands and I got to muck around with them out there."


photo Carol Cunningham/Cunninghamphotos.com

As the final World Qualifying Series (W.Q.S.) event of the 2004 A.S.P. World Tour, the O'Neill World Cup of Surfing played a major hand in deciding the lineup for next year's W.C.T. tour. Along with Patacchia, Californian Tim Reyes, 22, (Huntington Beach) qualified for the W.C.T. tour today. While the performance of W.C.T. surfers at Pipeline will cast the final dice, W.Q.S. qualifiers currently include the top 20 W.Q.S. ranked surfers, with Brazil's Bernardo Pigmeu the last at this point, rated 20th (see WQS rankings www.worldtour.com)

Reyes, an O'Neill team rider, had his greatest day in pro surfing today, posting the highest heat score of the entire competition in the quarter finals, 18.07 points out of a possible 20, before losing in the semi-finals to Occhilupo and Irons. His 5th place finish overall was enough to earn him the 2004 Nose Guard Rookie of the Year award, that goes to the best newcomer to the Triple Crown.

The Vans Triple Crown of Surfing next moves to Pipeline for the third and final men's event, the Rip Curl Pro Pipeline Masters - the final W.C.T. event of the year. The holding period begins Wednesday, December 8, and runs through the 20th. The second and final event of the women's Triple Crown Series, the Billabong Pro Maui, runs through the same period as Pipeline.

FINAL:
1st=$15,000, 2nd=$8,000, 3rd=$6,000, 4th=$4,000
1st. Andy Irons (Hawaii) 16.17
2nd. Mark Occhilupo (Australia) 13.8
3rd. Fred Patacchia (Hawaii) 12.87
4th. Joel Parkinson (Australia) 10.5

Semi Finals:
1st & 2nd to final. 3rd=5th, 4th=7th
H1: Mark Occhilupo (Aus) 15.73; Andy Irons (Haw) 15.33; Tim Reyes (USA) 14.13; Nathan Carroll (Haw) 10.16
H2: Joel Parkinson (Aus) 17.53; Fred Patacchia (Haw) 14.16; Phillip MacDonald (Aus) 12.2; Cory Lopez (USA) 12.17

Quarter Finals:
1st & 2nd to Semi Finals. 3rd=9th, 4th=13th
H1: Tim Reyes (USA) 18.07; Nathan Carroll (Haw) 12.17; Michael Lowe (Aus) 11.07; Kalani Robb (Haw) 9.77
H2: Andy Irons (Haw) 14.17; Mark Occhilupo (Aus) 13.43; Daniel Jones (Aus) 10.0; Renan Rocha (Brz) 8.74
H3: Fred Patacchia (Haw) 16.1; Phillip MacDonald (Aus) 15.33; Neco Padaratz (Brz) 13.83; Kelly Slater (USA) 12.36
H4: Joel Parkinson (Aus) 13.07; Cory Lopez (USA) 12.83; Leonardo Neves (Brz) 9.67; Raoni Monteiro (Brz) 9.43

Round 5
1st & 2nd to Quarter Finals. 3rd-17th, 4th-25th
H1: Kalani Robb (Haw) 15.0; Tim Reyes (USA) 11.93; Marcus Hickman (Haw) 10.83; CJ Hobgood (USA) 7.2
H2: Nathan Carroll (Haw) 12.53; Michael Lowe (Aus) 11.34; Paulo Maura (Brz) 10.0; Sunny Garcia (Haw) 9.77
H3: Renan Rocha (Brz) 13.43; Mark Occhilupo (Aus) 11.5; Pablo Gutierrez (BRz) 8.23; Ben Bourgeois (USA) 6.73
H4: Daniel Jones (Haw) 13.77; Andy Irons (Haw) 13.56; Greg Emslie (SAfr) 11.67; Fabio Gouveia (Brz) 8.53
H5: Kelly Slater (USA) 15.84; Neco Padaratz (Brz) 13.23; Pancho Sullivan (Haw) 11.16; Chris Ward (USA) 10.07
H6: Fred Patacchia (Haw) 13.0; Phillip MacDonald (Aus) 11.5; Ian Walsh (Maui) 9.66; Masatoshi Ohno (Jpn) 3.6
H7: Cory Lopez (USA) 14.17; Leonardo Neves (Brz) 12.5; Daniel Ross (Aus) 12.27; Brian Pacheco (Haw) 12.0
H8: Raoni Monteiro (Brz) 13.17; Joel Parkinson (Aus) 12.5; Bruce Irons (Haw) 9.57; Kieren Perrow (Aus) 3.17





Joel Parkinson : photo Carol Cunningham/Cunninghamphotos.com

WQS rankings
After event #40 O'Neill World Cup,Sunset Beach,Oahu-Hawaii
1 Padaratz,Neco BRA 11785
2 MacDonald,Phillip AUS 10728
3 Stedman,Luke AUS 10322
4 Emslie,Greg ZAF 10206
5 Monteiro,Raoni BRA 9853
6 Reyes,Tim USA 9536
7 Ward,Chris USA 9518
8 Patacchia,Frederick HAW 9413
9 Lovett,Richard AUS 9396
10 Martin,Toby AUS 9213
11 Logie,Travis ZAF 9185
12 Brooks,Troy AUS 8990
13 Munro,Trent AUS 8908
14 Durbidge,Bede AUS 8820
15 Flintoff,Kirk AUS 8788
16 Moura,Paulo BRA 8781
17 Nunes,Marcelo BRA 8715
18 Rocha,Renan BRA 8493
19 Whitaker,Tom AUS 7931
20 Pigmeu,Bernardo BRA 7876
21 Daltro,Armando BRA 7840
22 O'Rafferty,Darren AUS 7806
23 Bourgeois,Ben USA 7790
23 Irons,Andy HAW 7790
25 Rebiere,Eric FRA 7778
26 Lopez,Cory USA 7719
27 Powers,Roy HAW 7600
28 Webster,Nathan AUS 7575
29 Davidson,Chris AUS 7566
30 Pires,Tiago PRT 7515
31 Buchan,Adrian AUS 7418
32 Costa,Danilo BRA 7243
33 Rosa,Peterson BRA 7225
34 Dornelles,Rodrigo BRA 7090
35 Howse,Jarrad AUS 6908
36 Gouveia,Fabio BRA 6848
37 Cansdell,Shaun AUS 6745
38 Ribas,Victor BRA 6685
39 Herdy,Guilherme BRA 6678
40 Acero,Eneko ESP 6630
41 Winter,Russell GBR 6485
42 Neves,Leonardo BRA 6445
43 Trekinho,Marcelo BRA 6340
44 Burrow,Taj AUS 6320
45 Souza,Adriano de BRA 6252
46 Weare,David ZAF 6165
47 Harrison,Zane AUS 6085
48 Hobgood,Damien USA 6073
49 Hall,Glenn AUS 6010
50 Otton,Kai AUS 5960

Magic Mickelson fires 59 in Kauai

BBC SPORT | Golf | Magic Mickelson fires 59 in Kauai

Magic Mickelson fires 59 in Kauai

FINAL LEADERBOARD

-17 Phil Mickelson (US) 68 59
-12 Vijay Singh (Fij) 66 66
-11 Retief Goosen (SA) 65 68
+1 Todd Hamilton (US) 70 75

Phil Mickelson missed a putt for a 58 but tapped in for 59 - the best score in professional strokeplay history - to win the Grand Slam of Golf in Hawaii.
The Masters champion went out in 28 and bagged 11 birdies and one eagle to finish on 17 under for 36 holes.

Fiji's USPGA champion Vijay Singh, the world number one, was second on 12 under with South Africa's US Open winner Retief Goosen on 11 under.

Open champion Todd Hamilton carded a final-round 75 for one over in Kauai.

Mickelson had a 10-foot eagle putt on the 18th hole for an unprecedented 58 but the putt curved just left of the cup.

His 17-under total matched Tiger Woods' record score in the annual showdown for the winners of the year's four majors, and earned the left-handed Californian a first prize of $400,000.

The world number five's previous career low round was a 61 at the Greater Hartford Open in Connecticut in 2001.

The 34-year-old Mickelson admitted: "It feels like a fluke because I wasn't really that sharp, it just kind of all came together.

After about the 12th hole we were just watching him

Vijay Singh
"I felt like this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and I was glad when that last putt went in.

"When I made the putt on 16, I knew what was going on and I was really excited because I knew 18 was a birdie hole."

However, Mickelson added that he was not overly concerned with missing out on a 58.

He said: "To me, there's not much difference between a 58 and 59.

"But there's a huge difference between 59 and 60 - I just wanted to make sure I only two-putted the 18th."

Singh, the world number one, said: "After about the 12th hole we were just watching him."

Only three other players have fired 59 on the PGA Tour - Al Geiberger in 1977, Chip Beck in 1991 and David Duval at the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic in 1999.

Sweden's Annika Sorenstam, the world's number one female golfer, shot 59 in the second round of the 2001 Standard Register on the LPGA Tour.

Research targets hurricane control

Research targets hurricane control

Research targets hurricane control

Monday, November 29, 2004

When Hurricane Frances and her 105 mph winds were slowly moving across our area on that scary, noisy Saturday night in early September, I was at the TV station talking on the phone. Actually, I was talking to dozens and dozens of people on the phone, many of whom were holed up in their safe room as Frances made landfall.

The electricity was out, but cell phones and battery-operated radios were working fine so we used both to keep folks up-to-date on the hurricane. In between describing the movement of the storm on radar and reporting the latest wind gusts, I took phone calls from viewers (actually listeners at that point) from across the area.

Some people were scared, others were curious about the location of the storm while still others asked me questions. One of the most common was a question I hear quite often: Why can't we make hurricanes go away?

The answer is pretty simple: a hurricane is so large and so powerful that no current technology would have any impact on it.

"When Hurricane Andrew struck South Florida in 1992, the eye and eyewall devastated a swath 20 miles wide," writes Dr. Chris Landsea on the Hurricane Research Division's Web site. "The heat energy released around the eye was 5,000 times the combined heat and electrical power generation of the Turkey Point nuclear power plant over which the eye passed."

Dr. Landsea concludes that perhaps sometime in the future, "when men and women can travel at nearly the speed of light to the stars," we may have the technology to affect a hurricane.

Ross Hoffman thinks that future is closer than one might realize. "Our research shows that modifying hurricanes could be possible one day," said Hoffman, the lead scientist with Atmospheric and Environmental Research Inc.

For the past couple of years, Hoffman and his team have been working on ways to weaken or redirect hurricanes. And he's had some success, at least with computer simulations of hurricanes Iniki and Andrew, two storms from 1992.

For Hurricane Iniki, which produced widespread damage on the Hawaiian island of Kauai, Hoffman changed conditions inside the storm (temperature and humidity), which turned the hurricane away from the island.

For Hurricane Andrew, which produced $26 billion in damages in southern Florida, Hoffman was able to reduce the storm's intensity from a Category 5 to a Category 1. Again, all of this was done using computer simulations.

Hoffman thinks any applications of his theories in the real world are still decades away. Still, he's convinced some day he will be able to weaken or change the course of a hurricane.

Hoffman believes that, in the not too distant future, satellites in orbit around the Earth will transmit microwave beams at hurricanes that will alter cloud temperatures, reduce the storm's moisture content and increase evaporation rates. All of that, he says, will weaken a storm or change its future track.

NASA thinks he may be on to something. The space agency is funding Hoffman's work with a $500,000 grant.

Perhaps some day Hoffman's theories will pan out and coastal residents won't have to worry about tropical storms and hurricanes. Perhaps some day we won't have to go through another long, scary noisy night with a hurricane.

Ferry unlikely to add more cars on Neighbor Islands

KPUA.net - KPUA Hawaii News: "

Ferry unlikely to add more cars on Neighbor Islands

By Associated Press

HONOLULU (AP) _ The head of Hawaii Superferry says the proposed interisland ferry is unlikely likely to bring Honolulu's traffic problem to the Neighbor Islands.

John Garibaldi of Hawaii Superferry says the ferry is likely to take as many cars to Oahu as it takes to the Neighbor Islands.

During public hearings last month, residents on Maui, Kauai and the Big Island expressed concern that the ferry would bring hundreds of cars and other urban problems to their rural islands.

Garibaldi says his company plans to work with community leaders to find ways to deal with traffic and other concerns before the ferry service starts in late 2006 or early 2007.

Hawaii Superferry is awaiting final approval from the state Public Utilities Commission. Roundtrip passenger fares are expected to cost between 42 dollars and 65 dollars per person.


(Copyright 2004 by the Associated Press. All rights reserved.) "